If my first game is intended to end with a big cliffhanger and be part one of a bigger overall game, is it deceptive to not put part one in the title? Will it affect sales if people know they won’t get the full story in the first part?
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You should talk to the Hosted Games people for their advice. They understand the market.
But generally, putting “Part 1” is like a big huge red flag that says “This story is not finished.” I think it can scare a lot of people off.
You might consider giving your first book a subtitle instead.
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I…probably would not. It might be a tad disingenuous, but it’ll likely help not to advertise that it’s just part of a larger series just yet, especially since you never know if the sequels will actually happen.
Yeah, what @Eric_Moser said.
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I wouldn’t recommend it. I’m hoping to write a series at some point and my intention is just labelling it as “[Title] 2,” “[Title] 3,” etc.
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Episodic games have taken a hit due to the problems recent series have encountered – unless you had all the games finished in advance and knew the release schedule to communicate with the consumer the road lying ahead, I would be hesitant in titling my story as such.
I know that ZE:Safe Haven has had some comments that readers are “waiting” for the third episode to be released before they purchase the rest; but I also know that most of Jim’s fans know he will follow through and have faith that the third part will be finished on time. —
Once you have a proven track record, the naming rules should be more flexible – for example both authors above could get away with it now more than when they first published.
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From personal experience, this! 
We did not put a “part one” in our title, yet advertised it extensively as a series aaaand…people still do not read that. And stuff happens (we’re committed to seeing it through, though, once that promsie is made). So, yeah. Learn from the benefit of my mistakes? 
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I don’t mind if stories have a complete arc and then have a continuation (lots of examples like hero genesis or deathless), however I must admit, I don’t tend to feel as favorable towards stories that do not put anywhere in the title or description that they’re part of a series and then don’t resolve the main story arc, intead ending on a very incomplete note. Although “part 1” might be a flag, it would probably also work better for games like war of the gods, (which although I liked it, it is not a complete story which was noted by a lot of readers.) Maybe even in the description an alternative would be to list the game as part of the “insert name here” series. (If people don’t read the description, you can’t help that.)
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You can see the past games for example. There are minimum to none games that add part one in the title. Also, the recent ’ breach-archangels’ series has a big cliffhanger. But that doesn’t mean it’s not popular among fans. But yeah…adding ‘part one’ in the title may be turn off for those who are impatient and can’t wait to know what happened next.
My grain of salt from a reader’s point of view. Sure, the topic is old, but maybe it can help future readers.
I prefer series. So I tend to purchase more easily something that is part of a series than a standalone title. BUT!
I know a series will have a slower pace as far as the general plot and romances go, so I tend to wait for the second game to be released before purchasing both, so I don’t end with frustration because not enough things happened in my opinion. No matter if the series will have 3 or 6 parts, as long as 2 are out, I purchase.
I think the only times I purchased part of a series with only the first part out was with Fallen Hero and The Soul Stone War.
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The problem with that if I don’t sell number one. Probably never will be a two. For an author point of view that doesn’t help at all. Writing each part needs a ludicrous amount of working and polishing and normally at least an entire year of production. If you don’t sell first there won’t be more
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