Harold has a good post up about monetizing in games, and I wanted to share it here:
So, I was at a game demo event a couple of years ago in NYC. This sort of thing was mostly attended by indie folks and folks in the industry but there was also a number of people from various VC firms there as well.
A developer went through a pretty successful demo, he had the room, he a sour-faced VC stood up and asked, “This is all fine but how does it monetize?”
The developer was quick to answer that he was focused on making a fun game and that concern was secondary to him, The room cheered.
I have a BFA and can safely attest to the disdain that most all of modern culture has for the visual arts. That said, there are many avenues for funding artistic projects. Creative Capital being one.
Where does one try and secure funding for gaming projects? VCs. You don’t go into a gaming venture with a creative mission statement but with a strong P&L and business plan.
Maybe this is a bit of the problem with the overall direction of games and the glut of F2P mobile offerings? Where is the support for innovative design takes and risk-takers? There isn’t one. Just live in your parent’s basement and work for nothing to produce an indie game or hit Kickstarter and good luck.
I am happy that there is more discussion about video games as art but until there is actual funding for these endeavors it is hard to see where it is going.
I am not saying MBAs don’t have a place in the industry, I just think that place shouldn’t be the only place in the industry.
via Video Game Industry Rant – 2/6/2014 | luckysipe’s old man blog.
I was at the same gaming demo, a few years ago, and also wrote about the moment when the game dev said he had no plans to monetize.
