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How I could promote my game?

J

JoselaiaroW

Guest
Confused about how will I announce my game, it seems really hard to get an audience who support a gamedev team before them release their game. (For first time I think)

Have you got ideas to promote it?

I have been watching vids and reading posts about game devs who get ruined making a game, and, I feel really sad cause the things they did to promote it (Write to game reviewers, game magazines, etc) were the same things I have been thinking to announce the mine, and for them, it was useless (nobody responded).

Sry for my english btw. And thanks in advance.
 
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JackTurbo

Member
How far off release are you?

There are a number of things that most seem to say are essential, and generally speaking number 1 is starting early. The following is mostly me regurgitating what I've read else where (as I've yet to release a commercial project), but also stuff I've picked up in my day job (I'm a digital designer for a marketing team).

Whats the USP of your game? - what differentiates it from other games? - Work that out and shout about it as much as you can.

Do you have an elevator pitch? - A simple one or two sentence description of the game that sounds compelling. Shout about that too.

Get some social media channels set up and start posting images and gifs of interesting parts of your game as it progresses. Visual stuff seems to work best for this, start early with concept art, then player and enemy designs, animations as they're done and later gifs of gameplay from early builds. Cross post the most compelling of these to other places that gamers congregate imgur, reddit (although make sure to check and obey the sub reddit's rules on self promo), etc. What you're trying to do here is build an audience. Use prolific hashtags for the relevant platforms, for twitter that would include #gamedev, #indiedev. But research what people are using and include others as well if they're relevant, this is especially important if you use instagram.

Once you've got enough of the game to a final standard, create a trailer. Keep it short, around 1:30 is good. Keep any logo splashes short, no one cares about your logo they want to see the game. Try to avoid too much in the way of text screens, show rather than tell.

Get yourself a website for the game set up. Try and keep the domain name you buy short and memorable. Go for .com, as your domain extension, others can be region specific or look weird/amateurish/not be memorable. Feature a short snappy description of the game and the trailer high up on the homepage (above the fold ideally). Include social media buttons, unobtrusively but also ideally above the fold.
The upper part of your homepage should be about hooking people on the overall concept, so keep more in depth stuff (character bios, background lore etc) further down or on other pages entirely. Include a press kit and consider a newsletter sign up (even if you dont plan on doing newsletters until just before launch).

Consider setting up a devlog blog. This can be a lot of work and a poorly maintained one could look worse than none at all so only do it if youre prepared to maintain it.

Set up an IndieDB page, include links to your website and social media channels.

If you're releasing onto steam, get your page set up early. This allows people to wishlist it and gives you the chance to shout about it on social media.

Hopefully if you've been doing all this for a while you should start getting a good number of people following you and and be starting to building an audience, which will hopefully make the next bit a little bit more successful than it might have been otherwise.

Once you're nearing release you can start thinking about contacting press and social media influencers (streamers etc). Prioritise people who seem to enjoy games of your genre and personalise each and every email you send to suit the recipient. Introduce yourself, your game and say why you think they'll enjoy it. Embed a gif. Include a link to download the game or a steam key right there in the email. Include a link to your press kit in the email too. You basically want it to be as easy as possible for the person to see your game, potentially play it and hopefully write/vlog about it.
 
A

Ampersand

Guest
One of the things I hear most from indie devs at GDC and the likes is Let's Plays. Your game definitely has to be suited to being watchable in that environment, and entertaining enough that the caster will want to play and will be able to entertain their audience, but many popular Let's Play channels will demo your game for free. If it's enjoyable it will get in front of a lot of people that are eager to play the new games that their favorite streamers are playing. Rami Ismail of Vlambeer talks at length about this in a few of his best talks.
 
One of the things I hear most from indie devs at GDC and the likes is Let's Plays. Your game definitely has to be suited to being watchable in that environment, and entertaining enough that the caster will want to play and will be able to entertain their audience, but many popular Let's Play channels will demo your game for free. If it's enjoyable it will get in front of a lot of people that are eager to play the new games that their favorite streamers are playing. Rami Ismail of Vlambeer talks at length about this in a few of his best talks.
I've heard the speech. From what I recall of his speech, make a HUD customization so they can show their face where they want it. If you have specific modes have something on screen to indicate it to prevent people asking "what mode is this?" "Is this a daily run?" I think Rami also says don't have your own official Twitter or Twitch on screen as people will visit that and the streamers will have an audience drop off.

Other than that... Ensure that the game is different from player to player to make one Let's Player's experience a different watch than another's. Ensure you have a windowed mode as a lot of Streamers / Youtubers have software that struggle with full screen games. Make sure your game starts at half volume as a some systems can hijack sound and set it to what you have it set at so they can start EXTREMELY LOUD.

PUBLICITY

Jack covered the a lot. I've never been able to do more publicity than Steam gives me from just being on the site. With that said, I think I've sold more copies just talking to people. People believe in me, so they believe in my games enough to buy them.

Its been a slow climb on Twitter and took 18 months of daily Tweeting to get 200 followers and the majority of those happened with 2 or 3 select Tweets. It took 2 years to get 100 subscribers on Youtube and that's from making pixelart. I've paid for advertising and while it seems like I was throwing money away, it gets the name out there. Any promotion is good promotion.

Even when I've had bigger Youtubers cover my games, it meant nothing beyond demo downloads. Call me crazy, but for people to believe in your game they need to see it everywhere all at once and that's tough to do.

Then again you can have a free or $5 game that goes somewhere a year after its release.
 
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andev

Member
Even when I've had bigger Youtubers cover my games, it meant nothing beyond demo downloads. Call me crazy, but for people to believe in your game they need to see it everywhere all at once and that's tough to do.
This will depend on the game. If I see someone playing a game I like, I will go and buy it.

But sometimes it's the other way around. I'm already considering buying a game but the store trailers are crap and don't show any raw gameplay at all. So I go to youtube and watch an actual play of it to see if it still appeals. If there are only a couple videos with less than 100 views each, it sends warning signs about the game. I know it's not logical but that's the feeling I get.
 

NazGhuL

NazTaiL
I'm currently working on a game too. (here it is: Space Ashes)
The First thing I made is a brief web page (of my game Space Ashes)
Talk about it on twitter with related # like #indiedev, #gamemaker, #screenshotsaturdays(That's tomorrow btw)
I will probably link my game (called Space Ashes)
Then I created a itch.io page. (For my game Space Ashes)
Then I realized that a banner/signature on the GMC would be great to promote it too.
And some YouTube videos (I made a couple for Space Ashes)
I do all that because the more I talk about Space Ashes, the more people see it and play it.
Tigsource is a good place too. (I have a thread about Space Ashes)
If you start a thread on the Programming section of the GMC, you start it like this:

Hi! (Always nice to say hi... ;) )
I'm currently working on a game called: [insert your game name].
Then ask your question then give the link.
Be proud of your product and edit your first post and insert your game's name and link.
;)
 
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jobjorgos

Member
Some companies have chosen to do something complete insane on purpose, so it becomes news, and that way they get alot of attention for their product. It is morally in some cases notright, but tactical a smart move.
 
A

Ampersand

Guest
I'm currently working on a game too. (here it is: Space Ashes)
The First thing I made is a brief web page (of my game Space Ashes)
Talk about it on twitter with related # like #indiedev, #gamemaker, #screenshotsaturdays(That's tomorrow btw)
I will probably link my game (called Space Ashes)
Then I created a itch.io page. (For my game Space Ashes)
Then I realized that a banner/signature on the GMC would be great to promote it too.
And some YouTube videos (I made a couple for Space Ashes)
I do all that because the more I talk about Space Ashes, the more people see it and play it.
Tigsource is a good place too. (I have a thread about Space Ashes)
If you start a thread on the Programming section of the GMC, you start it like this:



Be proud of your product and edit your first post and insert your game's name and link.
If there's anyone here to take note from, it's this guy :) brand repetition and peer exposure are two steps to always keep in mind! In the end, how much you talk about it will be directly reflected in your exposure. Talk about it everywhere you can to everyone you can. The Let's Play suggestion was just that: a suggestion. But if you already have a follower/subscriber base, it's certainly something you could leave out.

On the Let's Play note, Nick Popovich I believe did a great pre-emptive post-mortem on Slime Rancher where he talks about working with Youtubers as well as other publicity techniques. Another great talk.
 
B

bit-bit

Guest
Yeah, I'd say make sure people see your stuff at 5 different places.
So gaming forums, facebook groups, twitter, reddit, and here!
 
A

Akai

Guest
uhm...here few ideas that we usually use: run some targeting ad on Google and around social media, free trial, get the game influencer, get in touch with the gamers with high number of followers on Twitch and ask them to broadcast your game.
 

Mert

Member
It's a great tactic to also develop your advertisement strategy. There are companies that do this for you, but you can also do it by yourself though it would be less effective. Games like PUBG and Fortnite have used this tactic. That's how they got famous.

Imagine you've just completed a survival game.
1. Who would fanatically play your game ? (Kids between 13-18 years. Example : Minecraft)
2. Is your game worth be told to friends ? (If a kid plays your game, sure they'd want their friends to be in their competitive circle[i.e. Flappy Bird])
3. Is your game worth playing for at least 20 minutes ? (First impression. It's more about Google Play SEO [In case of an Android/iOS app])
4. Why should I keep your application on my mobile phone ? (I don't have much storage on my phone, should it be worth keeping it ?)

After this, since you've pretty much gathered your own information about the target, it's time for you to contact with wide variety of promoters throughout the Web. There are lots of YouTube channels that do it for free. Send your game to Yoyogames to be shown in Showcase and also on Game Maker Social page on Facebook.

You can also advertise your game on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram with some low budged(Perhaps 100 bucks would give you a great audience for starters). These social websites allow you to target audience and since you've got your audience target information, you can use these. Some famous Facebook pages also promote your game through internet memes and funny videos.

And unfortunately, there's no magical incantation to spread your game easily. Persistence and patience are the keys to achieve success. Keep up the good work.
 
T

tetherline

Guest
I remember seeing a GDC conference highlighting the mistakes and triumphs of the Guacamelee guys marketing approach. You should search for it on youtube. It was super informative.
 
S

Simon DLSea

Guest
As others have said, social media (Especially Twitter!) is a good idea to gain an audience. Remember the "Show: Don't tell!" rule and you'll be golden! If you haven't already, consider making youtube videos showcasing progress or even behind-the-scenes stuff.
 

Genetix

Member
Not sure if it has been mentioned yet - There is now a GMS facebook group as well. I see quite a few people post updates of their projects there, and it can be a good positive place to get early feedback from other developers and also start to build awareness around a project. I've been sharing image of a CCG game I'm working on there and have got a lot of great ideas and new followers from the process!
 
L

Lonewolff

Guest
You can have my Twitter account for a hundred bucks if you want :D
 
L

Lonewolff

Guest
The one with all the fake followers - didn't you already give that to someone? :D

What happened to your OneofThemGame Twitter account?
That had a load of (real?) followers - did you just give it up?
Nah, never had any accounts with fake followers.

The OneOfThemGame account still exists. Just deactivated for the time being.

I did give another account away a few years back. As it only had 12K followers. Got another with 5K followers lurking around too.
 
A

Akai

Guest
I always face this question after our team finish a game. Over the year we've learned to optimize our game in App store by using eye-catching preview and trailer. The game description is also important because many people search for a specific kind of game and your game text can boost your ranking in the store. Remember to get some reviews from credible websites, gamers, influencers, they will help spread your game to the world.
 

Genetix

Member
Another thing worth looking into - There are a few groups on FB dedicated to indie developers you might want to follow. They can be a good place to meet others and see what they are doing to promote their projects through things like screenshotsaturday and others. There are different groups for different types of developers or even specifically for promoting (indie promo) if you focus on apps then the indie mobile developers group is a great place to follow also!
 
A

Akai

Guest
Twitter is quick and easy to implement but also easy to get distracted by thousands of other tweets.
 

11clock

Member
Not really a big help with marketing, but if you are releasing on Steam, make sure to throw as many popular tags onto the store page as you can think of that fit your game. This makes your game much more likely to show up in searches.
 
L

Lonewolff

Guest
Care to share any twitter advice for building an audience? :)
  • Images, Gifs, and vid's. People don't read text posts.
  • Tag the right crowd #gamedev #indiedev #screenshotsaturday.
  • Be interactive with people.
  • Follow hard.
Sounds spammy, but that got me 100,000 followers in exactly 12 months, and #14 all time 'highest rated concept on steam'.

https://steamcommunity.com/workshop...browsesort=toprated&browsefilter=toprated&p=1

For the people who don't like that approach? Ask yourself 'What is marketing?' :)

FWIW - I haven't posted much on Twitter in a few years and lost 25% of my base as a result. But 75,000 have stuck with me, so that's not bad numbers.
 
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JackTurbo

Member
  • Images, Gifs, and vid's. People don't read text posts.
  • Tag the right crowd #gamedev #indiedev #screenshotsaturday.
  • Be interactive with people.
  • Follow hard.
Sounds spammy, but that got me 100,000 followers in exactly 12 months, and #14 all time 'highest rated concept on steam'.

https://steamcommunity.com/workshop...browsesort=toprated&browsefilter=toprated&p=1

For the people who don't like that approach? Ask yourself 'What is marketing?' :)

FWIW - I haven't posted much on Twitter in a few years and lost 25% of my base as a result. But 75,000 have stuck with me, so that's not bad numbers.
How often did you post?
 
how do you do that? Twitter is a mystery to me compared to other platforms like Facebook. Is it common to tweet out previously tweeted content to reach out to people who haven't seen it?
Have great art, retweet, follow and use hashtags. My art is only fair to good and I don't retweet or follow... I need to up my art, following and retweeting. I interact with lots of people, ask questions so they know I'm human, I just don't get that many followers.

To flesh out what I said a month ago: I was posting daily as any more than daily the likes and retweets wouldn't happen. By far my top 2 posts have both been maps scrolling. I think a lot of the traffic comes from @aseprite, but when I would do it with other creations, it didn't work:

https://twitter.com/DrinkingNails/status/881592645956632576
(gained 100 followers)

https://twitter.com/DrinkingNails/status/932639254093684739
(gained 30? followers)
 
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kupo15

Member
@sitebender @Ghost in the IDE

You retweet anything you find interesting from other people and don't limit your twitter to just tweets about your game? Other platforms like facebook you want to mainly keep things relevant to your game for example. Also how often do you retweet things in your game you've already tweeted about? My issue is not bringing myself to tweet about things that I find not incredibly new about my game but I guess you should tweet more things about your game? You don't have to wait until major updates to tweet about like facebook?

For my fighting game I feel like I don't have as much unique material to pull from compared to an adventure game
 
@sitebender @Ghost in the IDE

You retweet anything you find interesting from other people and don't limit your twitter to just tweets about your game? Other platforms like facebook you want to mainly keep things relevant to your game for example. Also how often do you retweet things in your game you've already tweeted about? My issue is not bringing myself to tweet about things that I find not incredibly new about my game but I guess you should tweet more things about your game? You don't have to wait until major updates to tweet about like facebook?

For my fighting game I feel like I don't have as much unique material to pull from compared to an adventure game
I rarely retweet. That's probably a problem, but at least it ensures people want to see my content. Its rare when I tweet about stuff I've already tweeted about. A lot of times that might miss some things like I'll do something really good during the week, but #screenshotsaturday seems to get the most eyeballs. So do I tweet about what I already tweeted or just accept it as a loss and find something else to #screenshotsaturday about?
 

kupo15

Member
So do I tweet about what I already tweeted or just accept it as a loss and find something else to #screenshotsaturday about?
That's the big question isn't it? And the one I keep asking myself. I've reposted the same content on the Indie FB group for sss a year apart from each other, the first time I 235+ likes plus comments and the second time I got 560+ likes plus comments. I'm more sensitive to not showing people the same thing they've already seen but the fact is that there are lot of new people who've joined or people who missed the first one that I was able to capture the second time around. I guess what it comes down to is marketing is all about repeating yourself to get people to remember you. I never get upset at seeing the nth cola commercial but for some reason am more sensitive that others would if they see things they've already seen in my game. Strange how that works! :p
 
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