How many units does a typical game sell? Also how does it work, lets say you do your own publishing does the retailers then buy the game from you and you set the price or what? Where can I find out these details? For example how much revenue did Medal Of Honour Allied Assault bring in? If possible could these answers be based around the UK market? If they can''t that''s fine because I''m a bit desperate for information and I can''t seem to find any good sites or articles on it. Thanks Uni

Anybody?

Thanks

Uni

Anybody?

Thanks

Uni

The question is too general. There is no such thing as a typical game.

I would say that a full price PC CD-ROM game can sell anywhere between 500 and 100.000 units in the U.K.. This is based on the assumption that every major retailer in the U.K. actually picks up this game on day one on a "Sale or Return" basis. The first shipout is between 3.000 and 5.000 units in this case.

Now in reality not all the retailers will get every game. Dixons may have it but HMV don''t. Considering Dixons and The Game Group (formerly EB) cover 70% of the market between them you can imagine that they are the ones making volume for you. With the introduction of one new console after another the stores of The Game Group however have reduced the shelf space for PC from 60% to 15% over the past couple of years.

It''s a tough life

If you do your own publishing you need to have/do the following:

1) Get money. Dixons etc. need marketing development funds.
2) Get a barcode listing
3) Get a good box design (DVD case)

Retailers buy either directly from you or from one of the major distributors. You sell at 50%-70% discount to e.g. Centresoft and they in turn sell it to Dixons. Now it''s not as easy as getting Centresoft to buy an X number of units from you because if you are not called Microsoft, Activision or Infogrames then you can just as well dig a hole and throw your software in it. They''re not going to do anything for you. You need to convince the buyer at Dixons to buy your game from Centresoft (it''s a rule that you need to provide an X amount of revenue per year in order to get a direct listing at Dixons. Otherwise you''re stuck with Centresoft as order takers) and you need to do this by buying in-store advertising and generally convincing him that your title(s) will sell. A new publisher stands less chance then a snowball in hell though... Unless you have the next Pokemon or Harry Potter game. And even then it can fall through the cracks...

By the way a store will set the price for you. You usually won''t be happy with it, but it''s a take it or leave it arrangement... And if they simply don''t want your game then you can''t force them to take it. Most developers seem to think it''s simple... Well it isn''t... Making a game is far easier then publishing it in my opinion. I don''t want to offend anyone with this remark as I have the utmost respect for creative people, but fact is that selling something is far more difficult then making it.