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#Post#: 5193--------------------------------------------------
Game Revenue
DIR By: AName
Date: June 30, 2015, 9:41 pm
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As you guys know, I'm working on a game to continue Sheep Tag.
It will consist of more than that (similar to WC3), but Sheep
Tag will be a primary game in it. I've come across a serious
problem, however, which is the game's business model, and I'd
like to get some of your input. The thing is, in order for me to
put serious time and effort into this game, which it will need
to thrive, it will need to make enough money both to pay for the
servers that will host it and also to pay me. I would like to
make this my primary source of income if I can.
Here is a list of things that either make for a bad business
model or I simply won't accept for the game:
- Donations (though welcome to help get the game on its feet)
- Subscription (to play - like WoW): awful, I hate these types
of games and never play them
- Buying the game (like WC3): it works for some games, but my
game needs to be long term to work and I simply can't upkeep the
servers or convince enough people to buy the game (and this
would discourage people from playing it and still not support it
for the long run)
Here are plans that I have considered and may do:
- In-game advertising (there are many ways to do this): could be
annoying and low revenue but excellent for long-term gameplay
- Microtransactions (in-game purchases): not the pay-to-win type
but the stylistic enhancement type
- Direct/Sponsorship ads, e.g. "if you pay me $100 I'll display
your ad in a banner in the game 10000 times"
Microtransactions I'm not too optimistic about, at least not
until the game is really going. I read an interesting statistic
just today:
--- Quote ---
> The vast majority of your users (97.8% according to a Swrve
study) will NEVER give you a dime.
--- End Quote ---
and I'd have to come up with all sorts of content for people to
buy etc.
Direct/Sponsorship ads have a similar problem in that they
require me to constantly maintain the ads being displayed, and
who knows whether there will be enough buyers to support the
game?
So for the time being I think I'll go with in-game advertising.
What I was thinking of doing is displaying banner ads during
just the chatting stage of the game, like WC3, though I don't
know if the revenue will be enough.
I found some quality but cheap servers I plan to use that I
think will ultimately cost somewhere around $0.01 a player slot
per month. What this means is that if only 20 players are ever
on at a time, then I only need 20 player slots per month, even
if 10000 players are on some time during that month.
So, if we need to have say 1000 players on at a time at most,
the revenue would have to be at minimum $10 a month. Let's say
though that the average number of players on at a time is half
of that: 500, and they see an average of 3 ads during their time
playing. Then let's say they recycle once per hour (so 3 * 24 *
500 = 36,000). Depending on the style of the ad and other
factors, each ad view could generate from $0.00002-$0.0045 each
(no really, that big a difference).
Worst case scenario, we're looking at $7.20 a day or $216.00 a
month. Best case scenario, we're looking at $162.00 a day or
$4,860 a month.
So you can see how, as I was thinking this through, it really
depends on multiple factors:
- how successful the ads are at generating revenue
- the up-time of the game and the ads (as the servers will cost
money each month regardless of whether they're being used)
- the popularity of the game, though this scales somewhat with
the revenue
Of course, my math could be way off, but this gives the general
idea. So I'd like to hear your guys' input. I'm still not going
to reveal the game just yet, but it's nearly ready for alpha
testing. :)
#Post#: 5194--------------------------------------------------
Re: Game Revenue
DIR By: AName
Date: June 30, 2015, 9:47 pm
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Actually, I made a mistake in my math: fixing it... Okay fixed.
#Post#: 5195--------------------------------------------------
Re: Game Revenue
DIR By: XXXandBEER
Date: June 30, 2015, 10:30 pm
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Excellent! Can't wait to check out the alpha! :D What
platform(s) are you shooting for?
Monetizing is tricky, but if done right I think micro
transactions are the way to go along with limited
sponsors/advertising. Personally I would steer away banner ads
as they only take away from the experience and generate very
little revenue. Your idea of banner Ads only in the chatting
stage (outside of the actual game) is a good idea though^^
#Post#: 5196--------------------------------------------------
Re: Game Revenue
DIR By: AName
Date: June 30, 2015, 10:40 pm
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Windows 64 only, and it will only target D3D 10+. This
limitation however will turn into a benefit over time, as
everyone modernizes their computers and my game is able to
target better written graphics software. Basically, if you have
Windows 7+ and your computer is only a few years old, you're
probably okay.
--- Quote ---
> Your idea of banner Ads only in the chatting stage (outside of
the actual game) is a good idea though^^
--- End Quote ---
Good to hear, that's what I'm hoping for.
#Post#: 5198--------------------------------------------------
Re: Game Revenue
DIR By: jdawg
Date: July 1, 2015, 6:34 pm
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custom sheeps xD
is this gonna b like old sheep tag?
#Post#: 5199--------------------------------------------------
Re: Game Revenue
DIR By: Nmcdo
Date: July 1, 2015, 7:29 pm
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Very interesting. I think it's awesome that both you and Beer
planned / plan on making Sheep Tag.
I reckon you should do cool stuff where players feel awesome as
well as it not changing the game. Example: they pay X amount and
for X games there name will be displayed as Sheep / Wolf, etc.
I think advertisement in chat would be nice - the better the
chat would mean more people would chat within the channels,
meaning more add viewing.
As for servers those seem really cheap. You should always keep
donations an open option. Would it be possible (within) chat
means to have some like, two advertisements at once, would
that increase revenue, no?
If the game really is near alpha I think that's awesome and
would love to see the fruits of your labor myself.
I'm not gonna lie, if I were rich I would sponsor anyone who
makes Sheep Tag with mass money rofl :D
#Post#: 5201--------------------------------------------------
Re: Game Revenue
DIR By: jdawg
Date: July 1, 2015, 7:35 pm
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i think custom sheeps would be cool man like super hero cape a
gangster one just shit like that
#Post#: 5202--------------------------------------------------
Re: Game Revenue
DIR By: HaWkys
Date: July 1, 2015, 8:21 pm
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I suggest a subscription. But it would have to be fuckin nice
and I hope ur ass has insurance if i give u my credit card ^^
#Post#: 5203--------------------------------------------------
Re: Game Revenue
DIR By: AName
Date: July 1, 2015, 8:34 pm
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Don't get your hopes up too high. I'm a great developer, but I'm
only one person. So I am taking a minimalist approach in order
to make sure it gets done first, and then later on I will add
less critical things.
#Post#: 5204--------------------------------------------------
Re: Game Revenue
DIR By: Nmcdo
Date: July 2, 2015, 10:26 am
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Let's not forget you practically have a dozen people from the
STC would start playing right off the bat. We would probably
chat a lot just like wc3, so not a bad start.
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