Running An Idea By You Guys: Indie Gaming Social Network & More...

[TerranRich]

So Gravity and I have been talking lately about starting up a site. At its core, it would be a social network, but don't think to yourselves, "Facebook clone," or anything like that. This would be a site directed at both indie game players & fans, and indie game developers.

The players (regular users) would sign up to the site for free and be able to add friends, chat, send messages, upload pics -- the usual social network stuff. They would also be able to become fans of indie games that are either in development (you'd be "watching" these), or have already been released (you'd be "fans" of these, or something similar).

The developers would sign up (with multiple tiered memberships, including a basic free option, of course) and have their own profile for their development company, or themselves (if they're just a guy making games). Developers would be able to create profiles (maybe mini-profiles or just pages) for each of their games, which users would then favorite/watch and be able to rate, review, discuss, etc. Developers could even host their games directly on the site, and even sell their games right through the site. The site would act as a host and a store in that regard.

Overall, the site has two goals in mind, which would work together: (1) to allow indie gamers and fans of indie games to come together and interact in a setting geared toward their love of games; and (2) provide a platform for indepdent developers to reach a target audience, as well as interact with their customers (or non-paying audience), and ultimately release their product to eager fans.

The site would categorize games into various genres, such as adventure, casual, arcade, puzzle, etc. and would limit developers to small-scale companies at the most, and individuals who have released a single free game at the least.

What is your general opinion of such a site? Would such a site be appealing to you personally? Would you join up? What other features would you want to see added if you did join up? If you are a developer (or say you were one), would such a site be a useful tool for you to utilize, given there were a large number of members on board? Do you feel that such a site would be able to fulfill the above two goals to both side's satisfaction?

I'd like to know what you guys think of this idea, as it's something we've been discussing for quite some time now.

[Wyz]

-What is your general opinion of such a site?
It sounds like a good idea! Well, it have to be different then all the other social networking sites in some way for it to be really successful. I think the 'fan system' if worked out properly could be something which does that.

-Would such a site be appealing to you personally?
It depends on how it looks. I'm not a big fan of flashy sites with a lot of panes.
Also it will be more appealing for me as developer I guess.

-Would you join up?
Yes, but I will not be very active.

-What other features would you want to see added if you did join up?
A lot of indie developers are also fans, make the switch from user to developer an easy one, allow it to be the same user account or link them in some way.
- Allow fans to communicate about games in groups. (a bit like waves, it gives them some privacy, maybe allow developers also to be part of groups)
- Allow fans to send other fans a 'You will probably like this game: <message>' message or something.
- More of the obvious.

-If you are a developer (or say you were one), would such a site be a useful tool for you to utilize, given there were a large number of members on board?
Absolutely, the biggest problem I have as developer is to stay motivated. I'm actually only motivated if I know on forehand there are people interested in the game. If a site allows people to send messages about the game while I'm working on it it would really help even if it's criticism.

Do you feel that such a site would be able to fulfill the above two goals to both side's satisfaction?
Yes, I guess. There is one thing left I personally don't like very much. Some sites put a lot of focus on showcase projects. Like if there would be a really successful game, or a successful developer. Of course there is nothing wrong with praising successful things, but it's like stating the obvious. If you put a lot of focus on these projects, a lot of smaller projects will remain unseen. Let people find there own way instead of directing them to already successful projects. It will also make beginning developers more confident and developers are also fans, so that actually makes your community grow . Hmm this almost sounds like a rant, but it wasn't my intention.

Well, I like the sound of your idea, good luck with it.

[Wonkyth]

Good idea.
Yes.
Yes.
can't think of any straight away, but I'm sure there would be some.
Definitely, reaching the target audience in a way that is both useful and relevant would be fantastic.
Yes.

[Calin Leafshade]

hmm isnt this essentially what GameJolt does?

It's a decent idea but you'd need to offer something above and beyond what GameJolt already does since its an established platform.

[Technocrat]

hmm isnt think essentially what GameJolt does?

It's a decent idea but you'd need to offer something above and beyond what GameJolt already does since its an established platform.

I was about to say the same thing about Gamejolt, but you should also look into ways to get more traffic than they do at the moment. Right now, they seem to have an established core of people who go there, and not exactly a high rate of others signing up.

[karja]

A similar site to Gamejolt and your idea is IndieDB
And there you can "Track" your favorites and be notified when theres updates and such.

That site is pretty much what you are describing.
So if you are to start up a new one, you must stand out.

[TerranRich]

Right now, the site is just in the conceptual phase. The next step will be to check out potential competition, and to check out ways we'd stand out and offer something different and unique and useful. Thank you guys for the names of those site... keep 'em coming! I want to check them all out, take extensive notes, and see what our site would be able to offer that would make us stand out.

A great comparison I like to use is Facebook vs. MySpace. MySpace was already the leader in social networking, but when Facebook came along, it offered something slightly different: a Wall where you could view all your friends' updates at a glance, and a unique organizational system that blew MySpace out of the water... such that MySpace is now emulating Facebook more and more by the day, which tells you something.

Not that I'm comparing our idea's potential success to that of Facebook's, but as long as we offer something better, it should do well.

Wyz, you give some great ideas. The transition from user to developer is one that we hadn't yet considered, but it would have come up during the planning phase. Not sure if we're going with (A) having a user keep his user profile and create a separate developer profile, or (B) changing his user profile into a developer profile, whereas developers can also utilize the site as a regular user would (commenting, discussion, friending, etc.). I suppose I could also offer the choice between the two, letting the user decide if their developer profile will be separate, or combined.

[Radiant]

Have you heard of TigSource?

[TerranRich]

As far as I know, TigSource is a gaming news site. What about it?

[Charity]

What is your general opinion of such a site?
* Good idea.

Would such a site be appealing to you personally?  Would you join up?
* I think I would.  Anything to get my name out there, and depending on the features, etc, I could see something like this being fun/useful.

What other features would you want to see added if you did join up?
* I'd like to see some features implemented geared specifically for networking between developers.  System for recruiting team members and offering services, for instance.  Though such features should be optional, so people who don't need new members or don't want people from a social networking site don't get bogged in offers from hordes of well meaning, but unskilled fans.  Still I think some sort of built in auditioning system could be useful for some.

* I would fudge the line between fans and developers, so that individuals and teams of amateurs can post up details for works in progress, regardless of finished game credits (though developers with one or more finished products should still have primacy, so they don't drown in the sea of lazy optimists).  One of the joys of social networking sites is that anyone can "express their creativity" if they want to.  Posting up drawings and writings (in any stage of completion) is pretty easy on most sites, and I think games should be similarly easy on one like this.  A notable subset of fans are going to harbor ambitions toward game design, and even though most of these ambitions probably won't pan out, I think it would be good to encourage them.

If you are a developer (or say you were one), would such a site be a useful tool for you to utilize, given there were a large number of members on board?
Ah.  See above.

Do you feel that such a site would be able to fulfill the above two goals to both side's satisfaction?
I don't see why not, so long as you can get a decent member base.

[Radiant]

As far as I know, TigSource is a gaming news site. What about it?

It is somewhat more than that, and has some overlap with the kind of site you intend to create. So I would suggest looking over their site and forum and seeing what it's like, as a source of inspiration.

Overall I think your idea is a good one; the trick is getting enough "critical mass" in the community to get it to work.

[tzachs]

The idea is good and I would join...
Also check Wakoopa, another potential competitor...

[fred]

What is your general opinion of such a site?
It's a good idea, but not unique. Most game portals or arcades have a social dimension (user profiles, comments, achievements, chat) and a monetization strategy (advertisement, download sales, tipping). It reminds me of Kongregate.com, GameJolt.com, Playthisthing.com, Fizzy.com, ArcadeTown.com, and IndieDB.com.

Would such a site be appealing to you personally?
Yes, if it could get my games in front of new audiences.

Would you join up?
Sure, if it's not too complicated.

What other features would you want to see added if you did join up?
Free game assets library (graphics, music, sfx, fonts).

If you are a developer (or say you were one), would such a site be a useful tool for you to utilize, given there were a large number of members on board?
It depends on the quality of the members. Some communities are great for inspiration, feedback and game design discussions, while some are good for monetizing (because there's traffic). On inspirational sites I'm prepared to make an effort and invest my time, but for the monetization/audience websites I'd much prefer if they grab my game details from a distribution feed and auto-upload it, because I don't have time to register a profile, manually submit the game and engage in discussions on the hundreds of websites that my games are on.

Do you feel that such a site would be able to fulfill the above two goals to both side's satisfaction?
Possibly, but it would take a serious effort to compete with IndieDB and other similar sites.