RPGDX > Forums > CCPS Solutions Community Forum > Would you pay $0.99 to download a full version game?

DeveloperX · Last edited by DeveloperX on Thu Nov 18, 2004 11:49 pm; edited 1 time in total

Seriously, please tell me.

No, I am not going to distribute warez,
I am thinking of taking this distribution path for my own games.

So, what would you do? Pay $0.99 to check it out, and own it
forever, or pass up the chance to get a good game so cheap?

If you want to be rude or vulgar, please refrain from posting.
Thank you for your comments.
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Rainer Deyke · Demon Hunter Joined: 05 Jun 2002 Posts: 672

I'm willing to pay $0.99 for a game if I am convinced that the game is worth $0.99. The best way to convince me is a demo of the game, but good reviews, screenshots, and familiarity with the developer's previous works can also do the job.

First the game has to be worth $0.99. My standards for a $0.99 game are lower than for a $20 game, but they are quite a bit higher than my standards for a free game. Right now there are only a handful of games on RPGDX which I feel are worth any money at all. But don't let that stop you. If you're serious about writing RPGs, you shouldn't have any trouble at all in making your game one of that handful.

Joakim · Posted: Sun Aug 29, 2004 12:35 pm Post subject:

It frightens me that so many games of this indie scene is worth zero. I wouldn't ever charge anything for my games, as I know that would stop a whole lot of people from trying them out. But I do like to think that what I release (which is not equal to "what I produce") is worth a little something. I guess that's why you havn't ever seen a walkaround demo from me ;)

(well people I talk to over msn get everything I do down their throat, but that doesn't equal a public release)

XMark · Posted: Sun Aug 29, 2004 2:46 pm Post subject:

I think that you should actually charge more for it. Because if people see that your game only costs 99 cents, they will think "oh, it's gotta be a shitty game at that price" regardless of how good it actually is.
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DeveloperX · Posted: Sun Aug 29, 2004 4:07 pm Post subject:

Joakim · Posted: Sun Aug 29, 2004 6:22 pm Post subject:

How about trying it for a while? If nobody buys, you can always make it free :)
I certainly hope it works out, because then maybe we can sell our games too! Wahay ;)

DeveloperX · Posted: Mon Aug 30, 2004 6:03 am Post subject:

Aptyp · Egg-Sucking Troll Humper Joined: 09 Jun 2004 Posts: 36

Set up a voluntary payment box. If people like the game, they'll pay you as much as want (and as much as they can afford).

Just don't call it a fucking "donation". If I'll give you money, it's not because I want to support you as a developer or support amateur game development "scene" - it's because I liked *that* game and my money is a way of telling you that you've done your job right.

Rainer Deyke · Demon Hunter Joined: 05 Jun 2002 Posts: 672

Voluntary payment never works. People who would be willing to pay up front will be too lazy to pull out their credit card if they can get the game for free.

DeveloperX · Posted: Mon Aug 30, 2004 11:07 pm Post subject:

Aptyp · Egg-Sucking Troll Humper Joined: 09 Jun 2004 Posts: 36

tcaudilllg · Posted: Tue Aug 31, 2004 2:33 am Post subject:

Not to discourage you or anything, but hearing that you made the game in 18 hours makes me quite unlikely to pay a dollar for it... Now a game that you worked on a month... for that I'll pay THREE! A month of work tells me that the graphics are detailed and at least mostly accurate; the gameplay is acceptable; there is a story; and there is sound and music.

Andre Lamothe spent several months writing his first "Teach Yourself Game Programming" text. Each game he wrote for it ranged from three to five days to make, and each was very brief and to the point. The best of the set was Venture, a game very much like the first Zelda, except instead of an elf with a sword you had an archer with a bow and limited arrows. Although it was possible to finish the game in five minutes if the player knew what they were doing, five days of careful, thoughtful design on the part of Andre Lamothe made for a very enjoyable half hour, because so good was the game when I played it that I wanted to explore the entire dungeon; to get every arrow; to slay every monster; to get every goblet of wine and leg of meat; simply to get the highest score that was possible. When I was done, I got to see the next phase of a cliche, but believable storyline. Venture was truly an excellent game.

To frame what you are asking for in the clearest way possible, consider that Final Fantasy Origins is retailing for $30.00 right now. Its rerelease for GBA later this year will be for the same price. That places the modern incarnations of either Final Fantasy or Final Fantasy II in the $15 range. As beautiful as either of the games are, with their modern, professional graphics, music, and sound, they are worth only three hours of work at a minimum wage job. By asking for a dollar for your game, you are asking people to put 1/15th of the value of Final Fantasy toward your own effort.

Is your game 1/15th of the game that Final Fantasy is?

DeveloperX · Posted: Tue Aug 31, 2004 7:28 am Post subject:

tcaudilllg · Posted: Wed Sep 01, 2004 5:12 am Post subject:

Sounds to me like two weeks of work. OK then, maybe it'll be worth $1.50. :)

BadMrBox · Posted: Thu Sep 02, 2004 2:16 pm Post subject:

Money corrupts. Why do you want money? It has destroy many oh, so mighty men. Look at Billy-boy Gates. He must have a pure private hell. Earning more money on a single sneeze than an ordinary man does in a lifetime.
Seriously, I think that people are to lazy to muck around with credit cards and such for indie-developed games. First of, you'll never know what you pay up for.
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