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Geek Culture / Researching a Business Idea

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old_School
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Posted: 11th May 2011 22:02
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Just seeking some feedback for a little business idea i had today. Do you suppose people would be willing to pay like .10 U.S. for simple objects like mouse pointers, menus etc for game design? Ive discovered Im not the best level designer for any engine but I'm pretty handy with art for games. So do you guys think some one would be willing to pay for simple game menu art stuff? If so what do you think a fair price to charge would be?
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bitJericho
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Posted: 11th May 2011 22:08 Edited at: 11th May 2011 22:11
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These kinds of services are all over if you know where to look. Here's an example:

http://icondock.com/icons


10 cents is far too small. You should charge much more for your icons. I would look around and see what other people are charging, then use A/B testing or some other method to get your pricing just right. (The general idea is to be far too expensive and then lower it incrementally and see how sales go)

What I would focus on more than price is getting your business side of it running, website, payment processor, customer service, and most importantly, getting a good selection of items to sell.

Your local SBA can help you with a lot of stuff. A lot of people here are willing to help if you ask the right questions. I'm also willing to assist with anything e-commerce/server-related if you need help, but I do charge

[center]Jerico for President. Obese for VP
My dear tomato \ Please let me classify you \ A fregetable.
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Libervurto
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Posted: 11th May 2011 23:44
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I thought of a similar idea recently. Do you think you could make all the graphics you'd need for an entire game? Then you could sell game packs. Creating media is often the stumbling block for many programmers, so having a pack full of everything you need to get going (maybe even some programming tutorials thrown in for the newbs) would be great!

Your memory has been erased by a mod - Your new name is Brian.
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crispex
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Posted: 11th May 2011 23:46
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I hate the idea of "packs" as once so many people get a hold of them, they really loose their value and feeling of being custom. Sorta like the FPS Creator model packs. Many people are fine using things like this, but it certainly DOESN'T beat custom content.

I just now realized I've had a typo in my signature for the past 3 years.
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Fatal Berserker
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Posted: 12th May 2011 01:20
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Opinion crispex, opinion.

As an indie developer i like the ability to use premade packages to suit my personal taste without needing to spend time myself to learn and make.

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old_School
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Posted: 12th May 2011 02:26
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Thanks for the feedback guys, I have alot of images Ive made recently. So I think I might be able to start working on the idea soon then. Also, I do agree custom packs are the way to go which is why I want to offer a service for that as well. Anyway I hope to have something up soon. Ill be working on this in my spare time so might take a few months.
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Jeku
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Posted: 12th May 2011 05:52
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Speaking of, where can I go to get custom 2D art made for personal projects?


Senior Web Developer - Nokia
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BatVink
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Posted: 12th May 2011 10:05
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Quote: "Speaking of, where can I go to get custom 2D art made for personal projects?"


I asked the same question a few weeks ago, and didn't get any solid answer. I ended up offering to pay my son to do it for me...I'm still waiting

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Quik
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Posted: 12th May 2011 10:33
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Quote: "I hate the idea of "packs" as once so many people get a hold of them, they really loose their value and feeling of being custom. Sorta like the FPS Creator model packs. Many people are fine using things like this, but it certainly DOESN'T beat custom content."


yes, characters, houses and similiar important stuff should be avoided buying packs for

however, boxes, furniture, shelves and so on might as well be packed, because today, you can have 50 different box models, and since theyre all blended, who would care if 20 are from packs, form around the net?


[Q]uik, Quiker than most
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old_School
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Posted: 12th May 2011 19:41 Edited at: 12th May 2011 21:03
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Well I was thinking more of GUI art and not model art. I dont think Ive every tried to make and 2d art and have no clue how hard it would be to make 2d art model wise. Here is a icon I made for my old UO 3d Priv server. Nothing I can sell but just a exsample:



Edit:

Ok here is some basic Hud mouse pointers Ive created;





















Not sure how good they are in the public eye but I think they could be fitting for a few games in my mind. After resizing I think this would be about the size they would be for example:

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crispex
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Posted: 13th May 2011 05:30
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Yeah, you're probably going to want to angle those.

I just now realized I've had a typo in my signature for the past 3 years.
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Jeku
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Posted: 13th May 2011 20:36
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Quote: "I asked the same question a few weeks ago, and didn't get any solid answer."


They should have a site like rent-a-coder but for artists and designers. I would gladly spend a few hundred bucks every now and then to get some 2D art made.


Senior Web Developer - Nokia
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Libervurto
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Posted: 13th May 2011 21:26
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@Crispex
[rage]Arrrgh! That annoying "Learn More" pop-up wont let me copy anything to quote![/rage]

Of course custom content is always best, but for those who lack the artistic ability to create their own content and can't afford to (or don't want to) pay full price for unique content would snap up game packs. A lot of people just want to make games, they don't care if their sprites look original, that's why there are so many sprite sheets of sonic the hedgehog, and the like, floating around the internet.

Your memory has been erased by a mod - Your new name is Brian.
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Destrugter 1
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Posted: 14th May 2011 04:33
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I am one of those people =[

Art is one of my weakest points in life.

My name is Brian.
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Design Runner
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Posted: 14th May 2011 05:57
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For all of you wondering where you could find an artist for this kind of work, Graphic Designers are your people. We usually have a a degree of some sort, and if we don't you shouldn't hire us Just type 'freelance graphic designer' and you should find plenty. Happy hunting. PS: the "average" price for a business logo created professionally is $150. US currency anyways.

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wind27382
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Posted: 14th May 2011 18:05
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I like the idea but you will need to create a very lot of content and make it good quality before you can even begin to sell it. I'm sure the
game design forum here
the xna creation forum
and a few others will be able to find you lots of clients.

wind
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