 Rebecca, accordingly, was itching. She itched to be working on something personal, something fun. She itched to escape the frustrating development cycle surrounding video games, and she itched to have more creative control over what she was doing. The worst part of all this itching was the fact that there was really nothing wrong with what Rebecca was already doing. She had a fantastic job at a comfortable game development studio and was in the very enviable position of making video games for a living. By all rights, this should be all she should need out of life. So why did she constantly feel like trapped in this traditionally structured studio? She was missing out. Rebecca had been told again and again by colleagues that the frustrations she felt were a necessary evil of the gaming industry. No developer can produce an entire game alone in a bubble, and they all needed to rely on each other to produce something truly impressive. This, everyone reminded Rebecca, meant suffering through choppy development cycles, cooperating with other people, making compromises, and ultimately losing a little autonomy and freedom in order to produce a game that actually works. There is no other option, Rebecca was told, and for a while she believed it. But then, Stardew Valley was released, and everything Rebecca thought she knew about games development was instantly flipped on its head. Rebecca accordingly had never really set out to become a video game developer. She'd always loved games, but hadn't thought that she had the skills necessary to develop anything herself. Instead, she prized her skills as an artist and set out to become a graphic designer. After a lot of study and practice, she found herself working at a design agency, tasked with making fun, eye-catching visual art that would draw people's attention. As she experimented and worked on various projects, Rebecca quickly gained an appreciation for making interactive media and various design projects that people could enter their own inputs into. It was from here that the initial seed of desire to develop games started to grow within Rebecca's heart. Carefully, Rebecca sidestepped into a job as art director for Shell Games, working on a variety of tasks, some of which used her existing skills, like producing marketing materials for games, and others which pushed her to learn new things, such as localising games, or producing mobile ports of existing titles. This was a period of great personal development for Rebecca, as for the first time, she began to peek behind the curtain and learn how to code games herself. Shell Games was a relatively small studio, so she often got the chance to observe and work with various team members who were working on every aspect of game design. As enjoyable as this was, though, Rebecca couldn't help but feel she wanted the chance to make something all her own. She liked the idea of producing something that explored her own, very personal message about life, which reflected her interests. Her preferred art style, and her own way of thinking. Essentially, Rebecca wanted to make a game that would be the perfect kind of thing she'd want to play. Then, one day, as she mused on this, Rebecca came across Stardew Valley, Eric Barone's unexpected hit farming simulator. There was so much in this game to love, from its rich world and colourful characters to its charming gameplay and simple earnest design. Perhaps the most impressive thing of all, though, was the fact that this entire game had been developed by just one person. Rebecca was amazed to hear the story of Eric Barone, who had spent four long years working in isolation to produce something that was all his own. So it was possible, after all, Rebecca could make her own perfect game. If Eric could achieve this, sure she could as well. This idea wouldn't leave Rebecca alone. She could do it. She could really do it if only she had the guts. Slowly, she began to build up the courage needed to quit her job at Shell Games and to launch herself into the unknown. Rebecca wasn't entirely alone in all this. Her husband, Ben Wasser, was there beside her, and could see how much this meant to her. He had faith in Rebecca's abilities as an artist and a programmer, but he was willing to throw his weight behind supporting her in this risky endeavour. And so, Rebecca quit her job. This was it. Goodbye Shell Games and Hello Uncertainty. So what was next? Rebecca brainstormed some ideas for games alongside Ben. They found themselves with two big frontrunners. One, a game they titled Moblets, would be a game that drew inspiration from Stardew Valley and Harvest Moon, as well as from Pokemon. The player could collect and raise adorable tiny creatures, work on a farm to provide them with food to help them to grow, and battle them against other people within the game. This all seemed wonderful, but it was just too big of an idea. Rebecca was aware that she needed to pace herself and create a project that wouldn't overstretch the abilities of a one-person studio. The other idea was IT Simulator. And this seemed like a better avenue for Rebecca to devote her time. The game would be set in a typical office environment with various computer problems and wacky scenarios for the player to explore. Things would catch fire, people would dance, and the entire experience would be an absurd parody of office life. Rebecca had to admit that she'd never really worked in an IT company before, but she hoped that this lack of experience would mean she'd be able to bring some originality to the project. And so, Rebecca set to work. In keeping with her plan to make something on her own terms, she ignored the standard game development process and dove straight into artwork and character models. While most developers make sure that the game has a solid foundation first, Rebecca wanted to make something beautiful and eye-catching so that people viewing her work would instantly understand where she was going with her game. The point of the IT Simulator was to make something that people would find funny, so if she worked on the game mechanics first and neglected the artwork, her game wouldn't have the right focus. Rebecca worked day and night on her project. Ben would join her in the evenings, helping out where needed, and after a few months of work, IT Simulator began to take shape. There was just one problem. This was a small indie game, and it would need to rely on word-of-mouth throughout development in order to gain momentum. But nobody really seemed all that interested in an IT Simulator. Maybe it was the setting? Or something surrounding gameplay? But this just didn't seem like a game that people were interested in. With frustration, Rebecca found herself facing failure. She couldn't keep working on a game that people didn't care about. It was time to start all over again and try to find something that people would really love. With IT Simulator not quite making the progress that Rebecca had hoped for, she'd started exploring moblets as well, just as a side project. She started creating this game with a similar cutesy art style to that which appeared in IT Simulator, but had fun designing Pokemon-like creatures to populate her world. Rebecca casually floated these online to see what people thought of them, and to her complete surprise, the popularity of these little moblets drew an unprecedented interest. IT Simulator may have been a bust, but instead, Rebecca was discovering that her cute creations were finding an audience in a way that she couldn't have expected. Changing gears was hard, but if it meant making a game that people actually wanted to play, Rebecca figured that she was onto a winner. Moblets might seem like a big, daunting development task, but it felt like the right direction to take. Again, Rebecca focused first on creating the game's visuals and art style, so that she had something to show off to her growing fanbase. Ben got involved more and more, taking on some community manager roles as the pair pushed to make their game now renamed Ooblets as enjoyable as it could be. The pair began attracting attention from many prestigious game expos and media outlets as their project expanded and fans latched onto it. Rebecca started a Patreon to help fund Ooblets, and was pleasantly surprised to see that many of the game's fans were more than willing to support her endeavour financially. The real moment of success came, though, when Rebecca and Ben found a publisher for their game. None other than the prestigious studio Double Fine. Their game was snowballing in popularity, as more and more fans discovered Rebecca's work and threw their support behind her. Ooblets had reached greater heights than Rebecca could ever have imagined, even being shown on the main stage during Microsoft's presentation at the 2017 E3 Electronics Entertainment Expo. For an hour afterwards, Rebecca danced around in excitement. She'd done it. She'd set out to make her own game, her own way, and it was resonating with people. While the game was still a long way from completion, what mattered to Rebecca was that her little project, her attempt to tell her own gaming story on her own terms, was being embraced by gamers around the world. There was a long way still to go, but one thing was certain. Rebecca's decision to quit her job to make Ooblets had paid off. Her dream was coming true. There are many morals that could be taken from this story, but perhaps the most important is that you can't let people tell you that something cannot be done. Rebecca felt frustrated by the process of games development because she didn't have the freedom to make something by herself. It was only after she took the plunge and attempted to do the impossible that she discovered that it really wasn't impossible after all. This might not mean quitting your job is right for you. Instead, you may be required to work within the system to find a way to make your own dreams come true. But remember, you can never achieve your goals if you don't actually try. There are plenty of areas of life where you might be told by those around you that you can't do something, but you're incapable of success. Don't listen to them. If you have a goal and you work hard enough to achieve it, you'll surprise all those who doubt you. With enough determination and focus, no matter what challenge you may face, you can accomplish anything.