Mehbub Game developers are one of the pioneers of fun in the modern world. Every game developer, one way or the other, puts a smile on the faces of game players. This makes them perform one of their ultimate function; exquisite entertainment. However, the career of a developer isn’t complete if he/she does not make money.
Game developers make a cool amount of money, but that does not always seem easy for indie game developers. Indie games, unlike AAA games, are a type of game developed by a single developer or a small number of developers. Indie game developers are almost the least in the game industry as they tend to have a lower chance of earning much.
Does that mean you should opt-out of being an independent video game developer? No. There are several ways you can make cool cash as an indie developer. There are also side gigs you should focus on to earn as much as you can. Game development can be stressful and time-consuming, but you can make it worth it by earning as much as you can.
There are different ways you can make money as an indie game developer. Making games isn’t where you should stop as a developer. You need to earn money to keep yourself running, and you do not need to have an extra job to do that. You can earn from creating your own games.
Here are ways developers can make money:
Have Classes on Game Development
One of the most prominent ways to earn is by teaching. You can teach game development and earn a good amount of money. Although you might not earn massively from teaching game development, it is a good and effective way to earn passively as an indie developer.
You can create, maintain, and monetize your game development teaching skills by making videos on streaming platforms. There are several streaming platforms you can upload your videos and earn. The streaming platform pays you as much as people start viewing your videos.
You can attract more audiences to your videos by posting quality teaching videos that will help young developers. You can also offer extra consultation for them to familiarize themselves with their challenges. This way, you will be able to gain more audience, subsequently earning more cash.
You can also create ebooks that educate people on game development. You start to earn when people start to buy your book. You can make your books available in online stores where people can get them. You can also make them available at physical stores.
Teaching physical classes can also help you earn as an indie developer. You can schedule classes and get people to pay and learn game development through you. As long as you deliver quality, you will be able to make more cash.
Take Contract Jobs
Another way to make money as a developer is to take on contract jobs. There are many people interested in indie games both they, one way or the other, do not have the complete resources to get it done. These people will need your help making games and pay you for it if you are up to the task.
This is one of the most time-consuming ways to make money as a developer. Creating indie games can be so time-consuming, which is why some people put it out on contracts. Taking on these contracts can be a way to make money as it is highly lucrative.
Taking these contracts as an independent game developer will add to your portfolio, expertise, or resume. If you have a game studio, it can also add to its reputability. It can also help you get to familiarize yourself with your team if you have one.
You can get contract work as a freelance independent game developer. You can help people create indie games and get paid on freelance job sites like Upwork, Fiverr, Indeed, and more. You can work with many contractors and earn much to become a successful indie developer.
Have a Blog
One of the most common approaches to making money these days is by having a blog. Blogs are so lucrative that everyone wants to have a blog for his/her products and services. But unfortunately, not all of them get to make as much money as they want due to ignorance of some factors.
You can make money as a solo developer from your blog by posting technical tips for your audience. To make this pretty successful, you need to understand and utilize SEO elements to rank your blog. Once your blog ranks high on search engines, then you are already at the edge of making money from your blog.
To keep ranking your blog, you need to post quality content and pictures while implementing SEO strategies. You can make money from your blog through ad revenue, sponsorship, subscription model, and lots more. Having a blog is a cool way to start earning cash as a solo developer.
Create and Sell Games and Assets
Financial success is what everyone yearns for, including every solo developer. You can make enough cash by selling prototype games or assets. You can create your own game or game design and sell it on an asset store. The asset store includes people ready to buy your games or assets, as long as they are of relevant quality.
The Unity asset store is one of the places you can sell your games. You can decide to sell the design of your first game or prototype, element, or tool on the Unity asset store. These stores are a good place for game makers to sell their games or game engines and earn.
Join a Game Development Studio
Another way you can earn as a solo dev is by joining a game development studio. The studio helps you specialize in any aspect of game development you want. Joining a game dev studio isn’t a day job as you will have to keep working for yourself to keep earning. You can work for few years or few months to earn and gather enough experience.
When joining a development studio, you can either go for a small studio, a large one, or anyone in-between. Joining a small studio can help you gather enough experience and expertise to help you get jobs at larger studios. You can get your dream job as a solo dev or game developer by gathering experience in a specialized area.
It can be difficult to get a job at large studios, especially if you are a newbie or a beginner with little or no experience. This is why it is advisable to go for smaller studios, gather experience before moving to larger ones.
Connect with the Right People
You should not underestimate the power of the right connection. Meeting and connecting with the right set of people can help you earn as a game developer. As a video game developer, you should meet with other developers in your spare time. Feel free to meet with developers locally and online on the internet.
You can join the developers’ forum or join small teams of developers to meet with new people. You never can tell who has the right connection to the big companies you looked forward to working with. You can also attend big games development industry events to meet with people. Attending such game events can allow you to express your expertise as a developer to people.
Connecting with the right people or having the right people on your team can also help you create money-making games. With the right game engine and an indie title, your game can be a hit on its first release. You can make extra income from the sales of your video games with the help of the right connection.
Make Money from Your Video Games
It is common for an indie developer to create a game and sell it for a fixed price. That is apparently a good way to earn money from your video games. Although the cash you get from your game sales is good to pay for your development time and enough for your living costs. But you can earn more from your games through several other means.
One of the ways you can monetize your games is to make their free-to-play games. Basically, there are two ways to earn cash from this strategy; advertisements and in-app purchases. Now, your main concern shifts from the free games to how you can make money through these options.
Making money through advertisements can be quite difficult, especially if you do not have a large install base. You will need a large install base to get ad views that can help you make significant cash. Without a large install base, you might not be encouraged with the revenue you get.
The in-app purchase guarantees you more success than the former option. This strategy is quite similar to downloadable content. You can sell things in the games like a bunch of player skins, cosmetic items, gears, and even extra levels to your gamers. You can make a successful income from your games through this option.
Subscriptions are also a good way to make cash from your games. All you need is to get people to sign up for your games and pay a monthly or regular recurring fee. This might not be as easy as it sounds, especially if you are a beginner. But you can make it work fine if you give your players reasons to subscribe and always come back for your games.
So, earning through subscriptions depends on how well you can provide your players with quality and entertaining games. The best bet is to consistently keep selling your games, give interesting updates, and make the game more audience-attracting.
Another way to make cash from your games is through sponsorships. It can be quite difficult to get a sponsor for a game that does not have many audiences. You need to make sure your games pull enough audience that will attract enough sponsorships.
The sponsorship deal can come at a fixed or variable price, depending on the deal signed. It also depends on how many people play your games and how much time they spend. If you have a large audience for your games, you will earn much from sponsorships.
There are several ways you can increase the audience for your games. You can create a recent release and allow easy and early access for players. You can also make the games very interesting and attention-catching to attract more audience. Once you have a large audience, you will be able to earn more as an indie developer.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much do indie game developers make?
Indie developers make a mouth-watering amount of money. Top indie earners make about $140,000 annual salary, while the 75th percentile makes about $110,000. The 25th percentile also makes about $30,000 annual salary. On average, these developers make about $80,000 annual salary.
How much do most indie game developers make?
Earnings for indie developers vary widely, with some developers earning as high as $140,000 per annum while some earn as low as $30,000. But a majority of developers make about $30,000 to $100,000 per annum.
Can you get rich as an indie developer?
It is possible to earn money and be rich as an indie developer. For instance, Eric Barone, the game developer for Stardew valley, worked diligently on the game. Stardew valley has earned about $24 million last year and about $9.2 million in March after being released in February. Stardew valley has now earned more money than many other games.
Can you make good money as a game developer?
Yes, you can make good money as a game developer. You can earn thousands of dollars by providing quality game services and products.
