Indie Royalties (Page 1 of 2)

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

Thank you sir!
Good advice

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)

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

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

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.

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!