LimitedRunGames
Member
It's definitely on our list of games we'd like to work with.
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Limited Run Games - Putting digital games into your hands
- Thread starter dallow_bg
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It's definitely on our list of games we'd like to work with.
blame space
Banned
Would you guys ever consider doing 360 games? Or is it only going to be current gen stuff
They've mentioned before that they won't do Nintendo and Microsoft for the time being because of minimum limited print copies being too high.
So, yeah, you should talk with these guys.
http://blog.waifubartending.com/post/130782522433/hi-i-just-learned-about-mighty-rabbit-studios
http://blog.waifubartending.com/post/130782522433/hi-i-just-learned-about-mighty-rabbit-studios
LimitedRunGames
Member
VA-11 HALL-A is a game we're really hoping to publish. They've shown interest in a physical edition so we're crossing our fingers that it is something we'll be able to help out with.
That's really great news! I'd love to be able to buy a cart of it on my Vita!
LimitedRunGames
Member
Unfortunately as Shizuka pointed out Microsoft's minimum order quantities are pretty nuts compared to Sony's. Not only that but they've got a lot of roadblocks in place to stop smaller publishers from pursuing physical runs. If things change on both of those fronts, we won't hesitate to look towards 360 and Xbox One publishing.
NoFaceNico
Member
I think you guys are going about this whole physical indie game release thing all wrong, using existing platforms is too accessible. What you need to do is make your own console. Use someone else's shell, like the Atari Lynx or something. Then charge $350 for it, you can charge more for special colors too. Don't worry, we don't need to see a running prototype yet, just take my money.
But one thing I don't get is that if Sony's minimum order quantities are as low as 1500, then why don't these indie studios just do limited print runs themselves? Do they just not want to or don't have the funds front the cost?
Nah, jk. I think you guys tackled the digital-only problem brilliantly and it might force me to finally go out and buy a Vita.
But one thing I don't get is that if Sony's minimum order quantities are as low as 1500, then why don't these indie studios just do limited print runs themselves? Do they just not want to or don't have the funds front the cost?
LimitedRunGames
Member
We were actually in the process of buying up Tiger's remaining Game.com units to convert into our own console. Once we saw the VGS we just quietly backed out of the deal.
Regarding why other developers don't do this themselves, there's a lot of reasons:
1) It took at least a full month of devoted work to see the physical release of Breach & Clear through. The process involved speaking with no less than 12 (!) different people at Sony and required getting access to and learning how to navigate a lot of different sites. Most dev teams don't have anyone that could devote a full month of time to a physical release.
2) You have to buy at least $500 worth of Helvetica fonts. I'm not kidding. Sony uses an absurd number of variants of Helvetica on their packaging and in order to be approved you need those exact variants. They aren't cheap. This is an easy thing for a publisher that will use those fonts several times to swallow - but for a dev who will use them once, $500 for Helvetica fonts is a tough pill to swallow.
3) You have to buy all your inventory up-front. We're talking at least $20,000 down. That's scary for most developers to bite off not knowing if anyone will buy their release or not.
4) No established customer base means you could get stuck with hundreds or thousands of unsold games. Granted, we have no existing customer base, but we're working to build one. That's more time the devs would have to devote on top of the month it took to produce the physical run.
5) Fulfillment is not easy. No dev wants to sit around stuffing envelopes and mailing them out.
Limited Run Games finances the entire print run and oversees the production from start to finish. The developer does not have to deal with getting packaging approved and they do not need to deal with product ordering. We also warehouse inventory and fulfill it when customers order. In addition, we will market their game to our customer base. This takes all the financial risk (and most of the work) off of their shoulders. In the end, once we've gotten back what we spent on production, we take the same revenue split as Steam or any other digital distribution platform. That's nothing for the amount of risk we assume and the amount of work we undertake in producing and fulfilling the game.
We're trying hard to make doing physical releases a no-brainer because we honestly just want more games to exist to be held, owned, and cherished.
Man... Airship Syndicate recently funded Battle Chasers Nightwar is prime for a physical... ive asked them if they are considering physical release and they arent sure yet... connect with them and get that game in my hands!
LimitedRunGames
Member
Battle Chasers Nightwar does look amazing!
Kagoshima_Luke
Gold Member
There are so many games I'd double dip for if physical were available. Will be watching these guys with much interest.
Ohh def a game I'd be interested in, been on my radar for a while
Danny Dudekisser
I paid good money for this Dynex!
Well, you guys are pretty cool.
When can we expect more details on the initial lineup of games you'll be publishing?
Sparrowhawk
Member
Would most definitely be in for a physical copy of VA-11 HALL-A.
Hikami
Member
Now you've got my hopes up
Been anticipating this game for so long, a physical copy would be amazing.
outunderthestars
Banned
LimitedRunGames
Member
Shipping to Canada is $9, I believe. I think we've got shipping to Mexico set at the same rate. International shipping elsewhere is $12 - $15.
LimitedRunGames
Member
We're leaving announcements up to the individual developers, so they're going to roll out at a somewhat inconsistent rate. Our first game outside of Breach & Clear and Saturday Morning RPG will likely be announced November or December. Again, that'd hinge on the developer feeling ready to break the news.
Funyarinpa
Member
If you are shipping to Turkey, I think you've got a customer.
LimitedRunGames
Member
We are - there's currently no restrictions on where we are shipping. Things may change for future releases if we see a high enough volume of lost packages to any given country. I've been selling games since 2007 and have never had issues shipping to anywhere but Italy, so there's a good chance that the vast majority of countries will continue to be served by us.
Crash55118
Member
VA-11 HALL-A would be amazing. Really cool what you all are doing, and holy buckets at 500 dollars for fonts.
LimitedRunGames
Member
A pretty boring $500 of fonts at that! I don't think a few months ago I would have ever imagined that I'd own over sixty mildly different versions of Helvetica. Not all of those are used on the packaging - you just end up with way more than you need in order to get the ten to fifteen flavors used on the packaging.
LimitedRunGames
Member
Gamer's Edition tried to get a Papers. Please physical set off the ground, but at $70 not enough people bit (https://www.gamersedition.com/product/papers-please).
AtomskEater
Member
Good to see VA-11 HALL-A is being talked about! I'm going to throw Transistor out there and leave it at that because otherwise it'd turn into a list of games I want but haven't gotten yet because I don't have a PS4.
bmcphail2008
Member
In fairness, they didn't even include a copy of the game. They also failed to get Kerbal funded and I know I didn't support it because they wouldn't provide a DRM free physical copy of the game. There's no point in doing collector's editions without a copy of the game that is still gonna work a few years down the road.
LimitedRunGames
Member
Really? Wow, that makes no sense! I never bothered to look because I just assumed the game was included. Even Indiebox includes a DRM free copy of each game and their boxes can be had for as little as $20 a month. I can't imagine spending $70/$85 and not getting a copy of the actual game.
NinjamicWZ
Banned
That's really enlightening. It would seem like something platform holders should have shouldered in order to make things easier, even before digital availability. Something that we might look back on the same way as extremely high royalty fees for older consoles.
LimitedRunGames
Member
To be fair, I can't think of a way around the upfront costs since they'd need payment before they could ship product to the devs. Shouldering those costs and the associated risks are a huge part of what we offer. Distribution and fulfillment would also still be an issue even with an easier system in place for ordering.
The process of ordering could definitely be streamlined but I still think Sony is leaps and bounds ahead of the other guys.
I guess the sentiment is that digital works so why invest in making physical ordering easier?
In any case, we're here to to simplify the whole process for any and all devs.
LimitedRunGames
Member
We had been planning to do universal numbering but per platform numbering has been requested enough times that we're going to shift to that instead. We might end up doing a hybrid where the spines are numbered per platform but the backs number everything as a singular series. We're still discussing this to come up with something that will work for everyone.
Fantastic.
Individual per-platform + a more "universal" catalog number is the way to go IMO, and should please both camps. People can pick and choose their platforms if they want a complete collection, or just get a full collection altogether of the "full" catalog
outunderthestars
Banned
Fantastic.
Individual per-platform + a more "universal" catalog number is the way to go IMO, and should please both camps. People can pick and choose their platforms if they want a complete collection, or just get a full collection altogether of the "full" catalog
I love this idea.
LimitedRunGames
Member
Sounds like the hybrid system is what we'll pursue then! The only side effect here is that B&C will lack spine numbering. Future releases will all contain a uniform per-platform spine number. We'll also continue the collection numbering on the back of the box.
That sounds great to me, no complaints there. Thanks for taking all this feedback and turning it into a labor of love from you guys and us fans!
CrispyGoomba
Member
I think Binding of Isaac Rebirth and/or Super Meat Boy would be great. Same creator n' stuff so it seems like a perfect match.
Yoshi
Headmaster of Console Warrior Jugendstrafanstalt
Really great stuff, as a lover of physical media I'm glad a company like yours exists.
Also as someone developing my own game right now, it's giving a huge motivational push to know that if I do well there might be a chance to have a small physical run of the game if the game ends up well.
Graalwanderer
Member
I will definitely support this!
For future releases I'm hoping for La Mulana EX, Axiom Verge and Cosmic Star Heroine!
For future releases I'm hoping for La Mulana EX, Axiom Verge and Cosmic Star Heroine!
LimitedRunGames
Member
Thanks for the support! Definitely hit us up when you are further along in development so we can take a look.
I'm sorry!
I know how you feel, I get like that with certain releases. Those are on our list of potential games!
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