Anyone who writes games, especially if it’s just as a hobby so you don’t have publishers breathing down your neck and pushing you to finish the game, is probably familiar with this problem. Of all the games you start working on, not too many ever get finished. Before I started this website I created games with Game Maker, and of all the projects I ever started three got finished: a Space Invaders clone, an Asteroids Clone, and a side scrolling shooter that was so horrible I promised myself never even to speak out its name again. When you get started you think you have the best idea in the world, but after a while it doesn’t seem so great anymore, problems start piling up and before you know it, you decide to abandon a project all together. This isn’t such a shame, even Leonardo da Vinci never finished most of his paintings, but it’s nice if you know how to avoid this problem.
Grey Alien Games has a list of blog articles that deal with this problem. A short summary of the tips:

  • Be patient;
  • Don’t underestimate non-game screens (title screen, loading screen, credits, transitions, …), and don’t put this off until the game itself is finished;
  • Enjoy creating games;
  • Decide when enough is enough, or you’ll be adding features to the game forever;
  • Don’t get disappointed by setbacks
  • Self-imposed deadlines are a good thing;
  • Make sure you know what to do when the game is finished (publishing, marketing, …)

One crucial tip I would like to add myself is this. Make sure you plan enough in advance. Don’t just dive in and think “I’ll decide that while I’m working on the game”, because this will almost sure end badly. I speak from personal experience! Even for a small game you should take notes, make lots of sketches and design the general outline of the game. And, especially if you’re a beginner, don’t underestimate the task ahead. It’s always more difficult than you think at first, and of all the developers who ever thought they could start with a MMORPG or FPS, perhaps a select few have succeeded.