Boxed retail version

[Loktofeit]

Something to wait for i think and there is some precedent for it if you go down to your pc retailer you can find the Terraria special edition, Super Meat Boy Boxed version etc so its possible but not immediate.

It's definitely possible, especially if they go that route - contract with a publisher, add some trinkets and sell it for $30-$35. How well it will do, though, is another story.

[seebs]

I almost certainly have the original materials from DM and CSB. Somewhere.

[Jiri]

Boxed physical software products are a thing of the past. They're a waste of resources and money, especially for an indie developer. Unless it's a very special collector's edition boxed product, digital distribution is the way to go.

That is just your opinion. There are lots of people who likes to have "something" not just virtually... Those people will pay extra for a nice boxed release. Trust me. I have 5 friends, all of them playing RPG games, all of them would buy a boxed copy rather than digital download.

[Loktofeit]

Boxed physical software products are a thing of the past. They're a waste of resources and money, especially for an indie developer. Unless it's a very special collector's edition boxed product, digital distribution is the way to go.

That is just your opinion. There are lots of people who likes to have "something" not just virtually... Those people will pay extra for a nice boxed release. Trust me. I have 5 friends, all of them playing RPG games, all of them would buy a boxed copy rather than digital download.

Lethal didn't say people never buy retail boxes. He simply pointed out, realistically, that for an indie developer it's a waste of resources/money, and unless it's a collector's edition (see: Terraria CE) digital distro is the way to go. Having worked on a couple retail boxes myself, I'd say that in this particular scenario, he's dead on.

IMO, a LoG sale on Steam when the editor tool is ready would yield a far better return than any physical product endeavor.

[Jiri]

I'm personally unsure if it would be a good idea, since LoG isn't what I'd call a "mainstream" title Sure, we love it, and it's awesome - but would it really sell well, sat next to all the AAA garbage currently on shelves? Game stores always pander to the big publishers, because those titles sell like hotcakes - garbage or not - therefore LoG would most likely be relegated to "some space close to the top titles". This in itself, coupled with a potentially low selling price, unfortunately makes some people think "budget rubbish". Granted, that isn't everyone - but this is why digital distribution works so well for titles like LoG. Those who are interested have an easy way to buy, and are also watching news sites and blogs to find titles that fit them. Often, retail customers have just wandered in to the store, and aren't necessarily prepared with knowledge of any titles except the AAA stuff.

I'm absolutely sure LoG would sell quite a few copies on the shelves - but the problem is, you need to sell a LOT of copies to make the production costs worthwhile. The last thing we want to see, is AH producing physical copies at great expense - using up their well-deserved profits from the digital sales - only to find that they sell poorly at retail, wasting the future development fund they've built up. The other problem with this situation, is that when you go to retail, you need to do the full job - creating small batches and seeing if they sell, isn't that viable these days - due to the AAA nonsense I mentioned above.

Still, all that aside - AH may actually be considering this right now I just hope they don't gamble on it, because I think that more effort and expense on marketing the digital copy would be a far better idea and a far more profitable one too

I am not speaking about getting the game to common distribution. It can be sold directly by the developers from their own website. The game itself is not a mainstream, but seeing it on top selling positions on STEAM means a huge commercial success.

Now, in there are games getting to distribution for 5-10 USD (including retailers commissions). Some of the games are surely just a small prints, so there is a room to make it!

[Jiri]

Boxed physical software products are a thing of the past. They're a waste of resources and money, especially for an indie developer. Unless it's a very special collector's edition boxed product, digital distribution is the way to go.

True, but with a boxed copy you give people choice. You will be surprised how many of them will pay something extra for a boxed one. Moreover you can sell the game to collectors. Digital data are worthless in this direction

[Loktofeit]

True, but with a boxed copy you give people choice. You will be surprised how many of them will pay something extra for a boxed one. Moreover you can sell the game to collectors. Digital data are worthless in this direction

Surprise me... give me a number.

That's actually the reality of it. You're talking about a lot of money for a complete unknown in a situation where a good chunk of it has to be laid out ahead of time for a gamble of a return.

But.... stop there... let's roll back and start with the very first question: Who is going to market the product, handle the sales, process the orders and ship these boxes?

Seriously, publishing a boxed version is a lot more money and work than you might think.

[Jiri]

True, but with a boxed copy you give people choice. You will be surprised how many of them will pay something extra for a boxed one. Moreover you can sell the game to collectors. Digital data are worthless in this direction

Surprise me... give me a number.

That's actually the reality of it. You're talking about a lot of money for a complete unknown in a situation where a good chunk of it has to be laid out ahead of time for a gamble of a return.

But.... stop there... let's roll back and start with the very first question: Who is going to market the product, handle the sales, process the orders and ship these boxes?

Seriously, publishing a boxed version is a lot more money and work than you might think.

Ok, I have no numbers, just a guess. That is right. BUT, consider the game being one of the top sold games on STEAM. Do you think that to sell a trial of 1000 boxed copies will be a problem. I do not think so. It maybe much much more, but hardly less.

I run a game store (for 12 years) so I have some idea what means to distribute packages. You need a form, someone who will check the coming payments and do the expedition. Small amount of orders daily means one old lady doing that, more orders means more people doing that.

The boxart - done, data - done, manual (possibly in pdf) - done. You have just to find some company to finish the print. And true, surprisingly you have to put some money into this to get more back. Like I said, nobody is expecting the same price for a boxed copy.

[Stan]

They should contact their Finnish friends from Frozenbyte as these guys have plenty of experience with boxed versions and dealing with publishers. Frozenbyte is also an indie studio and they released all their games to retail via various publishers like Reef Entertainment and Nobilis.

[e8hffff]

Would be nice if the artwork was there to print one for yourself.

Obviously Almost-Human company didn’t' have the resources to print boxes or distribute this game conventionally without contracting other companies and increasing the price tag.