How To Sell a Video Game Idea? 351
fobsta writes "Do any Slashdotters have experience of selling video game ideas? I'm an artist who has programmed a rough-as-nails demo and animated a trailer to explain my concept. Obviously I think it's fun, it shows promise, and my friends think it's cool. Who should I pitch the idea to? Existing video games companies, venture capitalists, or what about those dentists who financed the Amiga? Are they still around? I've had a previous idea hijacked, and received no reward for it whatsoever; how can I prevent this happening again?"
Existing process? (Score:2, Interesting)
People will insist on NOT seeing it (Score:5, Interesting)
If they see your demo, and anything they are already working on is similar or has similar elements, they're opening themselves up to a suit (from you) when they release their product.
About the only way anybody I know in the industry will look at anyone else's concepts is if:
A) The concept is being given away, for free, to be used in any way, without any limitations
and
B) The originator of said concept signs legal papers stating the material is theirs to give away and A) applies.
Even then, most companies still won't touch it and will refuse to see it, as the person providing it may be wrong in stating the material isn't already encumbered (whether the originator knew it or not).
Some examples of how material (like a trailer) can be encumbered without the originator really being aware:
- trailer was made using originator's employer's software/hardware/time
- trailer was made by somebody with a strict employer agreement on original works (anything I author that isn't "for the company" I need to register the material with my employer ... or my employer owns it)
- trailer includes characters based on somebody else's trademarked images
- trailer was made using pirated software (believe it or not - this can cause very weird legal problems)
So, sorry, but you'll have a very tough time getting anybody to view it, even just to say "that's neat, but we aren't interested."
Instead it'll be, "I'm sorry, but we can't look at it."
Re:Ideas are cheap. (Score:5, Interesting)
Steam? (Score:3, Interesting)
I'd hunt down a programmer, or hit the books, put something playable together, TEST IT, and try to pitch it to be published on Steam, XBLA, or the like. There are a couple of un-boxed distribution channels these days, and it couldn't hurt to look into them.
In the meantime ... ideas are a dime a dozen, we keep hearing, and it's when everything gets put together and runs that you have a sellable product with value.
Re:Ideas are a dime a dozen. (Score:3, Interesting)
Indeed. I'd even say this applies to ANY creative realm. You could write Marvel or DC every day saying "OO I have a cool idea!" and their response will be something along the lines of "So do the other 1,000 people we received letters from today." (I may or may not have received such a letter as a kid :))
Hell even the pros have to come up with a fleshed out concept, characters, storylines, etc.. I remember reading in Wizard Mark Waid's outline for the new Ka-Zar comic a decade ago. At that point he had plenty of success under his belt, but he still had to give Marvel something to get them to consider it and approve it.
Do it yourself -- really! (Score:3, Interesting)
Honestly, the best and most practical path forward in today's game market is to create and market the game yourself. Though the indie space is constantly changing (for instance, the casual-game portal market that thrived as little as two years ago has now turned stagnant), there are still many opportunities for independent creative thinkers.
Indie designer Jonathan Blow, whose inventive puzzle platformer Braid just launched on Xbox Live Arcade, speaks eloquently about the indie viewpoint in his keynote speech at the Free Play 2007 conference [sumea.com.au] in Melbourne. The video of his speech is compelling and inspirational. Look up his many interviews and then go on from there to learn about other indie designers. It's a tricky path but exciting and potentially rewarding.
Mod parent up (Score:5, Interesting)
Game ideas are ten a penny. When I worked at a game company we got three of four "ideas" sent to us every day of the week. We threw all of them in the bin, fancy artwork and all.
If you want to design games you need to start applying for jobs as a game tester. If your feedback/ideas are good you'll work your way up.
Beware though ... if there's one thing which outnumbers game ideas it's people who want to be game testers. There's millions of people who think getting paid for playing video games would be the coolest job ever, though the reality is that testing games is nothing like playing them.
Make that puppy shine (Score:2, Interesting)
a) industry connections
b) a totally kickass prototype
My friend is in cahoots with a former developer that worked for one of Nintendo's American studios, who used his connections to schedule a presentation to some Ninty higher-ups in the hopes of scoring a dev license. They spent a good two months building a PC prototype for the pitch. It was basically a finished game (the pitch was for a puzzler, so making a fully functional game is pretty feasible compared to an RPG), and it worked with the Wiimote to show how the control would work as well. The guys at NOA said it was the most polished prototype they'd seen, and that went a long way in convincing them it would work.
So my advice would be to do the same: if you're new and unproven, show them not just the core concept, but a prototype so clean that they can't help but be impressed with your skills along with your ideas. This is especially true if you don't have the personal connections to get you a little starting cred... Good luck to you!
Re:Ideas are cheap. (Score:5, Interesting)
I wouldn't go with the Poor Man's copyright [wikipedia.org] idea. It doesn't have any case law AFAIK, and is easily fakeable.
The "sending a letter to yourself" idea is demonstrably ridiculous.
However, Wikipedia briefly mentions the correct "Poor Man's Copyright", which is a notary public. One of the notary public's duties is to certify documents as being the same as the original. Simply find one and have them execute a certificate of authenticity on your documents. It will cost very little and, while IANAL, should be pretty solid in court, at least in terms of proof that you definitely had the document on the given date.
That having been said, IANAL, but I am a game programmer, and it's pretty unlikely that a game development company will take an idea from an unknown and run with it. They have their own game designers.
(And on that same note, the game designers are going to be the ones who sign off on your idea... and it's unlikely that they're going to admit that it's a good idea since it would be an admission that the company is wasting its money on them.)
If you really want to make your game, like others have said, you have to have a playable demo. If it's good enough, it will get noticed and will get published. I mean, Elf Bowling is now a Nintendo DS game. It's simply a matter of developing a popular game.
(And I might take a moment here to suggest that everyone thinks their game ideas are good and nearly everyone is wrong.)
Re:People will insist on NOT seeing it (Score:3, Interesting)
- trailer was made by somebody with a strict employer agreement on original works (anything I author that isn't "for the company" I need to register the material with my employer ... or my employer owns it)
That's not possible. If you make something in your spare time at home with your own equipment, your employer can't not own it, no matter what is written in the employment contract.
On the other hand, if you use office equipment to make something and the employer has the leniency to grant you your rights anyway if you register the work with them, then that's an extra generous employer. Normally, everything you make in office with office equipment belongs to your employer.
Re:Four ways to turn your concept into a video gam (Score:2, Interesting)
The sad thing is 4, 3, and 1 will leave you burned out before you ever start anything and 2 is off the whims of someones free time, which means it will more then likely never manifest itself.
Most people on here are saying ideas are a dime a dozen and while true, good ideas are worth a heck of a lot more then that and they are out there. Such is the reason why Call of Duty 52 is one of the best sellers as is age old games like World of Warcraft.
The industry is starving due to a lack of original content and at the same time they're smothering the very people who can help revitalize it, which are the gamers. Heck, if you want evidence that gamers are starved, the $10 purchasable version of the Spore Creature Creator topped US game sales. http://www.shacknews.com/onearticle.x/53387 [shacknews.com] (sorry for a lack of a embeded link)
I have a few very good ideas as well and a decent amount of time playing any game and I come up with revisements and changes for various parts of the game ranging from gameplay mechanics, to restructuring the GUI, to a TC. I'm sure most hardcore gamers are like this, yet there is no way to actually get these ideas to the developers or to a big company. You can post in a suggestion forum, but that almost always fails completely as they're usually just there as a ornament to make the gamers feel like they have some sort of power over what they're playing. Occasionally game developers listen, but it's only to whoever screams the loudest and the longest - reads majority rule.
This is sad in my opinion. People with great ideas shouldn't need to make tech demos, draw up fancy concept art, and then dance infront of people in order for big companies to profit off of them. Ideally speaking good ideas are very easy to recognize just by discussing the concept, no dressing up is needed. Companies should be paying you for your ideas, especially those from the people they're selling the product to! That's why customer feedback is so important for developing new products, looking at sales is only part of the bigger picture.
I'm suprised big companies like EA or Blizzard haven't introduced some sort of pitch your idea to the big whigs, where you submit your ideas to them in whatever form it takes on, with the oportunity to help co-develop a title with a experienced lead designer. Of course this gives them all the rights to the IP and there would have to be all sorts of legal work in the background, but the general idea is there.
Employing a small force of people to screen through all the crap in the drop box is a small sum compared to almost all the rights on a brand new IP. It isn't that hard to turn a ear to the people buying your products, other parts of the industry (automotive?) have been doing it for decades now.
Chances are if one gamer likes it, if his friends, who are also gamers like it, a good majority of other gamers will also like it.
Who best to know what they want besides the people who are buyng the product?
Comment removed (Score:4, Interesting)
Re:Ideas are cheap. (Score:3, Interesting)
The original poster has programmed a demo, so it sounds like he's at around step 3 or 4. Getting from 4 to 7 is very expensive, but if the original idea is good then it can be worth doing, and he now needs to know who to try to persuade to finance this.
Re:NO! Advice given above is WRONG! (Score:2, Interesting)