spidweb - Slashdot User

Submission + - Successful Indie Developer Reveals Sales Figures (blogspot.com)

Submitted by

spidweb

on Tuesday March 17, 2009 @03:16PM

spidweb writes: "These is a lot of excitement about casual gaming and Indie game development these days, but there's also very little public information about how many games actually get sold or the sort of income one can reasonably expect in this line of work. The president of Spiderweb Software, in his blog today, released full sales figures for a recent product to illustrate what sort of earnings can be generated by a quality niche product that isn't a massive hit. From the article: "I am not the first Indie developer to reveal this sort of information. However, most public sales figures come from projects that were either blockbusters or disastrous. But our games have never landed in either pool. I have been doing this for a living for almost fifteen years."

The full article can be found at:

http://jeff-vogel.blogspot.com/2009/03/so-heres-how-many-games-i-sell.html"

Submission + - Why Single Player Games Will Never Die (ign.com)

Submitted by

spidweb

on Sunday November 11, 2007 @05:48PM

spidweb writes: "RPGVault at IGN.com has a new article about why there will always be a healthy market for single player games. For a huge portion of the market, the stress of dealing with (and competing with) other humans defeats much of the purpose of playing games to relax in the first place. From the article, "Computer games are, to a large extent, about adolescent power fantasies. We can write off three or four losses as valuable learning experiences. Lots and lots of losses? Well, then I am not living my power fantasy. I am providing the fodder for someone else's."

The article is at

http://rpgvault.ign.com/articles/832/832692p1.html"

Submission + - MMORPG Endgame Content Is Dumb (ign.com)

Submitted by

spidweb

on Sunday August 12, 2007 @02:26AM

spidweb writes: "IGN.com has an article about why endgame content in RPGs (like raids, grinding reputation, and other soul-killing timesinks) is a poor way to spend your leisure time. At best. From the article, "Think about it. It's called endgame content for a reason. End. Game. You are at the END of the GAME. Why are you still playing!?!?!?" The best option, if you must play a game like this, is to jump to a new one, where you have a chance of experiencing surprises, adventure, and fresh content before the fun turns into torture.

The article is at:

http://rpgvault.ign.com/articles/810/810730p1.html "

Submission + - Blades of Exile (Fantasy RPG) Source Code Released

Submitted by

spidweb

on Sunday May 13, 2007 @01:38AM

spidweb writes: "Spiderweb Software has released the source code to its fairly successful fantasy RPG from the previous century, Blades of Exile. Blades of Exile is a powerful adventure creation kit. The game came with three full length scenarios, and many more were developed with its editor. (The editor source code is also available.) Aspiring game developers who want a framework for their own titles or who want to see how a profitable game can be put together on a low budget might be interested. The code and data files can be downloaded at

http://www.spiderwebsoftware.com/blades/opensource .html"

Submission + - Why Computer RPGs Waste Your Time, Part 2

Submitted by

spidweb

on Monday April 23, 2007 @02:28AM

spidweb writes: "RPG Vault has the second part of a long-time RPG designer's rant regarding what is so terrible about the genre. This month: trash monsters, the boring identical monsters you are forced to kill again and again. From the article: "So many role-playing games fall prey to what I call Long Corridor Syndrome. At a certain point, late in the game, you can tell that the developers ran out of time, money and ideas, and all you find are long, straight corridors filled with monsters and nothing else of interest."

The article is at

http://rpgvault.ign.com/articles/782/782155p2.html "

Submission + - Why Computer RPGs Waste Your Time

Submitted by

spidweb

on Thursday February 15, 2007 @03:24AM

spidweb writes: "RPGVault has an editorial about two particularly noxious qualities of computer role-playing games: They make you work forever to earn the right to do anything exciting, and they make you have to prove yourself by expending tons of your time. From the article: "So now, thinking about playing an RPG just makes me tired. I'm tired of starting a new game and being a loser. I'm tired of running the same errands to prove myself. The next time I enter my fantasy world, I want it to not assume that I'm a jackass."

The article is at:

http://rpgvault.ign.com/articles/763/763050p2.html "

Submission + - What Your Warcraft Life Will be Like

Submitted by

spidweb

on Sunday November 05, 2006 @07:54PM

spidweb writes: "RPG Vault has an article about the common path players take through online RPGs like World of Warcraft, from killing field mice by yourself to fleeing your raid guild in an explosion of burnout and regret. From the article: "If you ever feel like quitting and living your life, go with it. Run as if the hounds of Hell are after you. Because the compulsion to play lasts a lot longer than the fun does."

The article is at

http://rpgvault.ign.com/articles/742/742770p1.html "

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