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Submission Synopsis
The Game Inventor's Handbook
by Steve Peek
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Length:
81,000
Genre:
Nonfiction
How-To
Business
Sentence:
Everything anyone needs to know to be successful in the creation and
marketing of a game.
Blurb:
Monopoly, Trivial Pursuit, Pictionary, Cranium, Scene It...not one of
these blockbuster games originated with an existing game company but
rather with individuals who make tens of millions of dollars a year from
their inventions.
Synopsis:
The Game Inventor's Handbook takes readers on a step-by-step
journey through the history, logic and methodology, design, manufacturing,
and marketing of games. First published in 1985, the first three
editions of the Game Inventor's Handbook sold more than 120,000 copies
over 14 years. The fourth edition is updated and ready for
publication.
Book Sample
INTRODUCTION
I have a story to tell. It goes like this...
In the year 1454, in the town of Mainz, Germany, Johann Gutenberg had just
finished binding his first Bible. Ecstatic, he sought an audience with the
local baron, from who he sought financial assistance. With tremendous
pride, he delivered the fruits of his lifetime of labor into the hands of
this elegantly dressed nobleman. The baron opened the book and casually
thumbed through its beautifully printed pages. He closed it, placed it on
the desk and, with his right index finger, thoughtfully tapped the massive
volume. "Herr Gutenberg, this is marvelous! Truly a wonder!," he
exclaimed. "But, you see, I have this idea for a game and..."
The rest, as they say, is history. I'm sure the baron convinced poor,
trusting Johann to go into partnership on a board game venture. And I'm
pretty sure they went to work immediately printing the baron's new game,
whatever it was, because the next year Mr. Gutenberg went bust and was
forced to sell his press. He should have stuck with Bibles.
This isn't exactly a cheery note on which to start a book about getting
into the game business. The painful truth is that out of an estimated two
thousand games that enter the market every year, only a scant handful can
expect to be found on retailers' shelves two years later. The rest are
doomed to gather dust in warehouses, basements and garages. In some cases,
the games won't even remain on the market long enough to have a chance at
becoming moneymakers.
Marketing games is very different from selling books or movies -- almost
opposite, in fact. When a new book or movie is released there's a great
deal of hype and hoopla. Advertising space is bought in newspapers,
magazines, on radio and television. Six to eight weeks later the publisher
or film producer not only knows whether it's a winner: he can also gauge
how big a winner it will be and act accordingly. This pattern does not
hold true for games.
Fact is, virtually every blockbuster game was on the market for at least
three years before anybody knew it was a hit. The reason: a game's
popularity builds -- or loses -- momentum by word-of-mouth. Someone plays
a game at a friend's place, if she like's it she buys it to play with
someone else, and so forth. It's slow work but, if the product is a good
one, it is the only type of advertising that produces lasting results.
Several major companies have tried to shorten this tedious process by
spending huge amounts of money promoting games. Sometimes it works,
usually it doesn't. One company spent nearly $10 million advertising a new
game in its first year. The advertising bought a lot of shelf space in
stores (more about this later), but the game grossed less than $8 million.
While this game is still on the market today, it's not one people talk
about.
This all sounds rather negative and, admittedly, it is. If you are serious
about getting a game into print, however, you should be aware of the
pitfalls before you start. Many people tend to skim over these details and
concentrate only on visions of wealth, fame and glory – of which you will
find very little in this industry. An important first step is to
understand one's motivations, to determine exactly why you, and others,
want to create games.
Game companies -- those engaged in the design, manufacture and
distribution of games -- do it for one obvious reason, to make money. Most
individuals who invent games think they are doing it for the money also,
but this isn't always the case. The real reason is ego: everybody wants a
chance to be a big fish in the pond. By publishing a game you join a
small, elite group of people who have overcome anxieties about personal
failure and financial loss and have thrown caution to the winds in an
effort to fulfill a dream. Realistically, how many will make it big? After
more than thirty years in the game business I have met, corresponded with,
spoken to or heard from thousands of people who invented a game they
wanted to publish. Of these, I can think of at least eight who became
wealthy from their efforts. A number of others have achieved some success,
made some money, but only these eight, to my knowledge, really hit it big.
Since I am a medium-sized fish in the modest gaming pool, I have a
constant stream of people seeking advice on how to get published. It's a
little like being a doctor. As soon as someone discovers your profession
they begin talking about their pains -- or, in my case, games. It seems
nearly everyone I meet has at least one good game inside them -- and for
most, that's the best place for it. They think if they could only get it
published they would make a fortune. Many of these starry eyed inventors
drift a way halfway through my negative lecture. Only a few die-hards
remain, stubbornly insisting they are going to get their games into print.
Sometimes I help them; sometimes I don't.
In 1980, a recently widowed lady in her late sixties came to me. She and
her husband had bred dogs all their lives and she had devised a game based
on dog shows. She was prepared to spend nearly all her meager inheritance,
money she would need later in life for a decent retirement. I thought
breeders and other dog show devotees might find the game somewhat
interesting, though a bit dull perhaps. The biggest problem, I felt, was
that the game would have such a limited market there would be little point
in producing it for profit. Therefore, I tried to convince the lady not to
do it at all. Failing this, I hoped to talk her into making an extremely
limited test run of a thousand copies. I reasoned her cost per unit would
be astronomical but it would be away she could 'test' the product without
gambling her future security.
She refused to listen. She insisted on having 10,000 copies finished and
delivered within three months. I told her I didn't think she should do the
game and that I, in good conscience, could not make it for her. When she
said she would find someone else I recommended some printers and
converters I knew to be honest and wished her luck. Twenty-three years
later, as far as I know, she still has eight thousand games stuffing her
garage and two bedrooms of her home. The point of this story is not to
heap another negative on a growing pile, but to stress that if you are
serious about doing a game, you absolutely must share a trait with the
lady dog breeder -- determination. (Of course, doing a little test
marketing before "taking the plunge" is not a bad idea either.) If you
don't have determination, forget the whole thing because you will be
wasting time and money.
Okay, let's assume you are serious and intend to let nothing stand in your
way. First, permit yourself to run through this little test below. Be
honest in answering now!
The Prospective Game Creator's No-Win Quiz
1. Suppose no game publisher will buy your game and you are forced to
publish it yourself. Regardless of how you go about it, your game is going
to cost between thirty and fifty thousand dollars for a limited test run.
Can you afford to lose this much money?
2. Are you prepared to work for a minimum of three years at marketing the
game, incurring substantial expense in addition to printing the game, to
determine if it will become a success?
3. Are you willing to work nights and weekends -- in addition to full time
employment -- filling orders, invoicing, maintaining books, creating
advertisements, attending trade and consumer shows? Are you willing to do
all of this -- and more -- in addition to laying awake at night worrying
about your investment?
4. Are you willing to do all these things, knowing the odds are heavily
against you and at best you'll probably break even?
5. Are you willing to endure all this just for a big stake in a small
pond?
If you answered NO to any of these questions, you will be better off
sticking to Bibles. If you are unsure about taking a gamble but can't
chuck the idea altogether, my advice is to go to Las Vegas, plunk down ten
thousand dollars on a roulette number and take your chances. The end will
come a lot quicker, be a lot less painful and the odds are better.
However, if you answered YES to all the questions, bless your heart: it
looks as though you're ready to dive into the murky waters of the gaming
pond. So, get ready for the wildest ride of your life. All forewarning
aside, it may just be the most rewarding adventure you will ever have.
Once you make the decision to go ahead with your game, you should know
that the odds are against your selling it to an existing game company.
While a section tells how to go about approaching game publishers, the
bulk of this book is written under the assumption that you are so
bull-headed and stubborn that no matter what, you are determined to get
this game published, even if it means having to pay to do it yourself.
Author's Bio:
Steve Peek is a thirty-year industry veteran who placed his mark on
nearly four hundred published games. From helping dozens of
entrepreneurial startups to manufacturing components for blockbusters such
as Pokemon, Magic the Gathering, Harry Potter, Battle of the Sexes, Twenty
Questions, Pictionary and Trivial Pursuit to licensing games to television
shows and movies his understanding of the industry is broad and deep.
There are few outside major game companies who equal his wealth of
knowledge and expertise in the game industry. His willingness to share
this vital information prompted noted psychotherapist Jamie Turndorf,
inventor of LOVE QUEST, to describe him as, "the Encyclopedia Britannica
of games."
He founded the GAME INVENTORS OF AMERICA (G.I.A.), a member funded
society, to provide an information and resource center. The G.I.A.
provided newsletters, updates, educational conferences and cooperative
sales programs to help inventors find success in the game industry for
more than a decade.
In addition to having been president of G.I.A. he sat on the board of
directors for the GAME MANUFACTURERS ASSOCIATION, was a principle of
GAMEPLAN, a development agency that evaluated and represented game, and
serves on various industry panels.
His marketing experience reaches toy, book, educational, gift and
traditional game markets. He is a keynote speaker at conventions,
universities and trade shows.
Endorsements:
Numerous Toy Industry Leaders
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