How much does it cost to make a browser game
Currently, about 500 online games are represented on the Russian market, of which more than two thirds are browser games. Some of them bring their owners more than a million dollars a month, others, on the contrary, just pull money out of their creators' wallet. And today I will tell you exactly how much is your own development and launch of a browser-based online game.
Each game is a business process defined by a number of characteristics and parameters. At the entrance we set the funds necessary for the development and promotion of the project. At the exit, we have a profit from its operation.
Consider the points of each element of the cost structure of this business process.
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Team building
The remuneration of professionals working on your game is usually one of the largest sources of fixed project costs. The table shows the average salary forks in the case of work in the office, as well as an example of the budget development of the indie project Star Warrior from the Antarex Group.
Office rent and work space organization
Using the example of the Star Warrior and a number of other browser games, we can see that we can develop the game “at home” using an outsourcing scheme when working with hired employees. However, this method has several disadvantages, especially if you decide to make a large browser project that will conquer the gaming community both in Russia and abroad.
The cost of renting an office will depend directly on location, class, square footage and other parameters. It is impossible to give even averaged figures here, so I will illustrate this item with an example from the practice of an office for a team of 15 people in the Moscow region:
Marketing
Marketing of browser-based online games is most often based on working with traffic - its attraction and retention. The main mechanisms for attracting traffic are:
Marketing is often the highest cost item for online gaming creators. On average, the market for the attraction of one player spent about 50 rubles. The first 6 months after the launch of the game, it is advisable to buy at least 1,000 registrations per day, not counting free organic traffic. This is an average indicator of traffic, which will allow you to confidently say in six months whether your game has jerked or not. Of course, there are many nuances here, but in the framework of the initial calculations, 9,000,000 rubles is the optimal amount that can be mortgaged for advertising an online game.
Other expenses
In the process of developing and launching a browser-based online game, you will definitely encounter a number of other expenses that are not so significant against the background of the wage fund, marketing and office rent, but should also be taken into account when estimating the cost of the project.
Acquisition and maintenance of server hardware. A browser-based online game usually has quite sparing requirements for server hardware, therefore 100–300 thousand rubles. for the purchase of the server part and 3–9 thousand rubles per month. for its maintenance will be enough at the initial stage.
Creation and support of a legal entity. Operating an online game is an entrepreneurial activity and requires the organization of a legal entity. Usually, depending on the scale of the activity, it is either LLC or IP. In the case of PI, costs can be reduced to 50,000–60,000 rubles / year for compulsory contributions to the pension fund and contributions to the compulsory health insurance fund.
Other unforeseen expenses. For example, representative.
As we can see, the cost of developing and launching a browser-based online game varies greatly and depends on a number of factors. Including the development period, which is usually 1-3 years. I note that with development time of more than two years, large companies risk not recouping costs, including due to the technological obsolescence of the project. Indie developers have less risk due to low development costs.
In conclusion, I will give the estimated cost of developing a browser-based online game on Unity by a small team with an office in the Moscow region. The example is based on real experience.
Development and marketing time: 1 year
The wage fund: 9 million rubles.
Rental: 1 500 000 rubles.
Organization of working space (furniture, appliances, licenses, etc.): 2,000,000 rubles.
Advertising expenses: 12 000 000 rub.
Other expenses (server hardware, maintaining a legal entity, etc.): 500,000 rubles.
Total: 25 000 000 rubles
If you have questions about the structure and volume of costs - ask, I will answer in the comments.
Each game is a business process defined by a number of characteristics and parameters. At the entrance we set the funds necessary for the development and promotion of the project. At the exit, we have a profit from its operation.
Consider the points of each element of the cost structure of this business process.
')
Team building
The remuneration of professionals working on your game is usually one of the largest sources of fixed project costs. The table shows the average salary forks in the case of work in the office, as well as an example of the budget development of the indie project Star Warrior from the Antarex Group.
| Subdivision | The average situation when working in the office | Star Warrior |
| Development team | ||
| Manual | Usually one of the investors
or hired specialist at a percentage and / or a salary of ~ 70–120 thousand / month. | One of the investors |
| Programmers | 2–5 game programmers
~ 40–150 thousand / month to each System Administrator ~ 40–80 thousand / month 1-2 web programmer ~ 40–120 thousand / month to each | Investors who themselves perform all of these functions
Outsourcing Flash programmer with pay for one-time work |
| Designers and artists | 1-3 specialists
~ 40-80 thousand / month to each Additional outsourcing is often involved. | Art designer, flash-designer and outsource interface designer
~ 30 thousand / month for everyone |
| Game designer | At least one
~ 40–100 thousand / month | One of the investors |
| Operation group (usually recruited after the start of the project) | ||
| Marketing and PR | 1-2 specialists
~ 50–100 thousand / month to each | One of the investors |
| Community manager | 1-2 specialists
~ 20–40 thousand / month to each | Outsourcing Community Manager
~ 5 thousand / month |
| Support specialist (game master) | 1-3 specialists
~ 20–40 thousand / month to each | A group of enterprising players |
Office rent and work space organization
Using the example of the Star Warrior and a number of other browser games, we can see that we can develop the game “at home” using an outsourcing scheme when working with hired employees. However, this method has several disadvantages, especially if you decide to make a large browser project that will conquer the gaming community both in Russia and abroad.
The cost of renting an office will depend directly on location, class, square footage and other parameters. It is impossible to give even averaged figures here, so I will illustrate this item with an example from the practice of an office for a team of 15 people in the Moscow region:
- Rent, including electricity, utility payments, security, etc., is 130,000 rubles / month.
- One-time costs for the organization of working space, including furniture, computers, licenses for software, office equipment, air conditioners and other office supplies amount to 2,000,000 rubles.
Marketing
Marketing of browser-based online games is most often based on working with traffic - its attraction and retention. The main mechanisms for attracting traffic are:
- Buying traffic. A number of developers turn to specialized game promotion companies for this, such as glispa, AdRiver, Mastertarget. Payment is made either for registration (20-60 rubles / unit), or for effective registrations of 50-80 rub / unit.
- Contextual advertising. It is one of the best sources of traffic at a cost, but its volumes are limited
- Work with gaming portals, gaming press and other media
- Search engine optimization
- Other, more exotic ways, such as: advertising on television, outdoor advertising, viral videos, affiliate programs, etc.
Marketing is often the highest cost item for online gaming creators. On average, the market for the attraction of one player spent about 50 rubles. The first 6 months after the launch of the game, it is advisable to buy at least 1,000 registrations per day, not counting free organic traffic. This is an average indicator of traffic, which will allow you to confidently say in six months whether your game has jerked or not. Of course, there are many nuances here, but in the framework of the initial calculations, 9,000,000 rubles is the optimal amount that can be mortgaged for advertising an online game.
Other expenses
In the process of developing and launching a browser-based online game, you will definitely encounter a number of other expenses that are not so significant against the background of the wage fund, marketing and office rent, but should also be taken into account when estimating the cost of the project.
Acquisition and maintenance of server hardware. A browser-based online game usually has quite sparing requirements for server hardware, therefore 100–300 thousand rubles. for the purchase of the server part and 3–9 thousand rubles per month. for its maintenance will be enough at the initial stage.
Creation and support of a legal entity. Operating an online game is an entrepreneurial activity and requires the organization of a legal entity. Usually, depending on the scale of the activity, it is either LLC or IP. In the case of PI, costs can be reduced to 50,000–60,000 rubles / year for compulsory contributions to the pension fund and contributions to the compulsory health insurance fund.
Other unforeseen expenses. For example, representative.
As we can see, the cost of developing and launching a browser-based online game varies greatly and depends on a number of factors. Including the development period, which is usually 1-3 years. I note that with development time of more than two years, large companies risk not recouping costs, including due to the technological obsolescence of the project. Indie developers have less risk due to low development costs.
In conclusion, I will give the estimated cost of developing a browser-based online game on Unity by a small team with an office in the Moscow region. The example is based on real experience.
Development and marketing time: 1 year
The wage fund: 9 million rubles.
Rental: 1 500 000 rubles.
Organization of working space (furniture, appliances, licenses, etc.): 2,000,000 rubles.
Advertising expenses: 12 000 000 rub.
Other expenses (server hardware, maintaining a legal entity, etc.): 500,000 rubles.
Total: 25 000 000 rubles
If you have questions about the structure and volume of costs - ask, I will answer in the comments.
Source: https://habr.com/ru/post/180667/
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