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Yuma, AZ

Hey and hello there!
So the day has finally come that I am diving into the world of game audio.
I have asked onto a project and am having the initial "meat and potatoes" meeting tomorrow evening with the dev team.

I know we have a lot of members here that are experienced in the field of game audio, and I was just curious about how you have asked for royalties in your work. The dev team has already said that there will be royalties paid, but that I should have some proposed numbers of my own before our meeting.

Does anyone out there have some advice that could help me ballpark what i'm looking at here?
I can give more information if need be.

Thanks again

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Boise, ID

Depends on how many songs they need, and length.
I'd go for 5-10$ per song; that might be cheap though compared to more established composers prices.

Think of how many hours you'll be putting into it and ask for something that sounds reasonable to you.
It probably also depends if they expect to make a good bit of profit off the game. If they are better known and have had good success with earlier games you should ask for more.

Last edited by ShintarouMusic (Oct 7, 2013 9:17 pm)

Offline
Yuma, AZ

Thanks for the quick response!
From what i have gathered from speaking with them, I think we are talking percentages.
I know that the game will be $.99, and from doing a little digging I have come up with ~12.5% profit in royalties.
Anyone out there have more thoughts on the matter?

Thanks

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Unsubscribe

I think the less they pay up front, the more they should pay on the back end because then you have the trouble of keeping after them and continuing to get that percentage. Depending on the sound design workload, you might ask for more and talk down to figures you see online. Make sure to get any such agreement in writing and notarized.

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Yuma, AZ

Thank you sir!
Good advice

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buffalo, NY
ShintarouMusic wrote:

Depends on how many songs they need, and length.
I'd go for 5-10$ per song; that might be cheap though compared to more established composers prices.
.

That is crazy cheap.  Don't ask for that.

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The most important thing is to realize when the pay out will occur, how long the project will be going on for, and how often your checks will come in. Honestly, for starting out doing game audio, I recommend asking for flat rates up front instead of royalty agreements. You will get the feel of the business far quicker and won't have to establish the trusting relationship needed for royalty checks, and you will sleep at night way more comfortably.

Edit: and don't be shy about your flat rates, either. If you feel comfortable in your product, don't hesitate to throw three-figure amounts at them for a couple minutes of audio. Show them that the price they pay is worth it. Also, consider offering SFX work for them too - a lot of game devs will love not having to think of making SFX, and (at least to me) it's super fun work!

Last edited by an0va (Oct 8, 2013 1:31 am)

Offline
Boise, ID
danimal cannon wrote:
ShintarouMusic wrote:

Depends on how many songs they need, and length.
I'd go for 5-10$ per song; that might be cheap though compared to more established composers prices.
.

That is crazy cheap.  Don't ask for that.

Aye, I thought someone might say that. :I
I'm happy just doing shit even if I don't get anything back.

Offline
Florida
ShintarouMusic wrote:
danimal cannon wrote:

That is crazy cheap.  Don't ask for that.

Aye, I thought someone might say that. :I
I'm happy just doing shit even if I don't get anything back.

If you're hoping to get into making music for games, don't undersell yourself ever. Everrr.

Offline
Chicago IL
danimal cannon wrote:
ShintarouMusic wrote:

Depends on how many songs they need, and length.
I'd go for 5-10$ per song; that might be cheap though compared to more established composers prices.
.

That is crazy cheap.  Don't ask for that.

Yeah, what the fuck? That's stupid low.

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Brunswick, GA USA

At least do some division and realize what you're getting paid per hour at your asking price.

Offline
Boise, ID

sorry for personally being so cheap, I guess.

I did suggest to charge more depending on the scale of the project, though.

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TX

There's no need to be sorry! I think some musicians (myself included to an extent) just get bummed out when people ask so little because it feeds into an assumption that's out there that music is less worth paying for than other creative services. I mean, musicians might be easier to find than programmers or pixel artists, but their work is comparable in time consumption, challenge, and importance. If people all over the place are charging a pittance for their work, then people start to expect that that's just how much music costs, which makes it much tougher for people to ever make a living doing music.

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Yuma, AZ

Some great advice in here, gang! Thanks.
Yeah if I end up going flat-rate, it's going to need to be worth the time.
I'm a graphic designer/photographer by trade, so I'm used to dealing with some royalty v. flat-rate stuff.
I appreciate all the insight.

Thanks for the perspective guys!

i'll update when the time comes.

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Rhode Island

Not to beat a dead horse here or anything but asking for a $$ amount per song is silly. Per song is so arbitrary because a song could be a 15 second loop for a pause screen or maybe they want an 8 minute tour de force. A decent alternative would be to charge for song length. Come up with some number you think would be a fair amount for creating a 1:00 long song based on the amount of time you put into it. Balance that number with whatever you ask for in royalties. Unless you see the game going crazy good (i always like to play the game before writing for it) chances are the team wont be making money hand over fist so an upfront payment may be the way to go with a small % of royalties. Also, negotiate to retain the rights to you song or charge more for them to retain the rights. I think these are some standard practices. Also, I dont think many people will tell you upfront what their rates are.

Best of luck!

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Yuma, AZ

Ok, so!
After receiving an alpha build of the game (and staying up far too late into the night enjoying the heck out of it) I have come to this:
$X per minute of music. $Y per sound effect (that was actually the client's idea, works for me!)
With Z% royalties on the backend.

Flat-rates are payable on delivery.
Seems pretty solid to me, but
Am I shooting myself in the foot here?

Thanks again to everyone for your great advice.