Indie Game Scope Validator
Validate indie game scope against team capacity and timeline before production
What You Can Do
You can objectively evaluate your game design against your specific constraints—team composition, development timeline, and budget—to identify scope risks before they derail your project. Claude analyzes your design document and team capacity using MoSCoW prioritization adapted for indie development, giving you clear recommendations on what to build, defer, or cut. This prevents the most common indie failure: starting with AAA scope on an indie budget.
Features
evaluates developer roles, experience levels, and availability to estimate realistic output velocity
categorizes design elements by implementation effort, asset requirements, and technical risk
sorts features into Must Have, Should Have, Could Have, and Won't Have based on your constraints
estimates realistic delivery dates for different feature sets and flags unrealistic deadlines
maps scope decisions to staffing costs and identifies where cuts reduce expenses most effectively
highlights design areas prone to feature bloat and suggests containment strategies
generates clear justification for scope decisions for team discussions and funder pitches
recommends feature buffers and fallback scopes if risks materialize during development
Example Output
Input: 2D pixel platformer, 5-person team (1 lead, 2 programmers, 1 artist, 1 designer), 18-month timeline, $80k budget
Output:
Scope Assessment: YELLOW FLAG
- Design doc includes 40 unique levels, 12 enemy types, 3 boss variants, dynamic weather system, local co-op, and leaderboards
- Team velocity: ~2-3 polished levels/month with current staffing
- Realistic delivery: 24-30 levels in 18 months, not 40
MoSCoW Prioritization:
- MUST: 16 core levels, 6 enemy types, 2 bosses, core movement mechanics
- SHOULD: 8 additional levels, co-op mode, basic progression system
- COULD: Advanced enemy AI, cosmetic skins, leaderboards
- WON'T: Dynamic weather, procedural generation, platform-specific ports
Timeline Risk: Leaderboards, weather system, and co-op implementation add 4-6 months if built as designed. Recommend deferring to post-launch or cutting entirely.
What's Included
- SKILL.md: Complete scope validation framework and MoSCoW methodology for indie development
- Scope Assessment Template: Structured worksheet for documenting team capacity, timeline, budget, and design elements
- Feature Complexity Matrix: Reference guide for scoring implementation effort, asset requirements, and technical risk
- MoSCoW Prioritization Worksheet: Interactive checklist for categorizing features and generating stakeholder-aligned priority lists
- Risk Register Template: Scope creep vectors and mitigation strategies specific to indie constraints
Who It's For
- Indie game producers managing scope and timelines across small teams
- Game designers preparing design documents with realistic production estimates
- Studio leads pitching projects to publishers or seeking funding with credible scope projections
- Technical leads assessing architectural feasibility and development velocity
- Producers transitioning between projects and recalibrating team capacity estimates
Best For
- Pre-production scope validation before green-lighting a project
- Mid-project scope reassessment when team size or timeline changes
- Feature prioritization disputes requiring data-driven resolution
- Publisher pitch preparation with realistic production timelines
- Post-mortem scope retrospectives to improve future estimation accuracy
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