@kaler

I presented for a group of investors at the VC Forum last Thursday. It was my first time pitching Smartful Studios to investors. There was an additional challenge as I did not know ahead of time who in particular I would be pitching to.

I’ve pitched to developers many times. I think I tell a fairly decent story. I pitch at the right level of detail. And I’m able to appeal to developers at an emotional level.

I haven’t quite found my voice when pitching to VCs. Here is some additional detail I will present next time:

Problem #1: The Legacy Revenue Model Is Not Sustainable

The video game business is currently a hit-driven business. Large sums of money and large teams are required to get product on the shelf by Black Friday. A majority of sales take place in the opening two weeks. The magic number everyone mentions for failing to make the Black Friday deadline is 40% less revenue.

This is not a sustainable business model.

Problem #2: Games Are Neither Meaningful Nor Memorable

Games are supposed to be fun. Unfortunately, the implication here is that games are a mere distraction from a person’s banal life.

Distribution channels are clogged with shovelware. Poor quality product may be shipped because of movie tie-ins. Poor quality product may be shipped because of advertising or sponsorship.

Solution

Focusing on episodic content that is digitally distributed is a huge improvement on the current revenue model. This leads to smoother revenue generation. Developers can also generate much sooner.

Developers can assume much more creative risk if content is distributed episodically. Developers can develop pilot episodes of their games in a similar fashion

First and foremost, just like great films and great novels, games are art. Period.

You can try to argue this point with me. I dare you. I will stick my fingers in my ears and yell LALALALALALALA at the top of my lungs.

The market works much more efficiently if developers focus on producing high quality content. Funding poor quality projects is a waste of time, resources, and investment dollars.