Game Revenue Models

Pick a Revenue Model

Pick one or more Revenue Streams and create a Revenue Model that is best suited for your game.

Typical Revenue Streams:

Advertisement

• Revenue is generated when players click or view ads.

Donations

• Development is supported by generous community supporters.

Merchandise Sales

• Revenue is generated by selling clothes, figurines, art, and soundtracks.

Game Sales

• Revenue is generated through direct game sales.

Microtransactions

• Revenue is generated through the sale of in-game currency and digital content.

Subscriptions

• Reoccurring payments grants players access to a game or more content within a game on a monthly, seasonally, or yearly basis.

Common Revenue Models

Indirect Sales

• Game is released for free.
• Main source of revenue is through ads, donations, or merchandise.

Free To Play

• Game is released for free. Monetization is through player engagement with ads, purchase of microtransactions, and/or subscriptions.
• The game is purposefully designed to incentivize players to make purchases with cosmetics or skins, gacha or lootboxes, boosters or time savers, and/or pay-to-win mechanics.
• Typically utilizes limited time events and rewards.

Direct Sales

• Game is sold at a given price point.
• Additional content may be released for free or for a price.
• May include microtransactions.
• May release paid dlc in the future.

Subscription Model

• Game is free to download.
• All or a majority of the game is locked behind a subscription.
• May include microtransactions.

Choose a Post-Launch Plan

No Support Post-Launch

• After the game is released, no further work will be done.
• This was very common before the rise of digital distribution.

Hotfix Support

• Updates are made to patch major bugs and glitches in the game.
• May include minor balance changes.

Expansions and Content Updates

• Large updates that introduce new features and content.
• Typically includes bug fixes and balance patches.

Live Service

• Studio is solely dedicated to the development of one game.
• Updates are released regularly in order to retain players and draw in new players.