worldalpha

I don't see how this idea is different from just accepting donations, which is a viable funding options for quite a few games, especially those with high replay / continuous play.

It is centralized, and it allows for very small donations as well as bigger ones.  It also allows for concepts or pre-alpha stage games to get some community behind it.

The minimum contribution needs to be greater than transaction fees (credit card companies need to be paid) and your own costs. A minimum transaction would need to be a little higher, perhaps $0.50 or $0.75.

That said, development costs are not in the hundreds or in the thousands. When estimating the costs for a startup, the standard formula in the US is $10,000 per developer per month. So three developers for three months would be approximately $90,000.

You're talking more about a hobby project, so it is more like a donation box.

No, your idea isn't very new. It has been used for donations and post-development payments for things like the Humble Indie Bundle where the money goes to a charity. It just is not practical to run a business that way.

Lets try to explain again.  A gamer would say contribute $10 to the microfund, and gets say 100 coins ($0.10 per coin).  He then goes through and sees different projects some he gives 1 coin to others, he gives 20 coins to.  Some would have perks, if you contribute 50 coins, you get into beta, etc.

So, yes the transaction fee would have to be considered on $10, but not on the individual coin contributions.

In regards to amounts raising, yes, it could take a lot, but as you mentioned Humble Bundles (for finished games) has raised millions at $5 averages for 5 games.  So, if scaled, this could raise significant money.

Indie Dev Marketing companies - Do they exist?

 

They're called "publishers."  I've never heard of a company that just marketed games.  You listed more than just marketing:

 

 

>one that would help with the nuts and bolts of creating an effective website, using social media, finding beta testers, giving out beta keys, as well as creating buzz about the game.

 

I say again: "publisher."

 

Sure if a publisher wants to pick up your game great.  But what if no publishers wants to pick up a small indie game?  Surely there is some sort of middle ground, where an indie is willing to pay to help promote their game, to a point where maybe a publisher would take notice and pick it up.