2012.12.04Doubt
Kongregate is a huge gaming platform. Developers from all over the world publish their creations on it. It's not the only portal of its kind but I often played on it.
I decided to publish Bloblocks free and complete on Kongregate. It even includes the level editor and lets you share levels on Kongregate. I will get a percentage from ad revenues. About 2$ for 1000 plays. An unsuccessful game on Kongregate earns nothing.
Putting an entire game for free on this site seems to be a ostensibly nut..
When you look closer you see that gamers are not exactly the same on Kongregate and on mobile platforms. There's some crossing but this may be an opportunity and not something to be afraid of.
At best, the game will please Kongregate players, indie blogs will be inclined to talk about it a little bringing some sales and attention in the mobile world.
The worse would be that the game could just be ignored on Kongregate…
The worse seemed to happen after the game was released on Kongregate. No comment, a start note of 2.86 stars over 5, it looked bad.
It's such a terrifying moment to live for a creator!
I said to myself "Well, OK, you made an 'average' game. It is not lame it's just average." and then "Courage! The next one will be better!".
But the little depression is quick to come...
The most difficult is the lack of feedback. Just the note, no comment. The fear of been ignored.
There are a lot of games on Kongregate… a game with a bad score do not exists.
If the game is "average" why would I talk about it or even contact the press and blogs, maybe I should just forget it and work on the next one.
This morning I went out to take some fresh air, I has things to do outside anyway.
Back to home a few hours later the score had climbed to 3 stars… "Hum?" was my reaction.
And then, just fallen from the sky, I also noticed this comment from a player:
"Very brilliant and innovative version of that old classic! Excellent level design in the puzzle mode. And it has a level editor and shared levels. In other words: 5/5 and favorited! :D"
I doubted a few times during this production.
It's not a big game and I mainly created it to test new grounds, opportunities and technologies (tablets, mobile, Kongregate, starling, etc.).
But during the development I really enjoyed the game and I put bits of myself in it. I want to create quality games and I think Bloblocks is a cool little casual game. I had fun with it and I often had difficulty stopping the game while testing it.
The worse experience for a game (for its creator since the game has no feeling, has it?) is to not be played.
Thanks God, each time, my doubts and little anxieties where blasted away by some nice review. Friends help but I just can't listen nice comments from them, I am always afraid they are too protective with me. :)
On iPad, on Android and now on Kongregate. I received comments from players who really liked Bloblocks.
I know this game is not for all players. But now I am convinced that the game can really be enjoyed by some of them.
I just hope that more players will discover it on Kongregate and on other platforms and that the ratings will continue to progress.
Help yourself don't just hope… In the following days I will contact a few gaming blogs, with a bit of luck they will accept to talk about my little creation… who knows.
May it be on Kongregate, App Store or Google play store, players' reviews really help games and their developers. So if you enjoy Bloblocks, please take the time to rate it! :P