If you want to put a game out for free, don’t publish it. Plain and simple. If it’s IF, use inkle or dashingdon or ren’py. Advertise on tumbr, wattpad, Facebook, forums like this, etc.
You won’t get as big of an audience, but it also won’t cost you anything. You’ll get amazing feedback, generate a fan base, and be able to know you’ll have people willing to purchase a game that costs $3-4 (my personal maximum on any app I purchase. I will not spend more on a phone game).
Keep in mind, most people who purchase are going to do so on their phones. Mobile apps have a very cheaply skewed price point. A game my dad bought me for $40 in 2005 has an improved mobile port that costs $10 on Google play. I’ve never seen an app more expensive than $15. Those $15 apps have graphics, intense coding, and a lot more work than a text-based IF. Skewing your price lower is going to ultimately bring in more income.
ETA: by skewing lower, I mean in the sub-$5 range. Sorry, guys, but the $7 IF games with only 100k words just don’t cut it for me. I give up to a dollar per 50k words, if the demo was incredible. (And yes, this may be an exaggeration, but I’ve seen higher prices for shorter works for a couple of years, now)