class: center, middle # Creación de Videojuegos ### Monetization and Publishing --- class: center, middle # Monetization --- # Monetization - There are several ways to make money from your game - Classical: Write a game, sell it at the store (online or brick-and-mortar) - Ad-supported: Your game is free, but you get money for people clicking/viewing ads - Microtransactions: Players can buy "little things" in your game - Combinations thereof! --- # Game Pricing - AAA games usually sell around $40-$80 (25 000 - 50 000 CRC) - The *average* price for indie games on Steam is $9, with 21 000 units sold on average - Stardew Valley was $15, and sold millions of copies - Mobile Games are often free to play, or sell for less than $5 --- # Free to Play - You can also make your game "free" - How do you make money? Sell in-game items - The idea is that everyone can play your game, and spend money according to how much money they have - There are several pitfalls, though - Which items do you sell? --- # Pay to Win - Say you have a fighting game - Players can spend 500h to craft a legendary sword - Or they pay $20 - This is not necessarily a problem - However, if the players compete in the game it might be, and/or if they need a large number of such items --- # Free to Play: Cosmetic Items - A better (?) way to make money is to sell cosmetic (and convenience) items - For example, new hats for characters, additional character slots - It can be beneficial for player engagement to allow them to "grind" for these items - If there are 20 character skins for $20 each, and players can get one in 500h, a dedicated player can unlock a few of these --- # Loot Boxes - Loot Boxes have become very controversial - They can become part of a compulsion loop/addiction - Players also don't like that they may not get the skin/item they really want - Several countries have also declared them to be gambling and falling under gambling laws - Games usually display the odds of getting every item (Chinese law) --- class: small # Free-to-Play: Currency - Games usually don't let you buy items (or loot boxes) directly - Instead you buy some made-up currency like gems and then spend that currency on the items - This gets around some gambling laws - It also makes it harder for players to judge how much they are spending - Finally, if you sell 400 gems at a time, but your items cost 350 gems, the players have left over gems and are incentivized to spend more - You can also give your players 20 gems per week for free --- class: small # Free-to-Play Player Types - Whales are the players that invest "a lot" of money into your game, often multiple hundreds of USD - Dolphins are players that spend a little bit of money, by making maybe one or two small purchases - Minnows are players that spend (almost) no money on your game (sometimes "Freeloaders" are used as a distinct group that spends absolutely no money) - Some people argue that there should also be a category like "Megalodons" or "Mega-Whales" - However, none of the players typically spend a lot of money at once, Whales usually make many small purchases that add up. --- # Conversion Rate The "conversion rate" of a free-to-play game is the percentage of players that become payers. What's your estimate? -- For a typical free-to-play game the conversion rate is less than 5%. Candy Crush has about 8%. How many Whales? -- Whales make up less than 1% of your player base, often less than 0.1%. In other words, 0.1% of players pay for the other 99.9%. Treat your whales well, give them special offers, don't show them ads, keep them engaged. On the other hand, also treat the freeloaders well, or your game will die out and then the whales leave, too. --- # Ads - Ads are usually rewarded per 1000 impressions (views) or per click - Static images (or text) ads pay a lot less than video ads - Rates are variable and depend on the ad - Expect about $1 per 1000 views, and up to $0.25 per click - Video ads can get you as much as $50 per 1000 views! --- class: center, middle # Marketing --- # Marketing - Have a Website! - Social Media is key - Game Play videos that show off how great your game is draw in more users than screenshots or marketing text - But: Keep your videos short --- # Your Website - Your website should visually show all important aspects of your game - Make it easy to find the "buy here" button - If you have reviews or articles, include some quotes from them - Run a blog to talk about the development process and/or future updates - Don't abandon your site immediately after launch, keep it updated --- # AppStore Optimization - Websites rely on Search Engine Optimization (SEO) to be found on google - Similarly, ASO allows players to find your mobile game more easily - Pick good keywords/tags; compare with your main competitors - If you have the budget, there are companies out there to help with ASO --- class: center, middle # Publishing --- # Publishing - We have talked about AAA publishing before - What about Indie games? - What about different platforms? - How would you even get started? --- # Self-Publishing - Just sell your game from your website! - People pay money (use some payment provider), and can then download your game - Piracy? - How do you get people to your website? --- # Other Publishing Options - You can also publish your game through some other platform - Usually these platforms charge a fee to sign up, and take a percentage of your earnings - There may also be some acceptance requirements - For consoles these requirements are usually stricter --- class: small # Steam - $100 to submit a game for publication - 70% revenue goes to the developer (75% if the game makes more than $10 million, 80% if it makes more than $50 million) - Over 100 Million users - There are several tools for promotions, including weekly discounts, discoverability ("see more like this"), etc. - Players can request a refund for your game for 14 days, if they played for less than 2h --- # Epic Games Store - 88% revenue goes to the developer, you can also use Unreal Engine without paying royalties - Newer store with fewer customers (but Fortnite is a big game!), and submissions are currently strongly selected - Epic says the store would open to all developers in "the second half of 2019" - Two no-questions-asked refunds per player within two weeks of purchase --- # Discord - Many (200 million) gamers already use discord for (voice) chat - They recently announced a store - 90% revenue goes to the developer - Players can request a refund for your game for 14 days, if they played for less than 2h (same as Steam) --- class: small # Humble Bundle - Originally sold bundles of indie games - Now also has a store for their 12 million customers with 75% revenue for the developer (10% go to charity!) - Also offers two other services: * Humble Gamepage: Host a website for your game for free and sell it, 95% revenue goes to the developer * Humble Widget: Provides a payment widget for your own website to sell your game with, with 95% going to the developer --- # Itch.io - Smaller, indie-focused store - Pricing is generally "pay what you want", but you can set a minimum price - Revenue sharing is also "pay what you want", you can give itch.io 0-30% of your revenue - You can upload anything (that is legal): games, art assets, books, comics, etc. --- # Google Play - You have to register as a developer (once) for $25 - 70% revenue goes to the developer - If you make your game free you *can not* change it to paid later - Google also offers ads --- # Apple Store - You have to register as a developer for $99/year - 70% revenue goes to the developer (85% after the first year, if you have a subscription-based app) - All apps are put through strict review (and sometime rejected rather arbitrarily) --- # Consoles - To publish on (major) consoles, you need a DevKit - It's usually a bit of a process to register as a developer and get these - Nintendo and Sony actually loan them out for free, while Microsoft gives them away (but there's a waiting list) - You need to show that you are registered as a company and have an actual game in development --- class: center, middle # Non-traditional Games --- # Non-traditional Games - As we discussed, it is hard to define what a "game" is - Over the last few decades, several genres and kinds of games have established themselves - However, there are many less explored ways to make games - Let's look at a few of those! --- # Zen Games - We said that (most) games have rules and goals - Sometimes all you want is to watch something grow (or burn) - Maybe with some minor interaction component - There may be some progression, for example to unlock new items --- # Example: Bohm "Bohm is a game where you control a tree. Slow gameplay lets you discover the simple beauty of a growing tree. A zen-like, soothing experience that isn't about winning or losing." <img src="/CI-2700/assets/img/bohm.png" width="60%"/> --- # Example: Little Inferno <img src="/CI-2700/assets/img/littleinferno.jpg" width="100%"/> --- # Life Simulations - Remember that games are often used for fantasy/wish fulfillment - Some of these wishes might just be "what if I had a different job?" - Especially recently, the "_ Simulator" games have exploded in popularity - Some of these are more realistic than others --- # Example: Papers, Please <img src="/CI-2700/assets/img/papersplease.jpg" width="100%"/> --- # Games in Unusual Environments - Just as the definition of what a "game" is can be pushed, so can the environments they are implemented in - For the project we used Unity - But any interactive medium can serve as a platform for games, with some creativity - Note that these games are not necessarily "practical", but merely technology demonstrations (or pranks) --- # Example: World of Tweetcraft - In 2012 three (then) PhD students wanted to play an action RPG on Twitter - So they implemented a bot that you could tweet at to participate in dungeon runs and slay monsters (including bosses) - Unfortunately the bot is no longer active :( <blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr"><a href="https://twitter.com/sgware?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@sgware</a> smashes a fancy pirate with a old crossbow of vileness and does 50 damage!</p>— World of Tweetcraft (@worldtweetcraft) <a href="https://twitter.com/worldtweetcraft/status/258218383718379523?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 16, 2012</a></blockquote> --- # Example: Tetris on the Green Building at MIT <img src="/CI-2700/assets/img/tetrisgreen.jpg" width="40%"/> --- # Accessibility - Games are often not the most accessible software - Nowadays they often at least include a colorblind mode and subtitles - But what about other disabilities? - For example, how do you make a "video" game without video? - Audio games! --- # Example: A Blind Legend "A Blind Legend is a collaborative project of an audio-only action/adventure game for mobile phones. It's based on a very innovative technology: binaural sound. In this game, the players are guided only by 3D sound and live the adventure by controlling their hero with multi-point tactile gestures. A Blind Legend is above all a story: an adventure from the Age of Chivalry, to which we want to give epic scope." A review: <span style="font-size:80%">"The combat is very easy at first, but gets harder after a while: enemies will move during combat, and depending on where they are located, you must press the corresponding arrow key. When there are more enemies, it gets even more fun. There are only a handeful of fights that kinda frustrated me, but the game balances the difficulty very well."</span> --- # Interactive Fiction - Some games are very story-driven - Movies are stories without a game - What if we add some interactivity? - Where does the concept of "movie" end, and that of "game" start? --- # Example: Bandersnatch <img src="/CI-2700/assets/img/bandersnatch.jpg" width="100%"/> --- # Example: The Stanley Parable <img src="/CI-2700/assets/img/stanley.png" width="100%"/> --- # Example: Façade <img src="/CI-2700/assets/img/facade.jpg" width="80%"/> --- # Video Games for Pets - Humans are not the only species that likes to play - When we think of pets playing, we usually imagine physical activity - However, there is no reason this couldn't involve something like a "video game" - The score/reward should still be something tangible, like a treat --- # Example: CleverPet <blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Jack has a very intense love/hate relationship with <a href="https://twitter.com/getcleverpet?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@getcleverpet</a> <br><br>He LOVES that it gives him food... so much so that he can't think straight. <br><br>Then he gets mad at it when he doesn't do the sequence right (as evidenced by his floofy tail). <a href="https://t.co/ZyOQ4FIfij">pic.twitter.com/ZyOQ4FIfij</a></p>— PJ (@OtherKnave) <a href="https://twitter.com/OtherKnave/status/1071090963861381125?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 7, 2018</a></blockquote> --- class: center, middle # Video Game Industry in Costa Rica --- # Video Game Industry in Costa Rica - In 2017 there were 19 game developing companies in Costa Rica - 25% of the tech industry - The video game industry is one of the fastest growing tech industries in Costa Rica - The government has recognized the industry is essential for the economy - IGDA Costa Rica --- class: small # ASODEV Costa Rica - Asociación de Desarrolladores de videojuegos de Costa Rica - One of the goals of the organization is to grow the games industry in Costa Rica - For this year's GDC they had 16 (free) passes that they gave out to applicants - Every first Wednesday in the month they have a breakfast, 9-11am, at Match Cafe! --- class: center, middle # Games Research --- class: small # Technical Games Research - Because games are an important industry, there are many people doing research on games - The two most common areas of research are AI and graphics, but there are also people that research games as cultural artifacts, game design, user interfaces, etc. - As mentioned before, AAA games don't necessarily use this research right away - But many of the games researchers also produce games using their techniques, either as demonstrations or even to publish them - Overall more than 637 institutions around the world do games research --- class: small # Conferences and Workshops - [Foundations of Digital Games](http://www.foundationsofdigitalgames.org/) (FDG): General Games Research Conference - [Procedural Content Generation Workshop](https://www.pcgworkshop.com/) (PCG) - [Artificial Intelligence in Interactive Digital Entertainment](http://aiide.org) (AIIDE) - [Conference on Games](http://ieee-cog.org/) (CoG, Previously: "Computational Intelligence in Games"/CIG) - [Experimental AI in Games](http://exag.org) (EXAG) - [Special Interest Group on Computer Graphics and Interactive Techniques](https://www.siggraph.org/) (SIGGRAPH) --- class: small # My Research - I am currently working on non-verbal communication in video games - For example, how can an AI agent use facial expression analysis to understand a human player better - We're also looking at the timing of actions, and eye tracking - Currently our applications are cooperative games, such as Hanabi or Pandemic - I'm interested in AI for games that plays with human players - If you're interested in working with me, come talk to me! --- # My previous research: One Night Ultimate Werewolf <img src="/CI-2700/assets/img/onuwscreen.png" width="90%"/> --- # My research: Hanabi <img src="/CI-2700/assets/img/screenshot.png" width="100%"/> --- # My student's research: Pandemic <img src="/PF-3341/assets/img/pandemic.jpeg" width="100%"/> --- class: center, middle # Conclusion --- # Conclusion - It was the second time I taught this class, I enjoyed it a lot! - I hope you enjoyed taking it, too - Also check out PF 3335 for my master's/PhD level class on AI Planning! - Y'all were a great audience! --- # The Future - I hope you all had fun with your projects - If you have any intentions of publishing them in any form, I'd appreciate it if I got a link or something - I'd also be happy to advise you on how to proceed with publication, but there might be better people for that - Come to the ASODEV breakfast! --- # Feedback - If there is an official evaluation, please participate - You can also let me know if there is anything you particularly liked/disliked (for example by posting anonymously and/or privately on Piazza) - What was your favorite/least favorite part of the class (if you want to share)? --- class: center, middle ## Thank you all for your participation! --- class: small # References - [Indie Game Pricing is more Art than Science](https://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2017-08-23-indie-game-pricing-more-art-than-science) - [Are Indie Games Too Cheap?](https://www.pcgamer.com/are-indie-games-too-cheap/) - [Indie Game Marketing Tips](https://medium.com/@aprofita_co/14-indie-game-marketing-tips-d8add7c3b5d4) - [Places to Publish your Indie Games](https://ninichimusic.com/blog/2017/9/1/11-places-to-publish-release-your-indie-game) - [Indie Developers Don't Like Steam's New Revenue Sharing Policy](https://kotaku.com/indie-developers-dont-like-steams-new-revenue-sharing-p-1830830493) - [Console Publishing for Indie Games](http://www.gamasutra.com/blogs/SlawaDeisling/20150223/237040/How_to_get_on_consoles_as_an_Indie.php) --- class: small # References - [World of Tweetcraft](http://stephengware.com/wotc/) - [A Blind Legend](http://www.ablindlegend.com/en/about-us/) - [MIT: Tetris on the Green Building](http://hacks.mit.edu/by_year/2012/tetris/) - [Costa Rica's gaming industry grows by the day](https://thecostaricanews.com/costa-rica-gaming-grows-day/) - [IGDA Costa Rica](https://www.igda.org/members/group.aspx?code=Costa_Rica) - [ASODEV Costa Rica](https://www.facebook.com/Asodev-Costa-Rica-154167465255847/) - [Institutions Active in Games Research](http://www.kmjn.org/game-rankings/) --- class: small # Some Costa Rican Game Companies - [Treeinteractive](https://treeinteractivecr.com/) - [Green Lava Studios](https://www.greenlavastudios.com/) - [Frame 3 Studio](https://www.frame3studio.com/) - [Fair Play Labs](http://www.fairplaylabs.com/) - [Tayassu Games](https://www.tayassugames.com/)