Constraints stimulating creativity and innovation is pretty well accepted fact.
Time to deliver is just another constraint, which tends to force all decisions be made quickly and to err on the side of forward progress vs. some theoretically ideal option.
Having participated in a few demo parties back in the 90s, I have a deep appreciation for the scene. But I think we tended to dismiss the negative consequences of sleep deprivation, considering what we know now about the brain and sleep.
Edit:
Also, in terms of deadlines in general, not just the insane 24/48hr demoscene/gamejam style competitions, it can be rather difficult to prioritize a project receives your precious bandwidth on a given day if there's no deadline. It just keeps getting pushed aside by the tasks that do.
Time to deliver is just another constraint, which tends to force all decisions be made quickly and to err on the side of forward progress vs. some theoretically ideal option.
Having participated in a few demo parties back in the 90s, I have a deep appreciation for the scene. But I think we tended to dismiss the negative consequences of sleep deprivation, considering what we know now about the brain and sleep.
Edit:
Also, in terms of deadlines in general, not just the insane 24/48hr demoscene/gamejam style competitions, it can be rather difficult to prioritize a project receives your precious bandwidth on a given day if there's no deadline. It just keeps getting pushed aside by the tasks that do.