Indie Web Portal, Anyone?

[W. Don]

Hi all,

Emmet first posed a suggestion for what might be called an Indie Games Web Portal on this thread. I've quoted the relevant posts below:

Maybe a mall of independantly hosted RPG websites. Something like a banner exchange, but more like a portal site. I like that idea...

The first time I got here on The Forge I was looking around for some portal page so I can take a look at all the indie games with websites of their own. That would be nice idea, I think. Some form of this is already on the "Resources" link above. Still a dedicated portal could be a nice thing. One with categorisation that's more appropriate to indie games. Maybe that portal can have G, N, and S ratings or something. Example entry: "The Riddle of Steel - G:2 N:4 S:5" -- but then we'll have to bug some of the more experienced folks around here (maybe Ron, hehe) to rate 'em. :o)

So: indie web portal or indie web mall, anyone?

[ethan_greer]

It doesn't make sense to rate a game in terms of GNS - only play.  Saying a game is Narrativist is a Forge shorthand for saying "this game tends to support Narrativist decisions in play."

[W. Don]

Thanks for the correction, Ethan. No need really as that part was jokingly said. :) I'm sorry I wasn't so clear with my post. Here's another try:

Would an indie games web portal be feasible? Would anyone be interested in it as a venue for advertising their games? Is something like this even needed?

When I first stumbled on the Forge, it was really my first experience with the world of indie RPGs. So I tried to keep note of what published indie games might out there that I can try. There was no easy and direct way for me to do this as there was no central place collating the "intro blurbs" of different published indie games. I've looked at RPGnow but they don't seem to have an author-owned/independant games section. So, I was wondering, with all the great stuff coming from the indie scene, whether or not the time for such a venue (for advertising and selling indie games) had come. (Of course, maybe such a venue does already exist and I just don't know about it.)

- W.

[Clay]

The resource library really does a pretty good job of being a portal already.  I get quite a few links to my Microwars game from there.

[Emmett]

Hi I'm back from outer space. . .

I'd be willing to create this portal at my store32.net url. The idea I had would basically be structured thusly.

1. Independant RPG writers would have there own sites or collective of sites.

2. I, or others would build a portal that would have a banner, or cover art etc, and information on associates.

3. Associates would be required to link back to the portal in some relatively obvious way.

It would take me a bit of time to build this portal correctly. I don't think a normal message board would do at all, so some programming would be required. In that light, I could use assitance in getting it done quickly.

The resource portal is nifty for those that make use of the forge, but I didn't even know of it's existance until you mentioned it Clay. In addition the websites still stand on their own, they don't point back to the resource library to encourage a customer to check out other sites.

So my questions are this. If you would think this kind of system would benifit the Indie community, say aye or nay and what game / url you would like to promote. If you would be willing to make this kind of vision a reality, what can you help with.

For me Aye
I can write HTML and script in PHP. I can do some graphic design work.

As an extra credit problem, I could also offer links to game publishing related material, like artists for hire. Is that a good idea or would it dillute the site with extras? If a good idea, what other game related services would be good (game frendly POD providers?).

[Simon W]

Yep. Sounds good. It's all exposure after all.

Simon
http://www.geocities.com/simonwashbourne/Beyond_Belief.html
The home of Lashings of Ginger Beer

[Paul Czege]

Hey,

It seems to me that for an Indie RPG portal to be worthwhile, you'd need to provide some functionality that we're not currently getting from the Forge Resource Library. What about coming up with a set of XML tags that sites could incorporate into their page code that you would use to programmatically build your pages? You could build a page of Indie designer bios, one of game summaries, one of links to teaser ads for games, a subject index of links to games, etc. The trick for getting indie designers to participate would be implementing it such that web surfers are facilitated in getting to game sites from the content you aggregate this way.

Paul

[rpghost]

I would also think the key to any portal actually working would be marketing it. Who's going to do that? I mean who cares if there is an island out there that no one knows about that neatly sums up the Indie publishers/games? The key is that the portal should really play a part in promoting the indie games industry as well as being an active member in forums that are NOT the Forge.

Just my 2 cents.
James

[Emmett]

Paul, I like the ideas, but they are beyond my ability to do (at least quickly). If you know how to incorporate these functions, by all means I invite you to implement them.

However the functionality you would get that is unlike the resource library is this. The resource library is not there to service your website per se. It is more geared to service the Forge member. I'm not putting it down. It's a good thing, but it's not the way the Resource Library is structured.

So why do I say the Resource Library is not geared to service your website? After all it gives a description of your site/game and people go to your site. What could be better? However the Resource Library stops there. If a customer goes to the site directly above yours, you lose out. The person is unlikely to pick up where they left off. What I am trying to inarticulately say is even if a customer might buy/enjoy your game, they may not stumble across it. In fact they may not stumble across the forge at all.  What if they stumble across my website, and don't find what they want. They can't get from mine to yours. A banner exchange is one way to solve that, but that's a lot of banners on your site and my site and that's not the best thing for the look of a site.

So how about one banner that is not a hard sell. I would be more likely to click on a banner for an RPG portal than an individual game. That game's banner might not look interesting to me, but the promise of a number of games would.

Don't get rid of the Resource Library, don't try to replace the Forge. That's not what this is about. This is another tool for you and I to use.

James your comments are very accurate. However this is where a loose network of connected sites is simply stronger that individual sites. Find one and you have the potential to find the others. By necessity this may mean that a strong site may carry a weaker site for a while. But who is to say that that games popularity may wane and the formerly weak site is now the strong supporting the formerly strong site.

Advertising is often best done by word of mouth and the more mouths the more advertising but also given how the search engines are designed to rank a site in it's listings, the more pages that link to you, the better your ranking. Also the more pages that you link to also slightly increases your ranking. In effect you get a trickle down of better page ranks for everyone involved.

I know that rpghost does a very good job of providing a service to publishers, I'm not knocking that. I looked at your services and decided that I wanted my own site for ego/vanity/function in that order. There are a number of other ladies and gentlemen at the forge that have done the same. I would not be adverse to including rpghosts in the portal, as long as rpghost would be willing to link back to the portal.

The main difference though is that there would be no charge for the portal. I would get better exposure being listed just like every other site on the portal. As such I can only promise so much. rpghosts is a little more structured and undoubtedly spends more money to advertise but recives a bigger slice of the pie. Its all what people are willing to commit, vs. what they gain. This portal asks for a link back to the portal so that others can benifit and on the flip side, associates can benefit.[/quote]

[HinterWelt]

For me, I like the idea. I have heard from many RPG companies and the like that it would be great to have one place to handle reviews. If you could incorporate that into the site I think that would be a good draw. In addition, the reviews should be an independant thing. That is, you should not be able to write a review if you are connected to the game. Also, some sort of standard ranking system should be outlined. It does not have to be complex but it should be comprehesive.

I also would second the feed to other sites. It would be great to have bios, possibly automatic news feeds from the independant sites. So basically, not only feeds off the Indie portal but possible feeds from the individual site up to the indie portal with news and updates about the game. A two way street allowing communication and allowing building interest by revealing details of game efforts.

I am proficient in HTML, Java, ASP, JavaScript, and XML. My schedule is killer over the next few months but should loosen some around Sept-Oct.

Thanx,
Bill

[rpghost]

Well why don't you guys team up with:
http://www.brettmb.com/digitalrpg/

Maybe even share the code or something? They have the same objectives there with a slightly more focused membership.

I have the domain RPGIndustry.com if you guys want this indie portal site to be a part of the RPGHost network I could consider that. You'd get a lot more exposure.

For the record, I am more or less an indie publisher too - http://www.miniondevelopment.com has some of our products. I just don't push it much as I already play too many sides of the fence :)

James
P.S. I'm actually looking for someone interested in helping do a HyperKiller second edition.

[Emmett]

I have the domain RPGIndustry.com if you guys want this indie portal site to be a part of the RPGHost network I could consider that. You'd get a lot more exposure.

I'd have no objection to that. Would you host the site? How would building the site be managed (in other words how would those building the portal get onto your server and do the building?)

HinterWelt wrote.

I am proficient in HTML, Java, ASP, JavaScript, and XML. My schedule is killer over the next few months but should loosen some around Sept-Oct.

I can relate, I don't know how quickly I could work up an entire website anyway. Even If I got started on the site now, the time frame you mentioned would probably put you into the bulk of the work. (I have a full schedule also.)

[quozl]

I just put up a page rating the indie RPGs that I own here:
http://www.nicholcentral.com/jon/rpg/indie/

Is this the sort of thing you are talking about?

[Emmett]

Kind of, but a bit more fleshed out. The writer/publisher would be able to write the summery plus a piece of art or banner. Reviews would be entered by people that order the game.

Another thought I had bouncing around my head was that the first page would have a random listing of ten games. That way games named Zenophobia wouldn't end up last on an alphabetical lisiting and never get seen. On a listing that ordered as far as ranking, one person could give a bad review to start off with and a game would fall to the end of the list. If no one ever saw it again, it would stay there.

[quozl]

Kind of, but a bit more fleshed out. The writer/publisher would be able to write the summery plus a piece of art or banner. Reviews would be entered by people that order the game.

That sounds like what RPGnow and RPGmall does already (for the publishers using those services).  Are you just wanting the same type of thing but also including those publishers that don't use those services?