What is the point of making a game or games if you dont make any money? This is to smallfry and not BIG companies
There are plenty of reasons why you might make a game even if you don't think it will make money. Perhaps you want to make a portfolio of games to show off to a big company so they'll hire you. Perhaps you enjoy the challenge. Perhaps you want to play a game of that type against friends. Perhaps you are a masochist and enjoy creating failures... And the list goes on. However - I suppose that most people make games to make money, and they end up being flops.
I enjoy doing it. If I happen to make a lot of money while doing it, so be it... but this is mainly just a hobby for me.
I guess I should add what is the point if it costs you money to make it? How is your boat game going by the way?
Ditto. I've always done game programming on the side, with a long detour as a contributor to MAME project. Having the AppStore as a worldwide distribution center where people can self-publish on a level playing field is amazing, as is the feedback you can get via AppStore and TA forums. The fact that you can make decent money on the side is just a nice little side effect.
If you're looking at iPhone development as a pure business, and end up burning through a lot of money without turning a profit, I agree that would be pointless - no different than investing a lot of money into a stock only to see it tank.
For many indie devs who do this in their free time, their overhead is low or zero other than time. It doesn't always cost money to make a game and put it up for sale. You may not strike it rich, but it could be fun. That was my take on it when I developed for the older Windows Mobile/PocketPC devices. I made somethng that *I* wanted to play that wasn't on my device.
A basic fact of starting a small business is that you will rarely make money out of the gate. The first few games might lose money, but you're slowly building up a catalog along the way AND learning how to better target your intended customer base. If you keep growing your business - even if it's losing money - you'll eventually reach a point of critical mass. At that point you'll break through the barriers where your name is never mentioned and customers will start to hear your name. If your back catalog is good, it may make you some extra cash. Think of it this way: Was Donut Games an overnight success? How about Popcap? If you do a bit of research on their history, I think you'll find that perseverance pays off.
It's not just that most small businesses fail to make money out of the gate - most fail and fold. There's no guarentee that perseverance will pay off. It's all too easy to throw good money after bad. There are plenty of good articles online. google for "why do businesses fail?" and maybe Noodler can avoid making the same mistakes. Phil
That's very true. But those cases typically break down into a few common cases: 1. The business missed the market and either doesn't know how or can't afford to adjust. 2. The expected market isn't there. (This often happens when businesses are too far ahead of the curve. The market may be there in a few years. Too late for the company.) 3. The people running the company simply are not skilled enough to be in the market. #3 is a big issue for iPhone development. I can't count how many developers do really terrible work then are surprised when it doesn't sell. However, if your business is *growing* (make sure you have a solid metric for what "growing" means), then you have a good chance at success. You simply have to keep working toward maintaining and enhancing that growth. As long as there's not a low ceiling, your business has a good chance of success. The ultimate point I'm after is that "losing money" is not as simple as, "I released a game and it didn't make back what I spent on it." Sometimes there's a longer term view than that. P.S. Regarding your sig, I was so disappointed that Vicky Viper was not a shmup!
I think you're right that #3 is the biggest issue with iPhone development. Though I think "terrible" is an overstatement. The bar is constantly moving forward. There are lots of seriously good games coming out today that end up being blips on the radar that might have made decent money if released in 2008. The typical new developer looks at the top-selling games in each category, and sees a few things here and there that they feel they can compete with. But they don't see the graveyard of games that happen not to be ranked. You made me laugh with the comment about Vic(ky) Viper. I gotta tell you, Life Force, aka Salamander, is one of my favorite arcade games of all time. I may well end up doing my own take on a shmup down the road.
Well if its a hobby for someone its no surprise to pay some cash, pretty much all hobbies cost money. If you play video games all the gear and games munch away alot over time.. If you play some sports you are usualy in some club and pay for whatever is needed there etc. Even if you just do yoga you might have invested in some comfortable pants. Creating games is just another way to express yourself.. like painting a picture. Some turn their hobbies into their jobs, some don,t. Not everyone is after the money, there is a huge homebrew scene of indies who just make it for fun, to have something made they can show around.. You dont need to dream of imaginary wealth to have some fun being creative.
I knew I recognized that distinctive last name from somewhere I miss the old days ten+ years ago, when all the new screens of "what was being worked on to release soon" would pop up on davesclassics.com, sigh __________________ twitter - HeadcaseGames.com Puzzling has Evolved - Enter the 180 Hi-score Facebook contest! FreeAppTracker.com Win ANY app you want, daily!
Well my hope is that the hobby will pay for itself. Boom Boat has sold enough to already make up for any advertising costs (which I kept to a minimum). That being said, sales have really fallen off a cliff from the first three days... a little disheartening but it's to be expected I guess. But in the end, it's been a really awesome experience to actually make a decent product from start to finish.
You never know if a game can make it big, always worth a try as long as costs are minimal I had very little hope for our Olympus Archery game in the beginning, but we still decided to go ahead and get something out there. Somehow it has done incredibly well and money has been earned from it. Dont think too much if its a small project and the costs wont kill you. Finish it then release it, if it doesnt kick off then you will know better for next time
I do it for fun. I've made money. And I got a job out of it. Not rich, but certainly making significantly more than I would be otherwise.
