I'll start by saying: thanks for the very long time support to everyone, especially to those who have been around since basically 2011. It took a while but I hope when it comes out it will be obvious why. The intention now is to go retail and release on Steam.
I want to put out G String properly and find it a good place in the world before I move on, throwing it out for free seems foolish and self destructive at this point. I definitely don't want it to be behind a tall pay wall as this never was and still really isn't about money. If I wanted to focus solely on money I would have abandoned this project long ago. But I do believe it has potential and it will benefit everyone if it's released as game.
Here is a proper 2k version of the latest trailer:
I will continue to polish the maps and assets until Steam becomes a reality but I will not make any major game changing alterations. The changes will be mostly aesthetic, small tweaks. The game is essentially completed and could be released any day now.
When G String comes out also the OST will be released for a small price.
128 tracks arranged into a seamless 5 hour and 42 minute long experience.
For convenience the mix has been divided into separate FLAC (lossless) files.
For gapless playback of the entire mix there will be a "G String OST.m3u" file included.
You can hear a couple sample tracks here:
Eyaura - Singularity Ripples
Watch the music video here:
Eyaura - Party Time
Moddb.com
Watch the music video here:
Also there will be a 110 page long PDF document called "Beauty Secrets" detailing the development and the lore of G String. This will be free. Sample:
If you want to donate, the link is on my YouTube page:
You can also help out by doing a bit of promotion for the project, just mention G String to anyone interested in scifi, show them the trailer or the pics, that sort of thing. Anything helps really, even just a positive comment, anything so I can show that there is interest in the project.
Since I am mostly alone, I don't have time to network and promote much because I really want to focus mainly on making a decent game. The past 5 weeks I have been busy making all this promotional material and I need to get back to polishing the maps. Hopefully I can squeeze in some more detail before it has to be shipped.
Also when it's released I might keep it in early access for a very short time; maybe a couple of months. This changes nothing! The game will be fully functional when it comes out. The only reason I might do this is to give myself a little time to fix any bugs that may come up once many people play it and also in an update I need to add subtitles for several languages. The core gameplay and price will not change after initial release.
As with every step I always want to involve you. So any suggestions regarding Steam, raising funds, pricing, early access, all those things... feel free to let me know your thoughts in comments or messages.
That's it really... Hopefully I'll see you all on Steam very soon!
Eyaura
sounds great to me, i have no problem with someone receiving compensation for creating something they enjoy. but doesn't the version of havok built into the source engine mean there's a $250,000 licencing fee or something for retail releases?
I think there is just a license fee for source, but last I checked it wasn't that high, but I also haven't looked into it.
From the Steam Partners documentation:
"For any Source Engine game that charges money, Havok needs to be paid a licensing fee of $25,000 for the physics engine."
Great to hear its releasing soon. Looking forward to reading the pdf. Don't feel like you have to rush take all the time you need.
(^.^)
On one hand, I definitely think this is worth a price for how much polish is in it. On the other, people might still see this as a "mod," so it'd be hard to charge anything near a modern title's price. Without advertising and publicity, I think it'd be better to have the price lower rather than higher so more people would be willing to invest their time in it.
While I'm terrible at appraisal and am cheap, I'd say the ceiling isn't any higher than 20 bucks for sure. Conservative estimate of 10 or less.
I do have this "pocket change" theory, though. Lower than 10, you might run into some interesting effects on Steam, where people might buy it because it's loose change that they can't use on other stuff. Say you have some 9.75 in your Steam Wallet. Chances are you'll add some multiple of 10 to buy something that's also priced some multiple of 10. That 9.75 is change that a lot of people are more willing to part with. It's easy for people to donate generated change from a purchase, so it should be easy to charge change, right?
As I said in my own comment, this really shouldn't be seen as a mod. This is far from a modification of Half-Life 2 and certainly it's very own game. If this is a mod of Half-Life 2, then Fallout NV is a mod of Oblivion. G-String is a game made in Source, simple as that.
Yes, and I totally agree, but unfortunately even the trailer is proof that people are already seeing it as "just a mod" and not a game built basically from the ground-up. I want it to be seen as the standalone work of art it is as much as you, but the real world doesn't necessarily share our sentiment. See, even kalidrone came up with a similar price ceiling!
I personally would just skip retail and go Steam only but it's your call.
My only concern now is the price range, which i'll circumvent if it's beyond the regular $20-30 via Sales, and as I am a VERY avid G-String fan I know all too well that it is VERY much worth buying, BIG time...! <3
I think you should go for the paid release, you really deserve it and, as you refer to it yourself, it's truly more of a game built in source than a mod, so it should be treated that was as well. I can't wait to see it on Steam and I look forward to giving you my money!
>Also there will be a 110 page long PDF document called "Beauty Secrets" detailing the development and the lore of G String. This will be free.
Great, even G-Sting version of Raising the Bar book!
Good step, this project has solid commercial potential and can bring enough joy for a reasonable price (~8-12$ or something like that) for many people. Good luck with Steam :)
P.S. Impressive trailer, especially those cities panoramas )
Greetings.
This is definitely an incredible job! I actually have no words to describe how much I love this mod.
As for the pricing policy ... So, if I did my own major mod, I would distribute it for free through mod-db and for a fee through Steam, so that everyone had the opportunity to purchase it. But here is a slightly different case and in general in terms of scale it seems to have no analogues. In general, I think the fans will purchase this game in any form and at any price, but it is necessary to determine the most rational, and here I am not an expert. But it’s definitely not worth selling cheaper than other projects for a source, such as Dear Esther.
Looks like Christmas came early this year. What a time to be alive!
It's a Christmas present I always wanted for so long.
(buried)
"...throwing it out for free seems foolish and self destructive at this point."
"I definitely don't want it to be behind a tall pay wall as this never was and still really isn't about money."
What a croc load of shite!
You've contradicted yourself mate. If you claim its not truly about the money, then there's is nothing foolish nor destructive about releasing your game free of charge.
Yes, by all means get this game on Steam but you can still do that free of charge on the platform, without installing a paywall (you may have to contact Valve about trading card arrangements since it does not come with free games, far as Steamworks is concerned).
As for retail, if you mean CD copies, I wouldn't waste my breath at this point, instead you'd have MUCH better luck releasing the game digitally on Itch.io or GameJolt, perhaps even GoG.com - all of whom support free releases (less so GoG). It benefits to have additional download sources besides Steam.
Oh look we found the foolish and the destructive right here in your comment.
Foolish as in not understanding why paid release is good and deserved, and destructive as in being immediately rude and insensitive.
I don't know what she means by "retail". Does she want to sell physical copies BEFORE putting it up on Steam?I'm confused.
I assume no, it doesn't mean physical edition, I assume it's just going out of beta and into released status. Like, y'know, you have "alpha version of X" and "beta version of X" and "retail version of X".
I can't imagine distributing this kind of indie project on discs, apart from some limited collector edition.
I see, so she wants to put it onto Steam right away. Thanks for clearing up the confusion. Hopefully, it's reasonably priced.
Keyboardjunkie 12hours ago
Can you explain what you mean by "going retail"?
Creator
Eyaura 3hours ago
Steam. :D
I remember doing a playthrough of this.
So many changes to improve a already very good mod.
Cant wait to record it again.
I wish you all the luck.
I say around $14.99 to $19.99.
I'm happy for you Eyaura! I always though you deserved much more for your efforts. I'm looking foward to it.
Congrats, been watching mod for a long time. Looking forward to seeing on steam.
Oh, thank god. Back in the day, you were so convinced to put it out for free. Glad you aren't doing that. Charge at least 19.99 for it. Lower would be giving away a full game for nothing. Early A is a bit of a slippery slope. If you are confident in your game to run pretty well, avoid it since releasing in EA isn't viewed as a positive step. You can always patch it after.
And don't partner with any publisher. They can bring more sales, optimization, and support but since this is an auteur game, word of mouth will bring more into your pocket. I get it, it's not about the money. But taking care of yourself first won't hurt you. After all, how many years it took to finish? Exactly. Enjoy the success and I'll enjoy buying this on launch day.
It's funny, when I played the first version, I was doing my bachelor's. Since then I graduated, joined a major consulting firm, lived in several countries, got engaged, separated. And all this time you were working on this game.
You got no idea how much I respect and admire that!
"Don't throw away your shot." - Hamilton
Q. Can I sell my Source Engine game on Steam?
A. Yes, but there are a few requirements:
-> For any Source Engine game that charges money, Havok needs to be paid a licensing fee of $25,000 for the physics engine. You will need to pay this fee up front before making your game available for sale on Steam.
Partner.steamgames.com
That's a damn shame. Hopefully she's able to get financially compensated for all the work she's done for over a decade another way.
Without a publisher, I think selling the soundtrack and soliciting donations is going to be the way to go.
Eyaura would have to sell thousands just to break even.
You should post this on the mod's main page so that she could see this.
How did Prospekt and Hunt Down the Freeman pay that off?
HDTF had investors (Berkan is ****** at modding but apparently great at sucking people's money out of their pockets). Prospekt guy simply had the money.
Will the beta be kept up on Moddb as a token of how far we have come?
Honestly, I didn't expect it to be a free mod in the first place, for the amount of effort you've put into it, it'd be very naive to assume otherwise. I fully support your decision to go retail. It's a rocky path, but considering how dedicated and passionate you are you should be absolutely fine. I only wish you the best with the release on Steam, I'd be glad to support your work there :)
This looks amazing! Don't listen to anyone that tells you you shouldn't put it up for money. There are people who will see this and happily buy it like me
Nice good work
I'd pay!