Motivation: Ya… it’s lacking!
It’s good to be back on iDevBlogADay. I took a hiatus back in September because I had switched groups at work and was really busy (I’m actually working on an App Store type product for libraries). Plus I was going on vacation and I knew I’d miss a couple of weeks. I’m hoping this new format of every 2 weeks is easier for me to come up with something to write about as well as finding the time.
The last few months have been pretty slow as far as Funky Visions projects go. I’ve only submitted a tiny update to Tramp Stamp (made the trampoline a little more forgiving) and added some obstacles to Jiggle Balls HD. Both were weekend projects. It seems that lately I’ve lost motivation. I continue to make an average of about $25 a day selling my 4 pay apps (I made $9000 in 2010). While discouraging, it’s still a pretty nice check per month and you’d think I’d be motivated to get more stuff out there and try to double that. But I don’t. Why? Cuz I’m discouraged.
Twice I’ve been in talks with Apple about sending artwork and twice nothing ever came of it. I’ve tried numerous marketing campaigns without making back my investment. I’ve sent promocodes to the big boys like Touch Arcade and gotten no response. What I really want is some recognition. What my problem is is that I don’t put the work in required to get that recognition. I think most of my products get to the prototype phase and I lose interest and ship it. While this isn’t a bad approach and I’m happy with the value I give to the customer, I feel like if I spent a few more months I could put the polish on it. Take a look at Tiny Wings. It’s clear that the author spent the extra time to add the polish. Or the time that was spent on developing levels for Trainyard. After 25 levels on Jiggle Balls: Spikes! I was tired and decided to ship it. I’ve only added 5 additional levels since.
So why don’t I want to do the extra work to get noticed? I guess because I’m fearful that I won’t get noticed. And that’s my lousy attitude right now. I’m not willing to put the effort in without the guarantee. I have this perception that the App Store has become so saturated and impossible to get visibility, that I most likely wouldn’t get noticed. Then I read Spielhaus’s iDevBlogADay entry which got me to rethink this. I agree that’s it’s really about writing something simple and engaging along with that extra polish. You read over and over in the Apple Developer Forums about how you shouldn’t rely on the “new release” list for exposure or rely on Apple featuring you. Recognition will come with a great product.
That being said, I still think there are some things Apple could do to help the indy developer. I get tired of seeing Apple promoting apps that are already at the top of the charts. And Game Center (at least on the iPad) has the ability to promote random apps, but instead, again promotes the apps at the top. I understand Apple is in this to make money, but sometimes I get the tiniest inkling that Steve Jobs really does want the independent developer to succeed. It’s those success stories about the App Store that everyone wants to read about. It’s what makes the App Store unique. Where else could I get this exposure and get in app purchase and subscription abilities without having to buy my own server space?
So… I think I’ve rambled… but these are the thoughts that have been running through my head and driven my lack of motivation. I know there are others of you that go through these same periods. I know when I get knee-deep into my next project I’ll find the motivation to release something once again. But maybe I’ll take the time to add that extra polish.
Oh… and for anyone reading this on Sunday… you’re in luck. Jiggle Balls HD for iPad is FREE this weekend ONLY! So click right here and get your copy now. Enjoy!
These Black Holes Really Suck!
Good news! Apple just approved Jiggle Balls HD v1.4 and Jiggle Balls HD Lite v1.3. I’ve added black holes. Add one to the screen and watch how it sucks all the balls around it up. I had fun adding this new feature and it really got me into some fun stuff with Box2D. I’ve got some other great ideas for iPad apps, but I also don’t want to ignore my iPhone customers (especially with Verizon coming on-board). So I’m working on some designs for my next game that I’m hoping to make a universal app. This would be my first app that runs across all the platforms. Once I get my Verizon iPhone I’ll have a 2nd gen iPod Touch, a 1st gen iPad, and a Verizon iPhone to test all possible screen resolutions and processors. Stay tuned!
I’m Back!
Well… after several months of moving stuff around, Funky Visions has finally found it’s new home on GoDaddy. I also recovered this lost blog off of my crashed linux hard-drive. It will be nice to have this hosted somewhere else other than my desktop machine. You may notice some images and links might be broken. I’m not gonna take the time to go back and fix any of them. If you see something broken you need access to, please email me.
As far as Funky Visions’ products go. I just submitted an update to Tramp Stamp. It fixes some of the mechanics/physics of the trampoline and makes game play a little easier. I’m gonna work on the Black Holes for Jiggle Balls HD next. Then I have an idea for a completely new game I want to start working on. So look for some fun stuff from Funky Visions in 2011!
Retiring From iDevBlogADay
Sadly I’m gonna give up my position on idevblogaday. I’m going on vacation and I’ve got a lot going on at work, so it’s best to give someone else the opportunity. It’s been fun sharing what little information I have.
Boxed In? Bust Out!
Sometimes you just need a little help…
Everyone one of my apps so far has used Box2D. In fact, if it hadn’t been for Box2D and the timing, I probably wouldn’t be writing iOS apps. During Christmas break 2008, I was playing around with Flex/Flash after having attended a class on it at work. I really wanted to do something with it. That’s when I came across Box2D (it has an excellent AS3 implementation). Then I noticed there was an iPhone port that had JUST been completed by Simon Oliver of HandCircus.com for his game Rolando. I was interested… but I hadn’t owned an Apple product since I worked on the Apple IIGS version of WordPerfect, but I was hearing all the success stories (iShoot mostly) and I knew I loved writing shareware back on the Apple IIGS. This felt like it might be that same kind of opportunity.
So in early January I was just half-seriously looking at apple.com and noticed the refurbished Macbook Airs were $1000. I ordered one (in fact it’s my VERY first blog entry on this site). I quickly had buyers remorse and questioned whether I should cancel the order. I called Apple and they said I could play around with it for a week and return it if I wanted to (they gave me an RMA#). Well… let’s just say after 1 day of playing with it I was hooked. Very sly of you Apple…
Within a few days I had the Box2D samples up and running in XCode and I was learning the environment. I started tweaking the code and that’s how Jiggle Balls was born. The first version released in Feb 2009 was horrendous (all wire framed objects), but I wanted to get something out there and see how it would do. I also had to purchase an iPod Touch, because I knew testing accelerometer stuff without a real device was going to be difficult. So now I’m $1,200 invested.
Sales were slow initially. I read about how iShoot exploded after he released a Lite version. So I did the same. While it didn’t explode… I did make back my initial investment by the end of March.
I would encourage independent first time app developers to leverage off some framework or library. I would have never released anything if I hadn’t been able to download the Box2D xcode project and start tinkering right away. If I was coming into this now, I’d probably be using the cocos2d for iPhone framework. It wraps Box2D and a bunch of other stuff that will quickly get you started. I’ve stuck with Box2D directly for now, but I’ve considered making the jump. I have used the CocosDenshion audio library in all my apps.
I would also encourage iterative releases if possible. Now days, you don’t want to throw something too half-baked out there and get bad press or bad name recognition, however I would still try to keep the feature set small enough that you can complete the project. Then let your customers know that you have big changes coming soon. For me that’s been a better way to work because otherwise I lose focus and interest. If I get something out there and I see some good feedback, then I’m motivated to complete the next iteration.
So… if there is anyone out there who is stuck and wants to start playing… I’ve created a little project and slide presentation you might have fun starting out with. This is from a presentation I gave at the Columbus iPhone Developers Users Group (CiDUG) a few months back. I’m also submitting it for consideration for CodeMash this year (it’s at Kalahari in Sandusky Ohio – the BIGGEST waterpark in the world). So for first timers, enjoy and I hope it inspires you to start working on apps. For veterans, please rip it apart and comment so I can make changes before I embarrass myself at the conference!
Next week I will be on vacation and flying back from Utah on Wednesday, so I’m hoping some inspiration comes quick so that I can load one up in the queue. This whole idevblogaday thing has been really good for me. I hope something I’ve posted has been beneficial to someone else.
iPhone Slutz Review
Interesting review by the iPhoneSlutz. WARNING… EXPLICIT CONTENT! My review is 46 minutes in. I won’t vouch for the rest of the show, cuz I haven’t listened to it. You’ve been warned! Seriously.
iPhone Slutz review Jiggle Balls
Indie Developer Tool Belt
I want to share some of the tools I have in my Indie Developer Tool Belt. I’ve acquire a pretty good collection in the 20 months since I started this adventure. Some of these may be old news to you and some you may not have tried. I’m curious for you to respond with your arsenal of tools you use on a daily/weekly basis.
My first tool I use is “Snapz Pro X” to make my marketing videos. You can see the results here. Pretty good for my low-end Macbook Air. I tried various free tools, but found the $69 for this to be well spent. It’s one of the few that gave me a decent framerate and didn’t spin up my cpu while recording.
I also spend a lot of time in Gimp making my graphics. It took me a while to get use to the interface and the X11 windows, but I’m pleased with the results I get. Recently I moved to Photoshop (mostly because this is what most 3rd party outfits want from you), but I still find myself going back to Gimp for small little edits.
For my sounds I mostly use GarageBand and Audacity. Between the two (and some excellent soundtracks from Kevin at incompetech.com) I’ve been able to furnish most of the sounds for my games. I think sometime people forget that there are some really good sound effects in GarageBand that are free to use.
My most useful utility is AppViz. I couldn’t live without it. It scrapes your iTunes Connect account and gives a great view into your sales reports. It would be nice if Apple provided an API for this, instead of everyone having to screen-scrape and breaking every time there is an update. The guys at ideaswarm are quick to provide fixes however, so this has rarely been an issue for more than a day.
Two web-based tools I use everyday are APPlyzer and appannie. Both do a great job of tracking your rankings. Again… I think they’ve figured out how to scrape the iTunes pages to figure out rankings up to the Top 1000, something Apple doesn’t provided in their standard RSS feed (I think it only supports up to the Top 300). Since most of my apps hover around the 300-1000 mark, it’s nice to be able to see if my marketing attempts have any affect. With APPlyzer you can follow your daily rankings for FREE (and also in combination with AppViz). You can also follow your rankings hourly for a low price per month. appannie is also free (while in beta). appannie also fills the role AppViz does and graphically displays your sales data. I even imported all my archived sales reports (which I easily exported from AppViz) and the numbers match pretty closely.
Also as an indie the networks I’ve joined have been invaluable. I think OpenFeint is a great way to have contact with your users and post announcements (I love that a badge shows up when they enter the UI). PlayHaven is great for cross-promoting and getting exposure from bigger titled apps. I would also encourage indies to check out the Indie Apps Alliance and consider joining. And my 2 favorite indie-friendly websites would have to be The Portable Gamer and AppVader. These are some of the friendliest and pro-indie guys I’ve come across.
So that’s my tool belt. Please let me know any tools you use.
On a concluding note… Jiggle Balls HD got released last Friday. Immediately it was put on the iPad’s Entertainment New & Noteworthy list. I’m pretty excited, as it’s the first time I’ve ever been featured. Unfortunately, I’ve heard being on the iTunes App Store only lists aren’t as lucrative as being on the lists visible on the device. I’m happy to get recognized but it’s still unclear to me as to if this is automated or someone at Apple took note. Thanks Apple!
Also check out my interview on The Portable Podcast this week.
The Portable Podcast #2
I recorded another episode of The Portable Podcast. We talk about Jiggle Balls HD, the Sept. 1st Apple event, and adopting new technologies. Thanks again to Carter for having me on. Here’s the link:
http://theportablegamer.com/2010/08/portable-podcast-episode-48/
Seinfeld… really???
An interesting review from my friends at AppVader. Thanks guys… I think! 
http://appvader.com/2010/08/jiggle-balls-hd
Also, we’re still in the #1 position on the New & Noteworthy… woohoo! I also recorded a podcast with The Portable Gamer guys last nite. It will be out on Tuesday. I’ll post the link here.
New & Noteworthy
Jiggle Balls HD ended up in the iPad Entertainment “New & Noteworthy” section yesterday.
This is the first time any of our apps have been featured by Apple. I’m not sure what to expect, but I’ve heard that getting featured in these sections aren’t that helpful, since they are only visible in the iTunes App Store and not the device App Store. And I’m not sure how I got here. Is it automated or did some Apple employee put me there? I wish I knew. But… happy to get the exposure. I’ll keep you posted.
