Game Development
We have over a decade's experience inventing, developing, and deploying games on websites. Most of the games we have built are educational in nature (visit The Problem Site to see our largest collection of educational games in one place).
Why would you want a game for your website? Even if your website isn't a "game website," there are very good reasons why you might want at least one game on your site. People are not quick to bookmark, share, or remember most informational websites - unless they happened to stumble across your website at the exact moment when they (or a friend) needed it.
But if they find a game on your website, and they play it, they're more likely to do any of the following:
- keep coming back to your website
- link your website from their own site
- share your website on social media
- remember your site when the time comes that they (or a friend) need your services
A prime example of this is the site Portland Proof, which provides proofreading services.The success and visibility of this site is not (primarily) based on the fact that they have a "Word of the Month" blog, or on the fact that they they have good information about proofreading. Its success is largely due to the fact that the site contains three games we built for them. Proof-It was built at the time the site was built, and the two other games were built several years later.
What makes a good game for a website?
- Something that is quick to play. Our most popular games are games that take less than a minute to complete; people come back again and again to play those games.
- Something that does not have complicated rules the player must learn.
- Something that is not unreasonably difficult; if someone gets exasperated the first time they play, that will also be the last time they play.
- Something that challenges the brain as much as the reflexes.
Game development is not inexpensive, so if you contact us about developing a game for your site, here are some tips to keep the price down:
- Have a very thorough idea of how the game will work
- If possible, create the game on paper first, and make sure it'll work the way you want
- Keep graphics/animation expectations simple
If you want a game, but don't have any ideas, or not fully fleshed out ideas, we can take the ideas you have and run with them, but be aware that it will be more expensive to develop.
Keep in mind that although it may be expensive to add a game to your site, that expense is a one-time expense over the course of the years it will keep bringing visitors to your site.
