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How much of a game do publishers want?
Author
I was just wondering, how ''complete'' does a game have to be for a publisher to consider it? I mean, I personally do not have the time to make 2 hour long FMV intros for a game nor a full musical score...
does anyone think publishers actually consider games that have the major code and data down but w/o som multimedia or is it just that Im screwed?
You''d be surprised at the amount you need to show!
You don''t always have to show a great deal, the advice I''d give, is show a roughish demo, show them at least 1 good idea (keeping a few back for further showing). It''s also important to package any demo with a good covering letter, tell them about the game and what idea''s you have planned, let them know that the demo is more of a technical showing.
They may request to see a better demo, which is a good sign, or they may even want to talk with you further on the strength of your current work. Even if they say no initially, you at least know that you can go back with a better version at a later date!
The most important thing is to convince them that it''s worth investing, so present a good overall package of info and demo and see how it goes :-)
Marc Lambert
marc@darkhex.com
You don''t always have to show a great deal, the advice I''d give, is show a roughish demo, show them at least 1 good idea (keeping a few back for further showing). It''s also important to package any demo with a good covering letter, tell them about the game and what idea''s you have planned, let them know that the demo is more of a technical showing.
They may request to see a better demo, which is a good sign, or they may even want to talk with you further on the strength of your current work. Even if they say no initially, you at least know that you can go back with a better version at a later date!
The most important thing is to convince them that it''s worth investing, so present a good overall package of info and demo and see how it goes :-)
Marc Lambert
marc@darkhex.com
Author
hmm... so if I have the basics down and the ideas down, would any publisher be interested in providing even skeletal funding to finish it up?
also, wat r the publishers out there that actually look at independent developer submissions that also have decent market exposure (i.e. they have distribution to retailers like best buy and compusa)
i dont mean companies like sierra online or EA, theyr too big to even care for indies like me, but any publisher that has any sort of exposure...
if anyone knows any contact info for publishers that actually look at indie submissions and also has retail exposure, please post them!!!!
thanx
also, wat r the publishers out there that actually look at independent developer submissions that also have decent market exposure (i.e. they have distribution to retailers like best buy and compusa)
i dont mean companies like sierra online or EA, theyr too big to even care for indies like me, but any publisher that has any sort of exposure...
if anyone knows any contact info for publishers that actually look at indie submissions and also has retail exposure, please post them!!!!
thanx
Well, for a start you need to drop the ''indie'' bit and start considering yourself a bit more pro before a publisher will!
The demo does need to show the basics, but also like I say one or two big ideas are needed. Present this and any letter in as professional mannor as possible. A publisher will not pay you any kind of maney, or take you too seriously if they don''t think you can finish the job!
What would also help is having a good website. What I mean by this, is straight-forward information about yourself and game. Try not to show too many screenshots, and WHATEVER YOU DO don''t mention anything about wanting help/being an amateur or anything like that.
My old company site is still there at www.eclipsesoftware.co.uk, and that did the trick for us! Take a few notes from that.
Finally, IF you think your game could be a very good seller (and of course be honest, most people will say their games would sell big, but deep down know that it may not be as good as they want!)
, then try a bigger publisher, whats the worst that could happen?
EA might be a bit big, but what about publishers like Midas/Take2/SCi? could be worth trying :-)
I hope this helps,
Marc Lambert
marc@darkhex.com
The demo does need to show the basics, but also like I say one or two big ideas are needed. Present this and any letter in as professional mannor as possible. A publisher will not pay you any kind of maney, or take you too seriously if they don''t think you can finish the job!
What would also help is having a good website. What I mean by this, is straight-forward information about yourself and game. Try not to show too many screenshots, and WHATEVER YOU DO don''t mention anything about wanting help/being an amateur or anything like that.
My old company site is still there at www.eclipsesoftware.co.uk, and that did the trick for us! Take a few notes from that.
Finally, IF you think your game could be a very good seller (and of course be honest, most people will say their games would sell big, but deep down know that it may not be as good as they want!)
, then try a bigger publisher, whats the worst that could happen?
EA might be a bit big, but what about publishers like Midas/Take2/SCi? could be worth trying :-)
I hope this helps,
Marc Lambert
marc@darkhex.com
It''s also worth making sure you game has a couple different levels/courts/tracks that can be selected through a simple menu system.
Also show them the tools/procedure you use to create more levels - publishers love tools and technology.
I''ve seen many a demo which has a single (hardcoded) level and implementing muiltiple levels hasn''t been thought through and is almost impossible to implement - or requires a near complete rewrite.
Also show them the tools/procedure you use to create more levels - publishers love tools and technology.
I''ve seen many a demo which has a single (hardcoded) level and implementing muiltiple levels hasn''t been thought through and is almost impossible to implement - or requires a near complete rewrite.
Author
hmm... thanx for the tips guys. i kinda c where i shud be goin
so where do u go to find contact information anyway?
so where do u go to find contact information anyway?
Look on the publisher websites, and e-mail them.
If you can''t think of many publishers, just look on some of the games you have :-)
Another important thing is to check what type of games that publisher has done in the past. Not every publisher is interested in every type of game, although most will make exceptions for a good enough game, of course :-)
Last thing is not to be discouraged if a few publishers say no. There are 100s of publishers out there, so you do have a lot to go through!
Have you made the demo, or are you just planning it at the moment?
Marc Lambert
marc@darkhex.com
If you can''t think of many publishers, just look on some of the games you have :-)
Another important thing is to check what type of games that publisher has done in the past. Not every publisher is interested in every type of game, although most will make exceptions for a good enough game, of course :-)
Last thing is not to be discouraged if a few publishers say no. There are 100s of publishers out there, so you do have a lot to go through!
Have you made the demo, or are you just planning it at the moment?
Marc Lambert
marc@darkhex.com
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