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08/30/07
I’ve been in this business now for almost 12 years. The business of offering free online games. When I started, there were just a handful of personal homepages with a few Shockwave games posted. Now, there are tens of thousands of Web sites out there. But very very few of them feature original games. Most, in fact, are from people who are not game developers at all, but who have simply taken some of these free games and put them at a domain using a cookie-cutter content management system. Almost no work is involved. As a matter of fact, I’d bet there are more game Web sites than there are games.
I liked it when I was competing against other Web game developers. But I no longer feel that I am. I’m competing against Web sites built in bedrooms and garages. And I don’t foresee a shakeout either, as it costs almost nothing for these sites to stay up.
I’ve been adding some new features at GameScene.com recently, like medals awarded for good scores, and a customizable favorites page. I’ve got more on the way. I hope this allows us to keep our head up above water in the sea of junk.
I’m curious what others think about the state of the free web games industry. Leave a comment and let me know.
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August 30th, 2007 at 1:53 pm
i would agree that it is difficult to find truly original games out there now, since a lot are just clones or ‘cut and paste’ deals, i for one would like to see more creativity.
August 30th, 2007 at 3:37 pm
Ferry Halim and orisinal.com is a good example of being above the junk - probably the closest we’ve got to Flash game royalty?! His brand and style is undeniably well known and very bankable.
Like most other things, it’s quality and marketing that will make the difference. People will jump from portal to portal - but will never leave a brand they love.