VGSmart Shutting Down

[terin]

Well, this day has been a long time coming. I am officially going to be shutting down the VGSmart services effective today. I would like to thank all the developers who have supported me and my crazy marketing adjendas up until now.

The reason for this is two fold:
1) I have decided that running a company was detracting from my ability to enjoy life at home. Working from 9 AM to 1 AM and always on call has been taking its toll on me. The very thought of just organizing all of my clients and press releases is exhausting now-a-days... and I simply can't (and won't) provide a crappy service.

2) Brian Fisher at ArcadeTown has been kind enough to make me an offer with regular hours and plenty of opportunity dealing with business development. This will take a lot of the burden off of my personal life without removing me from helping indie developers.

So that said, while VGSmart may be officially closed now, I am still going to be here giving advice and making bad jokes as often as ever. I'll even give direct advice to those who need it, so don't be afraid to e-mail me. Working with ArcadeTown will give me a very unique point of view, and while I won't be sharing any AT-secrets (Do we have secrets?), it is in everyone's best interest that you guys keep making the best products in the world!

Oh and the book will still be available and hopefully updated in a few months. Future books... I hope I have the time and energy someday to do another one!

Once again, thank you to all the developers who I have worked or talked with over the last few years. I hope to keep working and talking with you with my new AT uniform- and do NOT blame Brian for stealing me... it's quite the other way around :) I need this regularity before my daughter grows up while I have my back turned.

-Joe

PS: Sorry to anyone this leaves in a lurch on the marketing front. You can do it, you're good enough, you're smart enough, and gosh darnit, people like you.

[DFG]

Sounds like that will be a great partnership for both of you. Brian is a good guy who has done a fantastic job with ArcadeTown. I am sure you will enjoy working with a successful and thriving company.

[soniCron]

Oh, no! Sorry to see you go! :o I hope all works out for your - sounds like you're on an exciting path! :)

A few questions: Do you feel comfortable recommending anyone else's marketing services?
Would you have an inclination to sell your contact list?
If so, at what price?

Thanks in advance, and I look forward to your insight on these forums! :)

[Coyote]

Man, Brian snaked you from all of us :) Congrats! Sorry to see you go - you've done an awesome job - but I'm sure you'll continue to do great stuff for ArcadeTown. And since many of us have games selling on ArcadeTown... that is not a bad thing!

[GBGames]

Aw.

Well, congratulations and good luck on your new opportunity. Is your blog still going to stay up?

[terin]

* Do you feel comfortable recommending anyone else's marketing services?

No, not that I distrust anyone else, but I can't reccomend someone I haven't worked with.

* Would you have an inclination to sell your contact list?

I dont think so... but make me an offer :)

-Joe

[Andy]

I dont think so... but make me an offer :)
-Joe

Why not just publish it here? It would be good step of good will in the spirit of independent game development. No?

[Coyote]

I'm sure all his contacts would REALLY appreciate that...:p

[Andy]

Well. PMs should work here for such case :D
Do you still remember my email address Joe? Or Brian really hired you to not let us all to have our marketing advisor? :p

[soniCron]

I dont think so... but make me an offer :) What's the breakdown? # per facet of the media, for example.

[princec]

Arse biscuits.


(British perspective)

Cas :)

[Andy]

To buy out the list all together perhaps? Anyone to take part?

[soniCron]

To buy out the list all together perhaps? Anyone to take part? Count me in! :)

[Tertsi]

Count me in! :)

Me too! :D

Sad. Now many of us have to use soft press release it seems.
At least you'll still be around. :) I hope you'll be of as much value to ArcadeTown as to us in the past.

[Chris Evans]

Well that makes the sub-standard service I got with my last Press Release a little more forgiveable and understandable. I definitely got the feeling that you were either over-extended, distracted, or exhausted. Seems like it ended up being all three. :)

I wish you good luck with ArcadeTown.

[Addictive 247]

Good luck! but bad timing as I'm hoping to release Addictive Football (http://addictivefootball.blogspot.com/) this week :eek:
Looks like marketing goes to the top of my list now :(

[arcadetown]

Sounds like my words here on the Antaris Realspace Prototype (http://www.arcadetown.com/antaris_proto/playantarisproto.asp) are somewhat prophetic. Why she still puts up with me, I dunno.

The only secret here is try/fail, try/fail, try/succeed, keep trying, never quit, repeat 10,000 times.

[joe]

Count me in! :)
Me too!

How much active contacts do you have?

[Greg Squire]

Sorry, to hear about VGSmart, but you can only do so much. Good luck to you at ArcadeTown!

[terin]

I had... well... three major contracts + indie work (usually 1 per month) + press releases/random stuff (usually 3-5 a week).

The result was literally working 14 hours+ a day or something totally rediculous.

-Joe

[amaranth]

Drats! You've opted for a life! How will we ever forgive you? :D

[PoV]

Not that it caries much weight, but I salute thee for thy contributions to business of indie gaming, and making the general population look a lot less like a bunch of kids playing with computers. That and the colorful half inch wide ringed shelf covering device. Here's to more colorful shelf covering devices, and may the day job bring you the better day schedule so many of us left the front lines to get ourselves.

[Tom Gilleland]

Well, I for one am glad that you are opting out of the endless rat race, to free up time for the more important things in life. Like making more posts on indiegamer. :)

Seriously, I do enjoy reading your thoughtful marketing perspective postings. Thanks!

Tom

[terin]

Because Andy was nice enough to point it out: Jochen was asking how many ACTIVE conTACTS I had.

just under 900 Mac + PC combined (about 70 mac). These are all ACTIVE e-mail addresses, most of whom are obviously connected to their e-mail.

my e-mail list doesn not contain names or other contact info though, sorry to say :)

Im not sure selling my list would be a great idea though, not because I dont want to help... but because I someday may need to talk to these people on the list once again.... and the idea that they may have to change their e-mail address because my list got into the wrong hands... that wouldn't be so good :)

-Joe

[Andy]

Because Andy was nice enough ....
and the idea that they may have to change their e-mail address because my list got into the wrong hands... that wouldn't be so good :)

-Joe

Pretty correct Joe. Pretty correct! This is why I proposed to use my hands for this. It wouldn't be easy. But well... :D

[Escapee]

All the best to you :) , you have made the right choice , being wealthy is having good health , the money that you can actually enjoy and ....

[jeb_]

Aww... We had bookmarked you for future releases :(

Sounds like a good decision, though! Good luck to you :D

[ChilledOut]

Best of luck Joe! Thanks for all the help you've given us and everybody else here.

[TimS]

Sorry to see you go... Best of luck with AT and the whole having more time thing.

Oh -- and don't sell your contact list to anyone that you wouldn't let borrow your children for a week. That's just not good... :D

-Tim

[theshadowfan]

Well that was unexpected. Sorry to see you go. Good luck with your new job! :D

[Frozen In Ice]

I need this regularity before my daughter grows up while I have my back turned.

-Joe


Understandable. Best of luck Joe ! :)

[wazoo]

Good luck Joe, and enjoy the new opportunity!

[Sharkbait]

Sorry to see VGSmart shutting down, but at least we know you will be still working in the same area, if only for The Man ;)

[terin]

That's right, Brian IS the man... (See, now I gotta suck up to the boss!)

Haha, no I don't know if I see AT as a huge corporate empire quite yet... When we hit the stage where nobody knows how to reach me without navigating a series of deadly traps, jumping fireballs, and endless pits (not to mention several spam filters set to filter any e-mail with the letter "a") then I will officially be working for "The Man" :)

-Joe

[papillon]

Someone I know was visiting part of the Toyota headquarters in Japan the other day and talking about the ARMED GUARDS and search procedures and being carefully escorted around... now there's a corporate empire. :)

Anyway, best of luck! (And if you set up _non-lethal_ traps on the way to your office, we'll all have to try and visit for the challenge! Er.)

[terin]

Hmm non-lethal traps as an incentive to draw business. An interesting philosophy.

Makes me actually wonder if there is a market for setting up a REAL business that thrives on a "real life" dungeon maze game. Sorta like laser tag on steroids.... (you could also have non-combat "brain related" puzzle challenges)

There's another million dollar idea for someone to steal :)

-Joe

[Pyabo]

Makes me actually wonder if there is a market for setting up a REAL business that thrives on a "real life" dungeon maze game. Sorta like laser tag on steroids.... (you could also have non-combat "brain related" puzzle challenges)

It's been done:
The Escape (http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/14.03/lafuga.html)

... and I'm willing to bet that, much like the big laser tag installations of the early 80's, it's not around 4 or 5 years from now.

[vjvj]

Very sorry to hear you are shutting down, but it sounds like you are making the best choice for yourself.

Best of luck at the new gig!

[fog4711]

@ terin: congratulations and good luck :)

@ the others: this may be a great opportunity for the clever entrepreneur to fill an empty niche ;)

/fog :)

p.s. Did anyone see the movie The Devil wears Prada? A list turned out to
become very important for one of the main characters...

[Nutter2000]

Wow! I turn my back for a month or so and people start dropping like flies! :D

Well good luck with your new job Joe!

You did a great job with our press release for Ferion, especially considering the work load you had!

I'm sure you'll help Brian turn AT into an EA beater in no time ;)

Iain