Poll - What's a fair price for a game?
I've made significant progress on my real-time-strategy game for the C64. It's probably 85% complete at this point. I'm nearing the point of needing beta-testers, by the way, for anyone who is interested.
So, one problem I have is figuring out what is a good a fair price for a brand-new game for a vintage platform. Granted, I've spent 6 months of my life coding this game, and I don't really expect to profit much from it relative to the time I put into it. However, finding the right price is not just about trying to gain profit, but also to help me determine how much I should spend on things like the box, manual, artwork, etc. Because I need to be contracting to have those done very soon.
Just as a clarification, the price in the poll will reflect the boxed version (with floppy). I do also plan to sell a digital-only download and by default anyone who buys the boxed version will also get the download. I'm thinking $10 is a fair price for the digital-only version. If you disagree, write something in the comments. Otherwise, vote for a price on the boxed version. Also, shipping will be extra on top of the price, so keep that in mind when considering the price. (shipping will vary between $5 to $20 depending on destination)
anyone interested in beta-testing, send me a direct email to dfwgreencars@gmail.com and I'll put you on an email list.
So, thank you for your input, it will be invaluable to me in finishing this up!
Comments (29)
First of all great idea! After seeing your game running in a previous video I actually wanted to suggest you to finish it and commercialize it so I am really happy to read that you are considering it. Here are a few past indie commercial releases for the C64 which should help you gauge what to expect. - Powerglove, which is currently being ported to the Amiga by its author Lazycow. <a href="http://rgcd.bigcartel.com/artist/lazycow" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">http://rgcd.bigcartel.com/artist/lazycow</a> (physical edition : 28 GBP) - The Bear Essentials, by Pond Software <a href="http://pondsoft.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?f=8&t=60" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">http://pondsoft.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?f=8&t=60</a>(which you received apparently, price = £15 including worldwide shipping) - Sam's Journey, still in development <a href="http://www.protovision.games/development/sams_journey_reg.php" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">http://www.protovision.games/development/sams_journey_reg.php</a> As for "goodies", map and manuals look like good ideas. The map could represent "the whole world" inside which the different maps take, or just the entry level with a few hints as to how to play it. You could also include "side art", that is, drawn representations of some iconic elements of the game (vehicles, troops, some insignia of the protagonists, etc.).
I’d say when I gets into the late beta stage send it to LGR, and sell preorders for the digital download and a collectors edition (signed floppy or something) it would be a rough gauge on interest and some capital to have enough inventory to bridge production time
I love this idea for a true retro game, and you have the right audience, but how many people have a working C64 with a floppy drive? Would a digital download work under some form of C64 emulator? If so, what emulator(s) would work with this game?
Somewhere around $20-25 USD for physical release (depending of media choice) for the base game, going up to $40-50 USD for a 'Collectors Edition" with various goodies before shipping seems fair enough for such a project done as a labour of love for a vintage machine such as the C64.
If I might pique everyone's interest a little more in this project, and I hope you don't think this is too presumptuous of me sharing this here, David? But a while back he asked me if I could make some music for Planet X2 using only the three voices available on the C64. I initially did two, one of which he demonstrated with the Yamaha CS01 and MR10 synth/drum machine. However I also took this a little further, thinking maybe there's room for a port to MS-DOS or similar platform down the road, and made a few extended pieces that may be used in the game if it comes to this. You can hear these as well as the original theme that I think has made it into the game, albeit without drums. The other themes are clearly inspired by Dune2 for those who remember that game. :) <a href="https://www.dropbox.com/sh/3unfy3in8w5pt27/AACRn5CqSyA1n-3gKGTgm-Lfa?dl=0" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">https://www.dropbox.com/sh/3unfy3in8w5pt27/AACRn5CqSyA1n-3gKGTgm-Lfa?dl=0</a> Of course, the first C64 release must be a success before any of this can come to fruition, but maybe if we all join efforts, it can. :)
Hahah. It's not a problem that you shared it. But I don't think most of these people have even seen the game yet. Of course, that will all change in a few weeks because I'm planning an extensive video about it.
Hi David, I put $35 thinking this would be appropriate based on audience and that it would be the average vote (apparently it wasn't at the time). My guesstimate was built up by mass audience marketing (not knowing much about that, but still you have many fans) and first-time publishing. Next to that, I simply would like to support the idea in general but doesn't have that big a budget. Good marketing materials will raise the value, you might wanna consider doing another poll when you have some kind of commercial thing ready :-)
My first concern is how much it would cost to manufacture the physical goods (box, disks, manual, etc) and at what scale? I would hate it if you had a bunch made and sales resulted being very low and you end up losing a bunch of money from this. I'd also check with smaller game developers who have done the physical game route to see what did or didn't work for them. And who even makes floppy disks anymore for the C64?
I second this! Was going to say the same thing as you, Chad... how have others fared in the past doing something similar? People will express interest too, but when it comes to finally laying down the bucks, people change their mind often, LOL!
What's it programmed in out of interest ?
6502 assembly language.
It is a har question. The more you add to the box like manuals and hard box the more you can charge. Today getting simply a hard box gets it to feal premium. Funny how time changes your expectations. 60 for a hard box color manual and creative box art and a simple game art book. 30 for a floppy in a papper sleeve. Well this is whot i would pay for a new game on my amiga 1200 :)
Hello 8-bit guy! I placed a vote for $40, but I wanted to clarify that I recommend also throwing in a goodie or two with the physical version. Much like collector's records, I think the audience of people who would like a physical copy are the kind of people who want these sort of collector's knick-knacks. Things like a printed manual (The Shenzhen IO manual is a great example for this) or other applicable tech gear would really make it worth it for some people.
I've been thinking about that. But at the moment I haven't been able to come up with any ideas for anything to include. Even maps would be tough because the game has so many, unlike Ultima where it is just one big map.
So if something isn't for sale, it's okay to steal it?
That's something for you to decide for yourself. I consider it a "victimless crime." It's not a physical piece of property that anyone is going to miss. Nobody is loosing any compensation for a lost sale. And as far as I'm concerned, even though I have those mega-carts, I still collect the real games along side it, as I imagine most do. The mega-cart is only handy to keep me from having to change cartridges a lot, but I don't consider them to be of any value like the original cartridges.
Did you really ask this question? Free, because that's exactly how much you compensated the authors of the games on those NES and C64 mega carts you reviewed.
To be fair, those games are all old and no longer for sale. So the authors are not actually losing any money by pirating them, at least on those particular platforms.
$50 for cart $25 disk $15-20 cassette. I'd love to beta test a new C64 game!
For me that $30-40 range sounds right for a professional product in a nice display worthy box with artwork and manuals. A games value is not determined by how much data it consumes or fancy 3D graphics, but rather by it's simple entertainment value and replayability. Many people spend that much on games that aren't even fun.
I think the higher end is definitely justified, given that there'll be a much cheaper digital download available. That opens up the boxed version for collectors who want a shiny box on their shelf, who for the most part are willing to pay more (and therefore get more). Like, if I had a choice, I'd much rather pay 50$ for a full size box with nice art, maybe a manual, and disks with printed labels. That's more collectable than a 20$ small box with just the disk. At that point, why not just get the digital version for a bit cheaper and make my own disk?
Will this be a cartridge or floppy?
Good question. Definitely a floppy version. However, I've been in talks with 3 different people about maybe making a cartridge version. The problem is that the code is too large for a conventional cartridge (max 16K) so it would have to be a fancier cartridge that can bank switch or something like that. That would also require significant changes to the code. So it's too early for me to say for sure. But ultimately, I would want to offer it on both formats and there would probably be a premium on the cartridge version.
My suggestion is to price the boxed version the same (NOT adjusting for inflation) as a top-tier boxed C64 game in the mid-1980s, which would be $40.
You know, I had already thought about that.. It's kind of crazy when you consider what games for those machines cost in today's money with inflation considered. So even at $40 it's still like half-price.
We're talking C64 only now right, and not ports to other playforms...yet? If I get my 128 up I will of course test it too. :)
Yes. Right now just for the C64.
Sign me up for beta testing! Bought a C64 just for your game :) plus I’m a professional software tester
OK, send an email to dfwgreencars@gmail.com and I'll put you on the list. I also added that info above in case anyone else is interested.