Greenlight

I haven't gotten any work on the game done today. Mostly because I have had a huge influx of schoolwork today. The semester has about two weeks left, after which development will be in full swing.

But to talk about something that concerns me greatly, Steam's Greenlight. I want to get my game on as many distributors as possible, in order to maximize sales. I will already sell the game through my own website using a service called FastSpring, but that can't be my only way of selling my game.

I also plan to put my game on Desura, Gamer's Gate, IndieDB, GOG (and others if suggested). This way, my game can get the most publicity possible. I already plan to stretch past only these audiences with at least Windows/Mac support, with another huge goal being Linux support.

But the real giant in the room is Steam. If I can't get on Steam, then I can expect sales to be at least halved. I have seem reports of where Sales from both Desura and Gamer's Gate combined only account for around .3% of total sales. That is abysmal, and while some money is better than no money, those kind of sales can't be something I can rely on.

Obviously, this leads me to want to be on Steam. Greater access to more customers, instant patching, etc. But with most major Greenlight games that seem to be accepted, the games seem to revolve around FpS's, zombies, or something else. This is disheartening.

I think I may have an advantage over some of the competition because of (hopefully) Linux support, but I will also have to make a HUGE push for Greenlight. I think I have decided that after I have a playable demo, go ahead and take all the screenshots, videos, and trailers I can. Then spend a week or so updating all of my profiles for the game, syncing them together, and getting the game out there. The sooner I can do this, the better.

This means putting it on Greenlight ASAP also. I need to accumulate votes as quickly as possible leading up to launch.

On a sidenote, Boogie2988 has recently uploaded a video where he has given out a P.O. box to send him promotional items. I already planned to send him a free copy of the game for himself, in order to help me promote the game, but also some copies to give out for his fans.

Anyways, I am just concerned my game will not get accepted to Steam. If it does, then that would be fantastic. In fact, in all truth, I really need it to be accepted.

P.S. I am making this game because I want to make this game. If I wanted money, I could go find another job that is much safer, and that will probably pay more. I am doing this because this is what I have chosen to do with my life. That being said, I need money to live off of. If this is successful enough, I will have faith in myself that this is my true calling, and I can continue to make games (albeit rarely because of school).

I really want this game to succeed because I need to prove to myself that I am able to succeed in life. This is what I want to spend my life doing, I need to know I am respected and talented in doing it.

Thanks for reading.