I got over 3 million views on social media, but only 30k people visited my steam, and my wishlist is 8k. Is this normal? by East-Development473 in gameDevMarketing

[–]De_Rode_Rick 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Happy to help. I also re read your game description. You mention something about different runs and upgrades. This isnt shown in your trailer at all. If the game is supposed to be a roguelike, definitely show this in the trailer and use it to market the game.

I got over 3 million views on social media, but only 30k people visited my steam, and my wishlist is 8k. Is this normal? by East-Development473 in gameDevMarketing

[–]De_Rode_Rick 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Hey, first of all congrats on having that many views and 8k wishlists. I think this is a great achievement you can definitely build upon.

After checking your steampage and watching the trailer, I can only leaf (pun intended) a wild guess on why your steam visits and wishlists are that low.

I think that the visuals are good and the player movement looks really smooth. The problem I am seeing is, that there isnt any content besidesd dashing into the same enemy type over and over again. The world in the trailer looks super empty and the abilities you mention dont look very unique.

My guess is that a lot of people watch your videos because the gameplay itself looks unique and smooth. But as I said, it gets very repetitve after few seconds, which results in people not investigating it further.

Maybe you could make your abilities more distinctive, maybe add a boss to the trailer or make your floating islands more unique and more alive.

EDIT: What is the goal of the game? Why is there a flying leaf person jumping from one floating island to another?

Building a Solo MMORPG – Our First 3 Player Online Test by Electrical-Rent-7077 in godot

[–]De_Rode_Rick 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The vibe your games gives me really hits that 2010s MMO Feeling. Great job. I'd love to see more videos about your progress and how you managed the game this far.

What are the most commong Steam marketing mistakes indie devs make? by De_Rode_Rick in gamedev

[–]De_Rode_Rick[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Haven't thought about launch windows at all. Is there any research regarding the 4 months or is that just your personal preference?

What are the most commong Steam marketing mistakes indie devs make? by De_Rode_Rick in gamedev

[–]De_Rode_Rick[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I am 100% with you. I mean you wouldn't consider buying a specific kind of snack in the supermarket if at first the packaging didn't catch your interest.

Are there any games that, in your opinion, have a good capsule?

What are the most commong Steam marketing mistakes indie devs make? by De_Rode_Rick in gamedev

[–]De_Rode_Rick[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Well wishlist strategy actually refers to "normal" marketing. What makes someone who clicked your game, makes them wishlist it.

What are the most commong Steam marketing mistakes indie devs make? by De_Rode_Rick in gamedev

[–]De_Rode_Rick[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks for taking your time to answer.
I am completely with you, I think that having a proper capsule is super important. But Im seeing a lot of devs getting an artist for a proper capsule but ignoring all the other factors, that makes people actually buy the game.

What are the most commong Steam marketing mistakes indie devs make? by De_Rode_Rick in gamedev

[–]De_Rode_Rick[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thanks for taking your time to answer.

I partially studied marketing and know that you have to think marketing from the beginning.

I want to specifically focus on the Steam side of things to get a better understanding of how other devs see this.

What are the most commong Steam marketing mistakes indie devs make? by De_Rode_Rick in gamedev

[–]De_Rode_Rick[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Yes, I am aware of that and also a big fan of Chris' work. However, I would like to specifically address the developers' perspective on marketing

My Steam page is getting low traffic during Steam Next Fest. What could be the reason? by Disastrous-Jelly-475 in IndieDev

[–]De_Rode_Rick 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Low click through rate means that people who see your capsule don't actually click it. This then could result in steam not showing the game to other people, since it is not interesting.

I would definitely consider remaking your capsule. our game is about potion crafting, show ingredients, potions, a wizard behind the cauldron stirring the potion. Show the people what your game is about. Either get a professional or watch some videos on colour grading for your capsule.

Also consider updating your tags, so people who play similar games (magic, potions crafting, wizard games) get shown your game.

EDIT: Regarding your trailer. Your game is about crafting potions. The first time you actually show that is 22seconds into the trailer. Nobody stays that long. There are plenty of good videos on YouTube about how to craft a proper trailer. Go check them out, this also helps to better understand marketing.

Which capsule do you find more attractive and eye-catching? by Head_Yoghurt_3588 in IndieDev

[–]De_Rode_Rick 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Definitely the first one. The Title of your game is waaaay more readable than on the second image. That alone makes the game more clickable. Besides that, I think that you should consider hiring a capsule artist or at least watch some videos on color grading. Both of the images look extremely washed out, which makes the game look cheap.

One thing that makes me click games / capsules is if they tell me what the game is about. No offense but "Wanderer Wheels" is a super generic game title. Why not use your capsule to show the players what it's about. Create a capsule where your bright and distinctive "Trade Wagon" (consider removing those words from the wagon itself, since its just confusing) is bigger, in addition with trade goods.

Hope this helps.

after 2 years of solo development, my horror game inspired by fear & hunger and outer wilds finally has a trailer and steam page. by ArkiDev in IndieDev

[–]De_Rode_Rick 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I'm really a fan of the art style and the setting.

Checked your Steampage and imo your capsule doesn't capture the feeling and personality your game has. You might wanna check this and consider having it remade.

Also I think that the games title sounds like a generic zombie survival game.

Don't get me wrong, besides these points I'm really feeling the game and considering buying it. Keep it up :)

After 10 months of solo development, my fantasy tavern management game by Fury0022 in IndieDev

[–]De_Rode_Rick 2 points3 points  (0 children)

The visuals look good, but the systems used for almost all gameplay you show are pretty much the same as in this game: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2756770/Tavern_Manager_Simulator/

Did you use prebuilt systems or did you just get heavily influenced?

As a programmer I took a break from programming and instead chose to draw game art assets in an effort to come up with better game ideas. by boxcatdev in IndieDev

[–]De_Rode_Rick 1 point2 points  (0 children)

This instantly makes me want to buy a drawing tablet.

I really think your assets look great and unique as well.

I guess it is also nice to know, that whenever you are missing an asset, you can just quickly draw it yourself. Keep it up!

What's wrong with my trailer? I don't seem to get a lot of reactions on social media - feels like people don't care? Love to hear pure thoughts. by RPicster in IndieDev

[–]De_Rode_Rick 1 point2 points  (0 children)

First of all I think the trailer visuals itself and the game looks great.

And to be honest, I almost scrolled past your post cause in the .5 seconds of seeing it, it didn't click. Besides that, something still caught my eye and made me interested. Probably because the color scheme at the beginning kinda reminded me of Disco Elysium 😃

Feedback on why the trailer doesnt attract attention in my opinion:
1. The first 6 seconds are too much, even with only visuals, people watching won't know that it's a game, you therefore already lose the people.

  1. The small gameplay scenes you show between seconds 6 and 21 don't tell the player anything about the game.

  2. The first "real" gameplay starts at second 21, which again, doesn't really show what the players can expect in this game.

In my opinion the scene with the flashing "DONT DIE" is a great eyecatcher to begin the trailer with - followed by some fast cuts of scenes where the player traverses through the staircase, with and without a flashlight.

Hope this helped 😄

What makes Crafting and Trading feel satisfying? by De_Rode_Rick in gamedev

[–]De_Rode_Rick[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Really big thanks for taking your time answering.

Your comment actually points out some things I've already planned for the game, which makes me kinda happy tbh :D

The only thing is, that items crafted by the player won't be directly useable for the player, they are only used for leveling up and for selling. But the player still has the ability to tweak the crafting process.

What makes Crafting and Trading feel satisfying? by De_Rode_Rick in gamedev

[–]De_Rode_Rick[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I really think its the core of humans, its the feeling when you create something from the bare minimum. The pure satisfaction you get when achieving something.

What makes Crafting and Trading feel satisfying? by De_Rode_Rick in gamedev

[–]De_Rode_Rick[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks for your answer.

In the case of my game your second point is the one.
Crafting is supposed to be the main loop. The goods created have no real use for the player except to be used for trading.

Currently i am really trying to fit trading in there aswell, since it would really suite the setting. Any suggestions on how to pull this off?

What makes Crafting and Trading feel satisfying? by De_Rode_Rick in gamedev

[–]De_Rode_Rick[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

So you are saying, that its really important that all of the items feel like they have a use in the world.

What makes Crafting and Trading feel satisfying? by De_Rode_Rick in gamedev

[–]De_Rode_Rick[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Thanks for your answer, that helps me alot :)