Funding tips for Indie Game Start-ups?

kasigawa

Hello er'body. I was wondering if anyone had any tips for securing funding for an indie game company. I'm considering the idea of making my own company in Houston, Tx. These minimum wage jobs are growing old on me. Any tips or suggestions? 

Jonas Ronnegard

Although I don't have any experience myself I would advice to start creating a game on the side by yourself or with someone you might share your future company with, and create something that you can show and that will get people interested before you start looking for ways to secure funding.

kasigawa

Sounds like good starter advice. Thank you for the reply. 
Unfortunately finding a partner has proven to be very difficult without having funding, because of this I have defaulted to online indie development to which is great but not the same as a physical entity. Moreover, I also tried networking in a few occasions in IGDA and IGDC game conferences, but it doesn't seem to be going anywhere either without the security of financing. Nonetheless, I have tried to make games on my own but seem to always fall short when it comes to scripting. I still feel proud from the little I have accomplished. Something always comes up that prevents me from continuing, even when I follow simple tutorials. Unfortunately, it has left me with a huge file of unfinished games. 

Jonas Ronnegard

what is your background? if you are straight forward with what you can do and show examples of your work you might find people here that are interested.

kasigawa

Well, I've mostly been working as a graphic designerer and environment artist with online indie developers. 
My main websites for getting indie developer online are: http://www.indieteamup.com/, http://www.teamups.net/find-team, and http://www.indiecg.com/indies/ivankazuya/.
My personal portfolio can be found here: http://ivan-kazuya.wix.com/home 

I have concluded that all my problems come down to securing financial capital. I can always find developers using indeed.com or art station for people in Houston. There are also many people who graduate with a game design degree but don't find careers in their field and stay working minimum wage jobs in Houston. If I had capital, I believe I can make a physical indie game company and make it turn out a successful game within six months. It's only a matter of securing start-up capital, but how do I go about doing this...

Jonas Ronnegard

Hmm 2 of the links seems to be dead, including your portfolio.

Well getting funding without anything to show or professional experience will probably be impossible, maybe if your country provides some kind of start up charity thing, but that is usually after you show something.

I know a lot of people that have had tons of experience in the industry and that had a functional good looking game but still couldn't find anyone willing to invest or wasn't able succeed with their kickstarter campaign.

kasigawa

I wonder why that is, I'll repost it:
http://ivan-kazuya.wix.com/home
http://www.indieteamup.com/
http://www.teamups.net/

kasigawa

I most definitely agree. I've consider all these option but mostly thought about the third idea a lot. I like the idea of finding a way to capture the attention of an investor or angel investor and produce a game that can be played online to which can constantly update and built on until eventually getting enough money to branch out. The game idea can monetize by getting users to purchase unique items or clothing in-game (things that won't affect game play unreasonably).

Going back to the previous ideas you referenced, I tried creating passive income but found it to be more difficult than what I expected being that I have a limited programming background. I found it hiring external help to be risky because if there's no marketing strategy or demand for the application, you might lose money. I tried saving money from working minimum wage but found that to also be a time consuming, very risky, and overall a poor strategy because something always comes up and not-to-mention money being saved is very little. It's been a heck of an experience but I seem to have a thing for not getting where I need. I wish i could make this a thing then i'd be wealthy by now; nevertheless, I need a new approach and I think seeking investors might be the next thing on how to get where I need to be. In Houston, I found many websites that associate with investors and angel investors, since I've never tried reaching out, I figured I try this instead. Crowdfunding on different platforms will be my next approach if this idea fails. Securing the proper financing seems to be the greatest challenge now-a-days. 

monster

Hey Kasigawa,

I'll list a few things that investors look for:

• A game demo that demonstrates game play.
• A financial plan that shows they will make their money back and more. And shows how and on what you'll spend the funds.
• A team of experienced people contractually obligated to this project.
• A list of patents you possess that can be licensed or sold.
• A list of previously released successful products.
• An audit of the physical and digital materials you'll use to produce the game.

This isn't a complete list. But if you don't have most of these things, then you'll just be wasting time looking for an investor. I've worked for several indie studios and even with all the things above it's very difficult to secure funding. Even with crowd funding you'll need to demonstrate several of these points.

I like that your are looking for teams on those indie websites. I think your best bet is to join a team of passionate people and get a project finished and published online. Then do it again. A company like Rovio failed many times before hitting it big. http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/rovio-overnight-angry-brids-success-51-failed-522587

kasigawa

Hey thanks man. I found this info extremely useful. I agree, I need to show them I'm capable of producing such a game. I think it's also a good idea to make a business plan. It's best to have all the answers before the investors ask them. 

VPrime

I run a small startup (https://www.hyperpad.com) that has some investor backing. We're not gaming specific we're a tool, but I have met with investors quite a bit (in Silicon Valley, and NYC). I can tell you now that investors are verrrrrry anti gaming. Unless you can prove you have a hit (hundreds of thousands of downloads) with good retention it's very unlikely you'll get any funding at all. Or if you have had pas success.

Also, raising money is a long and painful process. You'll hear a lot of no's, and get a lot of bad advice (which you may be tempted to take, thinking it could be investments). It's also really bad for your business. A a startup with only founders, raising money means one of your core team has to stop selling, stop building, stop talking to users, stop making the business move forward and just talk to investors.

It pretty much sucks!

Look into local government grants. In Canada there are TONS of media grants, and funding options (these take time, but it's free money and worth a try). There are also a few "Gaming" accelerators that have popped up. They tend to give a small bit of cash (~20k) mentorship, and support.

kasigawa

Thanks for the reply VPRIME, I have talks to other people and they told me almost the same thing that the majority of investors are a bit iffy about investing in a gaming business. One person told me it's often they know very little of the gaming business. It also seems they are unlikely to invest in this period of time for perhaps economic reasons where they have to get the most reward and less risk for their investment. Nonetheless, I believe you're right, I guess it depends on who you ask because it seems everyone has a different reason why not to invest in a game company. Moreover, I'm considering looking at alternate methods of funding. Funds or grants form a local level could be a great idea to look into.