Can I make money by writing IF?


Tue, 05 Dec 1995 01:07:00 +0100

This is a repost of a message I posted earlier. I meant to use the raiffaq@
address, so that replies would go there, but I stupidly forgot. If you've
already replied to jools@, don't worry, I'll still read your reply. Anyhow,
the message:

Thanks for all the responses. This is also a damn fine discussion in its own
right.

I wonder, would it be terribly rude of me to ask shareware authors to mail me
a few specific details? Two or three people have done so already, and it's
interesting to note that, although their respective games have different
pricetags attached, the total profit for each one is nearly the same. I'd
quite like to see if this phenomenon occurs on a large scale (if not, is
there a "price which gives the best returns"? Popular opinion seems to put
this at around the $10-$15 mark, but perhaps it's elsewhere), and then
perhaps include the results in the FAQ as a guide for future shareware
authors. This might also allow me to check out the theory that prices under
$n are considered "not worth the bother of paying".

Anyway, bearing in mind that I would be completely discreet, not mentioning
any names or anything, could shareware authors send me a few details?

What is the pricetag on your game?
How many registrations have you had?
What is the total profit from your game?
For how long has your game been released?
Could you give an idea of the frequency of registrations vs. age of your
game? (i.e., what is the shelf-life of shareware IF?)

If this is an invasion of privacy or whatever, I never asked. 8)

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