As a game developer, you are surely aware that the market is constantly changing and developing. The gaming community is very vocal in what they want and expect out of a video game, and they are not hesitant to express when they are displeased – for instance, when the game No Man’s Sky came out, many individuals expressed just how disappointed they were with the lack of expected features, and it caused the game’s overall success rate to drop drastically.
Therefore, you have to consider your impact, as a developer, on the gaming community. Many individuals will express what they want, what they expect, and how they want to utilize the new and improving gaming platforms. You have to consider your client base when developing your games. If you don’t, your new, shiny game, will ultimately flop. Below are tips on how to listen to the gaming community, on a whole, and begin to understand exactly what they want and expect.
This might sound silly, but this is one of the best ways to gain insight from the community. Gamers are very specific in what they want – they will complain about the graphics quality, or the character design, or they will say how much they like the story of particular games, or the ability to customize your characters. Look at what individuals have wanted in a game, and know what to add to see to it that you are successful. If you don’t read the reviews, you don’t really learn what gamers are looking for at the time of release.
Knowing who you are marketing your video game to will make a world of difference. This is because, at the end of the day, different gamers have different expectations in the quality of their games. Individuals playing first-person shooters, for instance, may find that they don’t even want a realistic campaign to play in conjunction with the game, they want only the ability to run around and fight other people on multiplayer. Similarly, if you are coding an MMORPG, it would be vastly important to ensure you provided a detailed background story and an immersive world. Without these, you will slowly begin to lose your audience.
With new, better, more powerful machines coming out every year, it is more important than ever to follow technology trends. Knowing what new processors are coming out will help you understand what your clients want in a video game – for instance, a high end, very detailed game would be perfect for release alongside the newest up and coming graphics card and processor. Timing your game releases to match up and coming technology trends will ensure your community feels heard, resulting in more satisfaction overall.
As with all games, there will be bugs. There will need to be patches, as well as upgrades in game. Be sure to listen to what people say after the game launches – if they want a particular type of update, be sure to implement it in an upcoming patch. This will ensure that your clients feel as though they’re being heard, and it will create a better fan base for any games you develop in the future, as you have branded yourself as a reliable, dependable developer.
While these are, most certainly, not the only ways to ensure you are listening to the gaming community to ensure you are creating the best gaming experience possible, these methods do ensure that your clients feel heard. You will stay up to date with current technology trends, ensure that your games remain up to date, and provide what your player base wants as far as a game experience goes. Realistically speaking, in knowing what they are expecting from games at the moment, you will be providing them with a great experience. Adding these small steps, however, will provide them with a top-notch experience and ensure you maintain a player base for years to come.
Special Guest Blog submitted by the Creator of HDD Mag.
Creator of HDD Mag, lover of comic books (Especially Dr. Strange), horror movies and video games. In my spare time, I’m either reading them, watching them or playing them!