I guess this is an incredibly common question that can never truly get a clear answer.

Lately any time i try to start working on a game prototype i spend like 10 minutes before just giving up. Nor can i seem to work on the stuff ive started already because i feel too tired most of the time.

So yea, any ideas?

Maybe you want results but don't want to put in any work? Hard to motivate yourself when taking up something that might take months or years to finish.

Then again, create tasks for your project that can be done in a day, and embrace the grind.

I guess I tend to do the same thing if I think so big picture about a game that I get into "analysis paralysis" and worry about crap that I really shouldn't be worrying about when I'm just starting to make a game. Maybe try starting off with a fuzzier idea, just making a player and/or some enemies that do whatever you have in mind at the moment, and worry later about whether any of those ideas are good enough to stick and how to weave them into a game?

I've gotta say your games so far have been good so try to stay out of the doldrums.

I always have to distinguish between making a game and making a game engine, and aligning myself with that goal. After that, sometimes dumb lil game jams can be super fun. I enjoyed making DPS more than any other project, and it was a jam announced at the last minute.

If you were working on a platformer, I would suggest working on anything else.

Game jams seem to have a magical power to make me make up stuff on the spot and hyperfocus on completing the project, but im not quite in the mood to join another one yet.

I actually made a lot of top down shooters before and now want to make a platformer lol.

I'd like to know too. I used to have a lot of drive in the past to code something without thinking about the end goal, but now whenever I start it's all I can think of precisely because my past efforts haven't resulted in an end product yet and it feels like a Sisyphean task. I guess it doesn't help that most of my work day is spent programming, either.

If working solo, the answer should be to not really think about the time, tasks or end results and to break it down into small goals, but you most likely already know that. The hard part is coming to terms with it. Sure, programming and seeing progress can be its own reward at times, but it can simultaneously feel hollow if you aren't fully committed to it.

I guess all of this is a roundabout way of saying it's probably something that can be better addressed by a mental health professional, but the state of mental healthcare is such that, well, good luck with getting it.

Yes! But it's not easy, and mentally, a bit of a torture method. But really bore yourself for a good couple of days. And by that I mean completely deprive yourself from all kinds of entertainment. So no video-games, no TV-shows or any funny internet content. Not even turning on any music for that matter.

Just take care of yourself and bear with the frustration for a good 2 days or so. Then maybe picking up a pencil or pen (or keyboard or any other tool) becomes fun again instead of feeling like work.

Thanks for the suggestions, everyone!

Embrace doing nothing.