[casual_games] Advice to a developer about distribution

[Matthew Ford]

Hello all,

 

My game Taboo Snaps (www.taboosnaps.com) is nearly done so I am looking
ahead to distribution options. At Game Connection at GDC I made contact with
a few would-be distributors who kindly expressed interest. I am completely
green in this area-though I worked for game companies as a producer/designer
for more than 15 years, I never forged this kind of deal. So I would really,
really appreciate your advice.

 

To give you an idea of the scale of my game, Taboo Snaps is a game with a
casual entry-Flash-based and you can learn how to play it in a minute-but
has a considerable amount of gameplay under the hood and a continually
updated content stream, so a player who likes it might play for a solid hour
per session, and come back week after week to get new content.

 

At GC I met a few would-be distributors: a person who would get exclusive
rights to:

1)      Work with portals to get the best possible deal for my game.

2)      Find properties, such as a men's magazine, which would want to buy a
skinned version of my game, rebranded to fit their site and show their
content.

 

I don't need any funding. I just am deciding whether to have a middleman do
the work of cutting deals and working his/her connections, or to do it all
myself. On one hand, I want to maximize revenue. On the other hand, I really
want to focus my time and effort on development.

 

So I have a few really basic questions:

1)      What should I consider as I decide whether to work with such a
distributor, or just be my own agent in working with portals and properties
such as magazines?

2)      What is a fair percentage for the distributor to get from the game's
revenues?

3)      Is it reasonable for the deal to be such that I get the revenue
checks, from which I give a cut to the distributor, or must I expect it to
be vice-versa?

4)      What are reasonable limits to expect the deal to have? Time of
exclusivity, exceptions if I dig up a portal or property that the
distributor did not, and such?

 

I know that my first time selling my own game will be a learning experience,
but I'd greatly appreciate it if you all can help me avoid at least a few of
the pitfalls I know I have ahead of me. J

 

I don't mind if replies go to the list, but if you wish to send me a private
reply, that's fine!

 

Many thanks,

Matthew Ford

 

* * *

Matthew Ford - matthew at fordfam dot com - http://www.fordfam.com/matthew 

 

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