Category: Marketing/Business

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Game Design Game Development Games Marketing/Business

Indie Business Rules: Relationships and Service

Jay Barnson wrote Business Rules for Indies, in which he tries to apply Jack Welch’s “cardinal rule of business” to indie game developers.

Never let anyone come between you and your customers or your suppliers. Those relationships take too long to develop and are too valuable to lose.

While game portals are a good short term solution for developers who are trying to reach a large number of players and paying customers, they aren’t so good for the long term.

In business, finding a new customer willing to pay for your products is much harder and much more expensive than selling your products to existing customers, who have already shown a willingness to buy from you. But if you sell through a portal, you don’t have a customer. You get paid, but by the portal, as a cut of the sales. If you were to sell directly to your customers, however, you not only get the sale, but also a relationship with your customer.

If you sell a game through a portal for $20, you get paid a small percentage. The portal gets the lion’s share, but of course the portal is the one with all of the traffic and customers, and so you are essentially paying for the chance to sell greater quantities than you could on your own.

If you sell a game directly for $20, you get to keep the income. You might not get as many sales on your own, but what you do get in this situation is customer information. YOU know who is willing to buy the kind of games you make, and so YOU can sell them expansions, sequels, and affiliate products. You can address them in newsletters and tell them about new sales you’re offering. That $20 is just the start of how much that customer might buy from you over the lifetime of your business. You trade short-term financial gain for future profits.

The theory sounds all well and good, but with so much competition out there, how can you hope to get ANY attention unless you’re on a portal? And if you’re on a portal, you aren’t allowed access to customer information, and in some cases you aren’t even allowed to let your customers know who made your game! The portals have become the new form of publishers, which is what being indie was supposed to get you away from.

Dan Cook’s The Casual Games Manifesto addresses all of this and more, but the essence of the article is that you need to develop a relationship with your customers, whether they found you directly or through a portal. Can you integrate your games into a service that YOU and YOU alone provide? Then the portal becomes your access point to customers and not just a distribution channel.

The Casual Games Manifesto got me thinking about specific changes I can make to my business model. If I make one game, and it takes me three months or three years, I have to compete with all of the hundreds of games released in that time. But if I create a game tied to a service I provide, am I competing with the same games anymore? I think what might make such a change hard for indies is that providing a game service requires outsourcing or hiring others to build and manage it. Then again, are you doing this as a hobby that pays a little bit for your pizza and beer, or are you running a serious business?

Either way, don’t feel that you need to let the portals come between you and your customers. If you don’t want them to, you have options.

[tags] indie, business, portal, game development [/tags]

Categories
Geek / Technical Marketing/Business Politics/Government

Google Chrome EULA is Sane!

Yesterday I wrote about Chrome’s evil EULA terms, and posted a link to Tap The Hive about the news.

Well, it looks like Google fixed the EULA language.

Here’s an official response from Rebecca Ward, Senior Product Counsel for Google Chrome:

“In order to keep things simple for our users, we try to use the same set of legal terms (our Universal Terms of Service) for many of our products. Sometimes, as in the case of Google Chrome, this means that the legal terms for a specific product may include terms that don’t apply well to the use of that product. We are working quickly to remove language from Section 11 of the current Google Chrome terms of service. This change will apply retroactively to all users who have downloaded Google Chrome.”

And the new EULA terms?

11.1 You retain copyright and any other rights you already hold in Content which you submit, post or display on or through, the Services.

So it’s safe to use Google Chrome again. Probably about 10% of the population can breathe a sigh of relief now, and the remaining 90% can go on wondering what the big deal was, although I think that says more about a general misunderstanding of copyright than anything else. But that’s another post on another day.

What I like about Google is that the company occasionally acts like a startup. They occasionally say “Whoops! We made a mistake! We’ll fix it!” And they make bone-headed mistakes like copy-and-pasting legal language that doesn’t really say what they wanted the EULA terms to be…something indie game developers do all the time. Google moves quickly for being such a large company.

Now if only they can take their belief “in access to information for everyone” and apply it to AdSense/AdWords. Why do I have to be left in the dark with so much of the data not provided?

[tags] google chrome, eula, business [/tags]

Categories
Geek / Technical Marketing/Business Politics/Government

Google Chrome EULA Is Evil?

So with all of the excitement about Google’s new web browser, someone decided to actually read the EULA and determined that it sucks:

11.1 You retain copyright and any other rights you already hold in Content which you submit, post or display on or through, the Services. By submitting, posting or displaying the content you give Google a perpetual, irrevocable, worldwide, royalty-free, and non-exclusive license to reproduce, adapt, modify, translate, publish, publicly perform, publicly display and distribute any Content which you submit, post or display on or through, the Services. This license is for the sole purpose of enabling Google to display, distribute and promote the Services and may be revoked for certain Services as defined in the Additional Terms of those Services.

So by agreeing to the EULA and using Chrome, you are saying that while you still own the copyright of anything you create, such as a blog post or a file you wish to upload, you are also granting Google a license to those works.

If you use Chrome to upload your latest game build to a server, Google now has the right to redistribute it at no cost. Yes, you still have your rights, but then Google essentially claims those rights as well at no charge.

Is Google serious? The sad thing is, yes, Chrome is probably much faster and much more secure than other browsers, but if most people can’t agree to such terms, such as people at work, at school, and in certain professions, then what good is it? Why does Google need all of these rights? When they do finally make Gnu/Linux port, count me out. I’ll wait for a non-evil version, whether by Google or by someone else. For now, I’ll stick with Firefox. Last I checked, Mozilla doesn’t insist that it needs to mooch off of my business in order for me to use it.

[tags] google chrome, eula, business [/tags]

Categories
Game Development Games Geek / Technical Marketing/Business

Scott McCloud and Google Chrome

I haven’t heard too much about Google’s browser project, Google Chrome, but I recently learned about this comic by Scott McCloud that describes the work being done. Pretty sweet. Combine Google’s goals with the goals of Mozilla Ubiquity, and the web will be a very foreign yet familiar place.

What does it mean for indie game developers? General stability improvements across all web browsers, richer application development, and a feeling of safety by users should all lead to more people feeling comfortable playing any kind of game they want.

My favorite thing to imagine is that game developers will stop making games for Windows exclusive and start making games for everyone. It’s currently too difficult to make web-based apps behave consistently because every browser implements Javascript and renderers differently. It’s why you still occasionally find bank websites that require you to use Internet Explorer even though they aren’t doing anything more complicated than YouTube, which works on any browser so long as you have a working Flash plugin. With Google’s work on Chrome, it looks like any browser can take advantage of the same APIs and libraries, which means a more consistent experience for all users.

But what about the games? I know id is already porting Quake 3 Arena to the web, and Runescape already shows that you can have a very successful web-based MMORPG, but what about real-time strategy games? Action games? Sports games? Heck, what about entirely new genres that take advantage of the new open standards being developed by Google and others? Intel’s research on portable gaming on a big screen might also have applications if we can start using our phone’s browser to play games in front of the MythTV box and TV, giving proprietary consoles more competition.

The future of web games is definitely going to look and feel different, and whoever shows us what it can be stands to gain a lot.

[tags] google chrome, browser, web game, indie [/tags]

Categories
Game Development Games Marketing/Business Personal Development

Cliffski Was Civil with Pirates?

If you’ve ever discussed copyright infringement, indie game business models, or even chess with Cliffski, you would know that he vehemently HATES so-called piracy. In fact, if you even argue that it isn’t the same as stealing and that piracy is a silly name for it, get ready to be flamed.

Or maybe you don’t have to worry about it as much. In a move that surprised many, he wrote a blog post asking “Why do people pirate my games?” in which he invited people to explain their true motivations. In fact, it would have been expected if he would have turned around and tried to prosecute anyone who admitted it to him, but instead, true to his word, he kept an open mind, and came away with some lessons.

He details what he learned in Talking to Pirates, and he’s changing some aspects of his business.

A big one: No DRM.

I only used DRM for one game (Democracy 2) and it’s trivial. It’s a one-time only internet code lookup for the full version. I’ve read enough otherwise honest people complain about DRM to see that its probably hurting more than it help’s. I had planned on using the same system for Kudos 2, but I’ve changed my mind on that. I have also removed it from Democracy 2 today. I now use no DRM at all.

Again, I’m surprised that of all the indies out there, Cliffski was the one to not only ask why people prefer to not pay for his games but also listen to the responses, but I’m pleased. I know that I’ve made these arguments, that people don’t like DRM because they don’t like being treated as a criminal, but I’ve been dismissed before as not knowing what I talk about. Now Cliffski comes and does this, and getting rid of DRM is justified as good for business? Huh. Who’d have thunk it?

I suppose even if he didn’t get this beneficial feedback, his sales would still pick up significantly from getting the publicity from Slashdot and Digg. Whether or not he expected to get this much traffic from this article, or such good feedback, I don’t know, but hopefully we’ll find out soon.

Categories
Game Development Marketing/Business

The Long Tail of Casual Games: You’re Doing It Wrong

Raph Koster linked to a Forbes article complaining that casual games aren’t exploiting the long tail.

Well, duh.

Indie game developers seem focused on making games that will be accepted by the portals. They think, “If you don’t use the portals, how will anyone hear about your game? Making a game that the portals won’t take is the Kiss of Death. Well, except for all the successful games that don’t use portals. But those are exceptions, of course. They don’t prove anything.”

The portals only take a few types of games. If you make a casual RTS, good luck finding a portal that will take it. They’ll argue that their customers aren’t looking for that kind of game.

Well, who cares if most of their customers aren’t looking for that kind of game? The point of the long tail is that each game is just a database entry anyway. It doesn’t cost any more to offer a wider variety, and you still make the sales. Half of Amazon’s sales come from its major hits, but the other half comes from everything else combined. Imagine if Big Fish or PopCap offered more than match-3 and hunt-the-item games.

But then again, the long tail is really only a big benefit to the portal anyway. Being part of the long tail might mean more customers, but as Cliffski has complained many times, if you sell through a portal, the portal gets your customer’s info. You don’t. All you really get is a portion of the sale, and maybe that is a sale you might not have had if it didn’t get the exposure the portal provides.

[tags] marketing, long tail, casual games, indie [/tags]

Categories
Game Development Games Linux Game Development Marketing/Business

Online Development Platforms

A few months back, I wrote about how I couldn’t use Flash for game development, mostly because of the poor Gnu/Linux support. The comments to that post have since made me rethink this position, but I’m still researching my options.

Unfortunately, my only real options are Flash and Java. I went to the Linux Game Tome forums and asked for advice on web-based game development. The opinions were mixed, as expected. Some people love Java, some people hate it. Some people didn’t like the proprietary nature of Flash, and some people said that it’s the nature of the web to support Flash.

The Indie Gamer forums had a separate thread going about online 3D game development, and it seems that there is an overwhelming vote in favor of Flash. I questioned how people could dismiss Java so quickly considering Jagex created Runescape, which was the top MMORPG until this past year. People seem to think of it as an exception, but I think it shows that Flash doesn’t have a monopoly on browser penetration. Adobe will tell you that 99% of browsers have Flash while less than 90% have Java, but when it comes to people who will play games in a web browser, do those numbers still hold? Jagex doesn’t seem to be hurting from not using Flash.

In general, Flash is the most ubiquitous platform, and I’m sure its Gnu/Linux support will get better over time. Java’s browser penetration isn’t that far behind, though, and it isn’t clear if it is at a significant disadvantage. Both have open source development tools available for them, but Flash is still a proprietary platform.

I still haven’t made my decision, and I could avoid this decision by choosing to make a persistent browser-based game (PBBG) instead. Still, I’d like to make games that are easy for others to play, regardless if they are using Windows, Mac, or Gnu/Linux. For now, I will continue to make desktop clients.

[tags] web game development, indie, flash, java [/tags]

Categories
Marketing/Business

Part 2 of Quick and Dirty Marketing Tips for Indies

I forgot to post about it yesterday, but Jay has posted part 2 of his Quick-and-Dirty Game Marketing Tips.

[tags] marketing, indie, business [/tags]

Categories
Game Development Games Marketing/Business

New Indie-centric Escapist Issue

A new Tuesday means a new issue of the Escapist, and this issue is focused on indie game developers:

This week, The Escapist celebrates these sweet potato moments in our beloved industry. We go looking off the beaten path, in the rough and out in left field for the people “Going It Alone.” In this issue, we explore the wild and crazy world of the indie game developer. Enjoy!

I haven’t read all of the articles yet, but I saw that Jay Barnson of Rampant Coyote wrote about quite a few other indies in Going Rogue.

How could anybody abandon the steady paychecks, access to the best tools and engines, large teams of skilled colleagues and the glory of working on one of next holiday season’s blockbusters for a chance to labor in relative obscurity on tiny, niche titles?

B-)

[tags] indie, business, games [/tags]

Categories
Marketing/Business

Why You Should Use A Newsletter Service

As a follow up to my earlier post on marketing tips, if you want a mailing list, you need software to let your customer enter his/her contact information as well as a way to send that customer email.

If you’re like me, you probably think that it would be preferable to build your own newsletter software. After all, it can’t be hard, and even if I don’t write it myself, there are free scripts out there that you can just plug into your website. Why spend significant money on some service when you can do it yourself?

According to an Indie Gamer forum post about newsletter software:

The problem with php self-automation is that one subsciber who (perhaps even accidentally) lists you as a spammer might get your server blocked for everyone. Imagine all of your emails being labelled as spam by google, hotmail etc.

So while you could offer the service yourself, it’s risky. Maybe do-it-yourself is fine if you are hosting the list for a group of friends, but if you’re running a serious business, you probably don’t want to worry about being labeled a spammer, dealing with spam laws, or taxing your servers with sending out lots of emails at once.

According to the forum post, Plimus offers its vendors a mailing list service. Also, people seem to like MailChimp and Your Mailing List Provider. I’m looking into these options myself. Anyone have other options they swear by?

[tags] email marketing, marketing, business, indie [/tags]