Pricing our games

What should Hyper Shards cost?

Hyper Shards is pay once: no ads, no extra shopping. So the price is the only way it earns.

Too high, and nobody tries it. Too low, and the studio can't cover its costs, and some players assume it must be low quality. Real studios don't guess. They follow a few steps, and as part of the team, you get a vote.

Step 1: look at similar games

Find games that are like ours: small space shooters, made by small studios, about the same size. Write down their prices and how long they take to play.

That list gives us a fair range to start from. Compare with games like ours, not with giant hits made by hundreds of people.

Step 2: think about value

• Hours of funHow long does it last? Five worlds and a boss might be 4 to 6 hours.
• No ads, no shoppingPlayers pay once and get everything. Many players love that.
• Reasons to replayLeaderboards and high scores keep players coming back.

Value is how much a player gets for their money. More value means a higher price can still feel fair.

Launch discounts and sales

A launch discount is a lower price for the first days. Example: $4.99 with 20% off is $3.99 for launch week. It brings early players in, and they leave the first reviews.

Later, sales for holidays bring new players. But careful: if the game is always on sale, players learn to wait instead of buying.

Regional pricing

Money is worth different amounts in different countries. $5 can feel cheap in one place and expensive in another.

Regional pricing means setting a fair local price for each country. Google Play, the App Store and Steam can all suggest local prices for us, so we don't have to work out every country by hand. On our own website, Stripe can show local currencies too, and we pick natural local prices like EUR 4.99.

A free demo, and why free isn't always better

A demo is a free taste of the game. Our idea: World 1 of Hyper Shards is free, and players buy the full game to keep going.

Why not make the whole game free? A free game has to earn from ads or purchases, and we promised Hyper Shards has neither. Free works for Garden Defense because ads pay for it.

Our example price plan

Here is an example plan for the team to talk over with a parent:

• Hyper Shards: $4.99, pay once, from our website. After Stripe's fee, about $4.55 per sale reaches us.
• Launch week: 20% off, so $3.99.
• Free demo: World 1.
• Garden Defense: free, with fair rewarded ads and a "Remove ads" unlock.

Bolt says: These are example prices, not final ones. You now know the money side of a real game studio. Time for the boss quiz!