作者：Jeff Vogel

我刚从游戏开发者大会回来，在那里我见到了许多独立游戏开发者并参加了各种研讨会。我所遇到的所有人都非常可爱。独立开发者都是一群友好且热情的人，我真的很高兴认识他们。

而我在游戏开发者大会上发现了一件非常有趣的事：在与一群同行相处了几天时间，彼此交谈对饮后，我甚至未曾听过任何一次讨论。

debate(from wikipedia)

我真是求战心切啊！

独立游戏领域正在飞速改变着，并且也得到了许多媒体宣传。我们的业务不断壮大着，甚至已经到达了一个非常重要的节骨眼上。（用我在GDC大会上听到的说法便是，每一年独立开发者能够创造超过10亿美元的收益，不管以哪种标准进行衡量这都称得上是一项真正的业务。）独立开发者就像是艺术家一般，而我们的工作也变成了一件大事。

但还有一件重要的事是，艺术家往往是骄傲，充满激情且固执己见的。当回首艺术的发展史时你便能找到不少激情洋溢（甚至非常喧闹）的争论。过去人们甚至经常在音乐会会场和剧院中进行争论。

独立开发拥有许多可讨论的内容。这种艺术形式还很新，还存在许多未被解决的问题。这时候比起答案我们面对的是更多问题。没有人是万事通。我们应该努力找出问题的答案。所以我们需要进行讨论。即激烈且吵闹的讨论。

因此我将在此分享一些有关独立开发和市场营销领域存在的开放性问题。我认为这些都是所有聪明的人能够展开激烈讨论的问题。

一些值得争论的话题

我们知道你的游戏有可能倍受欢迎也有可能遭遇冷落。而这两者之间又是什么情况呢？全新独立游戏开发者是否能够创造出一份可持续发展的中级事业，即创造一定的玩家基础并能够提供给立基用户服务？如果可以的话他们该如何做到？

你该如何决定游戏的定价以帮助你赚到最多收益？这是否取决于游戏类型？或者产品价值？你将获得多少媒体关注？

独立游戏是否就是廉价的？一直以来独立游戏都比AAA级游戏便宜。这是一种优势。那是否该放弃这一优势呢？

我一直坚信独立游戏的一大优势便是人们会喜欢我们并觉得我们很酷。因此人们会在业务上给予我们帮助。购买我们的游戏会让他们开心。这是真的吗？独立游戏开发者是否有责任去维护我们在产业中的名声？（这真的是一个很难回答的问题。如果一个独立开发者想要创造一些非主流的内容，但是这却能够为他/她带来继续留在该领域的资金，那么我便没有理由去劝阻他别这么做了。）

独立开发者是否拥有质量控制权利？如果一个独立开发者正在销售一款非功能性游戏，我们是否该劝他放弃？（我并不是一个有耐心的Mac玩家。在我看来许多Mac移植独立游戏都遭到了严重损伤或都缺少功能性。）

免费游戏是否符合道德标准？如果是的话，哪些促销活动又是否符合道德标准？如果是的话，你认为该在哪里划定明确的界限？

计算机游戏是每年能创造1000亿美元的全球性产业，这里涌入了许许多多工作者同时也迎合了无数用户。于此相比，我们的产业是否值得一个遵循着合理新闻标准的专业媒体的宣传？如果是的话，我们是否做到了这点？

我是否将自己带入了麻烦中，甚至是关于提出这些问题？我是否遭遇了不公平的待遇？制造一些古板的老式新闻是否有可能赚到钱？不管在任何领域？

消费者都期待新游戏能够进行促销。这是否是坏事？如果是的话，独立开发者该如何从消费者身上赚到更多钱？如果存在让我们能够保持游戏高价的方法，我们该怎么做？

大多数人都认同Steam Early Access是一种好方法。那么在能够进入Early Access之前你该如何开发一款游戏呢？等待游戏发行多久算太久？

如果你正在创造一款情景游戏，那么让玩家等待多长时间去迎接最终章节算太久？（你必须牢记，如果你花了5年的时间，那么在最终章节问世前你的买家可能都走光了。）在你从古怪，不可预测同时也够可爱的创造者变成不再受人尊重的人的过程中你经历了多少年时间？

当你在玩一款具有竞争性的游戏时，你是否愿意看到废话？如果废话变成一种辱骂你会说些什么？如果废话毫无意义是否应该将其从每个竞赛中删除，包括在现实生活中是否也是如此？

我喜欢许多行走模拟游戏，并在我的博客和Twitter上推荐了许多这些游戏，同时我也很喜欢使用行走模拟游戏这一词，因为我觉得它很有趣。那我是否是个无聊的人？我一直在我的PS4上玩休闲游戏，但我仍会拿Filthy Casuals和Console Peasants（游戏邦注：PC玩家对主机玩家的称呼）开玩笑。而这是否是种辱骂或者是无意义的嘲笑？我们该如何找到两者间的界限？

大多数人都认为游戏退款是个好主意。那么我们是否应该在所有平台都提供这样的服务？如果是的话，游戏该何时给予消费者这样的退款？

大多数人都同意用户评论是个好主意。然而有些用户评论却有可能让你的游戏页面出现一些消极的内容并直接影响你的游戏销售。这种情况真的很糟糕，但你却无法阻止它。你能否避免这种情况？如果可以，你该如何在不删除糟糕评论的前提下做到这点？

最近我从独立开发者那最常听到的事是：“我们做了许多PR工作。我们获得了许多正面关注。但是我们的游戏销量还是不乐观。”是否真的存在这种情况还是这只是我的想象？“独立开发者必须做大量的PR工作否则就只能遭遇死亡”的建议是否合理？或者这适合怎样的游戏？

我读过许多关于开发者应该拥有较高的自尊和自信并想办法逃离骗子综合症的文章。但是对于我来说自我憎恨却是推动着我不断发展的元素，并且也是恐惧推动着我更加努力地工作。是否真的存在一种优化的开发者情感状态？

当看到Steam的付费模组和附件遭遇失败时我真的非常失望。我认为这是开发者成名并以此谋生的潜在方向。创造付费模组系统是否存在可能性？如果有，你该如何去制作它？

作为一名独立开发者去谋生的最佳方式便是找到一种受人喜爱但却还不够完善的类型并开始去完善它。是否还存在这样的类型呢？

Let’s Plays是否总是能够提高游戏的销量？假设你不希望长期进行游戏的Let’s Plays。你是否能够阻止它们？如果你提供给了对方明确的权限，那么一次大型诉讼要求只有twitch.tv能够传播你的游戏的规定将维持多久？

在学校教授游戏设计和编程是否是个好方法？如果产业能够接受这种方法它们又能够提供怎样的帮助？当一个年轻开发者问我是否该交8万（税后）美元去学习游戏设计时，我该怎么回答？

最后，电子游戏并不是一种轻松的业务。许多独立开发者都是带着“永不放弃永不投降”的决心来到这里。但并不是所有人都能够在此谋生。是否存在哪个你将会放弃或投降的点？当你到达这一点上时你会有什么反应？

“更多网上的讨论。”

你可能会想：“最后我需要的可能便是更多的叹息和喊叫吧。”似乎网络最适合的就是各种宣泄。现在还有一些令人讨厌的人会制造各种破坏。这点是我们不能否认的。

但是我们却不能让这些人去阻止我们去做那些需要做的事。我们可以通过呈现给这些人让人敬佩的评论和争论而提供给他们有效的例子。

我真的很喜欢GDC大会，但是比起答案，大会上的许多讨论反而留给了我更多问题。为了解决这些问题我们可以进行一些真正意义上的讨论。

独立开发者都是一些很出色的人，我们彼此欣赏。这意味着我们之间可以进行各种讨论。我们可以充满激情，甚至高声讨论某些内容，但尽管如此我们还是彼此欣赏并且会在一天结束后一起去小酢一杯。就像我和家人朋友常做的那样。

结论

当我还很年轻的时候，我很喜欢进行讨论。但是现在我不再喜欢争吵了，我变得更加的冷静。

即使如此我也仍然会进行讨论，并不是因为喜欢，而是因为这是我的职责。频繁，充满活力且有礼貌的讨论非常适合我们的社区，产业以及一种艺术形式。通过讨论我们不仅可以销毁那些糟糕的理念，同时也将创造出一些真正优秀的理念。

（本文为游戏邦/gamerboom.com编译，拒绝任何不保留版权的转发，如需转载请联系：游戏邦）

Gaming Needs To Argue More. Here Are Some Suggestions!

by Jeff Vogel

I just got back from the Game Developer’s Conference, where I met a ton of cool people who write indie games and attended many panels. Everyone I met was perfectly lovely. Indie developers are a bunch of friendly, outgoing, huggy folks, and they could not have been kinder to me. I appreciated it.

Yet, there is one thing I find fascinating (and maybe even slightly worrying): In several days around my peer group, talking and drinking with them, I did not hear one argument.

I’M SPOILING FOR A FIGHT!!!

Indie gaming is changing very fast. Our art is expanding in every way and getting tons more press. Our business is booming, to the point where it is actually significant. (The figure I heard at GDC was that indies are grossing over a billion USD a year, which is a real business by any measure.) Indie devs are artists, and our work is now a Big Deal.

But here’s the thing. Artists are a proud, passionate, opinionated lot. Look anywhere in the history of art, and you will find passionate (even furious) debate. People used to riot at concerts and the theatre, for God’s sake.

Indies have a lot of things to argue about. Our art form is very, very new, and there are countless unanswered questions. Hell, there are more questions than answers at this point. Nobody seems to know anything about anything. We should be figuring some stuff out. We should be having debates. Noisy, vigorous debates.

Therefore, I am going to, in my humble and retiring style, suggest a number of Open Questions In the Field of Indie Development and Marketing. I think they are all issues intelligent people could disagree on and have a heated debate about. If you are hungry for a good topic for a panel or article, help yourself. You’re welcome.

A Selection of Topics For Argument

We know it’s possible for your game to be a hit or to fail. What about in-between? Is it still possible for new indie devs to chip out a sustainable, middle-class career, building a fan base and serving an underserved niche? If so, how?

So how DO you figure out what price will maximize earnings for your game? Does it depend on genre? Production value? How much media attention you get?

Should indie games be cheap? Indie games have long been cheaper than AAA games. This is an advantage. Is it a good idea to give it up?

I have long believed that one of the great advantages of indie gaming is that people like us and think we are cool. Thus, people want to keep us in business. Buying our games makes them feel good. Is this true? Do indie developers have an ethical responsibility to maintain the reputation of our industry? (This is a tough question. If an indie dev wants to do something unpopular, but it will provide the money he or she absolutely needs to stay in business, I’m not sure I could in good conscience tell them not to.)

Have indies let their quality control slip? If an indie is selling a strictly non-functional game, should we be pressuring them to remove it from sale? (I am a long-suffering Mac gamer. So many indie Mac ports are seriously broken or just plain non-functional.)

Are free to play games ethical? If so, are some sales practices for them ethical and some not? If so, how do you tell where to draw the line?

Computer games are a 100 BILLION dollar a year global industry that employs multitudes and entertains countless people. Given that, does our industry deserve a serious, professional media that adheres to reasonable journalistic standards? If so, do we have it?

Have I gotten myself into trouble even asking those questions? Also, am I being unfair? Is it even possible to make money doing rigorous old-fashioned journalism anymore? In any field?

Customers expect new games to eventually go on sale. Is this a bad thing? If so, how should indies act in order to extract more money from customers? If there was a way for us all to collude to keep prices high, should we do it?

Most agree that Steam Early Access is, overall, a good idea. That said, how developed should a game be before it’s allowed into Early Access? How long is too long to wait for a game you bought early (or on Kickstarter) to be actually released?

If you’re making an episodic game, how long is too long to wait to release the final chapter? (Bear in mind that if you take, say, five years, a percentage of your purchasers will be DEAD before the final part is out. As the gaming audience ages, this percentage will only increase.) How many years have to pass before you cross the line from eccentric, unpredictable, lovable creator to something far less respectable?

When playing a competitive game, should trash talking be allowed? How do you tell when trash talking becomes abuse? If all trash talking is bad, should it be removed from every competition, including in real life?

While I love many Walking Simulators and have recommended many of them in my blog and on Twitter, I also like to use the term Walking Simulator because I think it’s funny. Am I a bad person? I play casual games on my PS4 all the time, but I still joke about Filthy Casuals and Console Peasants. Is this abuse or harmless japery? How do we find the line between the two?

Most agree that game refunds are, overall, a good idea. Should we push every platform to offer them? If so, when should a customer be allowed to get a refund?

Most agree that user reviews are, overall, a good idea. However, user reviews enable a few disgruntled cranks to brigade your game’s page and directly attack your sales. This really sucks, but it seems impossible to prevent it. Can it be prevented? If so, how do you do this without enabling developers to simply remove bad reviews they don’t like?

The most common story I’ve heard from indies lately is: “We did a ton of PR work. We got a lot of positive attention. Our game still didn’t sell well.” Does this actually happen or is it just my imagination? Is the universal advice of, “Indies need to do tons of PR or die,” actually correct? What sorts of games is it true for?

I have read many articles saying that developers should have high self-esteem and confidence and avoid Imposter Syndrome. Yet, my self-hatred is what drives me to improve, and my terror is what drives me to work hard. Is there really one optimal developer emotional state?

I was hugely disappointed when Steam’s program for paid mods and add-ons failed. I think this is a good potential route for indies to make a name and a living. Is a working for-pay mod system possible? If so, how would you make it?

One of the best ways to make a living as an indie is to find a much loved but underserved genre and start to serve it. Are there any underserved genres left?

Do Let’s Plays of your game always increase sales? Suppose you don’t want long Let’s Plays of your games. Do you have the right to prevent them? Is a long duration Let’s Play a copyright violation? How long until a big lawsuit forces twitch.tv to only allow streaming of your game if you give them explicit permission?

Are schools that teach game design and programming a good deal? How useful are the degrees they offer if the recipient leaves the industry? Is anyone doing long-term studies of this issue? When a young dev asks me whether he or she should blow $80K of after tax money to study game design, what the hell should I say?

Finally, video games are a TOUGH business. Many indies go into it with the strategy of, “Newer give up. Never surrender.” But not all of them can make a living. Isn’t there a point where you SHOULD give up and/or surrender? How do you tell when you’ve reached it?

“Great. More arguments on the Internet.”

I can picture you now, sighing and shaking your head. “The last thing we need is more discord, more shouting,” you may well be thinking. It seems like the whole Internet is good for nothing but shouting. There is a small number of assholes out there now, doing enormous damage. I don’t deny it. To deny it would be willful blindness.

Yet, we can’t let those assholes keep us from doing the work we need to do and figuring out the things we need to figure out. We should provide the assholes a good example by showing them that respectful criticism and debate still exists.

I really enjoyed GDC, but the talks there left me with more questions than answers. Tough questions, that could use some real debate. When I wrote about the Indie Bubble, a lot of indie devs called me out on this point or that, and it was awesome.

Indies are decent people, and we like each other. This means that we can afford to have a few arguments. It is possible to debate someone, even passionately, even with shouting, and still love them and go out for drinks with them at the end of the day. I do it with my family and friends all the time.

In Conclusion

When I was young, I loved a good argument. I don’t really enjoy debates anymore. I’m a lot more chill in general now.

But I will still argue, not because I enjoy it but because it is my duty. Frequent, vigorous, respectful debate is good for a community, an industry, and an art form. Debate is the Darwinian crucible in which bad ideas are burned away and good ideas emerge, purified in fire.

(The key is to make sure that only bad ideas get burned away, not people.)

I’m going to try to defeat my cowardice and start blogging again and chipping away at this pile of open questions. I hope, when I’m dumb, people point it out. If you think I wrote something wrong and can provide actual reasons to prove your case without resorting to cheap ad hominem attacks, I hope you’ll take your shot at me.

Then, if you manage to score a point on me and we meet at a convention someday, I will happily buy you a drink. Something reasonable. Jack Daniels quality. None of this top shelf crap. I’m not made of money.(source:gamasutra)