Indie game developer’s strategy
Mariina Hallikainen, CEO
Colossal Order Ltd
Tekes Roadshow Turku 5.9.2012
© Colossal Order Ltd. 2012
Strategy
• What is your product?
• Who is your customer?
• What are your objectives?
• How do you achieve these objectives?
• Identify
• Plan
• Revise
• Constant improving
© Colossal Order Ltd. 2012
Case Colossal Order
• Indie game developer from Tampere
• Founded in 2009
• Team of 8 game developers and a ceo
• Own technology
• Strategy and simulation games for PC and Mac platforms
• Cities in Motion published by Paradox Interactive in Feb 2011
• Several expansion packs + DLC
© Colossal Order Ltd. 2012
Background
• Founders had previous experience in game development
• ... Or at least four out of five did
• Initial background in demoscene
• Founders’ first company Aukio Group Ltd set up in 2006
• Aukio sold to Universomo (THQ Wireless)
• 2008 and the opportunity to start own business again
• First task: find a businessman
• This one being the one with no game industry experience
© Colossal Order Ltd. 2012
Preparations
• What is our product?
• Concept of a mass transit simulator
• ”Transport Tycoon in a SimCity scale”
• Help from industry professionals
• Who is our customer?
• Simulation game fans and a niche bunch of mass transit
enthusiasts
• Why PC?
• Suitable tech and genre
© Colossal Order Ltd. 2012
Preparations
• What are our objectives?
• Money and fame
• How do we achieve this?
• Business plan
• Help from business professionals
• Funding
• Own capital + FFF
• Public funding (ELY, Tekes, Finnvera)
© Colossal Order Ltd. 2012
The first year
• Business plan
• Game concept
• Starting the company and organizing the business
• Developing the game demo – very important!
• Contacting publishers
• Developing the game
• Getting a publishing deal
• Defining new game concepts
© Colossal Order Ltd. 2012
Publisher
• How do we get our games to our customers?
• No experience on publishing
• Self publishing would get costly
• Doing what we know best – Developing the game
• Publisher offers
• funding
• QA
• localization
• marketing
• distribution
© Colossal Order Ltd. 2012
Cities in Motion
• Our first title
• Co-publishing deal with Paradox Interactive signed in 2010
• Published in February 2011 – world recognition!
• Expansion packs + DLC – more visibility!
• Moment of truth for the company
• Sweet cash!
• Allowed us to continue as planned
© Colossal Order Ltd. 2012
Strategy revisited
• Did we succeed with Cities in Motion?
• What can be done better?
• Where do we go from here?
• Sequel
• New game concepts
• Long term strategy
• Company mission, vision and objectives still the same
• Methods are better – switching the tech
• Allowing room for failure and creativity
• Scheduling is better
© Colossal Order Ltd. 2012
What now?
• R&D project with Tekes
• Developing new tech and tools
• Cities in Motion 2 coming in Q2 2013
• Feedback from the customers
• Active community joining the development
• Insight from the publisher
• New super secret project coming later in 2013
• Constant improving
© Colossal Order Ltd. 2012
Thank you!
Contact: [email protected]
© Colossal Order Ltd. 2012