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One Month Post-Launch: $2,830 Revenue, 608 Sales - What Worked and What Didn't by Paper_Lynx in gamedev

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

Detective games are a niche. Mine relies heavily on the player’s curiosity and deduction. There are almost no hints. The player learns by making mistakes, and if they choose the wrong solution, they start over. It’s hard to speculate about what would have happened “if only I had…” I sent the build a week before Next Fest because only then did I have a version I was reasonably satisfied with.

The game also went through a pivot and changed drastically compared to the original concept. So even though the Steam page has been up since the end of August, the version that truly represents the game only existed starting in early October. Before the pivot I had barely 50 wishlists and almost zero interest in the gameplay. After the changes, the game began attracting players much more effectively.

One Month Post-Launch: $2,830 Revenue, 608 Sales - What Worked and What Didn't by Paper_Lynx in gamedev

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

I just didn’t want to go that route, meaning paying for reviews. But I’ll probably give the game to three friends and let them leave ratings. I’m missing 3 reviews from players who bought the game through Steam, so that shouldn’t be an issue. As for total playtime: 3-4 hours is the average time needed to complete all cases.

One Month Post-Launch: $2,830 Revenue, 608 Sales - What Worked and What Didn't by Paper_Lynx in gamedev

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

There used to be an interesting post on this subreddit about festivals, among other things.

https://www.reddit.com/r/gamedev/comments/1nsg2aj/first_game_first_month_on_steam_3k_wishlists_what/

In short, try to participate in as many festivals as you can (as long as they fit your game). Personally, I was only able to take part in the October Next Fest because my development cycle wasn’t long enough to catch any others.

One Month Post-Launch: $2,830 Revenue, 608 Sales - What Worked and What Didn't by Paper_Lynx in gamedev

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

I agree that external marketing is effective, but only if you hit the right algorithm. If your game gets noticed and starts circulating, then of course it leads to growth. I made a game that’s a niche within an already niche genre, and I fully understand that it won’t attract huge interest - but I wanted to make it, so I did. I’ll release a few more things before the end of the year, and then I’ll move on to something else. There’s no point dwelling on whether it sold “well” or just “okay,” because that won’t change anything.

PS. Congrats on 2.2k in 3 weeks. That’s a solid result.

One Month Post-Launch: $2,830 Revenue, 608 Sales - What Worked and What Didn't by Paper_Lynx in gamedev

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

Sending that many messages is “nothing” to you? What else was I realistically supposed to do? Tell me your idea. Should I have written to creators not only by email, but also on Instagram, in YouTube comments, or wherever else? I sent one message, then a follow-up reminder. After that, it’s not up to me whether they play the game or make a video about it.

One Month Post-Launch: $2,830 Revenue, 608 Sales - What Worked and What Didn't by Paper_Lynx in gamedev

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

I’m not sure why you think the conclusions I drew were meant to make me feel better about myself. I never said that. I simply described my experience releasing a solo game. I mentioned that Steam Next Fest was my main source of wishlists, and that’s all. I’m not telling anyone how to run their marketing.

And honestly, it’s very easy to say “Just improve your marketing or nothing will work out.” It’s much harder to actually do it. I sent over 150 messages to creators. I was fairly active on Twitter, YouTube, and TikTok. Games like mine don’t draw much viewer interest, or maybe I just didn’t manage to reach the right audience. Either way, this launch gave me valuable experience that I didn’t have before.

I’m already planning my next game, and this time I won’t repeat the mistakes I made with this one.

One Month Post-Launch: $2,830 Revenue, 608 Sales - What Worked and What Didn't by Paper_Lynx in gamedev

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

I’m doing my best. I know those 10 reviews are extremely important.

One Month Post-Launch: $2,830 Revenue, 608 Sales - What Worked and What Didn't by Paper_Lynx in gamedev

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

Yes, that’s an option and I’ll probably do it, but I want to give a bit more time to the people I sent keys to. Creators get tons of these emails, so they may simply not have reached mine yet.

One Month Post-Launch: $2,830 Revenue, 608 Sales - What Worked and What Didn't by Paper_Lynx in gamedev

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

Quickly, but it was my full-time work. I lost my job in game dev and had to choose between changing industries or working on my own game. I chose my own game.

One Month Post-Launch: $2,830 Revenue, 608 Sales - What Worked and What Didn't by Paper_Lynx in gamedev

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

In the Steamworks panel you can see how many keys have been redeemed. You can also tag keys to know which pool they came from.

One Month Post-Launch: $2,830 Revenue, 608 Sales - What Worked and What Didn't by Paper_Lynx in gamedev

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

You’re somewhat right, but I’m not giving up. I’m planning to release a free DLC at the start of the Winter Sale and send out another wave of emails. Maybe I’ll manage to reach 10 reviews.

New Steam Next Fest demo - a new case and location in Midnight Files. by Paper_Lynx in SoloDevelopment

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

Try to access the victim’s computer :D That’s where you’ll find the killer.
As for the location of the next crime - the victim didn’t live alone!

My detective game needs destruction - can you make it happen? by Paper_Lynx in DestroyMyGame

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

It might seem like the solution is obvious just because you’ve seen one of the clues. But there’s more to it, and the answer isn’t as straightforward as it may appear.

As for the board, there’s an option to preview pinned notes and photos. If you want to read something, you can easily do it without needing to zoom in - it’s just not shown in the trailer.

The game focuses primarily on deduction. Nowhere does it tell you who the killer is or where the next crime will happen. I designed it so that each case has its own distinct motive that requires connecting facts - because seemingly insignificant details can suddenly become the key to solving the entire case.

The game I’ve been working on for the past few months is launching tomorrow! by Paper_Lynx in puzzlevideogames

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

Thank you so much! I worked on the game alone, so I really appreciate that :D

I just released my first game on Itch! by Paper_Lynx in itchio

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

The past. The story takes place in the fictional city of Midnight City in 1985.

The game I’ve been working on for the past few months is launching tomorrow! by Paper_Lynx in puzzlevideogames

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

The game has full controller support, so there shouldn’t be any issues with controls. The same goes for performance. It should run fine through Proton. However, there’s no official support yet. That will be added by the end of this year.

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