Hi folks. We've built a new app and we're looking for feedback. Zig is a collaboration tool built on top of a social network. We spent years in film and previz, and have done AR/VR projects over the last few years. We increasingly saw a need to connect people across different disciplines, from designers to VFX artists, modellers, architects, game artists, shader developers, environment artists...so many projects need specialized skills, and we want to bring them together. That's why we built Zig.
I'm not in game dev, but I've been involved in dozens of interactive projects. I think what we're doing has an application in game development. I'm hoping to get some feedback from people here. Check it out at www.zigtheapp.com, and if you have any questions or comments please let me know. Anyone from here who signs up for testing will get to use it free for one year after launch. Thanks! /N
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You can create projects, add tasks, add budgets, descriptions. Channels are pretty flexible for notes and messaging - you can create to-do lists in channels, format notes, and inline embed links. You can add attachments to tasks and projects. It has roadmapping views and multi-project scheduling. Also channels have a lot of context - for example, tasks automatically have shared channels between task creators and assignees, so when they chat in that tasks they're talking about that task.
Specifically with tasks it tracks due date and budget, and let's you know when you're running into trouble. Tasks have states (assigned, started, completed, approved). Task lists are sorted so that the ones that need attention bubble to the top. I tend to do the tasks I want to do, not the ones that need to be done, so Zig tries to help keep priorities straight.
The main difference is how Zig looks at users. In most apps you'd sign up, invite your team, and that team would have access to all the projects. The problem in some situations is it can be hard to combine your team with another team, or add freelancers or specialized contractors. Zig only sees people and projects - I can work on 5 different projects for 5 different teams and see it all in one dashboard. At my old shop we did a lot of bespoke work, like AR/VR, building projections, commercials etc., so we were always working with people from outside our walls. Zig is meant to fit that use-case. It's more community-based.
For larger shops Zig can also deliver some transparency to their in-house teams. Everyone has a profile with skills and availability. But our original intent was to make something for small creative shops and independent creatives, and link up people from different backgrounds. For example, there are growing opportunities for real-time and interactive 3D in product viz/archviz/sales (he says to a guy at Marmoset), but the people who need to the skills and the people who have them don't always know how to find one another.
That was long. Sorry.