[casual_games] Advice to a developer about distribution

[Matthew Ford]

Thanks Kevin and thanks again to all who replied on and offlist. You have
been very helpful! I have decided to peddle the game myself, though it's
still possible I will use agents to get entry to certain properties who want
a skinned version. Even then I am inclined to try to break in myself. Cheers
to this list!

--Matt

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

-----Original Message-----
From: casual_games-bounces at igda.org [mailto:casual_games-bounces at igda.org]
On Behalf Of Kevin Larson
Sent: Friday, 24 April 2009 1:07 AM
To: IGDA Casual Games SIG Mailing List
Subject: Re: [casual_games] Advice to a developer about distribution

I'm in agreement with Lennard. I think the most successful independent
developers are the ones that have a keen eye for business AND
development. The portals/publishers are eager and open to meeting new
developers and seeing new games, so gaining entry is not difficult. As
you establish these relationships, you'll learn valuable information
from them and in turn, make games better suited to their audiences. Each
portal serves a slightly different demographic, and over time, you might
find one that's the best fit for your games, allowing you to establish
an exclusive relationship. You mention that you don't need the funding,
so now would be a good time to try this out.

Regarding reskinning the game, it depends on the game, how effectively
it can be adapted, your plans for the IP and your long term business
plans. If the game is a hit, these opportunities will come to you. I'd
first establish relationships with the portals, where most of your
revenue will come from, then start looking for other opportunities.

I'd be happy to give you a few names to get started. Just let me know.


Kevin Larson | Chewy Software | Casual Game Development

-----Original Message-----
From: casual_games-bounces at igda.org
[mailto:casual_games-bounces at igda.org] On Behalf Of Matthew Ford
Sent: Wednesday, April 22, 2009 7:59 PM
To: 'IGDA Casual Games SIG Mailing List'
Subject: Re: [casual_games] Advice to a developer about distribution

Great to get your advice, Lennard, much appreciated.

Anyone else to pile on one side or the other?

Might it make sense to use a middleman for connections I would find it
hard to make-- such as a connection to a men's magazine that the
middleman already has contacts with? If I rock up and email them out of
the blue, I might not be able to get to the right person. On one hand,
maybe I should again heed the advice to build up my own contacts. On the
other hand, these are particular contacts I am not likely to use again.

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


-----Original Message-----
From: casual_games-bounces at igda.org
[mailto:casual_games-bounces at igda.org]
On Behalf Of Lennard Feddersen
Sent: Thursday, 23 April 2009 10:49 AM
To: IGDA Casual Games SIG Mailing List
Subject: Re: [casual_games] Advice to a developer about distribution

I have personally turned down deals where a middleman represents you to
all of the portals. They take a huge chunk of the pie for doing some
emailing and leveraging a rolodex and the portals are already going to
give you a pretty small % - if those guys are interested it's probably
because you have made something worth their time, might as well take the
time to send the portals your emails directly.

My take is that, long term, it's important to be building your own
website traffic with your content. Do deals directly with portals if it
makes sense for you - they are pretty approachable in my experience and
they do get a lot of traffic. Ultimately you are going to be asked to
nudge the game this way or that - you might as well be working directly
with the portals because that is going to take more energy than the
initial contact did anyhow and then you don't have a middleman in the
way.

BTW, would be happy if you sent me a link when the game is actually up
on your website.

Good luck!

Lennard Feddersen
CEO, Rusty Axe Games, Inc.
www.RustyAxe.com

Lennard at RustyAxe.com
P. 250-635-7623 F. 1-309-422-2466
P. July & August 518-863-2317
5014 Walsh, Terrace, BC, Canada, V8G-4H2



Matthew Ford wrote:

>

> Hello all,

>

> My game Taboo Snaps (www.taboosnaps.com <http://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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