I have questions regarding publishing. First, for sake of argument let me set the stage: 1. A private developer handles all development costs and develops a 100% complete game ready for publishing. 2. A publisher is sought to package and distribute the game to retail stores. I assume this will include some level of marketing campaign also. At this point, what % of net revenues would/should a publisher be entitled to vs the developer? Personally, I don’t see how a publisher could even ask for 50%, although I’ve heard they can take as much as 70-80%? Is this true, or does that expect the publisher provided capital for the games development, hence the large return? Given my specification, the publisher had no involvement until the product was ready to ship. Therefore, what could a game developer in this situation be expected to loose to a publisher? Take a game selling for $50 or $60, the average for most games these days. Also, let’s assume that the game is SOSOSOSOSO unique and original that the preliminary reviews (prior to publishing) just blow the industry away. Ie: This game is expected to be a super blockbuster and publishers are knocking down the doors to get a piece of the action. Wishful thinking, fine, but my question; does this change things? Finally, taking a $50 game, getting great reviews in the magazines and other channels, how much of the $50 is net to the publisher and developer together? I don’t have a clue what the retail store chain markup is? Is it %50? If it is, and we have $25 left, then the publisher takes another …. What, 30% for packaging and mktg off the top? We’re left with $17.50. Then 50% goes to the publisher and the developer is left with, $8.75? Is this about what happens, am I missing anything? One last thing. Say the game is an online massive persistent world, like Origin online, and the developer is maintaining the servers and game support, not the publisher. Is/should the publisher be entitled to any of this follow on revenue, or is that all negotiable up front? Also, could this allow the developer to get a higher % of initial sales to cover expenses, or is the publisher going to say we want more if we don’t get a piece of the follow on action? I guess that’s kind of a dumb question everything is negotiable right? I’m more wondering what precedence is there? Then again, with EA being not only a publisher, but also the parent company to most of the developers they publish for, maybe a fare answer doesn’t exist? Thanks all, Larry Laurence Grant Dimensions Software lgrant@fast.net H=215-230-8357 C=215-262-9258

Well, it''s autumn now and I think (and this is more than I think in any other season) the developer gets about 10%-30% from the royalties for a finished game. If you ask me everything above is unique and mostly done from small publishers like Xtreme Games (at least I know that they claim to give 50%, that''s why I quote them).

If it is an online persistant world and you are hosting it go and charge a monthly fee directly from the customers.

Very truly yours (jeeez, I love this),
Jester - in a hurry...

Something you may want to think about is how you intend to get the good reviews in the first place. You may be innocently thinking that the game is so good this will happen, but if you are an unknown developer, most magazines and even websites will ignore you. Your product could be the most revoluntionary playable masterpiece, but the editor of PC Zone is still going to put crap like Force Commander on the front page because they have LucasArts behind them.
Look at some of the rubbish that gets big reviews (good or bad) and four-page spreads in most gaming magazines. This stuff is there because of publishers pressure, not because the game is submitted to the magazine with a press pack.
Sad fact though this is, it means you probably will not be in the position of having the great reviews before you find a publisher.
The mod scene may be an exception to this though.
As for percentages, be prepared for the worst until you have a history of top sellers.

http://www.positech.co.uk

For the argument''s sake your numbers are correct. But often the trade price to retailers dives even below 50% of the retail price. However, let''s assume a developer makes $8,75 from the deal and the publisher too. Do you believe a publisher can live off thin air? The $8,75 they get is reserved for wages, general running costs like electricity, phone bills, rent/mortgage of the office building and that little thing we call "profit".

Now in reality you''re lucky to get even 10% from any publisher. My company offers 20% as a standard, with the rate going up relative to the retail price (and also the trade price in this case). In effect you get about 50% (or even more) of the gross profit we make. Now I''m not expecting applause or anything but we feel that if we make money, the developer should at least make an equal amount. Fact is that muscle guys like Activision etc. can pick and choose (as can any publisher) from a vast amount of eager wannabee developers. You''ll always loose! Publishers can pick and choose whether they''ll give you a good deal or not. Life is unfair. Period.

All I can say is that we in Crystal Interactive try to give our partners a fair deal and that this is just an honest bunch of people trying to do an honest day''s work in a dishonest industry.

Take care,

Alex de Vries
http://www.crystal-interactive.com