Distribution Publishing on other places before steam

G

Guest User

Guest
My game is nearly finished, and I started to think about publishing. I found out that (if I understood correctly), getting a game to steam can take months. So is it better to publish the game first on other places, like itch.io and gamejolt, or wait and publish it in all places at the same time? And why?
 

RangerX

Member
I personally wouldn't wait for timing all my releases. If you do that, you might cannibalize your sales.
I would release at as many places as possible but not necessarily at the same time. This even gives a chance someone double dips.
 
G

Guest User

Guest
I personally wouldn't wait for timing all my releases. If you do that, you might cannibalize your sales.
I would release at as many places as possible but not necessarily at the same time. This even gives a chance someone double dips.
Thanks for the advice!
 
M

MishMash

Guest
If you do plan on becoming a Steam publisher, make sure you read the SDA carefully, because this is also addressed in detail (regarding release-parity on different platforms). Informally, it depends on what you are doing. I don't think there is a direct benefit to releasing on all platforms at the same time IF you are releasing on Steam, given that Steam is the big dog and will cover all your basis, both with regard to global accessibility, security and money conversion. If anything, it may fragment your user base a little if you release on too many. Ideally, you want as many sales on a singular platform as possible so that your game rates higher with regard to that platforms search algorithms.

The only real benefit to releasing on more platforms is getting the game in front of more eyes. Platforms like Gamejolt and Itch do both have better visibility than steam, at the compromise of having a smaller consumer base. With regard to Gamejolt specifically, I was talking with the creator (CROS) a few weeks back and he was talking about how he was thinking of changing the focus to be shifted more towards the development process of games rather than as a sales platform specifically (though the sales features would still exist). With that in mind, I think GameJolt is a fantastic platform when it comes to building exposure, though I haven't seen any crazy sales statistics within the platform itself, given most users have steam anyway, though there is probably no harm in cracking a version on a little bit after or before release, and it also supports them, but if anything, get a devlog going anyway prior to release. Our project has gained over 1000 new followers since we created our Gamejolt devlog, which will ultimately benefit our main release regardless of platform :)
 
G

Guest User

Guest
If you do plan on becoming a Steam publisher, make sure you read the SDA carefully, because this is also addressed in detail (regarding release-parity on different platforms). Informally, it depends on what you are doing. I don't think there is a direct benefit to releasing on all platforms at the same time IF you are releasing on Steam, given that Steam is the big dog and will cover all your basis, both with regard to global accessibility, security and money conversion. If anything, it may fragment your user base a little if you release on too many. Ideally, you want as many sales on a singular platform as possible so that your game rates higher with regard to that platforms search algorithms.

The only real benefit to releasing on more platforms is getting the game in front of more eyes. Platforms like Gamejolt and Itch do both have better visibility than steam, at the compromise of having a smaller consumer base. With regard to Gamejolt specifically, I was talking with the creator (CROS) a few weeks back and he was talking about how he was thinking of changing the focus to be shifted more towards the development process of games rather than as a sales platform specifically (though the sales features would still exist). With that in mind, I think GameJolt is a fantastic platform when it comes to building exposure, though I haven't seen any crazy sales statistics within the platform itself, given most users have steam anyway, though there is probably no harm in cracking a version on a little bit after or before release, and it also supports them, but if anything, get a devlog going anyway prior to release. Our project has gained over 1000 new followers since we created our Gamejolt devlog, which will ultimately benefit our main release regardless of platform :)
Good ideas. :)
 
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