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TIGSource ForumsDeveloperBusinessMarketing a game for niche consumption?
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FYNDR
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« on: June 11, 2015, 07:21:30 AM »

About a year and a half ago, I finished a complete prototype for a game I called Oneiro, a first-person 3D action-adventure game in which the player travels through a dream world. I sought to assemble a small team of artists and a second programmer in order to basically create a beta version of the game using proper 3D models and level assets. Work went decently well for the first couple of months, but in the end the project was too ambitious and we ended up in something of a developmental quagmire as a result. Many of the people I had recruited were undergraduate students and were beholden to school schedules on top of it all.

As such, the project disbanded roughly a year ago, but since I didn't want to abandon the prototype, I did some work over the next few months to polish it up a bit and to retool some of the functionality for general consumption. However, in the end the game is still very rough, particularly due to my lack of artistic skill forcing me to rely largely on billboarding for most 3D objects. See http://www.oneiroproject.com/ to get a sense of what the game looks and plays like.

Now, several months down the line from the v0.01 finish date, I am revisiting Oneiro to see if there's anything that can be done, short of extensively remaking the game, in order to get some people to play and hopefully enjoy what I've made. I feel that the core pieces of the game - the mechanics, story, level design, etc. - are solid, it's just that the graphics are far too primitive for modern sensibilities. As such, I'm not fully confident in trying to advertise/promote Oneiro to a general gaming population.

I was wondering if there are any specific gaming niches that would be interested in playing a game like Oneiro (retro 3D enthusiasts, people that like weird games like worlds.com, etc.) and if so, what would be the best methods of making them aware of Oneiro's existence. Like I said, there's not much I can do at this point to improve the game to the point where it is playable by a general audience, but I'm not willing to call it a wash if there are smaller populations of gamers who could potentially serve as the target demographic for this game.

Any suggestions toward this end would be much appreciated.
« Last Edit: June 16, 2015, 08:13:36 AM by FYNDR » Logged
FYNDR
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« Reply #1 on: June 16, 2015, 08:15:41 AM »

Sorry for the double post. I had mismarked the original topic's message type so I went and fixed that. I hope this did not cause any confusion or somehow prevented the posting of replies to this topic. I will gladly accept (and in fact, am actively seeking) any input you all might have regarding the above posting.
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woodsmoke
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« Reply #2 on: June 16, 2015, 09:33:34 AM »

Post on niche forums and hope it spreads that way. Shrug
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FYNDR
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« Reply #3 on: June 17, 2015, 06:01:02 AM »

I don't suppose TIGSource would be considered a niche forum, would it?  Tongue

In any case, I'll try to do some digging, but if you or anyone else has some examples of niche forums then I can check those out directly.
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oahda
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« Reply #4 on: June 19, 2015, 10:20:56 AM »

The people who did make all those assets won't let you use them now or what?
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FYNDR
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« Reply #5 on: June 19, 2015, 02:07:55 PM »

To be honest there weren't that many 3D assets relative to the total number that the game would have required that were completed during the failed development effort for the beta, so there isn't much that can be done with them on their own. If I did want to use them for whatever reason, then I'd have to get permission from the original creators of those assets.

Although the beta attempt broke down and it would be prohibitively involved and time-consuming to resume it, the prototype is wholly complete as a game, and that's the version I'd like to popularize. Because it is pretty rough from a graphical perspective, I'm still looking at marketing it to niche players. As far as venues for that are concerned, I haven't had much luck finding anything though.
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RareSloth
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« Reply #6 on: June 20, 2015, 05:35:19 AM »

I honestly don't see any appeal to a niche audience... I tried to think of one but the screenshots look all over the place.

If you had all dinosaurs for example maybe that would attract dinosaur lovers.
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FYNDR
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« Reply #7 on: June 20, 2015, 07:23:15 AM »

The levels vary by quite a lot in terms of content and setting since the game takes place in a dream world. As far as possible niches are concerned, here are a few off the top of my head:

People who like old-style 3D games (using billboarding, blocks with repeating textures, etc.),
People who like weird or esoteric games (e.g., worlds.com),
People who like games about dreams,
People who like amateur-quality games by obscure authors,
And so on.

The problem is not only to identify possible niches like these, but to determine where specifically, on the web or otherwise, to market Oneiro so that people falling into these niches would know about the game and hopefully play it. So actually my interest in terms of TIGSource feedback would be if anyone knows of sites or forums like this which could serve as an advertising platform for the game.
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ProgramGamer
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« Reply #8 on: June 22, 2015, 05:15:54 AM »

Usually the wikis for other weird games get a lot of people who are interested in that sort of thing. It would be bad taste to post on the wiki itself though, so see if they have some sort of external forum or some such and post about your thing there maybe? Also make sure that the forums aren't dedicated to other games, that would be bad taste as well and would probs get you flagged as an add bot.

To be quite honest with you however, I don't think niches are found, most of the time they're formed. Release your game, make sure it has some level of exposure and mixed ratings from some reviewing sites and make sure a dedicated wiki exists for the game. If your game truly does have interesting mechanics despite its flaws, the niche will flourish and you will enjoy moderate success and a decent following. Also, if you can, make sure to communicate with that community once in a while, since these people are usually dedicating a decent chunk of their life to maintaining the site. They'll appreciate some acknowledgement from the devs.
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« Reply #9 on: June 27, 2015, 12:14:11 PM »

Great way to get some revenue/profit/cash from this project(I suppose that's the end game?) would be to package it to brands wanting to connect to their customers on an interactive level. You can use some of their graphics which will alleviate the necessity of creating most of the design thus overcoming that challenge.

This can include levels for loyalty points, coupons, rewards, etc. The deeper the engagement and reward the better for the brand. License the platform to likes such as hotels (users generally connect to the wifi landing page which is great for ads), auto dealers/repair shops, coffee shops and cafes, anyone offering free wifi or desiring to monetize.

Let me know if this helps. I may think of something else...
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David 'jefequeso' Szymanski
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« Reply #10 on: June 28, 2015, 03:33:45 PM »

Well, I have very little advice to offer, but...

My game, The Moon Sliver, looks like this:


And to boot, it's a "walking simulator" with no voice acting, and a lot of reading.  Yet it still managed to sell 17k copies so far, and get an average rating of 71% on Steam.

I didn't do anything special to market it, I literally just put it up on Steam, and happened to get a huge amount of exposure due to the sale that was occuring at the same time. 

I think as long as you're honest and up front about what the game is in the description, and price it right, you won't have any trouble finding an audience.  Don't worry too much about the graphical fidelity, or lack thereof.

I also agree with the poster that says they don't think niches are found, they're formed.  So just try to get as many people to see it as possible, and you'll start finding that niche.

If you really have faith in the other elements--the gameplay, the story, etc--then mention them in the description.  Maybe even relate a short version of the game's development story.  I'm of the opinion that in indie gaming (especially now that Steam offers refunds), honesty is better than salesmanship.

Ok, I guess I had more advice to offer than I thought.

tl;dr
Just market to everyone, and be honest about what your product is, and you'll find your niche.               
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