Review Fix chats with ‘Dark Alley Marketing: An Indie Game Developer’s Roadmap to the Dark Side of Marketing’ author Steven Long, who discusses the creative process behind the book and why you must check it out.
Review Fix: What inspired this book?
Steven Long: I’m a cheap gamer. A Ghetto Gamer. And I’m always looking for a deal. I’m always looking for hidden gems, which is a cliche term I can barely stand to hear. But As I started reviewing cheap-yet-awesome indie games for IndieWatch.net, I started realizing there were a few common threads among great, unnoticed indie games. They weren’t marketing themselves well enough. They weren’t gaining the audience they need to actually sell copies. Developers started contacting to review their games, which seemed half-finished and not at all ready for release. I stopped reviewing games and started blogging about how to market indie games in order to help these developers have more success.
Eventually, my advice and blogging sort of congealed into a repeatable framework that any developer could use to promote their game. That marketing method developed into this book.
Review Fix: What did you learn about yourself through this book?
Long: When I was younger, I always wanted to be an author. Over time I gave up on the idea and decided long-form wasn’t for me. I didn’t think I had the patience or the attention span to write even a short book. I guess I proved myself wrong.
Review Fix: What did you learn about indie games that you didn’t expect through this book?
Long: I never realized how many options developers have when it comes to the actual distribution of their game. I knew Steam and other games markets have algorithms to expose certain games over others–just like YouTube and social media. But after researching this book, I learned just how much free advertising Steam games actually get, and how many other third-party markets exist for developers to get more exposure with less competition.
Review Fix: What do you think makes you different from other game writers?
Long: I can eat a whole Chipotle burrito in one bite! No, but really…I think I have a knack for taking a complicated and often boring topic like marketing and turning it into something entertaining and relatable.
Review Fix: Why are indie games important?
Long: Indies–to a certain extent–are free from the constraints of mainstream publishers. An indie developer can spend years and years and thousands of hours working late every day with no pay, just because they believe in what they’re doing. It’s amazing.
Triple-A publishers are making incredible games, of course, but it’s investors that pull the strings. They are inflexible and almost unwilling to take chances or try something beyond the scope of what they know will give them the biggest return on their investment. The cost of creating a premium game is so high they have to charge $60 upfront and then twist and squeeze their audience with DLC and paid unlocks, loot boxes, microtransactions and whatever else they’re working on.
Indies are important because they are much more flexible and able to take chances and make creative decisions that might be outside the norm. They are the ones on the frontier of the gaming industry, pushing the envelope.
Review Fix: Bottom line, why must someone buy this book?
Long: Indie developers are busy and don’t really have time to mess with this stuff. At least not to the extent a professional marketer would. I’ve taken the major alleys of marketing and distilled them into a short, concise, cheap and easy-to-use guide that any developer can start using right away. And did I mention it’s cheap?
Review Fix: What’s next?
Long: There’s been a lot of demand lately for support with crowdfunding, so I’m gathering a lot of knowledge and experience there. It’s definitely a popular topic and something I think I can help with. It’s a bit early to announce, but I think crowdfunding will definitely be the subject of some upcoming content.
Review Fix: Anything else you’d like to add?
Long: I couldn’t have gotten the clients or research for this book without the help of Fernando at IndieWatch.net. He’s a great guy and someone any game developer would benefit from associating with.
Review Fix: Where can people go for more information on you?
Long: IndieWatch.net is a great place to find me. I have a ton of articles there that developers should find helpful. Of course, there’s my Patreon at patreon.com/longie_long. But the best way to find me is on Twitter @longie_long
Thanks for taking the time to chat!