What is the success rate of indie game developers?

70% of all indie games are commercial failures. Of the 30% that are considered successful, only 7% of those games will generate enough revenue to fund a second project.

How successful are indie game developers?

Yes, only 3% of indie developers ever make more than $1m, but that's still over 1,500 indies who have done so.

What is the success rate of indie games?

A study from Indie Game Haven reveals that 70% of all indie games are commercial failures. And only 7% of the successful 30% generate enough revenue to fund a second project.

How many indie game developers are profitable?

According to VG Insights, only 15% of all solo game developers take home more than $100,000 annually. VG Insights also reported that only the top 5% of indie games released each year make over half a million dollars each, and the average game only makes $13,000.

Is it profitable to make an indie game?

According to Game Developer, those indie teams that “made it” receive on average $4 million in revenue per game, which makes an impressive indie game developer success salary. Obviously, not everyone gets such a goldmine.

Why Most Indie Game Developers Don't Make Money

Who is the richest indie game developer?

The success of Minecraft did so well that Notch ended up selling Mojang to Microsoft for a $2.5 billion cash deal. This makes him the richest indie game developer.

What indie game genre is most profitable?

Most Profitable Genres For Indie Games

The most promising genres in terms of earnings are RPG, strategy, and simulation. They are followed by adventure, action, sports, and racing games, which are worth choosing only if you are completely confident in your idea.

How long do indie games take to make?

Creating an indie game can take anywhere between a matter of days and a number of years. With indie games, coding experience and budget will be the biggest influences on a game's development cycle. Here's a few examples of quality indie games all made within vastly different timeframes: Cuphead.

What percentage of games succeed?

Or to look at it another way, only about 20% of games sell well enough to be profitable. So, most new games fail because most gamers buy games from already-popular franchises or that are heavily-promoted by publishers.

Why do some indie games fail?

Indie games fail sometimes because of a poor marketing strategy: Either the team didn't build an audience or didn't find a way to interest the gaming world enough to make it play the game. The second reason comes from the game itself: The lack of game design skills or the level of immersion is too low.

How many indie games fail?

The statistics show that for every successful indie game, there are at least 4 or 5 unsuccessful indie games out there. However, I spent the majority of my working career up to this point doing something that paid the bills, but didn't follow my passions or my own dreams.

How hard is it to start an indie game studio?

Developing an indie game is hard work. You need to be able to design and build the game, market it to the public, and get it published. Some people usually begin indie studios to develop passion projects, which later can become successful or develop smaller cult followings.

Who is the youngest indie game developer?

At 12 years old, Max Trest is already an established independent video game developer who has even created a game with the Unity engine.

How much funding does an indie game need?

The average cost to make an indie game is about $250,000, but some small projects can cost as low as nothing + time you spend on development.

How much do publishers pay indie game devs?

What percentage do game publishers take? The size of the royalty is typically between 10 and 20%. After the publisher has recaptured the costs, the team begins to receive the first deductions. At the same time, the publisher's expenses for the game may not pay off if for some reason the community does not accept it.

Is indie game dev hard?

The answer is yes. Game development is very hard.

How many people make an indie game?

You can create an indie game alone, but often it is done by small teams of 5-10 people. So, “indie” means independent of major publishers. And from their financial support, of course, but difficulties make the process even more challenging.

Can an indie game win game of the Year?

Indie games have won the award 4 times Journey (published by Sony Interactive Entertainment) in 2012, Untitled Goose Game in 2019, Hades in 2020, and Inscryption in 2021.

How much to sell an indie game for?

In short, pick a price that is comparable to other indie games and then charge 20% more. If people are really really excited about your game, charge 50% more than you think you should.

What is the hardest game genre to make?

MMORPGs, without a doubt, are the hardest game genre to build, for one very significant reason - the sheer volume of resources required to build them. As a common sense rule, +1 game content = +10 more development required.

Are there billionaire game developers?

Perhaps another take-away is that the wealth generated from Western game companies has been better distributed between founders, executives, shareholders, and employees than in places like China. Either way, there are billions and billions of dollars in the video game industry, and plenty of billionaires, too.

Can indie game developers survive?

Yes, indie developers can survive, but it's not easy by any means. You'll have to figure out how to pay the rent, buy food, and keep health insurance (if you live outside the US, this is easier) while you make your first few games — your first one will almost certainly be a huge flop .