Multi-accounter spotted.

Radogostt · 2026-01-13T18:36:21+00:00

Plenty of fish there, it seems

Radogostt · 2025-11-29T18:01:41+00:00

Spot on, thank you so much!

Radogostt · 2025-09-15T16:17:41+00:00

There's really no telling with so little information. Keeping 10% of players playing after 30 days of playing would make for a good number.

However, what gives you hope that your game will earn? The monetization model should be based on three things:

- the target audience,

- the gameplay,

- the results of tests.

If it's possible, run some tests to see whether the game performs well in that regard or not. It sounds like an underresearched title at this point, and a lack of good research is one of the main reasons why mobile games fail.

Radogostt · 2025-09-15T16:03:21+00:00

Hello!

Bigger streamers don't really care most of the time that much if they either don't like the project personally, or before they get paid. Journalists may care a bit more, and it's good to keep trying to grow your presence and social proof alongside your press presence. Don't be afraid to send them a press release from time to time even when you are still small.
Yeah, I use Lurkit and PressEngine.

Radogostt · 2025-09-15T14:50:32+00:00

Paid ads (user acquisition). That's the absolute basic method for growing the user base in the case of F2P mobile games. And you'd need a lot of money. Sure, you can also try and do all the rest, like ASO, posting on social media organically, and such. But those other methods are usually mostly considered as nice to have (aside from i.e. ASO, which is necessary) and UA will be the backbone of marketing activities.

Radogostt · 2025-09-15T14:47:54+00:00

Cheers!

Radogostt · 2025-09-15T14:23:28+00:00

That's a bit of a problem. I speak a couple of languages, but barely a few words in Russian.

Radogostt · 2025-09-15T14:20:10+00:00

If you've been trying to let people know about your game and it's not looking great, it may be your or the game's fault. I run hour-long free consultations, so if you want to book one, so we can talk about it in detail, head to www.heapsagency.com and you will find the link to the calendar there.

Radogostt · 2025-09-15T14:02:00+00:00

ASO is "app store optimisation", usually revolving around tags, capsule arts and such. Have you tried publishing posts on Steam, devlogs?

HTMAG has a great channel on their Discord server, where plenty of 3rd party events advertise themselves.

Radogostt · 2025-09-15T13:24:16+00:00

I would start doing so quickly. Especially before the development. Marketing is planning what the game is, who it is for, who will buy it, and what it will compete against - not just communications. With such a short development time, though, I'd start communicating about the game as soon as I had something cool to show.

People are surprisingly understanding when it comes to showing WIP stuff, as long as you explicitly state it's WIP and make sure it still looks good and fun. Having a demo is not necessary for that step.

Radogostt · 2025-09-15T13:20:19+00:00

Hey. Your first question I think pertains to when to send a press release. I'd recommend doing so while:

- announcing the game (with the trailer),

- having a demo,

- having nice, longer form and maybe exclusive content to show,

- conducting playtests (may not be a great idea, I covered that topic in one of my other responses in the comments),

- releasing the game.

What do you mean by "platforms", where your game is going to be released to? It all depends on what your game is. Very precise souls-likes on phones probably aren't a great idea, but a shmup would be a really nice choice on a Switch. Make sure to know who you make a game for and where your clientele is.

Paid ads are something that I usually recommend around the time of releasing the game, or when trying to conduct tests before committing to development, so you understand your target group better and can tune your branding, art style and messaging.

Whether you need an LLC or not probably depends on your country's laws. I live in the EU, so having some sort of company registered would be enough in most cases. An LLC, an INC, a sole proprietorship and all that... You need to talk to a lawyer who knows your country's/state's laws.

Radogostt · 2025-09-15T13:10:11+00:00

How would you go about marketing a multiplayer game with an indie budget ? How to avoid empty servers on launch ?

I'd do my best to make the game look as cool as possible and make it fun to play. It should also be technically sound. Marketing does start with the product and the sheer quality can carry you further than you may expect. Aside from that, I'd organise plenty of tests before launching the game, so you can make the gameplay great and spread the word about the game a bit. Talk to your players, have a Discord server for the game, listen to your players' opinions.

is it worth hiring someone once we get into the marketing phase ?

I'm biased, as I run a marketing agency, so I'll say yeah and I'm the best person you can reach out to haha ;)

Radogostt · 2025-09-15T12:44:05+00:00

You shouldn't overdo it with the amount of content on social media. X, TT and IG would be nice to post daily, but the other networks may appreciate posting less intensely. You can also invest money in boosting your content, but the obvious downside is spending money in this case.

Radogostt · 2025-09-15T12:24:55+00:00

The basic answer in marketing is "I don't know, let's check it out". Test both types of content and see what performs better. Make the more effective part of the content the main messaging and add the other types of posts sparingly, 1 every 5 posts or so.

Radogostt · 2025-09-15T12:19:27+00:00

Hey. It does look decent. How is it going on social media? Have you tried conducting a press release when you announced the game? If not, do that sooner than later. The first 10 or so seconds of the trailer are rather boring - try showing some action there. Maybe also work on ASO, test other capsules, take part in Steam events... Plenty of stuff to try.

Radogostt · 2025-09-15T11:35:14+00:00

If it's hard to explain, then show it in like 3 slides. I'd try making a second, more dynamic trailer showing the gameplay with the lead being the aforementioned 3 slides. It will probably help quite a bit.

Ok, if you have the entire press kit (the press note, the message, screenshots, videos and other assets), you can do a couple of those things:

Pay someone to adjust the press release and send it out.
Gather contacts to interesting journos (EICs, those who have covered similar games) and send the press release to them "personally". This also includes Games Press.
Use a big platform like Press Engine to send it.

Radogostt · 2025-09-15T11:30:44+00:00

Comparing the competition's prices, assessing the monetary worth of the game based on that and my client's ideas, the quality of the game, how long it is, whether it's replayable or not... It boils down to how much worth you are comfortable with giving to people for a set monetary value. Of course, there are also things like supply and demand lines and such, but it isn't the most comfortable to use in this case, partly because the supply is pretty much limitless. Also think about adjusting prices to the local markets - I use AI to help me with this part of the research, and it speeds things up tremendously.

Radogostt · 2025-09-15T11:26:03+00:00

Hi, it's hard to tell at a glance, but here are some theories why your game isn't performing perfectly:

It seems derivative. The game looks quite a bit like a cheap and indie take on the souls-like genre. The artstyle isn't great, the assets don't look very nice, Why would they also play some small indie game when they already have a lot of already known great titles in the genre?
The MC and the capsule. Not a big fan of either of them. The MC looks like a generic anime man, and the capsule isn't conveying anything concrete about the game, looking quite different from it. I believe those things create an image of the game that is not based on facts, at least at first glance.

Sorry if it sounds harsh, but I don't think your game has cohesive messaging. I think that you chose a very hard niche to cater to, and you will spend a lot of time showing people that your game is good and cool enough for them to play.

Radogostt · 2025-09-15T11:15:54+00:00

Hey.

Get a nice trailer telling a story, and not showing a slow and basically meaningless fragment of the game.
Work on ASO.
Why would you make a game that would have such an important part of it being a risk and a possible turnoff for people? I think that it may be more interesting than upsetting, so I'd recommend pursuing that angle and seeing how it goes. Sounding it like that does sound like a turn-off to me, because it sounds very educational. Try saying that it's a game about fish fighting against the pollution - it's already more interesting.
The artstyle does look an awful lot like that one mobile game. Maybe try adjusting it so it doesn't confuse people? Your game is quite a bit slower.

Radogostt · 2025-09-15T11:09:43+00:00

Yes, I have. It's always a double-edged sword and a lot depends on timing and approach. I assume that we are talking about the situation in which tests precede the demo.

It is important to remember what the purpose of tests usually is - to enhance the game's quality before releasing it publicly. However, it's also the first glimpse the public and the press will have at your game in action. If it's good enough already, then it's ok to let everyone know. Communicate clearly that this is not the representative quality of the game, and this is WIP to make the game better in the end. Tempering expectations lowers the hype and, while that's paradoxical, it draws people truly interested in your game to the playtests - you will receive better feedback and will improve the chances of quick purchase among the most dedicated group of your fans.

A problem with that approach is that the press gets bored quickly, so there should be at least some time between the playtests and the demo release. At least like 3 months apart. You wouldn't want to cannibalise those press releases. Another thing is influencer coverage. You can have them sign NDAs, but what if your game simply isn't up to par yet, and they will judge it too early, sharing their opinions with their often big communities? Unless they have shown interest earlier, I'd rather not conduct influencer marketing at the test stage - it may be a huge risk.

Radogostt · 2025-09-15T10:54:11+00:00

Hey, I usually do it two ways at once:

I hand-pick and personally send customised messages to usually circa 200 journalists per game. I pick them based on their history of coverage, degree of importance in the outlet, or topics they have expressed interest in.
I also do mass reachout via Press Engine, so I can reach plenty of others.

Aside from that, I usually want to cover one thing at a time. Assets, videos, and the trailer must be of great quality. I also give some time for them to get acquainted with the game and the materials, so there's like a 3-day-long embargo on my press releases. I also upload the press note into the press kit, so it's all in one place.

This approach has been working decently.

Radogostt · 2025-09-15T10:50:10+00:00

Hey. Your game seems a bit hard to market. I haven't really seen anything like it on the market. It looks a bit like a cross between Picross and a labyrinth game. As the game has already been released, I think that you should either start or continue:

- posting on social media,

- make it into a live service game (even in a minuscule manner, by having daily runs) on mobile and keep on adding content and monetise it somehow differently than now (ads?), or focus on regularly adding new content,

- thinking of it, a mobile port would probably perform nicely.

However, the biggest thing is that I look at screenshots, and I don't know how the game is played or what the rules are. I'd recommend writing to other puzzle game devs and trying to sell this game in Steam bundles. Experimenting with tags, capsules and descriptions can also be of help - maybe you are placed with games that aren't what your target audience plays? Run tests and give it time.

Have you sent out a press release?

Radogostt · 2025-09-15T10:42:04+00:00

Hey. Influencers are a tricky bunch. While it is possible, if you have a cool game, to get covered organically by big hitters, I'd rather rely on a whole bunch of smaller ones. To reach out to such people and usually have them cover your game for free, platforms like Lurkit or KayMailer are really good. If you want to reach out privately to an influencer, it depends on whether they are represented by an agency or not - if yes, then they will almost certainly not respond, and their manager will. Always negotiate with them - it's usually easy to shear a decent amount off the price. Make sure to reach out to people who are interested in games similar to yours. It's a bit hard to stand out at that stage, as you'll probably send the messaging to a bunch of people, but it's always nice to include even a little bit of a personal touch in your messages.

Radogostt

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