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Learn The Basics Of Game Market Research In Less Than 15 Minutes -- So You Avoid Making A Game That's A Financial Failure

I'm about to show you a technique that will show you how much potential income you can make with your next game project.

You'll also get an action plan to help you decide if its worth spending 6 months (or more) on your next game project.

And you'll learn how to identify hidden opportunities -- so that your game isn't competing in a oversaturated market.

Also, I've included the "Game Demand Basics Blueprint" you can download for free. It's a PDF that summarizes everything here, on one page. It's designed so that you can use what you just learned right away, anytime.

Best of all, the techniques are simple but very effective. And it only takes 15 minutes to learn.

But if you don't know the basics of game market research, then you might waste months (or years) working on a game that players won't buy.

So, don't HOPE that your game will sell at launch. Do the work NOW to help you increase your chances of success at game launch.

So let's dive in!

How Does Market Research Help You Develop A Successful Game?

Here's the FIRST insight you need to know:

No amount of marketing, PR, branding, awards, acclaim will help you sell your game, if you get these two wrong:

  1. Producing a high quality product
  2. Selecting the right genre

Let me explain...

If Your Genre Is Wrong... Nothing Can Help You

Maybe you've experienced this with your last commercial game...

That's because if you 1) get the market wrong, and 2) your game is low quality ...then everything you do from here won't matter.

What Happens If You Get The Genre Right And Develop A High Quality Game?

If you get the market right, you'll “strike a chord” with players. This means your GAME is going to do all the marketing for you.

In other words, if players resonate with your game idea, then you don't have to "market" to them... you won't have to "convince" them... they'll come looking for you.

Also, by researching your genre, and having a DEEP understanding what your players want and don't want, you can use that feedback to create a high quality game that players will buy.

So how do you do this?

How do you test your game idea? How do you see how much income you might make? How do you know players will resonate with your game? How do you get feedback to help you creat a better quality game that players will buy?

Let me show you that, next...

What Are The Basics Or Market Research And How Does It Work?

I call this system the "Game Demand Basics". This system has 3 techniques and 3 action steps you need to take.

And after doing these 3 techniques and action steps, you'll know how to market research your game and see if it's worth spending 6 months (or more) on your project.

You'll also know your potential income you can make.

So here's exactly what to do...

The "Game Demand Basics" Technique

Here's 3 techniques that you can use RIGHT NOW to identify the best market you should develop your game in...

Technique #1: Pick The Right Genre

The most IMPORTANT marketing decision you'll make is right now. And that is what genre is your game in.

To do this, you need to be as specific as you can.

For example: Platformer.

But what kind? Endless Runner (like Sonic)? Puzzle (like Fez)? Precision (like Super Meat Boy?).

This is important because players have well defined ideas about their favorite genres.

It's like me asking you if you want food. Sure. But what kind!? Pizza? Sure, but what kind? Vegan? All-meat?

You see, being concrete and tangible means you'll get more attention from your target audience.

For example, if your target audience is vegans, then you can't just say "Pizza!!!! Yum!". They won't pay attention. But if you're specific and say "Vegan Pizza!", then you got their attention.

Same with your game...

Saying "Platformer" is like saying "Food". It's too vague. Saying, "Metroidvania Precision Platformer" is like saying "No Dairy Vegan Pizza". Being specific means you'll grab more attention.

Ok, so why do this? Why is it important? Keep reading and it'll all make sense...

Technique #2: How Big Is Your Market

Is it worth it spending 6+ months on a game project when you know the market is oversaturated, and majority of games make only $600?

If it's a passion project, then you don't have to worry about market size. You just make a game you want to make.

But if you're doing this so you can grow your game studio and make enough income to work on your next game, then you need to pay attention to the size of your potential market.

How do you do this?

The solution is to use this simple stats tool:

Game Stats Tool

How it works is:

  1. Search your genre and subgenre (what you did in technique #1)
  2. In the first column (Games Count), this is how many games were released in that genre
  3. In the fourth column (Revenue Medium), this shows you the medium income

So for example I'm making a Puzzle Platformer. I would "expect" to make $490 IF I was in the middle of the pack.

Example of games-stats.com steam tags tool, puzzle platformer

Of course I "could" make the next Hollow Knight, and be top of income pack.

But chances are low because there are 4,180 games in that genre. The genre is oversaturated. I would have to spend a lot of marketing money just to cut through all the noise. And even if I did spend say a $million on marketing, it doesn't guarantee success.

Anyway...

So in about 5 minutes of Pre-Production research, I saved myself months or years developing a game that probably would have made $490 or less.

It's better to make this mistake NOW than to make it months later.

Say I didn't do this research. I went ahead with Production. And in 10 months, I learn that the medium income for this genre is only $490. I would then scramble and try to figure out how to add in other features to help my game stand out in this genre.

This is how scope creep happens. We find out there's no market for our game. We find out there's no interest. So we scramble and change things. We do major revisions. We overhaul code, art, gameplay, and story. All this backtracking adds months and years into our project!

Better to make this mistake NOW than later when you're too deep into actual Production.

Technique #3: Your Genre Is Saturated -- Now What?

Using these stats and data is great to see what the market is NOW.

But you cannot forecast what will be in DEMAND tomorrow using past numbers.

For example, there are games that come out of nowhere, in oversaturated markets, with unique features and gameplay ideas, in a low demand market, that break all the rules -- and succeed despite what the stats and odds show.

So even though your game might be in a oversaturated genre and the medium income is low, there is still a way to figure this out.

The solution is to be even MORE specific (see Technique #1).

Let me show you what I mean...

I'm making a Precision Platformer. I know I have a small chance of success. But if I drill down, and get even MORE specific, I might have a chance.

Keep following, this will make sense...

Example of games-stats.com steam tags tool, motorbike

I noticed that the "Motorbike" category has only 178 games. And the medium income is $11,000! That means there is very little competition. And with the medium income that high, a lot of people are buying games in this genre. There is a NEED for more "Motorbike-type" games.

So... what if I were to make a "Motorbike Precision Platformer"? It's worth testing out, at least. I might have a chance.

It's counterintuitive to narrow your focus like this. But by narrowing your focus like this will help you grab attention -- especially when you see a small niche genre that doesn't have a lot of competition, but sales figures are high.

How Do I Know This Works?

Because from 2002 - 2006, I failed as a graphic designer and artist.

But the in 2006 I had my breakthrough. I narrowed my focus in graphic design... and fixed digital scans in Photoshop. So from 2006 - 2017 I ran a successful niche graphic design studio (ScanCanada.ca).

I also did this in 2019 - 2023 when I started a game art studio. I narrowed my focus, and only created world game maps for game devs (FastTravelMaps.com).

By narrowing your focus, and dominating a "new" category, you'll have a better chance of success.

The "Game Demand Basics" Step-By-Step Action Plan

This will only take 10 minutes. And after 10 minutes, you'll see if it's worth putting time, energy, money into your next game project.

Step 1: Open A Google Sheet. In the first 3 rows put: Genre, Game Count, Medium Income. Like so...

Game market research step 1

Step 2: Find 3 Subgenres. Then note them down in Column A. Here's my example...

Game market research step 2

Step 3: Go To Game Stats Tool. Search for each of your subgenres and note down the Game Count and Medium Income for each. Like so...

Game market research step 3

This will give you the "market size" of your chosen genre. As you can see, Platformers have a lot of competition. And I'd would "expect" to make only around $300 - $500 for my game.

Is it worth 6 months (or more) of dev time? Not if I make only $500.

But don't get discouraged. Stats and data are just numbers. It's up to you and me to uncover hidden opportunities that nobody else can see.

So, use the data to your advantage and to help you DISCOVER a NEW market...

Step 4: Discover A New Market That Has High Income Potential. Find a subgenre that compliments your genre BUT doesn't have a lot of competition and the medium income is high. Like so...

Game market research step 4

So take your time and go through the data. Try to uncover and find a sub genre that will complement your chosen subgenre. But make sure that the complimentary sub genre has a low game count but a high medium income.

And here's the “Game Demand Basics Blueprint”. Grab it now. Go through it. And in 15 minutes, you'll know if your new game project will have a high probability for success.

Still stuck? Contact me below, and I'll be glad to help you the best I can. No cost. No expectations. Helping you helps me come up with content ideas for this blog.

Below is where you can contact me...

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Dariusz Konrad
Email: dariusz at mainquestmarketing dot com
Discord Username: dariuszkonrad
LinkedIn: My entrepreneurial successes
Work: Game devs I've helped so far