I only know what percentage of the profits we make as a developer.
Bascially we get 18% percent of the net profits after the cost of the development has be recouped by the publisher.
So we need to sell about 250,000 units before we see a penny.
The other 82% goes to the publisher, however I don't know what the profit level per full priced game is.

Remember...royalties are paid to the developer based on the amount that is paid to the publisher for the game, not what the customer pays to the retailer.

There's a rather long "food chain" involved in getting a game into the hands of retail consumers. There's the developer, the publisher, the distributer, and retailer.

------------------
DavidRM
Samu Games

To that I'd add...

Generally speaking, the more risk involved for the publisher, the less royalties the developer gets. If you don't need an advance to finish a game, it's less risk for the publisher, and should mean more royalties for you. Likewise, if you need $1.5 million up front, your royalties are going to be lower.

Mason McCuskey
Spin Studios
www.spin-studios.com

I have tried to find information about typical royalty figures when publishing a game. How much of the street price goes to the developing company, and how much does the publisher/distributor take?

Thanks

Forbes magazine did an article on ID software last month and had a nice breakdown comparing ID to other companies. Keep in mind this is for big publishers like Activision. The important paragraph:

His work force is maybe half the size of other game developers. Other shops take advances from big distributors and thereby pocket only 16% to 20% of a games wholesale price. Id funds the $2 million to $3 million cost of developing a game itself and keeps closer to 35%. It relies on Activision to distribute its wares. Quake III could retail for about $50; Activision would collect $44 from retailers, subtract $3 for packaging costs and then pay Id a 40% cut of the remainder, or $16.