Shutting down my mobile game Nightlands

Hobby projects—you invest a lot of time in them but get little in return. Or do you?

My dream of creating a game began in 2005, when at the age of 15, I created a simple multiplayer browser game called ‘The Cocktail Bar.’ I loved building something that people used and enjoyed.

For the past 4.5 years, I’ve been working to realize this dream. I built Nightlands, a multiplayer text-based mobile game. Sometimes I worked on it in my free time, but occasionally also during my work hours as a freelancer. I did it because I enjoyed it, but also because I believed it might turn into something more.

But what if your enjoyment and motivation start to fade, and it feels like you’re giving up on your dream? Are you better off quitting, or should you keep going? Building a mobile game isn’t easy and takes a huge amount of time.

Sometimes you have to be 100% honest with yourself, even if it feels bittersweet. That’s what I’ve finally done. I’ve decided to let go of Nightlands completely, and this decision brought relief.

Have I given up on my dream? A friend helped me see the opposite: I’ve fulfilled my dream. I created a mobile game that brought joy to people. Okay, it may not have been the most fun game or had thousands of players, but you could actually download and play it.

For now, I’m content knowing that I chased my dream, brought it to life, and shared it with others. And that’s something to be proud of.