Quote:

#3 Before a publishing company will seriously take a look at a indy game, where the creator or team does not have an prior experience, how many copies do they wish to see sold?



Pursuent to an earlier point, in my experience, a publisher will not care one whit about sales or experience if you're not incorporated. This is also for your protection: if your game goes belly up and you end up oweing the publisher monies, they can't take it from your house or car if you are an LLC. So if you're not, take my advice and do it. This whole thread may be moot if you don't.

But okay, let's assume you are incorporated or want to risk it solo. No matter for this question is pointless. I've never gone up to a publisher and asked this and if you do, I'm not quite sure what their reaction will be. The obvious answer is "as many as possibe" but a publisher my see hidden potential in a low selling game or a fluke in a high selling game. So if this is your strategy for getting a publishers attention I feel it is incomplete and short-sighted.

Which leads me to your main question:

Quote:

#1 Is a 5,000 USD 4 inch x 4 inch, two week add on Gamespot really worth it?



No and I'll tell you why. Nobody knows you or your game. There is no "buzz", no anticipation from you. You have no idea what your game is worth to indies or mainstream. Hence people will see the gamespot ad and most likely not waste any time on it. Furthermore, there are so many other ads that your game just gets lost. A better question to ask is "How many of you have bought a game you've never heard of before after seeing an ad on gamespot or similar site?" I will hazard a guess that the number is going to be close to zero.

But here is my biggest reason: for 5000k USD and depending on where you live, you can attend two or three gaming conferences. As you are at the start of your gaming career with a first project, I believe that the networking and direct advertising you do at these events will generate a lot more interest in your game than an ad. Furthermore, since you want to get the attention of a publishing house there is NO better way than to do this directly at the GDC or other conferences. I can guarantee you that a personal connection with a publishing house representative will be worth 100's if not 1000's of sales for the simple fact that companies don't invest in products, they invest in people. If they can see you, talk to you, see your passion and your dedication to the game, then there is every chance that they will pick you up with little to no sales.

Last piece of advice (I know, I'm full of them today (or is it full of it?)): This is the WRONG forum for your questions. There are a handful of people here that have actually gone commercial with their products and thus you won't get the feedback you want here. Go to a) gamedev.net, b) gamasutra.com, or c) IGDA.org sites, find their buisness forums and ask there. They will give you better advice and numbers than I or most anyone else here can.


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