Here's the plan »

1. Create the game making sure it's really fun and interesting.

2. Get people addicted to the game.

3. Start charging for upgrades and special features (without changing the initial game).

Right now I'm working hard on step 1. for most of the BotFu games.

I *think* the BotFu fight game I'm testing out right now will have the best potential to move through all three steps. That's why I'm excited to keep moving forward with it.

The BotFu dice game probably won't move beyond step one since I'm having trouble making it fun or interesting to even myself. I haven't touched it in weeks even though it still needs some work to really be 'playable'.

The BotFu tops game is also stuck somewhere around step one simply because it's too hard to have success at (note to self, do a future post about how to make a game fun and interesting -- early and easy success for players being a major key).

The BotFu predictor game is already moving into step 2 but just barely. Now comes the hardest part of the whole process - getting people addicted to the game.

It's the hardest part because before they can get addicted, they have to first find the game, then try the game. Both of those things require people's time and attention - the HIGHEST priced commodity in the world right now.

Generally it starts by buying as much attention as you can (ie. advertising and marketing), but to have any success it will eventually depend on word of mouth and publicity (ie. news-worthy-ness so that it gets free press).

Since I've struggled with that part in the past, and I have a lot more to do in step 1 for many of the games, I'll probably hold off spending too much time, thought, or energy on step 2 just yet.

I'm of the opinion that attempting to accomplish step two before all of the publicly available games were at least towards the end of step 1 would actually hurt the overall credibility of the site (and therefore all it's games). So while I'm anxious and excited to get the fight game moving down the path, I'm also somewhat taking it slow intentionally so I can get the other areas up to speed.

I could just take down the games that aren't ready (tops and dice); but then I fear I would never get around to finishing them up (that probably wouldn't be that bad of a thing). Right now that feels too much like giving up on them though, and I'm just not quite ready to take that step yet.

Anyway that's just a little bit of what my brain is chomping on right now.