How to Start and Market Your Video Game Development Company
Tags: gamedev, startup, devops, cloud
Published: 2021-12-22 03:46:07

The gaming industry is huge right now, and it’s only going to get bigger and more lucrative in the next decade. This field is rich with amazing career opportunities for individuals like entrepreneurs, and it boasts a variety of niches people can get into to start a thriving professional journey. Whether you’re a game developer or a business investor, there’s no denying that getting into the gaming industry is a sound decision, one that can yield significant results in the years to come.

That said, building a game development company is a difficult task. It’s not just difficult because the work is challenging, but because it’s not just about the quality of the games – it’s about the promotion and the marketing as well. In a [game development company](https://dev.to/ismarekathakusuma/how-professional-company-creates-video-games-2a9k), you have to create an amazing product, but you also need to know how to set it up for success.

Let’s break this problem down into more bite-size chunks and give you the steps you need to take to start a video game company, and set it up for success. 

## **Market research and analysis**

If you’re an experienced investor, you already know that market research is the first step to success. If, on the other hand, you’re a passionate game developer with limited business experience, then you need to realize the importance of proper planning and preparation. Every business decision should be founded on relevant industry and market data, so your first order of business is to research the market [and your competitors](https://www.bigcommerce.com/ecommerce-answers/closer-look-how-research-your-competitors/). 

![Image description](https://dev-to-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/articles/ysl70x25hhs5d3g77b01.JPG)
[source](https://www.intoindiegames.com/video-game-insights/)

Yes, it’s about the customers and what they want, but it’s also about the competitors and how you can stand out in a saturated industry. And boy, is the gaming industry saturated with developers and publishers. Focus on what the customers want and need, find gaps in the gaming industry you can fill, and check what your competitors are doing right and what they’re doing wrong.

Copy their best practices and capitalize on the pain points that they are failing to address. Because after all, their shortcomings are your opportunities.

## **Invest in marketing and promotion**

The truth is, you can succeed in this business if you don’t have the money to invest in marketing. With so many developers and publishers out there dishing out new games on a regular basis, you can only capture the customers’ attention by promoting your brand and your products.

Invest in content marketing, publish press releases and articles, send out personalized emails to customers and fans, and keep your website alive with quality [contenu digital](https://ohmadigital.com/fr/services/creation-contenu-digital/). Devote your time to building a social media following, and keep people engaged in meaningful conversations that will help bring amazing games to life.

![Image description](https://dev-to-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/articles/jhve1zebw1lzcxyo6y8o.jpg)

[source](https://siliconangle.com/2020/08/19/googles-massively-scalable-game-servers-becomes-generally-available/)

## **Choose the right business entity**

Setting up the legal foundations for your game development company is one of the most important steps at the beginning of your journey. Before developing any further business plans, you as an owner need to decide on the proper business entity. This will provide a professional appearance for the project when dealing with investors and publishers. There are several different types of business entities which you can choose depending on their strenghts and weaknesses. 

You should keep in mind that business registration and tax laws are different from country to country. For example, there are a few interesting options for video game development companies in the US, such as sole proprietorship, corporation and limited liability company (LLC). If you're starting off a company as a small independent game designer, registrating an [LLC in Missouri](https://businessanywhere.io/business-registration/) may be a smart choice. 
Besides a selection of options regarding how you'd like to be taxed, you can also benefit from the limited liability protections that an LLC can provide. This means that your personal assets will be protected in case of any business failure, among many other legal advantages.

## **Assemble the winning team**

There are the extremely big game developer studios, and there are the ones that are operating from an apartment with two to three people. You dictate how big your game development company gets, but there’s no denying that you need to surround yourself with the right people. No game developer is an island, so your next order of business is to find passionate, like-minded individuals.

You can fill many of the roles yourself if you’re an experienced developer, and you should start hiring based on the roles you need. The roles include:

- Designer
- Artist
- Programmer
- Level designer
- Story designer
- Tester
- Sound engineer
- And more.

Keep in mind that this is your core development team, and that’s not including the project leads and managers, HR specialists, marketers and sales experts, creatives, and others. At first, you will need people to wear many different hats, but in time you will be able to hire for each role in your company.

## **Build a recognizable brand**

Making a name for yourself doesn’t just come down to the quality of your games, as it’s also about the quality of your brand as a whole. [Building a recognizable brand](https://blog.ideacafe.com/how-enhance-your-businesss-brand-image) allows you to stand out in a competitive field, get noticed, and slowly build a loyal community.

With the support of the local and global communities, you will get more visibility and financial support, and you will be able to make your ideas a reality. With that in mind, make sure to build a striking visual identity, and create a set of brand values that resonate with the values of your target demographic. 

## **Focus on innovations like the cloud**

The gaming industry is evolving at a rapid pace. If you want to set yourself up for success, you shouldn’t just do what everyone else is doing, you should capitalize on the new and promising trends. One of these is definitely cloud gaming, and even though there are some solvable cloud gaming challenges right now, theirs is no denying that this is the future of the industry as a whole.

Optimizing your games for maximum performance and streaming from the cloud will be paramount for success, and it will attract a whole new crowd of gamers. People are no longer willing to spend hundreds, if not thousands of dollars on high-end gaming rigs, but they are willing to stream their favorite games to their devices.

This is your opportunity to enter a rising niche in the gaming world and make a name for yourself.

## **Wrapping up**

Video game development is a cutthroat business, let’s be honest, but that doesn’t mean that you can’t make it big if you make the right decisions. 

Use these tips to build your business strategy and focus on the right things from the get-go in order to build a game development company people will know and love.