In the video game market, music plays a vital role in the development of a game. Even though it is usually added as one of the last steps in developing a videogame, the emotional response it invokes is just as important as in a movie. If you don’t believe me, watch any horror movie without its music. There is a reason why most videogames, with few exceptions, have music. In fact, some games will make their music stop abruptly when trying to push a powerful emotional response, as we became so acclimated to it throughout the gameplay. A great example of this is how Empty House is used by Undertale.
With music being so important, one of the key frustrations of new game developers is their inability to affordably find quality music. According to this article by Morningdew Media; Indie composers usually should charge between $250-$1000 per minute of music, for a customized request. At Abel Audioworks, we do believe all music professionals deserve to be paid. However, this payment requirement neglects a significant portion of the potential market with less purchasing power.
If we look at many popular games, most have well over an hour of music for their OST. Let’s look at Terraria, one of the highest rated games on Steam. This YouTube video, by Attack Doge, has Terraria’s complete soundtrack, which is around 1 hour and 50 minutes long. At $250 a minute, that would cost approximately $29,000. For the sake of exaggeration, let’s assume you only needed 20 minutes of music. That would still end up costing a studio $5,000.
According to Videogame Insights, 72% of all released games make less than $5k in revenue over their effective lifetime. And an additional 5% only makes $5k-$10k in revenue. This means 77% of games released could never feasibly afford the cost of quality custom music, given the current pricing recommendations. And what is sometimes heartbreaking is that there is significant talent within this sector. What they often lack is business acumen.
The fact of the matter is that most game developers are solo developers, or in small teams with little purchasing power. The only way they could afford quality music is if payment flexibility was introduced, or alternatives were created.
Understandably, many hesitate to offer flexible payment to small videogame creators, due to these statistics. If I would never be paid back for my work, why would I use my time making them music? That is a common question, and a reasonable one. However, there are still ways to protect yourself, while offering flexible payment options.
The indie market is growing! Gamers are expressing frustration over the increasing costs and decreasing quality control of mainstream game studios. According to this article by Fungies, the indie market is growing with a predicted annual compound of 7%. With this rapid growth, one would be unwise to ignore the market. Flexible payments are viable, but they require some caution. There are 3 steps you can take to protect your time in music development.
This may seem obvious, but many hesitate on this front simply due to the time commitment and risk. And yet, while there is risk and time involvement, many indie games do find great success, and if you find one that will be successful, it can produce a high revenue. Re:Logic, which started as an indie developer, has had over $165 million in gross revenue due to Terraria alone. Turning Wheel, an indie developer, has grossed over $3.8 million in revenue with Barony. If you had even a small royalty deal with one of these games, you would make a good profit on your music.
What you need to look for is talent, business planning, and niche. While it is true some hobbyists hit it big, most successful indie studios exhibited these 3 traits to a degree. Lets take a look at Barony:
Barony, on the surface, looks like a bad investment. And perhaps in its very first stages of development, it would have been one. In a 2013 interview with the creator of Barony, Sheridan, he states that:
“Currently, the release date is the all-familiar ‘when it’s done…’ In terms of commercialization: this is something we’re still not sure about ourselves. We definitely want to profit off this game in some way or another, no doubt about it – but whether that means profit in terms of money is, to us, another question entirely.”
Certainly not a professional approach to business planning.
However, if you choose to dig deeper, you will also read
“More seriously, everything that was made for Barony was coded from the ground up – the editor, the engine, everything. Moreover, we used the C language to write the game – most people like to use C++ or Java, because in this day and age its considered a teensy bit crazy to use a language with no support for objects and classes, but I wrote the game in C anyway, first because it’s my game and I’ll make it however I like, second because I am more comfortable with C than I am with Java or C++, and third because I just admire C’s pure design and strict-but-simple philosophy.”
This latter statement signifies immense talent, as most indie studios cannot do this. If you read the description, you will also find it fits a very strong niche audience (one I fit in myself). As a result, 2 of our 3 criteria have been met. And later, they started a Kickstarter with great success due to marketing. Whether they meant to market or not, they were very good at developing a follower base.
This is essential. While you can do all the research in the world, there may be information you are unable to obtain from outside sources. If it is their first game, or they lack a social media presence, you may need to approach them directly. And even if they are ingenious marketers, you still won’t get a full grasp of their skill until you approach them. This doesn’t need to be a formal interview, just ask them about their aspirations for the game, how it is being made, and other important questions. Do not avoid asking for technical details, as this will be what proves their talent the most. If they are just buying a bunch of premade assets and have no programming skills, they will be unlikely to succeed.
Imagine if a wise musician had seen that interview with Barony and offered to create their music for them. Perhaps their investment wouldn’t be immediately returned, but when it had been returned, they would have made a lot of money from it.
If, after research, you are still concerned about not making your money back, but want to take the risk, you should offer alternatives to industry standards. There are many ways to do this, but here are some examples:
Most custom music, when purchased, will give exclusive rights to the purchaser. However, if a studio wants custom music, but can’t afford your normal price, offer them custom music without exclusive rights. Then, you can resell the music as a music bundle to other studios to make more income.
Make music asset packs and use salesmanship and marketing to position them with indie studios. The videogame asset market is quite large!
The indie game market is too large to ignore, and while it is a market of outliers, it still holds great promise. With gamers taking their money to these developers, and the declining popularity of larger studios, it is a market which no prudent musician or businessman would ignore.
If you follow the 3 steps, researching the developer, talking to them, and offering alternatives to industry standards, you will be able to take calculated risks in a growing market, and increase your likelihood of generating an income from a market many are too afraid to enter.
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No problem! Abel Audioworks believes every project, no matter how large or small, deserves quality music! Our offerings include music made by our in-house team, music made by a vetted producer for reduced cost, and royalty free music asset packs. If you want custom music but price is a concern, don’t fret! We offer special payment plans that fit your budget. Reach out today for a quote!
See our most recent music below:
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