I took a break from blogging about game design & development and actually got involved with some Indie Projects. Since my last blog entry in May, I have been on at least four projects. Each and every one was a learning experience in its own way. So, I want to dedicate this blog entry to talking about some of the things I experienced, and also share some tips that may help others.
The importance of Marketing
Coming up with an idea and then working that idea into something playable is only half the battle of game development. The other half lies in marketing and promoting. You can have a really great and innovative idea and an even better final project, but if you do not properly market and promote, your game will get lost in the sea of countless other indie game projects. If you’ve spent three months to a year working on a game, you should dedicate just as much effort in promotion and awareness.
While working on one project, I was given the opportunity to help with the marketing. This was a fairly new area for me so I began a rigorous research process. From that, I learned a lot about how to give your game the best launch possible and the importance of reviews and press releases. While most of these are paid options there are numerous free outlets that can and should be taken advantage of early in the development process. The experience from this project taught me that you want to start reaching out for reviews, both written and video, before your game is released. Do not wait until your game goes live, and then attempt to look for reviewers.
If you never told anyone about your project, you cannot expect them to know to download it. The only people that are capable of waiting a week or even a day before the launch to start promoting are the mainstream industries, and even they rarely do this, unless the title is well known. As an independent game developer, you cannot afford to waste any time not promoting or contacting marketing outlets.
Indie Game Dev Tip #1: The earlier you start promoting the better your download count will be the day of release.
In my blogs about prototyping, I spoke on how important it is to get something working and playable as soon as possible. You want to make sure that the game is fun and plausible before you dedicate three months or more to a project. When starting a new game project, your primary focus should be to create a proof of product. This means build something that can be played right away. This is crucial, not only for development reasons, but also for “Pre-Buzz Marketing” purposes. Once the team has decided that the core of the game is fun, it’s time to get different opinions, and who better to get ideas and input from than the people you expect to play your game? Sometimes you can get too attached to your idea and design which may cause you to not show anyone. You may start to fear that your design will get picked apart or that it will not be fully appreciated. Try to avoid the thinking, “People are not going to understand it until we add this feature.”
This is dangerous thinking for game development. You should let people see what you have initially before you start changing or adding things. Since the idea is to get as many people as possible to not only play your game, but like it as well, you should want as much feedback as you can get. The best way to achieve this is to show people your prototype. So, once you have something workable and playable, show it off. This helps build interest in the project which eventually leads to a community forming around your game if enough people like the idea. Players will feel more connected to a project if you let them in on development from the start. This helps players feel valued and appreciated. It lets them know that you care if they have an enjoyable experience while playing your game, and not like you just want to sell your game, or obtaining popularity. It will also be extremely beneficial to the end product as players will be able to give you immediate feedback on updates and changes.
There are a number of ways to start building community interest around your game project. The most valuable and effective is video marketing. However, there is a right way and a wrong way when using this marketing strategy. From newly gained experience, I learned that it is better to show videos of actual game play. There are a lot of projects that I see and that I have had the opportunity to be a part of that choose to show art, animations and the game environment that the player will interact with. Further experience has taught me that these are the last things that potential players want to see.
For example, if you are aiming to eventually get the green-light on Steam, which the decision is in the hands of the games of the community, then they will want to see game play. They will be more interested in seeing what they will be doing, what the game consists of, and the actual mechanics. So, if your game is about ninja zombies that fight for humanity and solve crimes, show these ninja zombies fighting. Show some of their powers, tricks and them using weapons and actually fight crimes for a better humanity. When you create a teaser trailer, it should, in no more and no less than two minutes, give players a general understanding of the core game play.
Indie Game Dev Tip #2: Refrain from showing art when creating a teaser trailer especially if you are aiming for the Steam platform. Teaser Trailers should be about gameplay.
In another one of my blogs, I spoke about what makes a game a game, and basically until you have something that can be played, you do not have a game. It is, at the least, still an idea. Art, Animations, Music and even the story is not the game. They are the elements that will help present the game, but they are not the game by themselves. These elements are used later in development to polish a game, and give it the extra shine that players love.
Whether you favorite YouTube, Vimeo or Vine, making short videos of the game play will be more effective than showing thousands of pictures of game art. Now, I am not in any way saying that showing game art is not effective or cannot be useful. What I am saying is that at least once, possibly even twice, you want to show game play: what happens when the player wins or loses, how you score, what are the controls. These are the things that make up game play and this is what you want people to see.
Once you have done that, showing off the art, music and anything else that pertains to the game can all be used to supplement the game play trailers and add to the buzz you’re trying to build. You don’t want the art to make up the entire buzz around your game. People will eventually start to ask, “What is the game about?” and you don’t want to point to pictures of characters or a blog with an outline of the game’s story because, again, these are not the game.
The last thing I want to speak on concerning this topic is consistent promotion.
Indie Game Dev Tip #3: You are NEVER done marketing. Once the game has released, continue to find new ways to market and promote the title.
By this, I mean if you started promoting early and you built a loyal fan base around the game, even after the game’s release you are still not done. Marketing and Promotion never ends. I’ve seen a lot of game developers make the mistake of marketing in the beginning and up until the game is released and then stop. Do not do this. Even if the game is doing well, you still want to find new and creative ways to market your game to further increase awareness. The potential success of one game can funnel traffic to your next project. And, even if the game doesn’t do well, you always want to keep note and track of what you did so you can do better the next time. Each project is a learning experience for the next.
Video Game Developement & Teamwork
The other topic that I want to briefly touch on is Teamwork. This was also something major that I learned a lot about and found that there is a lot of importance to it when it comes to game development.
Indie Game Dev Tip #4: Do not compete with your team members.
Obviously, while working on these projects I was given the opportunity to work with many different people spanning from the USA to the UK. So, I was able to experience firsthand what it is like to actually work as a team. The primary goal should be to create and release the best game possible. If you or any one is putting more energy into “who is better at what” then nothing will ever get done. You will spend most of your time competing with your team members instead of gelling together your different skill sets for the sake of the project. Everyone involved with the project has something special and unique to offer. Where they learned their skills or whether their beginners or novice should not matter. If they are able to do the job that is needed of them, and they do it to the best of their potential, then this is what should be highlighted. This brings me to the next tip.
Indie Game Dev Tip #5: Egos ruin projects.
There is no room on a game project for egos. People who put their ego before the sake of the project are detrimental to its completion. If you feel like your idea is better than another team member’s idea then find a common ground. There is always a way to settle disputes so as not to make a mountain out of an anthill. Maybe you can combine your ideas some way. Or, if you feel like another team member does a skill better than you, instead of getting jealous or angry, work with them. Set aside some down time, if possible, and ask them to show you their process. You can never learn too much, and you should always aim to improve with each project. The best way to improve is to look at other people’s techniques. Every person that has been named the best at anything started by emulating their favorites. Letting your ego get in the way and then trying to compete with that person only brings a negative vibes to the project. These negative vibes will cause a team member to quit, and if the team has to keep replacing members, then the project will eventually fall apart. Keep your ego in check. Humble yourself and always try to learn from the people on your team. Every project I had the opportunity to work on I am grateful for, good or bad. I learned something every time, and I plan to use what I learned on the next projects I get involved with.
The Game Creation Process Part 1
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