Promoting a boutique MMO

[Backov]

I'm hoping in the next little while to get my Flex based MMO out there for testing. However, I know that getting players is going to be the hardest bit.

Anyone here have any ideas about how you would do lead up promotion for an indie MMO? It's not graphically exciting, not now with programmer art anyway, and so making flashy teaser vids isn't going to be helpful.

I've got my blog back up and running, and when it gets to the point where I want to start talking about gameplay, I'll post things on there as well, but no one's reading it right now.

I know a couple of you guys are running small MMOs, or have participated in them - how did you promote?

[berserker]

Same like with regular downloadable games, but MMO makes it easier as it has way bigger word-of-mouth effect if you game is good and involving enough. We still haven't spent much money into promotion though as polish phase took more than I thought and I feel that we do not need to rush before we are done with all necessary stuff (i.e. finished tutorial just recently).
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Honda P50 specifications

[Nexic]

It's hard to give you specific advice without knowing anything about the game. Generally if your game is built around a specific theme you can advertise on related sites. Since it's a Flex creation, is there any hope of converting it to flash and putting a demo up on some flash sites? That kind of thing can get you a lot of exposure.

Most of my users came from Newgrounds, word of mouth or from google (searching for 'zombie mmo'). As with Beserker, game isn't fully polished yet so holding off final release/ad campaign.

[Allen Varney]

I just Googled "free MMO" and got 3,320,000 hits. Sites on the first page include MMOHub, ONRPG, free-mmos, freemmogamer, etc. All of these are likely to plug your game. (Odd that MMORPG.com seems not to impress Google.)

For sympathetic press coverage, I suggest writing to Michael Zenke at MMOG Nation -- Michael (at) MMOGNation (dot) com -- and to Simon Carless of Gamasutra/GameSetWatch.

[Backov]

Thanks for the links Allen, I'll check those out..

Nexic: Well, Flex is just a flash library, so it's really a flash game. And ya, it's a web game so I expect to put it on places like Kong and such.

I'm just trying to follow the advice of the marketing pros and actually start marketing the game _before_ it's finished.

But I think I need to have it in alpha at least before I can start showing off how cool it is.

[Backov]

Oh, Nexic, I wanted to say that I dig your game too - I keep getting it confused with Urban Dead, but I think yours looks like it's going to be hella fun. I have to break off a few minutes and try your beta soon.

[puggy]

Some advice, don't release it until it's ready, even though mmo's do continually develop.

beta beta beta. It helps get rid of bugs and gets some word out about the game. Set it so you have an initial limited beta then an open beta.

look for sites that have interest in games like yours.

Contact me when you have a working version done, i'll take a look and see if there's anything i could recommend to you.

[Backov]

Thanks Puggy, I'll take that as advice as much as I can. I should say though that this isn't the scale of MMO yours is.