How To Sell VN?

[GudServo]

well i live outside japan and there is very little demand for VN outside Japan so can anyone tell that is there anyway that a non japanese VN can be sold to both japan and outside japan

and how much should it be priced guys plz help

and if u knw where to sell it plz tell

[Mhari]

Write it first.

[blankd]

1. You need to have a product.
2. Educate yourself on the vague workings of business.
3. ???
4. PROFIT!

In all seriousness you're being a bit vague about your question, so help is very limited.

[Aleema]

There are several non-Japanese VNs that are making money outside of Japan. I'm not sure how much profit they're getting, but the standard charge is $9.99 to $19.99 each game. Make sure you know what your game is worth before charging, because if it sucks, no one will ever buy from you again.

But I honestly suggest that you worry more about the VN at this point than the business aspect.

[modesty]

Marketing for this type of thing is pretty tough. I can guarantee that there is no company that will license your game in the U.S. at least. The genre is just not the profitable.

There are a couple marketing "gimmicks" you can use to help sell your game to an audience that may be unfamiliar with the genre.

1) Demo Version. Have a free version of your game that does not include much content but gives the potential buyer a taste of what the full version may be like. Then the full version is available for a price.

2) Offer the Game at a "low risk" Price. Why do you think Apple iTunes songs are so popular? Because they're cheaper than the alternative. If you made a game and had it available for only $2, people may give it a shot because $2 is not too much to risk. To be honest, that's about how much the games the company I work for makes. (iPhone games. )

3) Make a few free VNs. Get a fanbase then test the waters by releasing a game your fanbase has to buy.

For the marketing side of things, that's what you should think about.
However, first you need the product. If it's a piece of work you think you would pay yourself to do...then put a price tag on it. That is to say you did all the writing, scripting, and art yourself to a near professional quality.

[papillon]

I can guarantee that there is no company that will license your game in the U.S. at least. The genre is just not the profitable.

... Other than those of us who are right here making profits?

(Well, it depends on how well you control your costs!)

[modesty]

LOL...Good point. I forgot about Indies. But yeah...suppose it does matter on how you manage costs. I for one could not make a living off this. XD

[PyTom]

I really dislike the suggestion of a $2 price point. The iPhone ecosystem had an unhealthy "race to the bottom", price-wise. I don't think we should subject our games to that, especially in a relatively niche market where you probably won't make up for in volume what you lose in profit-per-game. Plus, I think several of our commercial games are worth more than that.

[papillon]

From a personal standpoint I'd agree. I don't think a VN is a good choice for a low pricepoint. For one, making a good one requires more work (and more content) than some little puzzle game that can be thrown together - you've got a lot to recoup there. For another, making something a low price doesn't necessarily motivate people to try it if it's completely unfamiliar... and that low barrier to entry can mean that players unfamiliar with the genre have less invested and are more likely to get frustrated and quit / demand refunds when the game turns out not to be what they imagined.

If you're *already* interested in something and you see it at a low price, particularly a time-limited offer low-price, then sure, a low price pushes people to impulse buy. If you're not interested, a low price just makes something look tacky and cheap.

As a businessperson I can't really say; I've never worked in the super-low-price market and I don't have hands-on experience of trying to make money back on those margins. I know many people have been disappointed about the iphone not being the pot of gold they thought it was, but you can say the same for ANY business opportunity.

If you really wanted to crack the iphone market, there might be some advantage to releasing the game free and selling stupid addons of some kind, if you could think of a game design that would work with that...

[jack_norton]

The iphone market (as any closed system) is more a gamble and not a way to build up a long-term business. I have intention "someday" to build my own VN engine so I can port the games instantly there from mac/pc, but surely not as primary market! It would be foolish
Also I prefer to concentrate (and I've been moderately successful) on making higher quality games than try to make quick-cheap-games.
I found out that people are more willing to pay $20 for good product than $2 for a crappy short game with template art.

[GudServo]

Thanx fellows u all have been really helpfull

well my question was where to sell at how much
i've got the answer at how much thanx everyone
but where to sell i din have can anyone please guide me about where to sell

well i searched the net din found anysite if u guys knw any please tell me

thanx everyone again

[papillon]

... your own website, when you build it?

What exactly are you expecting to find?

[dstarsboy]

I found out that people are more willing to pay $20 for good product than $2 for a crappy short game with template art.

I'm actually making a crappy short game with template art for $2 for the iPhone. It would be absolutely retarded to spend the time and money to create an incredibly high quality game for a market where 99 cent items are the norm. Maybe choosing to develop for that market to begin with is foolish, but hey, hobbies can't always be sane, right?

My recommendation to the OP is the same as a previous poster. Make a game first and release it for free and rely on word of mouth to get your fan base up. Then look at selling sequels and marketing after you're certain that you can make a product that people will pay for.

[GudServo]

... your own website, when you build it?

What exactly are you expecting to find?

well u know about bladeengines machine they sell ur VN on DL Site and DL site is VN selling site and we all know that but the bladeengine is sorry to say is a crap so i will not use this

anyway thanx for help

the question is resolved from my side thanx everyone
thanx leema forums
thanx renpy
see u all soon

[Vorsic]

they sell ur VN on DL Site

You can sell a VN made with RenPy on DL Site, you don't have to use Blade Engine.