And here are the totals for 2008. The number in brackets is the 2007 total, if applicable.
The a|state PDF really did give a kick in the arse to sales. With just a fraction under half of our sales from PDFs, it's proved a valuable addition to our line-up of electronic product, as well as providing a cheap and easy buy-in to the game.
IPR: 56
Direct: 12
Con: 11
Comp: 0
Vendors: 3
PDF: 70
Total: 152
Lifetime Sales: Vague, somewhere around 1700?
A&A was always going to be a strange one. A vocal minority who had supported a|state for along time had been crying out for this particular books since we announced it all those years ago. And by crikey did it feel good to finally get it out there! it was a testament to the hard work and generosity of a great number of people (including, but not limited to, John Wilson, Gregor Hutton, Brian Nisbet and Iain McAllister). Sales have not been, nor were they expected to be, startling. Yet, it's nice to have just about but not quite shifted 200 copies.
IPR: 77
Direct: 26
Con: 9
Comp:60
Vendors: 0
PDF: 76
Total: 194
Lifetime Sales: 194
A drop of about a fifth on last years sales figure isn't disappointing at all. Sales have remained steady across the year, showing that CC is cruising along in the 'long tail' phase. With lifetime sales breaking the 1000 copies mark, the game certainly established itself as a solid product within the small press environment.
The release of v1.1 in the latter half of the year allowed us to make some needed changes to the book and integrate the content of the Companion, providing better value for the customer and reducing the amount of stock and printing we needed.
IPR: 188 (218)
Direct: 40 (48)
Con: 49 (76)
Comp: 0 (15)
Vendors: 13 (17)
PDF: 136 (156)
Total: 426 (530)
Lifetime Sales: 1263
The bottom line figure for sales is a little deceptive. As part of the pre-order for HW we offered the the PDF for free, which certainly seemed to encourage purchasers and build up a reasonable amount of good press. So, the comp figure isn't all crazy give-aways, 90% of that is accounted for by the free PDFs with pre-orders.
We did hit a snag with the first run of books (recounted here for those who are interested) which caused a lack of stock in the important post-Gen Con period. It also resulted in us having to do some emergency customer service stuff which, once all the running around was over, put us in a very positive position regarding customer feelings towards CGS as a company. The disaster turned out to be a very positive experience and something which engendered a number of useful and thoughtful interactions with people who had bought our books.
Overall, there is a lot to be pleased about regarding Hot War. Well over 400 copies have been shifted since launch (beating Cold City by quite a margin) and there has been an overall positive reception.
IPR: 153
Direct: 46
Con: 65
Comp: 61
Vendors: 23
PDF: 147
Total: 495
Lifetime Sales: 495
What is there to say about MJ? Sales this year have been, in comparison with our other products, dire. There are several reasons for this, including a poorer level of support and (from on-line evidence) a lack of enthusiasm for the alt-history part of the game. It certainly appears that if MJ were stripped back and presented as a purely crime game, without the setting material, it would do very well. It has everything you could want in a Mafia game. I know that Iain has plans on the back burner for it when it reverts to being a Giant Brain product which could take it in a new and very positive direction.
IPR: 11 (39)
Direct: 5 (6)
Con: 6 (16)
Comp: 0 (1)
Vendors: 0 (10)
PDF: 10 (19)
Total: 32 (91)
Lifetime Sales: 123
Numbers-Num-Num
Submitted by Gregor Hutton on Tue, 10/02/2009 - 19:01.
Those numbers (apart from the obvious in MJ) are excellent.
I worked out that Best Friends (lifetime - from June 2006) has done 500 copies (overwhelmingly in print). So to have done that since just this summer for Hot War is great.
To have hit on 3 big successes like a|state, Cold City and Hot War isn't luck. It's ashame that Mob Justice was the one to miss. I don't know what more Malc could have done for it. I think the only messages I take from it are:
*Just because you have successful books like a|state, CC and HW doesn't mean autosales of your other books (as some would have everyone believe -- oh, Cold City sold becaause of a|state ... err, no. Cold City sold because of Cold City, people might have looked at it because of a|state, but it sold on its own.)
*Enthusiasm for your own book is absolutely vital as a promotional, and sales, tool. Malc has been an enthusiastic salesman for MJ at cons and online as much as he can be, but ultimately Iain hasn't been as much that way. I'm sure that's hurt it. If the author won't post about it and play it over other things, then... well, why should I.
*Support and online presence keep games visible so that people will eventually get around to looking at it. That's been a tried and tested route for the other games.
*Sometimes the market just ain't right for a book. If MJ had been out a year or two earlier it might have caught a different mood in the community. As it is, Pirates and Zombies became the thing rather than Mobsters. It happens.
A lot of love and hard work went into that book, but it joins a long line of noble attempts that the market didn't embrace as much as others. Surely, far worse books have sold far more.
But, on the positive again I am fairly sure that Cold City will eventually catch a|state one day, and soon after that day I expect Hot War to pass them both. Long tail, baby. Long tail.
Thanks for your points
Submitted by Malcolm Craig on Thu, 12/02/2009 - 00:01.
Thanks for your points there, Gregor. All well made and well worth taking into account.
To look at just one of them, your point about previous sales not automatically leading to sales of new product is right on the money. There are many people who have been enthusiastic supporters of a|state for a long time who have zero interest in Cold City, Hot War or Mob Justice. On the other hand, there are many people who have bought Hot war on the back of Cold City. But you're quite correct that good sales of one book can not guarantee sales of another book.
You have to be as enthusiastic about the current book as you were for the last book while maintaining enthusiasm for all your previous product. a|state sales markedly dropped when I lost enthusiasm for the product. Now that we have put some life back into the game line and I've had my enthusiasm for it revitalised, we've seen sales rocket upwards from their previously moribund state. It's a dramatic and concrete example of why you need to promote your game regularly, if not constantly.
Cheers
Malc
Contested Ground Studios
Right now the AP on a|state is as good as ever
Submitted by Gregor Hutton on Thu, 12/02/2009 - 19:22.
Right now, over at the Contested Ground Forums, the AP of a|state is as good as ever. The detail that people come up with in that game is immense. For players that want to be immersed in a "real" yet "alien/fantastical" world: a|state pushes buttons like a drunk dialler.
[a/state] The City Beneath
Ewan is a guy that just bought the books last year, right? Good stuff never gets old.