I think it takes about a week for one of those wretched reviews to drop off the page. I don’t get a chance to download this until after everyone else gets it so cannot get in an early review, for once being in Oz doesn’t work in my favour, but I am sure others can give a great review if they had a chance to play the beta. I’m sure there are plenty of Orc-fanciers out there who will grab the game too.
4 Likes
I just need to hope that one of those elf gits, dwarf gits or halfling gits- even those goblin gits- don’t buy the game first just to deliberately drop a bad review to hurt the good orc name!
4 Likes
It’s a bit hypocritical for me to say this, since I worried myself to death over my own release, but don’t worry too much about it. At the end of the day, neither of us have the power to scrub the internet clean, so there will always be negative reviews on some corner of the web. (It’s a hazard we accept when we put our work up in public) After some time, I held my nose, read all the negative reviews, decided what I would put in my update, and went along with it.
The first Steam reviews my game received were negative and my game sold quite poorly there. However, the game performed much better on mobile platforms. Anyway, some HG games are just stronger on Steam than others. For Dragon of Steelthorne, 9% of copies sold were on Steam, but this can go up to as high as 38% for some titles (eg. Fallen Hero: Retribution) - the numbers were publicly shared.
Also, another thing I will add- it’s not over until you get your statement. During the first few days of my release, someone else projected that my game wasn’t selling well and literally asked me “what did you expect?” based on some decisions I made during development. But ultimately, what we didn’t expect was that the game sold much better on the omnibuses than the number of ratings suggested. Even if everything seems like it’s going down in flames, stay calm, smile for the audience, thank the fans for their support, keep going, and wait till the real numbers come out before you make a decision on anything.
11 Likes
You have your vision and how you want the story to go but there will always people that doesn’t like it, you can’t please everyone, people just have different taste in story.
Just focus on bugs fixing, thanking people that bought it and wait for a week or a few days at least then filter out the reviews and steam discussion, people who haven’t bought the game, people who bought and play for 10h+, people who play for 30m/1h and refunded, compiling those complain to usable data and focusing on those that have the most sincere experience of the game and make a list of what you need fixing and doing.
6 Likes
I remember you taking a pause to get a bit of perspective after the early weeks of release. So glad it is coming together, Chance! Those who come out of the hottest fires are forged from the sternest stuff. Interesting to hear how different works sell in rather different proportions on different platforms. Any theories about this?
Some works/stories snowball in their appreciation after a slow start. Some maintain a constant slow-burn of appreciation. Others might burst onto the scene to a fanfare and never be heard from again. Some blaze brightly for an age.
I guess we don’t really know- until we know.
Thanks for your fortifying wisdom. I can predict some of the criticism based on what players have said about other works and on how Green differs from standard expectations. I think that those with a fondness of orcs, Tolkien or Warhammer with a mix of others, will like the game. Those who enjoyed old-school Fighting Fantasy style gamebooks could well like the game. Those who like adventure and battle, feasting and loot might like the game.
Halflings WILL NOT like the game.
So I know, at least, that those who like the game must be the brave warriors who will never back away from the challenge! The type of warrior who stands by their mates when it is time for a ruck. Or shroom-addled shamans.
And yes, around release time, I will scuttle away with a barrel of grog and pouches of gunkweed and listen to audible books.
EDIT: Just a note- naively talking about one’s new project in random forums affiliated with other franchises can get you banned! 
EDITEDIT: Being banned don’t mean nuthin’ to an orc 
10 Likes
I think omnibus players want the more traditional elements in choicescript games (romances, popular genres, custom mc), while steam players are a little more open. My guess is also that steam players prefer higher wordcounts, much more so than omnibus players.
But those are just unsubstantiated theories on my part.
Meanwhile, if you’ve enough dedicated fans on patreon, maybe try some merchandising? 
I had toyed with the idea a few times.
Sure. Image Credit: https://pixabay.com/illustrations/t-shirt-clothing-white-shirt-blank-1976334/ but attribution is not required under the pixabay license.
6 Likes
You make my green heart sing, my friend! 
This is an awesome idea. And, IMO, the title art does look good on a t-shirt. A sure-fire win in the singles bars 
I am getting images of bandanas and green biker leathers. String vests too!
This is something I will most definitely look into!!!
EDIT: @ChanceOfFire
Can I use your image in my Patreon to see if anyone shows interest? My following is small but they are surely fashion-conscious.
Can have the map all in green with the legend ‘I Conquered Arbit.’ I mean, who could say no?
Have put an ask in my Patreon- and have nailed onto it a link to Dragons of Steelthorne. Orc aficionados are often interested in dragons, whatever types they may be.
Horde Gear is born, HAHA!
4 Likes
Sometimes I just type random buttons and mumble shamanistic nonsense and magic happens…
Hard Gits Basic Black T (teemill.com)
Actual website is working.
‘You can’t be a propa git without a t-shirt or mug.’
- Chief Slappa
EDIT: Idle hands and all that…
EDITEDIT: You can also get a mug 
3 Likes
I was just curious, is the rubric for game prices public info? As an author of a WiP I would be very interested in taking a look to know what to expect!
4 Likes
This is not official, and was created by studying prices in the Omnibus. I make no attestations regarding its accuracy.
| Sale Price | Regular Price | Word Count Min | Word Count Max |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1.99 | 2.99 | 0 | <50k |
| 2.99 | 3.99 | 50k | 96k |
| 2.99 | 4.99 | 97k | 170k |
| 3.99 | 5.99 | 180k | 240k |
| 4.99 | 6.99 | 250k | 380k |
| 4.99 | 7.99 | 390k | 640k-670k** |
| 5.99 | 8.99 | 650k-680k** | 850k-980k** |
| 7.99 | 11.99 | 860k-990k** | Infinity |
**Due to the lack of games at the higher word counts, it is difficult for me to determine the exact limits of the ranges. Use values with caution.
Note: Free-to-win games seem to have minimum ad-free price of (2.99/4.99 sale/regular) even if their word count falls below the 97k threshold. (Exception: Exodus: Climate Activist has a 1.99/2.99 sale/regular price)
Edit: If anyone has more accurate values, let me know and I’ll update this table.
12 Likes
Update for those who want to know. I have posted in numerous reddit groups about Green, orc and goblin-focused groups (mostly warhammer stuff), a huge (almost a million strong) lotr group, interactive fiction and indiedev groups.
The most receptive group, apart from the great HG group, has been r/gamebooks- a mid-sized group which loves choice in fiction. I do feel like a bit of an imposter posting in LotR and Wahammer-focused groups and feel like I am viewed as a self-promoting spammer. Which, I guess, is partly true. But I haven’t had any negative encounters yet.
I have browsed through Discord and am clueless as to where to post. Bit behind the times here.
Not long now!
11 Likes
Yeah, a gamebook group being interested does make sense.
3 Likes
r/rpg-gamers seems like a good one too. Got a dozen upvotes or so. They have rules about self-promotion- you can do it, but limited to a few posts- initial announcement and release.
LESSON: If you want to try and promote your game using Reddit, read the rules for each forum first. I was not doing this before.
6 Likes
This… you should do no matter what you’re going to post.
6 Likes
I don’t know if spreading on the forum is effective, but you can also try using game sharing invitation codes to bring in new players and receive some rewards.
2 Likes
Hi Beegrow,
I have posted on several forums but it doesn’t feel that effective. I have noticed a few added Steam follows, from the few Steam follows, on the days when I have posted.
‘Game sharing invitation codes’ sounds intriguing, though I’m not sure I know exactly what this is. Handing out some free Steam keys? How would the rewards work? Do you mean merch things?
4 Likes
They gave me five of those freebie codes for TPS when it hit Steam. But I will say that any review that comes from it is flagged as coming from a free copy and doesn’t seem to count for the actual scoring, so keep that in mind.
I gave one to a game contest at a local convention, then it promptly got canceled for Covid and, when the convention resumed, the indie game contest was permanently suspended. So that sucked. But I do still recommend looking to see if there’s anything like that you can enter.
5 Likes
The culture of Steam is much different than the app markets, so don’t discount the impact of “sponsored” reviews because many Steam users actually put more stock in them than you seem to think they do.
8 Likes
I wasn’t sure what to do with my 5 free Steam keys. @ChanceOfFire gave me some ideas.
I offered those who spent the most time beta testing and typo-reporting my game a key, though a couple said they do not use Steam and will happily invest in the mobile version (:D). Another hasn’t been around the forums for a while but I will keep a copy held back for him for a number of months.
I offered 2 for the IFComp, as part of the prize pot, and used one for a Patreon competition. If I had more I would probably do a targeted-search for relevant bloggers/youtubers and ask if they fancied it. Don’t know if this would help at all.
On Steam, a ‘good’ sponsored review is worth more than no reviews. I would also say that a ‘good’ sponsored review, if it goes into detail, can be worth more than a single-word non-sponsored good review. Though- a sponsored review which leaves a negative mark is painful. (This is at least how I regard ‘customer perception,’ rather than the overall steam rating.)
I don’t mobile-game and have no idea of that market. I imagine the less effort it takes to register a viewable review would have an effect on how ‘disposable’ reviews are seen.
5 Likes
I’ve got about 500 people on the Aura Clash discord, I’ll drop your game a mention and link when it comes out.
3 Likes