I've been working on a shoot-em-up game for a few months now. I've been releasing updated versions every month around the 24th on a forum that I've been visiting for years (I want to get it at least to a feature-complete stage before I do a general release) but comments on the game (and apparently interest in the game) have slowed to a trickle, and finally stopped altogether. I'm not looking for it to be viewed as the greatest thing since sliced bread, but I'm sure the devs around here will agree with me that it's much more difficult to improve your work with no feedback from the audience (or anyone else, for that matter). Does anybody have any ideas as to how I can help get people interested in my game? I know I could open it up to a larger audience, but this is the second project I've seen this happen with, and I'd like some help to prevent it in future. I don't have a website (I'd like to get one, but I can't at the moment). My apologies if this is in the wrong forum; this seemed like the best place to put this question.

Red, you wrote:
>I've been working on a shoot-em-up game for a few months now. I've been releasing updated versions every month around the 24th on a forum ...but comments on the game (and apparently interest in the game) have slowed to a trickle, and finally stopped altogether.

Of course. It's that way with all forum threads.

> I'm sure the devs around here will agree with me that it's ... difficult to improve your work with no feedback

No. Not everybody will agree with that. Those who are confident that they know what makes a game good often just go ahead and finish the game, then put it out and receive end-user feedback directly, bypassing the whole "marketing research" phase that it sounds like you're stuck in... or stuck on.

>Does anybody have any ideas as to how I can help get people interested in my game?

I'm sure there are people who do.

>this is the second project I've seen this happen with,

Hm? Unclear. This is the second of your projects for which the "marketing research" phase turned out unsatisfactorily?

>and I'd like some help to prevent it in future.

Not all games require all this marketing research. And there are other ways to obtain the feedback besides from forums.

>I don't have a website (I'd like to get one, but I can't at the moment).

You're going to need one by the time the game is complete, won't you?

>My apologies if this is in the wrong forum; this seemed like the best place to put this question.

Marketing is business, I suppose.

Quote: Original post by redattack34
Does anybody have any ideas as to how I can help get people interested in my game?

Finish it and release it. Don't be paralyzed by indecision. Trust your ability to make good design decisions without constant feedback. If that trust is unwarranted, find a good designer and have them make the decisions for you.

Quote: Original post by Sneftel
Finish it and release it. Don't be paralyzed by indecision. Trust your ability to make good design decisions without constant feedback.

Wow, very succinct! Said it much better than I did. (^_^)

Quote: Original post by redattack34
Does anybody have any ideas as to how I can help get people interested in my game?

Since you're posting in the business forum, I'm assuming you have a grander mission than releasing your product into the wild just to have done so. I suggest that you stop development now, perform your due-diligence marketing research, and write a business plan.

Morgan Ramsay said:
Since you're posting in the business forum, I'm assuming you have a grander mission than releasing your product into the wild just to have done so. I suggest that you stop development now, perform your due-diligence marketing research, and write a business plan.

Nope. Releasing it into the wild just to have done so if pretty much exactly the mission. I just wanted to know how I could find some people to give feedback on the game. Like I said, this seemed to be the logical place to ask the question.

Tom Sloper said:

bypassing the whole "marketing research" phase that it sounds like you're stuck in... or stuck on.

You're probably right, but if I was stuck working on market research, I probably wouldn't still be actively working on building the game.

Hm? Unclear. This is the second of your projects for which the "marketing research" phase turned out unsatisfactorily?

Yes, the second of my projects. The last one was a mod and I did in fact complete it. It's not like the lack of information is going to stop me from completing the game (I enjoy working on it too much for that) but I think it would probably help me create a higher-quality product when I do finish.

Not all games require all this marketing research. And there are other ways to obtain the feedback besides from forums.

Such as websites?

You're going to need one by the time the game is complete, won't you?

Yes, probably. I've been trying to find good web-design resources.

Quote: Original post by redattack34
You're probably right, but if I was stuck working on market research, I probably wouldn't still be actively working on building the game.

You misunderstood me. My meaning was that your progress on the game was (according to you) "stuck" because you were no longer getting the "market research" feedback you seemed to think was essential to your game building process.

Maybe you released your beta to early to the public.

Lets say you create a game that is nice to play for 10 hours playtime.

If you release it in the early stages you get attention, because people like it to see how the game grows, but maybe after they have played it 4 weeks and finished it allready 2 times, they start to look for something else.

If you just want some feedback it may be better to open it in the beginning to just a small userbase with a closed beta. Games you cant play are always better then the one you can. This way you get your feedback from the few beta testers and maybe generate a little hype about it for the players that cant play it. If your closed beta group gets a bit too small, because too many people stopped playing; Open the beta again for 50 random people who signed up for your newsletter (or something like that).

best regards,

The best way to build up interest for big companies is the media, that costs a lot of money, millions and millions of dollars, not something ordinary homebrew and independent developers have just lying around in their bank accounts. The only other option then is word of mouth, so one person says your game is kick ass another person hears it and they say, "I gotta see what this new kick ass game is all about" even big companies do that. I didn't pick up Patapon until my coworker recommended it to me for as a birthday gift to myself.