The Gaming Business-Complete Guide to Selling & Managing Your Game

Other Courses Ideas
#1

Okay, so you have made a really cool game, your testers love it, everything is good to go but, now what do you do?

It’s all well and good to learn how to create models in Blender, learn to use Gimp for artwork, learn to code for Unity/Unreal but, I have yet to see a course on how to implement/sell your game after completing it. Where /how to sell, how to manage the financial aspect, provide technical support for it, dealing with customer service etc.

I would like to see a course or a serious of lecture how to do these things. From varying software to use on a budget to growing/supporting your business.

#2

Great idea. I really want to have a great course taking about business aspects of game development from an indie developer point of view, including marketing, financing, management, sale, IP and legal stuff. Such as how to investigate the niche game market, establish support/audience group, build community, establish sale channel, IP & law stuff, technical support & customer service and etc.

There are lots of topics outside of game development (design, coding, art & music) you have to know, especially, for indie developers, since their team is usually quite small and each member have to wear more than one hat.

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#3

I agree with you. Lots of time spent on how to create games but nothing about what to do with you have created it!

I am really curious how you provide great technical support, provide good customer service, deal with financial affairs if you have in-game sales of items, etc. on a day to day basis but still be able to pay the rent and support yourself if an Indie developer. What are the start-up costs going to cost you? Do you need a loan? Spend your savings? What are good policies to start with?

There are lots and lots of to consider and questions to answer, which probably take just as much time as the initial game development.

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#4

@Morgaine_Christensen I love that you started this topic. I emailed the GameDev team directly with a similar suggestion, before I realized you had already started this topic.

Here’s an excerpt of that email:

I would love to see a course on “Self Publishing Games,” even something simple around promoting a self-hosted game, or publishing games to services like Humble Bundle, Steam, Kongregate, etc. Granted, these types of gaming services have publishing guides specific to their services, but what I am suggesting is more of a broader scoped look at:

  • What development elements make a game interesting to publishers
  • How to market your game
  • How to build for a dedicated/specific audience
  • Publishing different game types, educational, F2P, and subscription based systems
  • Providing technical support/customer service
  • Building social hype around your game

Something that looks at game development from the “business” side of the project. Not all artists are business people, and many/most creatives could use some guidance around monetizing/publishing their ideas in the real world. Well, real digital world in this case.

I am crossing my fingers and toes, closing my eyes as hard as I can, and making a wish that a course like this comes to life.

-Goodge

#7

Thanks for posting this I was actually gonna ask about the monetization part in here because that is one of the things I am most overwelmed with but your question is much more and I need that too, you know, a step by step thing on how to do the business side of things. So thanks again and hope Rick or some one from the community could help with this even if it is just a list of resources we can go through.

Good wishes for everyone :slight_smile:

#8

Man, do you even understand how many courses we have about game design and game development? But, at the same time, do we even have courses that would teach us and explain all the business sides of the gaming industry? Honestly, I don’t think we have any. The best thing you could do is speak to a former developer or something like that. That’s why I would recommend new game-developing studios remain independent and look for some good sales signals. This would help them increase their sales, and their company would get bigger and better.

#10

It’s a late reply but first of all, congrats on making a sick game! I totally feel you on the struggle of what to do after you’ve created your masterpiece. It’s like, “Okay, I have this amazing thing, but now what?!”
Luckily, I stumbled upon a pretty dope website called successionresource.com that has a complete guide to selling and managing your business. They cover everything from where and how to sell your game to managing the financial aspect and providing technical support. It’s seriously a lifesaver for any game creator out there.
But, let’s be real, sometimes those courses can be expensive af. So, I also recommend checking out some forums and groups on social media for indie game developers.

#12

Friends, I have a similar issue, but not exactly the same. My brother owns a gaming club nearby, and he complains that his profits started to drop. Seems all people are getting online or what?

#13

Yes, one possible reason can be that it is easier to do everything online these days. But when it comes to clubs like yours, I know plenty of similar businesses that are full of people! So I came to the conclusion this is not just about games. This is about lifestyle, about getting together, about the atmosphere! Perhaps you can analyse your club’s traffic by a venue management AI platform and see what happens in reality and what awaits you too.

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