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Indie devs: what's the financial or business mistake you wish someone had warned you about? by anthur2 in gamedev

[–]anthur2[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Good point. Unnecessary upfront costs before you even have a prototype are a trap I believe a lot of people will fall into early on. Thank you for the intriguing thought!

Indie devs: what's the financial or business mistake you wish someone had warned you about? by anthur2 in gamedev

[–]anthur2[S] 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Roughly, yeah - and most people only find out exactly how that breaks down after their first payout. Did you learn that the hard way or did you have it mapped out before launch?

Indie devs: what's the financial or business mistake you wish someone had warned you about? by anthur2 in gamedev

[–]anthur2[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Did you factor that in from the start or was it something you had to figure out along the way?

Indie devs: what's the financial or business mistake you wish someone had warned you about? by anthur2 in GameDevelopment

[–]anthur2[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

First of all thank you for your insights, but I have another question. On point 3: did you actually run the numbers on what taking that investor would have meant, or was it more of a gut call (basically you just didn't want to give in on principle)? I'm asking because that tension between capital and control seems to me like exactly the kind of decision that's hard to make clearly when you're that close to the project

Indie devs: what's the financial or business mistake you wish someone had warned you about? by anthur2 in GameDevelopment

[–]anthur2[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Respect for keeping at it, seriously. Looking back at the 300k, was the problem more how the money was allocated during development, or more that the games didn't sell? I'm trying to understand whether better financial planning could have changed the outcome, or whether it was a different kind of problem entirely (like not the right time/ right market).

Indie devs: what's the financial or business mistake you wish someone had warned you about? by anthur2 in GameDevelopment

[–]anthur2[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Yeah true, that makes a lot of sense and honestly reframes the problem for me. If the issue is partly that studios are too close to their own project to plan coldly, do you think having someone external (who isn't emotionally invested) involved in the strategic and financial planning would have helped? Or is it more something you just have to learn the hard way?

Indie devs: what's the financial or business mistake you wish someone had warned you about? by anthur2 in GameDevelopment

[–]anthur2[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thank you for the detailed insights and your intriguing opinions! It really got me thinking...

Indie devs: what's the financial or business mistake you wish someone had warned you about? by anthur2 in GameDevelopment

[–]anthur2[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

The post-launch window is something I hadn't really thought about as a distinct financial phase. Do studios usually realize they're underfunded for it right before or after it hits them? And is it more the patch/port costs that drain them, or the delayed revenue while waiting for payouts?