"If you are not confident in being able to explain why the hits hit and why the others do not, you shouldn’t be confident about your game’s chances either.”
- Ryan Clark explains why devs need to form a strategy if they want to see profit from their games
It’s hard enough nowadays for indie developers to land one hit game, let alone several. But, as Brace Yourself Games founder Ryan Clark explains in the video above, there are a number of things indie devs can do to increase their odds of landing successive successes.
Clark packs a wealth of information into his 45-minute video, breaking down his own tried-and-true strategy into digestible advice about how developers should approach hooks, market analysis, and promotion.
“I think the method used by many newcomers will generally produce good games, but not noteworthy games,” explains Clark. “It’s common to take a look at successful game ‘X’ and see various flaws in that game, and decide to make game ‘X’ but better, or game ‘X’ but in space.”
But Clark argues that just making a good game isn’t enough and that developers need to nail down a reliable strategy if they want their releases to be among the 5 percent of games he estimates actually turn a profit.
“If you don’t have such a strategy, you need to be honest with yourself about your chances,” says Clark.
Clark fully dives into his strategy and breaks down what factors developers need to keep in mind in the full talk, so be sure to check out the full video above to benefit from his insight.