First app isn't doing as well as I hoped, Why?
BackUpAndDown
Member Posts: 685
As some of you might already know a few days ago I released my first official game. Prior to release I had spent months working on it and am quite proud of the finished product. The only problem is that It gets about 4 downloads a day... Could anyone tell me why that is? Do the graphics look too juvenile? Are frogs not as popular as birds? I would really love to hear what you think and what I could do to boost the sales. I'm not really concerned about the monetary gain I'm just curious why it doesn't do as well as other apps that are the same quality.
iTunes Link: http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/tadpole-rescue/id439658986?mt=8&ls=1
Facebook Page: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Tadpole-Rescue/211669698867886
Trailer:
iTunes Link: http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/tadpole-rescue/id439658986?mt=8&ls=1
Facebook Page: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Tadpole-Rescue/211669698867886
Trailer:
Comments
Btw- you might want to change the title of the post ;D
I don't think exposure is really a problem in this case, for some reason people just aren't interested.
In my opinion, Tadpole Rescue is a neat little game with passable, fun graphics but it falls - to be honest - into the category of a"time-waster" rather than a game that you've just gotta play. (This is trying to be constructively critical without actually playing the game, of course).
I'm wondering how many games are submitted each and every day to the store. For certain, you're having to compete with over a third of a million other games and apps; it can never be easy. Also the bar is set very high: here are some screenshots of games on the Apple website:
http://www.apple.com/ipodtouch/games-and-apps/
I mean to take the rose-coloured spectacles from you, that's all; it doesn't detract from all of your hard work you put into your game. I guess you just have to be a little more realistic perhaps.
So keep going, and like any types of media to be consumed by the public, just good enough just isn't good enough anymore. There's so much talent out there that we've all got to somehow compete with; no one said it was easy...
I hope you gain "strength" from what I've said and it helps with your next game; keep up the enthusiasm, and keep the (GS) faith!
:-)
Hmm, yeah I guess thats true. But how would I make a screenshot flashier? Is there another app you could point me towards to use as an example?
@Gyroscope
I've already gotten started on my next game but I kinda wanted to figure out what I did wrong with this one so that I could learn from my mistakes. I fully agree with everything you've said and I understand that it doesn't really compare to a lot of the other games out there but it doesn't even seem to be doing as well as other games of it's caliber.
Just out of curiosity, what makes a game a "Just gotta play" and not a "time-waster"? Seems like that may be the main thing holding me back. lol
You have 50 promo codes to use up. Create a press kit for the game and individually email as many app reviewers and bloggers that you can, big or small. Send them the video of the game/ screeshots/ and exciting description to gain their interest, and send them a promo code so they play it and review it.
Word of mouth, Tell everyone you know, friends and family, to download the game, and tell them to tell everyone they know to do the same.
And something people don't mention. Advertise locally. Seriously, you may be able to pull off a "local indie game designer takes a chance at success" sort of newspaper article, if your town is small enough.
connect with whoever you can connect with.
But like gyroscope says... it's not easy. But you could have the best game go un-noticed if you don't tell the right people about it.
At the least perhaps look into getting a Press Release together and sending to the review sites; some might bite. I only know of Touch Arcade and a couple others; maybe another Forum member would start a thread on a definitive list of game review sites? That'll help us all! Any tips on a successful PR would be useful too. Difficult to evaluate...maybe. That's worth a thread of it's own; I'll be really interested in other members' opinions there; and hopefully that'll help you too.
:-)
that's a decent write up of Press Kits as they relate to video games. I say decent because I actually haven't read it, but skimming it I can tell that they've got the basics correct, and you can probably learn a good deal from it.
What I would do is do a Google search and find sites at have iOS reviews on it, then read reviews. Find out which writers and reviewers have a soft spot for cutesy kid-oriented games (or whatever target you are shooting for) By finding reviewers with similar tastes, yet different audiences, you can reach a larger number of buyers.
Keep in mind, there's a reason companies have a PR department, and not having the programmers run out to sell the game. It's a LOT of work, and takes a different mindset than the one to create the game.
Hope this helps some.
#2) That being said, I can't tell anything about your game based on the screenshots, and the character is in the same position in all of them. This leads me to believe there isn't much variety.
#3) All screenshots have the same background, which would also lead me to believe the game play is limited- not much variety. Simply changing the color scheme as the player advances can be very effective. This leads to different looking screenshots, and the viewer would assume more levels probably. Without that, I would assume there aren't many (again, this is based off the fact that most people go to screenshots first, and ignore the description if it doesn't appeal to them).
#4) Do you have a lite version advertising it?
www.mammothinteractive.net
Edit: My bad I didn't press the more description button.. You can tell I don't use itune at all XD
Maybe you should start with description on top instead of what it contains. Also, it seems more of an arcade game than puzzle, what category did you put it in?