Publishers

[D-Cypher]

Just curious if any of you smaller guys (i.e. 1-4 man shops) have had any dealings with publishers.

I am just curious as to what your experiences have been, good or bad.

[Flickitty]

Originally Posted by D-Cypher

Just curious if any of you smaller guys (i.e. 1-4 man shops) have had any dealings with publishers.

I am just curious as to what your experiences have been, good or bad.

Using a publisher is a viable option. Overall, my biggest concern are their methods- which we do not have access to that information.

There are publishers that purposely write bad reviews for other games. There are publishers that give rampant 5-star ratings to their own games. I don't want to be a part of that, even if it will make me a million dollars. My integrity is worth more than that.

I'm not saying all Publishers practice this way, but it is getting increasingly difficult to determine exactly how these publishers operate behind the scene.

[cfreshmedia]

Through the OpenFeint guys... I've submitted my game Rummage to a few publishers in hopes that they might pick it up. Regardless of the split, I think if they increase exposure and sales, it'll be better then my current 3 -6 sales a day. I'm waiting to hear back.

[D-Cypher]

Originally Posted by cfreshmedia

Through the OpenFeint guys... I've submitted my game Rummage to a few publishers in hopes that they might pick it up. Regardless of the split, I think if they increase exposure and sales, it'll be better then my current 3 -6 sales a day. I'm waiting to hear back.

If you wouldn't mind keeping us posted, I'd really appreciate it. It would be very interesting to hear if you get any feedback.

[mobile1up]

Originally Posted by cfreshmedia

I've submitted my game Rummage to a few publishers in hopes that they might pick it up. Regardless of the split, I think if they increase exposure and sales, it'll be better then my current 3 -6 sales a day. I'm waiting to hear back.

can you provide more information on this? what are the strategies in place, costs? i guess it is really more a marketing buzz concept than anything else - but it would be interesting to know how such a solution works.. (ie: how do they contact customers etc)

[mobile1up]

Originally Posted by D-Cypher

Just curious if any of you smaller guys (i.e. 1-4 man shops) have had any dealings with publishers. I am just curious as to what your experiences have been, good or bad.

why would you need a publisher? the only distribution channel is the apple store.

[D-Cypher]

Originally Posted by mobile1up

why would you need a publisher? the only distribution channel is the apple store.

It is a one stop market place, however, publishers have advertising power (i.e. cash and clout).

For instance all of the big publishers get their games featured on the blogs like TA, TUAW, Gizmodo, etc... And that usually goes hand in hand with them purchasing ads.

Indies typically do not have the cash, and only occasionally have the clout.

So, when I get done putting together what I consider a "awlsum" game, I will want to make sure it gets exposure.

As Flickitty mentioned, there are some publishers out there that pull some seriously dirty tactics. They will pump up a game with dozens if not hundreds of 5 star ratings. They will also crap on the competition.

It's actually a small price to pay to do such things. $.99 to $2.99 per positive or negative rating isn't that expensive to someone with cash.

Ethically, it sucks ass. I too do not want to go the pump and dump route. Filtering out the good from the bad on a public forum would be nice.

For instance, I was a victim of such a tactic with my game Craps University. Not fun. I was 2nd in overall casino apps. Then I got a flood of negative reviews. I have an idea of who did this, but no way to prove it. Sometimes people suck.

[MidianGTX]

Originally Posted by D-Cypher

I too do not want to go the pump and dump route.

I can tell your college days are over

[D-Cypher]

Originally Posted by MidianGTX

I can tell your college days are over

LOL! Yes, unfortunately quite a while ago.

[PocketMonkey]

Originally Posted by D-Cypher

It is a one stop market place, however, publishers have advertising power (i.e. cash and clout).

For instance all of the big publishers get their games featured on the blogs like TA, TUAW, Gizmodo, etc... And that usually goes hand in hand with them purchasing ads.

Indies typically do not have the cash, and only occasionally have the clout.

So, when I get done putting together what I consider a "awlsum" game, I will want to make sure it gets exposure.

As Flickitty mentioned, there are some publishers out there that pull some seriously dirty tactics. They will pump up a game with dozens if not hundreds of 5 star ratings. They will also crap on the competition.

It's actually a small price to pay to do such things. $.99 to $2.99 per positive or negative rating isn't that expensive to someone with cash.

Ethically, it sucks ass. I too do not want to go the pump and dump route. Filtering out the good from the bad on a public forum would be nice.

For instance, I was a victim of such a tactic with my game Craps University. Not fun. I was 2nd in overall casino apps. Then I got a flood of negative reviews. I have an idea of who did this, but no way to prove it. Sometimes people suck.

Then wouldn't the best option to be to go with a publisher that is a respectable organization?

Don't discount the use of a publisher. We, at Pocket Monkey Games, act as a publisher for developers who are concerned with making a good game and don't want to stress about the many hours that go into marketing a game, such as creating and distributing press releases and responding to community inquiries.

Yet we don't use any nefarious tactics. But that buying review tactic is pretty clever...