Learn how to start a Mobile Game Company.

You got it from your grandfather. You used to sit next to him while he tries to solve crossword puzzles in newspapers. You’ll go away once you got bored, but you remember him asking you about a ten-letter word beginning with “an” that means “to destroy.” How in heavens name would you be able to guess, much less to spell the word “annihilate”?

Now you go online on your mobile phone and play your favorite fill-in crossword game. You smile and wonder what your grandfather would say about your game. He passed away a few years ago. You’re a gamer who also knows how to code. And you’ve wanted to use your talent to start a business and dedicate it to your grandfather. Starting a mobile game development business is what you have in mind. But you don’t have a clue how to start the business.

If you do some research, here’s what you might find.

An overview of the Mobile Gaming Industry:

CeeLo Green’s reference to Atari in one of his most famous songs is pretty nostalgic. Now, the best place to put an Atari machine is in a museum and not your living room. There’s probably nothing that has been drastically revolutionized than computer gaming. And perhaps mobile gaming is the crown jewel of this revolution.

In 2018, the average time a person spends locked on his mobile phone daily was 215 minutes. By 2021, the projection is that this will be 234 mins. Those minutes help to translate in part the $10 billion revenue of the mobile gaming business in America. It will indeed make your grandfather proud if you would be able to have a cut of that 10-billion-dollar pie.

Getting it done:

Playing the game, developing or coding your game, and running a mobile game business or company are three separate things. The skills set required for each are very distinct. Here are a few things to bear in mind when starting your mobile game company:

1. You might need help

Good as you are in developing a game, you might need help. Pull in someone to join you in your little enterprise. A crucial thing in bringing in people to help you is to define roles and responsibilities on the outset. Are you bringing in a marketing person? If yes, let him focus on creating strategies on how you will launch your company and your product. Establish clear lines of communication, even if there’s just two or three of you. Work together in defining clearly your goals and your mission. Check out some tips and tricks to start your own game.        

2. Pick a genre

Do you want to honor your grandfather by selecting a game that he enjoyed? Make sure that it’s a wise move. Apple’s game categories number about 18, while Google has more than 20. You probably might want to enter a genre or category that is not saturated. Knowing how many games have been updated recently would be an indicator of the market size.           

3. Leverage your expertise

If the genre is saturated, but you know that you can offer something unique that hasn’t been done in that particular category, why not engage it? Analyze what the offerings are of existing games and determine if you can provide something new.           

4. Do your pitch

Just like anyone slugging it out in the business world, you are going to have to make your pitch, whether it’s in an elevator or inside a board room. You will be targeting investors, so make sure that you are prepared, your prototype(s) are working correctly, and you have a clear vision where you want to take your company.

Drafting a sound business plan is also necessary, and these few points can help you in that process.