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[Ramos]

Hey guys,
 I am working on a horror strategy game, I cannot explain the full game but I will leave a link for Tigource development blog on it.

My question is simple:
What price do you recommend for my game?

I did simple research of other possible "similar" games and price ranges between 12$-25$ but I got suggestions of 5$ too so I must check different opinions before I make final decision.

Link:
https://forums.tigsource.com/index.php?topic=63859.0

[Pixel Patriot]

Pricing depends on different factors

How much do you NEED to make to break even on the time you have invested into the game?
Which distribution platform will you use - taking into consideration the royalty payments to the platform
What Taxes for your country and business are you liable to pay
If you price at $5 will this be too low to make any profit at launch with a launch discount of 10 or even 15%
Also keep in mind that your game might be priced differently in other countries for lower or higher prices anyway
If you price higher you can always come down, however, price too low and you can't realistically 'price up'.
People will pay what its worth, this game reminds me of Door Kickers and Hotline Miami but those titles should not necessarily formulate your pricing decision.

[Ramos]

Pricing depends on different factors

Thank you for the constructive feedback Pixel Patriot!
I will try to answer all points:

"How much do you NEED to make to break even on the time you have invested into the game?"
I dunno exactly, I estimate that 10k$ first month on release net sales would be decent for me

"Which distribution platform will you use"
- just Steam(PC)

"What Taxes for your country and business are you liable to pay"
- Very low taxes, around 3% per income

"If you price at $5 will this be too low to make any profit at launch with a launch discount of 10 or even 15%"
- I dunno what to say about this because I released a game for 2$(flesh-eaters) and a better game(TAURONOS) for 5$ and the game for 2$ made x8 times more than the 5$ one

"Also keep in mind that your game might be priced differently in other countries for lower or higher prices anyway"
Thank you for the info

"People will pay what its worth, this game reminds me of Door Kickers and Hotline Miami but those titles should not necessarily formulate your pricing decision."
Yes they are all in top down perspective but my game is Horror Real Time Strategy, I tried to seek other "similar" games in gameplay and I would say it is more similar to "this war of mine" and classic "Xcom"


If I were to ask for a cold heart estimation, between 5$ and 25$ what amount would you recommend ?

[mrb______]

Start for free.. (test if people like the game first, perhaps)
Then make it $5.. (test if people are willing to pay for it)
Then make it $X.. (however much you decide, $15 sounds about right)


Just a suggestion..

[Ramos]

however much you decide, $15 sounds about right


Just a suggestion..

Thank you

[Ashedragon]

Don't do that.  You'll give people an expectation of its value and worth that contradicts the time and energy you put into it.  You want to set an actual price and stick with it.
Remember the price also sets up how people will perceive your product.  If you make it free (or even just make it $15 and 100% off the opening week or so), people will see it a certain way.  $10 could be fine.

[Ramos]

Don't do that.  You'll give people an expectation of its value and worth that contradicts the time and energy you put into it.  You want to set an actual price and stick with it.
Remember the price also sets up how people will perceive your product.  If you make it free (or even just make it $15 and 100% off the opening week or so), people will see it a certain way.  $10 could be fine.

I understand what you say and I agree, surely I will not make a free release, maybe a free demo at some point

[TonyLi]

A free demo on itch or prologue on Steam is a good way to go. You can get feedback and drum up interest (e.g., wishlists) for your commercial release.

Itch is a good place to start. It's more forgiving than Steam, giving you time to address any design issues without accumulating permanent negative marks on Steam.

[Ramos]

A free demo on itch or prologue on Steam is a good way to go. You can get feedback and drum up interest (e.g., wishlists) for your commercial release.

Itch is a good place to start. It's more forgiving than Steam, giving you time to address any design issues without accumulating permanent negative marks on Steam.

Thank you and yes that is a good marketing strategy, I used it couple of times before

But still, I am more interested in price suggestions

[UnfoldGames]

Pricing your game low won't necessarily equal more sales. You're setting an expectation of quality and the amount of gameplay with your price point. Besides, there's much more competition among the "cheap" games. Are you treating gamedev as a business or as a hobby? What's your strategy when it comes to sales? If you price your game at $5, you won't be able to sustain your business by discounting your game by 50% or 75% - you'll be making peanuts.

On the other hand, make sure your game offers enough value to justify your price point. Analyze your competitor's products - games within your niche. What experience do they offer and for how much? Can you match their game's visuals / story / features / multiplayer / whatever else that applies to your genre? If not, it has to be reflected in the price, but better yet - in your game (improve your game so it's worth a decent price tag).

Be careful with starting with "free." The price increase is likely to cause a backlash from your community unless your game is in early access and your pricing strategy is clearly communicated from the very beginning. Permanent price increase works well in exceptional cases, while permanent price decrease is usually unnoticed. Discounts, however, are always noticed and appreciated. 

[Ramos]

Pricing your game low won't necessarily equal more sales. You're setting an expectation of quality and the amount of gameplay with your price point. Besides, there's much more competition among the "cheap" games. Are you treating gamedev as a business or as a hobby? What's your strategy when it comes to sales? If you price your game at $5, you won't be able to sustain your business by discounting your game by 50% or 75% - you'll be making peanuts.

On the other hand, make sure your game offers enough value to justify your price point. Analyze your competitor's products - games within your niche. What experience do they offer and for how much? Can you match their game's visuals / story / features / multiplayer / whatever else that applies to your genre? If not, it has to be reflected in the price, but better yet - in your game (improve your game so it's worth a decent price tag).

Be careful with starting with "free." The price increase is likely to cause a backlash from your community unless your game is in early access and your pricing strategy is clearly communicated from the very beginning. Permanent price increase works well in exceptional cases, while permanent price decrease is usually unnoticed. Discounts, however, are always noticed and appreciated. 

Thank you for the detailed information, I mostly did all you said and now I am inclined between 18$-20$

Salutations from Romania

[UnfoldGames]

My pleasure!

Also, I checked out your Steam trailer. Keep in mind that only around 40% of the Steam user base speaks English - you're alienating most of your audience by using text in your trailer to describe features. Why don't you try to show what your game is about instead of letting somebody sit through repetitive music while literally nothing is happening? The screenshots suggest that it's an exciting game - why don't you show excitement in the trailer, as soon as it starts? Your conversion of visits to wishlists is probably low as a result of this. Just a piece of friendly advice.

[Ramos]

Yes, I am aware of that.
You see, the initial plan was to make 3 prequels "trailers" that tell a short story just for setting the feel of the plot, for example, the one you saw tells what happened to the team of main character brother. The second one was supposed to show part of the main invasion origin and so on but we abandoned this idea now, the final trailer will be short and action-packed.
" 40% of the Steam user base speaks English " - I did not know this

Thank you for the extra constructive criticism on my trailer

[UnfoldGames]

Glad I could help! Also, I read a study that says that Steam customers tend to watch only a few seconds of the trailer unless it really hooks them. In other words, the first 4 seconds of your trailer is your main marketing asset - put the best stuff in there, to hook the viewer to at least watch a few more seconds, or hopefully, the whole thing. Upload your trailer on YouTube to check the bounce rate - your YouTube stats will show you at what point most viewers stopped watching your video. It can be an unpleasant reality check, but ultimately, a very useful data point to know.

[TonyLi]

On Steam, it's capsule image first, then hover. Videos, even the first 4 seconds, are further down the list, after screenshots. But, as UnfoldGames writes, those 4 seconds are the most crucial of the video (if you can even get the Steam user to get to the video in the first place).

You may be interested in Chris Zukowski's How Steam users see your game.

[Ramos]

Thank you, guys!

And yes that is a good article Tony

back on topic: so now I narrowed down the price range between these 2: 18.99$ or 19:99$