This is in response to a blog written by a friend check it out first: http://t.co/9SIV5F7VMc
Below is my response to why game development has reached this point and why sometimes developers have to bite the bullet, not go for the money rather aim for the play.
The problem is that as a market it is reaching saturation point, it is not like several years ago where game development was to those who could a) afford b) understand game development. Engines like Unity have allowed ALOT more developers to enter and once supply reaches higher than demand per title price reduction trends occur. Also reputation matters, the trust people have to have in a game MUST be high and to gain trust is to build reputation which often means giving away a free version or reduced price early versions of a previous title to allow future ones to gain the rep to be able to sell at higher rate. Yes developers need to eat currently understanding this myself too however sometimes the distribution is worth more than the profit, getting people to play your game should be priority NOT financial gain. Art typically only reaches such value due to rep itself, yes skill comes into act but with so many more people now able to produce titles its has and will continue for at least a while lead to a barrage of poor titles or low pricing strategies.
Here is a related video from the Co-Optional Pod-cast:
Written by and Moderated by Stephen Fisher 2014