a way to find like minded people

[rock_chick]

Many game making forums don't allow advertising(including this one and this is not spam as I haven't advertised anything in this post) and I don't want to break their rules or spam.
So does anyone know of any such forums where I could somehow promote or let people know about (insert what I'd be telling people about here, relevant to game makers anyway).
Also I'm looking for free and legal options for promotion of it in general and to appropriate audiences.

[Akatosh]

Well, it depends. If it's indeed a product that might be generally of use for the people at the forum you're posting on, it might be fine to start a thread along the lines of "Hey guys, check this out!", with a little explanation and everything. If you're just trying to fend off crap... go buy and ad already. 

[rock_chick]

Well, it depends. If it's indeed a product that might be generally of use for the people at the forum you're posting on, it might be fine to start a thread along the lines of "Hey guys, check this out!", with a little explanation and everything. If you're just trying to fend off crap... go buy and ad already. 

Well I wouldn't call it crap but it's to let people know about a site(sort of) of mine that would possibly interest user's here.

[shbaz]

Would it happen to be the one in your sig?  You might notice dozens of people advertise their websites (commercial and private) in their sigs.  That's for whatever you want to put in there, inside the realms of size and decency.

[rock_chick]

Would it happen to be the one in your sig?  You might notice dozens of people advertise their websites (commercial and private) in their sigs.  That's for whatever you want to put in there, inside the realms of size and decency.

Now but it's a community I started with LiveJournal, I think a small banner with a link to it will do. Any advice about how to promote both my blog and community in general(not related to this forum or site)?

[Nightfable]

Sorry, off topic. Rock_chick, I used to have that very same avatar three years ago!LOL! 

http://www.adventuregamestudio.co.uk/yabb/index.php?topic=16004.msg244512#msg244512

[m0ds]

I've visited your blog and posted in the past, its in my favourites, you simply haven't updated for a long long time! And all it took last time was your thread on this forum. The best thing to do from here is include a link or banner (which isn't too big!!) in your signiature. Members here will click it, providing your post regularly enough. I get about 3 unique clicks from my AGS sig every day So thank you randomly clicking people!!! And in fact thank you SSH for generating a lot of clicks for me today too, hehe So I guess that proves you will get stuff from these forums alone. Other than that if you want to take your blogging really seriously, its best to buy a .com or similar cos then you'll appear in Google and double the clickage to your site yet again. I think blogs hosted on sites do too, but not to the extent you would being a personal entity online. Advertising your blog isnt really spam, especially in communities like this - seen as most people have one nowadays. Follow the sig rules here and you can advertise whatever you like (related to your game-making, I must add ) The best promotion for things like this is generating it yourself. I don't think there's anyone out there specifically making sure your adventure game creation is hitting mainstream news or advertising areas And in my opinion, its not necessary. But I have no idea how serious you intend to be!!!

Above all advertising, just do what you do & do the best you can. Then you'll find true success

ps to my knowledge, and having experience with it, LiveJournal is a bit inferior in these days of blogging. I'd try looking to shift your content elsewhere, or a personal .com asap. Good luck!

[rock_chick]

I've visited your blog and posted in the past, its in my favourites, you simply haven't updated for a long long time! And all it took last time was your thread on this forum. The best thing to do from here is include a link or banner (which isn't too big!!) in your signiature. Members here will click it, providing your post regularly enough. I get about 3 unique clicks from my AGS sig every day So thank you randomly clicking people!!! And in fact thank you SSH for generating a lot of clicks for me today too, hehe So I guess that proves you will get stuff from these forums alone. Other than that if you want to take your blogging really seriously, its best to buy a .com or similar cos then you'll appear in Google and double the clickage to your site yet again. I think blogs hosted on sites do too, but not to the extent you would being a personal entity online. Advertising your blog isnt really spam, especially in communities like this - seen as most people have one nowadays. Follow the sig rules here and you can advertise whatever you like (related to your game-making, I must add ) The best promotion for things like this is generating it yourself. I don't think there's anyone out there specifically making sure your adventure game creation is hitting mainstream news or advertising areas And in my opinion, its not necessary. But I have no idea how serious you intend to be!!!

Above all advertising, just do what you do & do the best you can. Then you'll find true success

ps to my knowledge, and having experience with it, LiveJournal is a bit inferior in these days of blogging. I'd try looking to shift your content elsewhere, or a personal .com asap. Good luck!

I'm over the whole promotion thing really but I have been thinking, what do you think is the best free blog service as far as options and customisation go?
I don't take my blogging seriously, after all I hadn't posted in it for awhile because I was taking a break from making the game.

[m0ds]

There's a contradiction there I'm sure...just buy a .com

[deadsuperhero]

The best way to find like minded people is...eHarmony.
But, the best way to find INTERESTED people who will help on your game is to:
-Put up some design docs.
-Release some demos.
-Make the crappy short games first, to gain a reputation.

[Emerald]

Sorry, off topic. Rock_chick, I used to have that very same avatar three years ago!LOL! 

http://www.adventuregamestudio.co.uk/yabb/index.php?topic=16004.msg244512#msg244512

I always find it misleading when girls use pictures of other girls as avatars (especially when they're really hot avatars)... It just sets me up for disappointment...

-Make the crappy short games first, to gain a reputation.

People always say that, but I never understood why...
In my experience -- at least within other forms of media -- your first publication should be as good as possible. It can be very hard to dig yourself out of a reputation for writing badly.

Then again, I suppose this isn't quite the same cut-throat industry where you get one shot at fame before someone else elbows their way in to replace you...

[InCreator]

An idea...

theory
To have a popular blog/whatever, it has to be good. I mean, something someone would actually spare time on to read.
It should be interesting enough, either having interesting thoughts or stories or comedy in it. Or something really extreme. Basically, anything but typical "woke up, browsed net, ate, walked in the park, listened to Slipknot, like it, here's a photo of my cat".

"Can I finish making even one game?" - a blog of process of making a game/developer's diary is actually pretty good idea. Its true value will come out with the game, especially if the game happens to be very good. Then people would love to read how you got through during making it and how it all went. Or even if you release a demo at some point, fans would stick to your diary to hear more about progress in making game further and how well it's going.

idea
If you blog often, and also post at AGS often, pick out a short, interesting, maybe even mysterious line from your newest blog entry, quote it in your signature, and add a link to "read further". It would advertise your blog much better than "read my blog here!".

A (stupid) example:

"As we reached outskirts of Baghdad, cpt. Morris spotted armed men near the mosque. We radioed to HQ and were told to engage..." click to read more

It would draw people in much better, and as you said, help to find "like minded people". Knowing only that here's a link for blog won't tell people if the blog's "mindedness" fits with theirs. A tiny bit of its contents would make much better job.

Hope this helps!

[Nikolas]

I always find it misleading when girls use pictures of other girls as avatars (especially when they're really hot avatars)... It just sets me up for disappointment...

But, but, but...

Nightfable is hot herself!  Extra hot! Ask her chubby!

[rock_chick]

Ok I'm happy enough with LiveJournal for now, it does what I want it to, cos I'm not looking for anything too fancy, to me a blog is more about its content than its look.

Look yes that avatar is much sexier than me but I'm not trying to delude people into thinking it's me, I have been looking for avatars online that represented to some degree what I looked like and that was the main one I found, I actually would like to find a different one but I haven't been able to yet. Anyway it's only an avatar, it's not meant to be like a photo of myself.

Right now I'm more concerned about problems with making the game than popularity with my blog, I think there has been a lot of confusion over what I was talking about.
LiveJournal now has a section called "Communities", sort of a blogging forum or group and I made one for people who develop and/or design free games. So it's not really related directly to my blog. However I've decided to ditch it anyway.

[InCreator]

Right now I'm more concerned about problems with making the game than popularity with my blog, I think there has been a lot of confusion over what I was talking about.

That's because you should have started by pointing out what you're up to. 'Community' is a wide term.

My personal advice to you: don't take game making so seriously. If you're thinking about it, writing about it, acting all like completing one would gain you a Nobel prize, you're in for disappointment. Most likely, your hair will drop out before you get past first screen.

If you're going for AGS game, I suggest a simple, tiny, funny one-two-roomer which you make at your spare time. The positive points of project like this are countless: it won't take much time, since low graphical content, you can make the graphics as beautiful as your limits let you to, and the chances of getting it actually released are high. Also, it could be a nice introduction to whatever "big" you dream to make.

Make a game, get yourself a bit of name and fame and I'm quite sure that like-minded people will flood in.

[rock_chick]

I'm seriously considering that but I just worry that it might get me negative publicity for a crappy game and give me a bad rep, you seem to know the score, has this approach generally been more positive or negative in general for game makers?

Also I'm not taking the game too seriously, no I'll leave that for more important things like finding a boyfriend.

BTW, thanks for the all the help.
Just one more question, say I have a team of a designer and a coder, would that make my role in the game look really small?

[InCreator]

Just one more question, say I have a team of a designer and a coder, would that make my role in the game look really small?

Adventure game is more or less interactive novel. So I guess that the story writer is the "most important" one. But your role is as big as is your contribution to the game.

[Oliwerko]

I guess I have an advice for you.
You take the game making as a business. It's not business. It's a HOBBY. And hobby has to be entertaining, relaxing and rewarding thing you spend your free time on. I know what you mean by that bad reputation, but my opinion on this is: who cares? If you create a crappy game, than it's a crappy game, that's it. If you make a good one afterwards, I think the bad rep is the last thing to worry about. Anyway, you can make only crappy games, and do them just for your enjoyment. But I'm sure that if anyone makes a complete game, it's a sign of motivation and you can see the time that the person spent on creating it. Remember, rep does not matter very much. It's a hobby. Fun does matter. The rewarding feeling of having it completed matters.

To your question - as far as you are the team leader, you can tell for example the story writer that "hey, this section is crap, what do you think about this:he walks in to the bar and......". Again, does it really matter how big/small your role in the game design looks?

I don't know, maybe you have completely different approach to the whole thing, but...I tried 

[Emerald]

To your question - as far as you are the team leader, you can tell for example the story writer that "hey, this section is crap, what do you think about this:he walks in to the bar and......". Again, does it really matter how big/small your role in the game design looks?

You'd want to be a little bit more ego-friendly than that.

Also I'm not taking the game too seriously, no I'll leave that for more important things like finding a boyfriend.

Psh, finding boyfriends is easy. Animation is the hard part...

Uhh... I mean, y'know... girlfriends... or whatever...

[Tuomas]

Pfft, anyone can animate after 100 tries. Finding a boyfriend has always been easier to me than finding one of the opposite sex. It's the programming that has kept me from finishing a single game on AGS for 3+ years!