Accelemechs vs. Crashotrons is not perfect. It will not be perfect upon release. Post-release errata, should there be any, will not make it perfect. Nevertheless, AvC will release, because—in the words of Zach Barash—“done is better than perfect.”

(For the record, though Zach kindly attributed that amazing phrase to me during our talk, it’s his!)

There are lots of things I would like to do before sending Accelemechs vs. Crashotrons out the door. Miniatures wargamers will be surprised not to see a point-buy balancing system; those are always flawed, but I could make one and it would be a selling point. The quickstart page was meant to have a more playful, comic strip-inspired presentation. I’d like to revisit the footer images. AvC’s Itch.io page has weird layout issues that need fixing. (Now that I know what to look for, many Itch pages have weird layout issues, which they fix via awkward workarounds).

Nevertheless, Accelemechs vs. Crashotrons will be available on the 24th.

Making AvC perfect would mean delaying it indefinitely. After all, more could always be done. Every fix will reveal other avenues for refinement. That point-buy system could be tweaked for better balance, the comic strip made funnier, the images replaced with something entirely different, the Itch page layout copied to new storefronts. All making the game better—but with no end in sight.

The simple fact is that games are never perfected. They can only be finished. One must make the hard choice to close the book and move on.

And that’s a good thing! “Done is better than perfect,” for all the reasons Zach and I talked about. Others can play, and enjoy, released games. You can look back on and learn from finished projects; the critical distance helps you be objective and grow as a designer. Maybe, just maybe, you’ll even make money from a release!

(It’s not likely, if we’re being honest, but the possibility’s there.)

I would like to release a perfected Accelemechs vs. Crashotrons. Instead, I will do as every game designer must: release the best version I can. Accepting its flaws is the price of letting others have fun with it.