Game Money..where does it go?
Natrually ive been reading a few articles about game dev and what not. One article i read talked about how game developers dump millions into there game. I think they said 2-6million or something along thoes lines. Now i understand big companys pull in investors and what not to help with the games, but how can you possibly spend that kind of money on ONE game. The only things i can think of are, Paying Programmers, paying artists, paying designers, paying testers, and the rest of the team. Plus Advertisment prices and marketing. But i still dont see how that can add up to that huge amout of money...Any ideas? thanks.
quote:Original post by micon
...The only things i can think of are, Paying Programmers, paying artists, paying designers, paying testers, and the rest of the team. Plus Advertisment prices and marketing.
That''s not enough?!
How much do you think a game programmer''s salary is per month (you can check GamaSutra''s salary survey for exact figures). Multiply that by the number of programmers on the team (usually in the 8 to 20 range, though 20 is quite rare). Then multiply that by the development cycle of the game (8 to 18 months these days, with 8 usually only occuring with ports of an existing game to a new architecture; new games - even built on existing engines - take about 14 months minimum). Where are we? Assuming a monthly salary of $5,000 for a 12-programmer team working 12 months, we have (drum roll) $720,000!
Haven''t paid artist (or bought art) yet. No sound assets yet. No advertising yet. Haven''t paid directors and producers yet. Haven''t paid QA/testers yet. Hmm, $2m suddenly seems rather low... this game looks set to hit $4m at least.
Always do the math. Always.
In addition to what was mentioned in the last post, don''t forget about keeping all the computers updated and purchasing licenses for all the software and hardware being used to develop the game. Not only that, but I''m sure there will be need for lawyers and such that would need to be paid for all that legal crap involving business and such.
Divinus Entertainment
Land of Relics Art Director
http://divinus.net
Divinus Entertainment
Land of Relics Art Director
http://divinus.net
If you think 2-6 million is that much...
Once I read an article about the most expensive games ever and guess what, Shenmue had an budget of 100 million dollar and I was wondering where THAT money went to?
Once I read an article about the most expensive games ever and guess what, Shenmue had an budget of 100 million dollar and I was wondering where THAT money went to?
100 million? I find that hard to believe... Google, help me. Hmmm...there''s some conflicting information, but it looks like 70 million was spent, but this was for the entire Shenmue series, not just the first game. Seems they were supposed to publish 16 or so chapters...Shenmue 1: Chapter 1, Shenmue 2: chapters 2, 3, 4 (?). Sounds like a waste of money, their engine is aging so quickly, the last chapters might look pretty clunky by the time they come out.
Yeah I was wrong, I just read that that money should be for the all games of Shenmue. But that still too much money for that game I think.
Read THISarticle on Gamasutra. It has a graph that helps explain where the money goes.
Just like any industry, the majority of the cash goes to labor.
Nathan Fahrenthold
GameMaking.com: Free tools for game making!
Just like any industry, the majority of the cash goes to labor.
Nathan Fahrenthold
GameMaking.com: Free tools for game making!
So our ultimate goal is to balance our part-time job after school with our girlfriend, exercise, and coding, to create a game that not only sells but is popular. =D Use the money from your job to help pay for publication and production (which uh, will take a while to make that much money). =D
I always had this utopian vision of a game coding company with a circle of desks in a room, all the users know eachother, are good friends... One or two programmers, a really good artist, a writer/website dude/other dude, producer/manager, and hell someone else.
Ahh, we can dream, can''t we?
(pointless reply)
The gl2D Project | Free programming books
I always had this utopian vision of a game coding company with a circle of desks in a room, all the users know eachother, are good friends... One or two programmers, a really good artist, a writer/website dude/other dude, producer/manager, and hell someone else.
Ahh, we can dream, can''t we?
(pointless reply)
The gl2D Project | Free programming books
i wonder how much it costs to rent a building, equip it with the latest in computer and networking technology, and hire a staff of 20-100 people a period of a few years
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