Designing for fun suggests that you’ll have at least some audience for your game, but how do you know you’ll have enough?
In the past you’d take a rough guess, based on what you’ve done before, what you’ve seen others doing, the phase of the moon and so on.
You might guess right, and produce enough copies of your game to satisfy demand. You might guess short, and run out of stock. Usually you’d guess over, and end up with piles and piles of games you couldn’t shift.
I believe that this is the key benefit to Crowdfunding. You get direct and instant feedback on how popular your game will be. You can print enough copies to satisfy the initial demand, and gauge whether you’ve got a real hit on your hands.
Crowdfunding a game will take away the initial financial risks and costs involved in creating a physical product, and this is a great thing for independent game designers.
As this method becomes ever more popular, you need to stand out from the crowd. Gimmicks and showy presentation is all well and good, but I’d advise creating a tight set of rules, a professional prototype and building a community before you attempt to fund.
Under promise and over deliver. Don’t set unrealistic goals. Go to funding once you know your costs and timescales, then beat them when you ship. Do this and you’ll be set-up for your next project.
Remember that you get more than one chance, so if you don’t fund fear not. Learn from your mistakes, and improve the next attempt. Don’t take money if you don’t meet your goals. Be graceful should you fail, you will earn invaluable trust and respect.
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