Sell your game

[Ryner]

This is something that's always bugged me, and suddenly I feel like ranting, so here we go. Unfortunately for Pagerron, I have to pick on him. In the topic for his game, Daniel's Quest (go play the demo so I don't feel bad) I asked Pagey to name some of the things that made his game good. He responded with a list of things he was proud of. Okay, sounds good, let's take a look at what makes his game special:

-The Oldenpots, Shatterpots, and Gossipots (each of which have unique characteristics) - you'll have to speak to Samuel the Sage to find out more.

-Daniel's multipurpose wedding ring - speaking to Mr. Creedle will provide more insight into this.

See, there's one mistake a lot of people make when posting about their games. They type some variation of the phrase "You'll have to play the game to see." They hint at their great story and innovative concepts, but they don't tell us about them. How many times have we heard:

"I know my story sounds cliche but it's totally good and you'll just have to play it to see why."

Or

"There's lots of secrets but I don't want to reveal anything so you'll just have to play to find out"

This is a very common, and very incorrect, idea among people that I wish I could beat out of their skulls. Some of us imagine thousands of fans playing our game, all floored by the stunning plot twists and secret innovations. The problem is that people do not have to play your game, and in most cases they don't want to. This is unfortunate, because everyone who releases a game has worked very hard on it, and they deserve an audience. But you don't get an audience, and one of the reasons is because you don't sell your game. How can you expect people to want to play your creation when you HAVN'T TOLD US ANYTHING ABOUT IT! I don't want to have to play the game to find out about the game.Tell us why your game is awesome and worthy of attention. Give us facts. Give us information. Give us everything..

What's more likely to make people interested in your baby?

1) "There are things called Oldenpots, Shatterpots, and Gossipots; and Daniel's ring can do things... but you'll have to play to find out more!"

2) Oldenpots, Shatterpots, and Gossipots kick ass because they do __________________. And you can also use them to ________________. Think that's good? Wait until I tell you about Daniel's wedding ring. With it, you can not only ________________, but also _______________.

If you want people to play your game you have to sell it. Lack of information will not sell anything. Do not just hint at your great surprises and fascinating plot, tell us all about it.

[Pagerron]

Re: Sell your game

Hmmm...well, I'm glad to share. Here are some specifics:

The Gossipots are pots that collect the gossip that floats through the air. When they are opened, the gossip is revealed. (they are used to give basic gameplaying tips for DQIII)

The Shatterpotsreveal secret hidden items/treasures in the game. Pay attention though because once you open them and find out the secret, they shatter immediately, and the information inside of them disappears.

The Oldenpots are rumored to contain ancient prophecies from the land of McNally, which lies to the north of Nevernear. They cannot be opened without a special item, and once they are opened, be prepared to hear the words of ancient truth (let's hope Daniel can understand the language the prophecies are in ) - Try your best to open the one in the Rocky Crags, for it is the only one available in the demo.

Daniel and Christy's wedding rings were honed by Mr. Creedle out of a special metal that has a dual purpose.
1-At certain key points in the game, the wedding ring itself will signal Daniel that Christy needs him to speak to her immediately. (if you play the demo right, it will signal Daniel twice in the demo)
2-Also, during a battle, the wedding ring can be used to double the power of your skills. (usable after level 3 - when you learn your first skill)

[thetruecoolness]

Re: Sell your game

Yeah that does seem to be a problem with a lot of games. How to keep something secretive so the player will have something interesting to find out as he goes through, and how to reveal enough information to make them interested enough to want to get to the previous point. Basically I think anything you can find out in the first 2-3 hours (10-25%) of your game should be no secret. They'd find it out anyway if they played the game, so why not go ahead and tell them about it in the sell, instead of waiting for them to see it in the tutorial or manual.

Wish I was actually far enough in my game to even have real secrets, but sadly it has been put on the backburner for like the third time. I know my first post about it told you pretty much everything about the characters origins, the towns, the battle system, even a brief intro of what the first 30 minutes or so would be like. Also a general overview of the whole story (except for parts at the very end, as it would contain a pretty central twist that would be better found out through playing, and if I ever finish the game, might be the starting point of the sequel).

So yeah, instead of people just saying generalities about their story, give some of it, not like anyone hear is going to steal it, and if your worried about people not wanting to know, put some Spoiler warning on it. So to that end keep say 4 or 5 big secrets hidden, and just go ahead and reveal the smaller ones that make the game interesting.

Look at Spider Man 3, almost a third of the movie has been preview (ok like 15 minutes at least), and millions are still going to see it anyway, so sometimes it's worth giving away a secret or two to get some interest in your creative piece. They didn't say there are going to be 3 villains in the movie, or the Green Goblin and 2 mystery villains, they show you each one.

This has been Marketing 101, with your professor Ryner.

[hitogoroshi]

Re: Sell your game

2-3 hours = 10-25%? Jesus. Thats another thing that can help with the game= remembering epic does not equal long. If you brag about "30 hours of gameplay!" very few people are going to want to wait it out. Especially with RPGM3: rather then saving the 100 characters and making it as dilute as possible just surge with a four hour game.

[Vonwert]

Re: Sell your game

I tend to just give a good description of what the mood will be for the game. Then add some of the normal stuff like no battles and puzzles.

[ErikaFuzzbottom]

Re: Sell your game

I dunno, there must be some secret to selling one's game that I'm missing. Unless you simply cannot sell demoes.

[thetruecoolness]

Re: Sell your game

Well of course here the other part of the equation is that the probability of someone having all the neccessary equipment to be able to play your game is still kind of low. Not a whole lot of the community owns dex drives or max drives, and even fewer have both. Just pointing that out.

Oh and I did not mean 2-3 hours = 10-25%, it was meant to be 2-3 hours or 10-25%. Meaning anything that happens in that period you should sell, as any of it people would find out quickly when playing your game, so better to share it and get them to play, than try to shroud it in mystery, because it's not worth it.

[Karr Lord of Chaos]

Re: Sell your game

detail the hell out of your description, sell your game to your audience. make your game apealing to people who walk by. unless their a creeper who worships your every step people just arnt going to walk by, see a crapy description and be like "gona waste 30 hours of my life to figure out what he menas by this."

good stories attract people to a game, fun gameplay attract people to coninue to play it, and great use of all gaming aspects spread the word for people to play your game. i would sujest making a guide on how to beat your game and to find all the secrets ect so people dont get lost. most people play a game once, and wont play it twice to get everything.

an innovative idea would be to have a cheater zone that allows you to get rediculessly amounts of cheater stuff like best equip, max money, infinate hp and stuff, perhaps have it shut off battles, and allow access to fun places (that doesnt ruin the story).

your audience is pivitol to your games success so do everything in your power to reward them and entice them to spread the word if your games good.

[tjoris9]

Re: Sell your game

Case in point:
Fatal Insanity, the worst game I have ever made has this description:

This is the story of what happens when tjoris9 is relieved of the pressure to make a good game. This is the story of a gay man, a crossdresser, and a lesbian battling ultimate evil. This is the story of two stoners on a sacred quest. This is the story of an alcoholic. This is the story of three random animals on a quest to find their friend the gorilla a date. This is a few other stories thrown in for flavor.

Features:
-Multiple plot threads.
-19 playable characters.
-Approximately 8 hours of play (though it may feel longer).
-Complete walkthrough and maps of select dungeons included.

Yet it has 429 views right now.

While my demo of Dreadlord, which is the first political sim on the Pavilion has this description:

The land of Feyzahn is shrouded by darkness. For 100 years the lich king Arturius has slept, sure of his hold on the land. Things change, though, and he awakens one winter day to learn his realm is under seige by new forces.

This is a demo to allow people to explore some of the game's more experimental and original features, including a working item storage system and gameplay with more in common with Nobunaga's Ambition than Dragon Warrior.

There are no random encounters yet, so you can freely explore the world. Most areas are still under construction. Even the core mechanic of the game will ultimately go through a major overhaul.

It only has 40 views. Where do you think I went wrong?

[ErikaFuzzbottom]

Re: Sell your game

Wasn't Fatal Insanity your contest entry?

And, in any case, 40 views is pretty decent.

[hitogoroshi]

Re: Sell your game

Actually, as Draygone said, it's much harder to sell a demo, simply because a demo is usually released far too soon.
Case in point:

Most areas are still under construction. Even the core mechanic of the game will ultimately go through a major overhaul.

When you say things like this, it kills motivation to play. Typically, rather than just showing the games start, demos are watered down projects with 10 minutes of gameplay that don't warrant the annoying upload download unzip process.

[ErikaFuzzbottom]

Re: Sell your game

On the flip side, I suppose a demo can be too long as well. I guess, why waste half of your free time in a day on a demo?

[hitogoroshi]

Re: Sell your game

Demo length doesn't matter, unless it's long and "the entire game will be changed!". Why waste half your free time in a day for a game that you're not actually learning about anyway?

[Wavelength]

Re: Sell your game

Demo length doesn't matter, unless it's long and "the entire game will be changed!". Why waste half your free time in a day for a game that you're not actually learning about anyway?

Well, ideally, because it should be fun to play. Heck, if I'm not having fun during the demo, I probably won't bother to actually get the game.

I personally subscribe to the idea of telling almost everything about gameplay, and trying to spoil as little as possible of the plot. Coolness had a good idea by being willing to give away the first hour or two of your game, since that's usually where the more interesting parts of your plot will start to open up, but still be very far from actually being solved.

If what you've written sounds cliche, that's likely because it IS cliche.

Oh, and when I saw this topic title, I thought it was about selling your game... for cash. After all, RPGM1 had a royalty-free license... anyone know how it would work for 2 or 3 or XP if you wanted to profit off of your game?

[Dusk Raven]

Re: Sell your game

Oh, and when I saw this topic title, I thought it was about selling your game... for cash.

Same here. But what's a

royalty-free license

?