IT Startups are often given the advice to make a minimal viable product…
Would this approach work for games?
Edit - This
You mean the approach we recommend to practically every newcomer?
9 Likes
Yes. It’s a reasonably popular concept in games.
Have you not paid attention to any beginners thread anywhere on this forum? 
Edit: Sniped.
1 Like
Now now, you both know that Arowx is too busy making threads to read them.
8 Likes
Do you get an achievement for the number of threads you start or the number that get shut by mods?
4 Likes
There is a game called crime craft, they got such achievements on forum, it’s pretty funny.
1 Like
Can you provide examples of where this has been used?
The only games I know of that were successful using this approach were minecraft, surgeon simulator and dwarf fortress.
Have you seen a forum thread on this specific topic and approach to writing and releasing games, please link to it and don’t reply to this thread.
More personal conversations you can direct to me via the forums conversation system.
Maybe this topic could be moved to the game design forum section as I’m asking from more of how should you design a minimal viable successful game?
What features should a minimal viable game have?
What other problems arise with this approach using Unity e.g. patching, DLC, asset bundles, automatic game updating system?
To be fair there are a number of forum veterans that don’t go near the Getting Started section.
As few as possible? You kinda walked into that one. 
5 Likes
Droll, anyone who has had experience in launching a minimum viable product, using Unity and being successful?
I don’t think there is such thing as minimum viable product in gaming anymore. You did not specify platform and not sure if that even matters. Startup advice about products usually focuses on things like supply and demand which do not really exists in the gaming world. Supply is flooded as there are hundreds or thousands of games pumped on the markets weekly and there is no demand as the players are not really looking for specific thing same way as normal software or consumer products. You can make a few days game project viable with powerful marketing and have one year project polished game disappear in the wind without marketing.
2 Likes
Yeah, loads. Steam early access is pretty much that and in general when you release on early access it’s actually the full launch with a minor spike when you “release”.
Excellent point even a minimal viable product has to stand out in an overcrowded market to be successful.
The extra credits video on MVP is pretty good.
Note the general advice is to build a MVP, not launch it.
3 Likes
You always need the minimum viable, which I consider to be a prototype. Not sure where minimum viable terminology comes from, it just tries to be cool and wears an earring or something. It’s a basic prototype or alpha build that works.
How can you not hit that stage first?
5 Likes
@Kiwasi has and is doing it currently… he made an MVP for his game then recently put it on Steam to see what kind of interest there was and gain feedback from those interested enough to check it out and leave a comment.
2 Likes
Ha ha! Buzzwords! People have got to have the buzzwords and new terms describing the same ole things must continually be created so folks think they have discovered something!
3 Likes
This is true, the term prototype and the term MVP are essentially interchangeable.
It is possible to build a product without going through a prototype stage. It’s kind of crazy, but some people just jump into producing final assets without making sure it’s fun. Often doesn’t work out well.
2 Likes
That’s one way to describe it. I wasn’t specifically aiming for a MVP market test. In fact it really wasn’t about Pond Wars at all.
Mainly it was an experiment, looking to find out how steam works. And I’ll be playing with different publicity measures and watching the stats too. I’ll write a post about it once all the data is in.
It’s one thing to read about how green light works. It’s another thing to go through the process yourself.
5 Likes
Facebook right? Zynga’s core business plan is quick iterative mvp releases, see if there is interest and build upon anything that shows potential.
Here is a student developer releasing weekly mvps.
http://forum.unity3d.com/threads/creating-one-game-a-week-devlog.378083/
Agreed - mvp/prototype success isn’t measured like a finished product. It’s ‘success’ is only measured by - if it is a solid building block to proceed to develop further.
1 Like