Steam Greenlight

Hipolito · Post by **Hipolito** » Sun May 03, 2015 11:59 pm

Top of the page reality check

For 2.5 years now, Steam Greenlight has been a popularity contest for indie developers. It's how Valve shoved off the responsibility of wading through the avalanche of indie games to consumers. Now and then, Valve skims off the top vote-getters and promises to sell them in the lucrative Steam Store if the developers would just finish them. (Only about 1 in 5 do.)

Since its inception, Greenlight has been called "broken." The developers say it's unfair. The Steam users say that there are too many awful games to wade through. Even Valve said that it will replace Greenlight with something better.

Greenlight hardly gets any coverage in gaming press and blogs. The cabal of dedicated Greenlight voters like me is probably tiny. There used to be a few people in various corners of the Internet writing about their Greenlight picks, but I and this other fellow may be the only ones left.

And yet, Greenlight lives on. If you're an indie developer who doesn't have an in with Valve, you have to pay the $100 cover and join the Greenlight queue. If your game is spectacular, already has a strong community, or appeals to prurient otakus, you'll only wait a few days. Otherwise, you might wait months, even years, but you will get in eventually if your game is halfway decent.

I sometimes think about hanging up my Greenlight reporter's fedora, as I'm probably not making much of a difference. But I still enjoy going through Greenlight and feeling the pulse of the indie scene. And I like sharing my recommendations with you cuties! So I suppose I'll continue.

I've been posting "pick of the week" recommendations lately, but I still maintain Lime Greenlight, my running list of voting recommendations for Steam Greenlight games. You can access Lime Greenlight in 2 ways:
- [url=steam://url/CommunityFilePage/206890132]Steam client link[/url] (actually opens in your Steam client. Linux users: if it asks you to locate the application, try: File System -> usr -> bin -> steam)
- Web browser link (opens in your web browser!)

Even though I might write about only one game a week here, there are usually 2-4 games a week I find worthy of putting in Lime Greenlight. And, conveniently, I stick my latest recommendations at the top of the list. So check that out whenever you're slavering for more voting recommendations.

Greenlight Updates: Valve doesn't make Greenlight announcements anymore, but this website provides the latest on what's been greenlit.

Let's get to this week's pick!

Civil War: Bull Run 1861: Turn-based, hex-based wargame focused on the first major battle of the American Civil War. To quote Abraham Lincoln, "That is cool!"
[url=steam://url/CommunityFilePage/436997215]Steam client link[/url]
Browser link

MindToyGames · Post by **MindToyGames** » Mon May 04, 2015 10:59 am

Hipolito wrote:Top of the page reality check
Since its inception, Greenlight has been called "broken." The developers say it's unfair. The Steam users say that there are too many awful games to wade through. Even Valve said that it will replace Greenlight with something better.

It is a popularity contest, broken and unfair, and always has been. It's Valve's way of "thinning the herd", but all it usually does is thin out developers who don't have the time, connections or money to get enough eyes and votes to make it onto Steam.

In a recent email convo I had with their "release team", they basically admitted it has "a number of flaws and issues" and they're "considering alternatives". This is after I requested being able to submit directly with my next project rather than going through Greenlight again. I figured between bundles and direct sales, over 14,600 copies of my current game in a few months would be enough to at least consider it. Nope, gotta go through the Greenlight thing again. They said these days they don't accept games directly without really huge sales backing it up, and rarely make exceptions aside from special circumstances. Argh.

Hipolito · Post by **Hipolito** » Mon May 04, 2015 7:30 pm

MindToyGames wrote:It is a popularity contest, broken and unfair, and always has been. It's Valve's way of "thinning the herd", but all it usually does is thin out developers who don't have the time, connections or money to get enough eyes and votes to make it onto Steam.

In a recent email convo I had with their "release team", they basically admitted it has "a number of flaws and issues" and they're "considering alternatives". This is after I requested being able to submit directly with my next project rather than going through Greenlight again. I figured between bundles and direct sales, over 14,600 copies of my current game in a few months would be enough to at least consider it. Nope, gotta go through the Greenlight thing again. They said these days they don't accept games directly without really huge sales backing it up, and rarely make exceptions aside from special circumstances. Argh.

Thanks for sharing your Greenlight experience as a dev. Yeah, it is annoying that you have to go through Greenlight again. But with the user base you've built up plus your reputation for customer service, hopefully the wait next time will be shorter.

I just noticed that even the developer of the very popular Five Nights at Freddy's series has had to go through Greenlight each time. That's pretty odd. Though it's just speculation on my part, maybe he doesn't have to go through Greenlight, but is choosing to for marketing reasons.

Hipolito · Post by **Hipolito** » Sun May 10, 2015 8:33 pm

This week's pick is Goblin Quest: Escape! An isometric action RPG in which you're a defenseless goblin. Run past enemies instead of fighting them, and spend your loot on healing and protective clothes.

[url=steam://url/CommunityFilePage/432760428]Steam client link[/url]
Browser link

Hipolito · Post by **Hipolito** » Sun May 17, 2015 3:49 pm

Lord of Dwarves: Because another attempt to capture the magic of Dwarf Fortress can't hurt, much.

[url=steam://url/CommunityFilePage/441670120]Steam client link[/url]
Browser link

Other Greenlight news
- The excellent shmup Warblade has finally been Greenlit. Sadly, the developer, Edgar Vigdal, passed away a few weeks ago. I don't know whether anyone will take over and get Warblade into the Steam Store, and direct orders for the game aren't being filled for the moment. You can get it on iTunes, though. May God greenlight your soul to heaven, Edgar.
- This game is doing well enough to assure it'll be Greenlit quickly, but damn, look at Umbra. A Diablo-like action RPG made in CryEngine and featuring ragdoll physics. It's like pow, right in your face, man.

Hipolito · Post by **Hipolito** » Sun May 24, 2015 11:36 am

Eczema Angel Orifice: A compilation of hypertext adventures that are sure to be surreal and gender-introspective, by acclaimed authoress Porpentine.

[url=steam://url/CommunityFilePage/447393736]Steam client link[/url]
Browser link

Hipolito · Post by **Hipolito** » Sun May 31, 2015 3:38 pm

Baseball Mogul Diamond: The 17th iteration of this stat-loaded sports sim. Backwards compatible with previous Baseball Mogul games.

[url=steam://url/CommunityFilePage/449904616]Steam client link[/url]
Browser link

Hipolito · Post by **Hipolito** » Sun Jun 07, 2015 3:11 pm

It's Sim Day! Here are three new Greenlight entries for sims that look realistic (or at least cool).

Fishing Planet: Free-to-play multiplayer fishing sim.
[url=steam://url/CommunityFilePage/456473697]Steam client link[/url]
Browser link

Mu Complex: Hacking sim that'll help you learn Linux.
[url=steam://url/CommunityFilePage/456119794]Steam client link[/url]
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Warhawks European Theater: WWII dogfighting sim that'll use the Oculus Rift and HTC/Valve Vive Headsets
[url=steam://url/CommunityFilePage/372180876]Steam client link[/url]
Browser link

paulbaxter · Post by **paulbaxter** » Sun Jun 07, 2015 3:53 pm

Hipolito wrote:Lord of Dwarves: Because another attempt to capture the magic of Dwarf Fortress can't hurt, much.

[url=steam://url/CommunityFilePage/441670120]Steam client link[/url]
Browser link

Other Greenlight news
- The excellent shmup Warblade has finally been Greenlit. Sadly, the developer, Edgar Vigdal, passed away a few weeks ago. I don't know whether anyone will take over and get Warblade into the Steam Store, and direct orders for the game aren't being filled for the moment. You can get it on iTunes, though. May God greenlight your soul to heaven, Edgar.
- This game is doing well enough to assure it'll be Greenlit quickly, but damn, look at Umbra. A Diablo-like action RPG made in CryEngine and featuring ragdoll physics. It's like pow, right in your face, man.

Sorry to hear about Vigdal. I played a LOT of Warblade back in the day. I'm pretty sure it will remain the deepest galaxian clone for quite some time to come.

Hipolito · Post by **Hipolito** » Sun Jun 14, 2015 1:19 pm

Give your click-finger a break from Steam's Monster Summer Game and vote for 10 Minute Barbarian, a very simple but fun King's Bounty/HOMM-like game where you roam the land for troops and watch them clash in real-time battles against enemy strongholds.

[url=steam://url/CommunityFilePage/459593553]Steam client link[/url]
Browser link
Browser-based demo

Hipolito · Post by **Hipolito** » Sun Jun 21, 2015 3:05 pm

Infection: Humanity's Last Gasp: Slick adaptation of a board game in which you research and try to eliminate a deadly, evolving virus.

[url=steam://url/CommunityFilePage/461781210]Steam client link[/url]
Browser link

jztemple2 · Post by **jztemple2** » Sun Jun 21, 2015 3:12 pm

Hipolito wrote:Infection: Humanity's Last Gasp: Slick adaptation of a board game in which you research and try to eliminate a deadly, evolving virus.

[url=steam://url/CommunityFilePage/461781210]Steam client link[/url]
Browser link

The browser link points to 10 Minute Barbarian

Hipolito · Post by **Hipolito** » Sun Jun 21, 2015 3:54 pm

jztemple2 wrote:
Hipolito wrote:Infection: Humanity's Last Gasp: Slick adaptation of a board game in which you research and try to eliminate a deadly, evolving virus.

[url=steam://url/CommunityFilePage/461781210]Steam client link[/url]
Browser link
The browser link points to 10 Minute Barbarian :oops:

Thanks for catching that. Fixed.

You have failed me for the last time, Ctrl-V.

Hipolito · Post by **Hipolito** » Sun Jun 28, 2015 1:08 pm

Salvaged: Real-time tactical game of shooting aliens in corridors, with the option of incorporating a tablet or VR headset.

[url=steam://url/CommunityFilePage/245612441]Steam client link[/url]
Browser link

raydude · Post by **raydude** » Sun Jun 28, 2015 2:07 pm

Hipolito wrote:Top of the page reality check

I sometimes think about hanging up my Greenlight reporter's fedora, as I'm probably not making much of a difference. But I still enjoy going through Greenlight and feeling the pulse of the indie scene. And I like sharing my recommendations with you cuties! So I suppose I'll continue.

Please realize that you do make a difference, IMHO. Because of you I have already made a list of greenlit games to follow up on once they become available. I would never have known about mu complex, infection: humanity's last gasp , or salvaged except for your posts. If I buy them then the developers would be making a sale that otherwise wouldn't have occurred if not for the efforts of people like you. My family and work commitments mean that my limited free time is usually spent to playing games but I will attempt to pay it forward by spending a few minutes each week and voting.

JetFred · Post by **JetFred** » Sun Jun 28, 2015 2:13 pm

I check out every link you post, to redeem myself for unashamedly whoring out my votes for any game given to me DRM-free in a bundle.

jztemple2 · Post by **jztemple2** » Sun Jun 28, 2015 2:46 pm

Hipolito wrote:Salvaged: Real-time tactical game of shooting aliens in corridors, with the option of incorporating a tablet or VR headset.

[url=steam://url/CommunityFilePage/245612441]Steam client link[/url]
Browser link

Looks like an interesting game so I voted for it, but I hope they aren't extending themselves by trying to add too many play modes.

Hipolito · Post by **Hipolito** » Sun Jun 28, 2015 6:55 pm

raydude wrote: Please realize that you do make a difference, IMHO.

Thank you, raydude and everyone else giving feedback. This is very encouraging. I still enjoy Greenlight voting and making recommendations, but there are times when I'm looking at the 10th not-even-trying zombie shooter in a row and thinking "Why am I still doing this?" and last week was one of those times.

Grifman · Post by **Grifman** » Sun Jun 28, 2015 7:17 pm

Hipolito wrote:Salvaged: Real-time tactical game of shooting aliens in corridors, with the option of incorporating a tablet or VR headset.

[url=steam://url/CommunityFilePage/245612441]Steam client link[/url]
Browser link

Thanks for sharing this, looks interesting, will continue to follow.

MindToyGames · Post by **MindToyGames** » Wed Jul 01, 2015 10:15 am

Hipolito wrote:
raydude wrote: Please realize that you do make a difference, IMHO.
Thank you, raydude and everyone else giving feedback. This is very encouraging. I still enjoy Greenlight voting and making recommendations, but there are times when I'm looking at the 10th not-even-trying zombie shooter in a row and thinking "Why am I still doing this?" and last week was one of those times.

Good lord, yes. I recently submitted my second game to Greenlight: (ahem, on topic

): http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/f ... =471942448 and took a look around Greenlight to see what was up, my competition, I suppose. I'm a big indie game supporter, but after 37 games watching the videos and reading the full descriptions, I was pretty disappointed. Pretty much similar kinds of stuff, 8-bit platformers, horror/survival shooters made with Unity, anime RPG's made with stock RPG Maker assets, and weird psychedelic puzzle games. Maybe 3 interested me, and I play a wide variety of stuff.

Quick interesting stat: The average Greenlight Yes to No ratio right now, for the Top 50, is:
Yes: 3,431 (27% of total)
No: 9,053 (73% of total)
I puzzled at this, until I saw what the choices were. I admire your reports and courage, Hipolito, for sure!

jztemple2 · Post by **jztemple2** » Wed Jul 01, 2015 11:57 am

MindToyGames wrote: I recently submitted my second game to Greenlight: (ahem, on topic ): http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/f ... =471942448

Also on topic

I voted yes for it, looking interesting and hey, it's not an 8--bit zombie shooter!

tgb · Post by **tgb** » Wed Jul 01, 2015 2:46 pm

Voted yes as well

Hipolito · Post by **Hipolito** » Wed Jul 01, 2015 7:14 pm

MindToyGames wrote: I recently submitted my second game to Greenlight: (ahem, on topic :D ): http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/f ... =471942448

YOU made this?! Fantastic. I was looking at it last night and thinking yeah, this is probably going to be my next pick. So unless Grimoire gets submitted this week, consider yourself a lock.

MindToyGames · Post by **MindToyGames** » Wed Jul 01, 2015 8:49 pm

Hipolito wrote:
MindToyGames wrote: I recently submitted my second game to Greenlight: (ahem, on topic ): http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/f ... =471942448
YOU made this?! Fantastic. I was looking at it last night and thinking yeah, this is probably going to be my next pick. So unless Grimoire gets submitted this week, consider yourself a lock.

Thanks, much appreciated! That would definitely be a big help.
Yes, I made this and i'm pretty proud of how it turned out. Hopefully I can snag enough votes to make this a fairly quick process this time (Streets of Chaos took 5 months to get greenlit).
Grimoire? It would be just like Cleve to surface and steal my spotlight! That is, if the internet in his bomb bunker works.

Hipolito · Post by **Hipolito** » Sun Jul 05, 2015 1:36 pm

Redemption: Eternal Quest: Create a roster of RPG characters and watch them grow and age as you send them on adventures. By one of us!

[url=steam://url/CommunityFilePage/471942448]Steam client link[/url]
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Also of note: Revolution : Virtual Playspace, which is an editable simulator of miniatures games, like Tabletop Simulator is for board games.

[url=steam://url/CommunityFilePage/471590669]Steam client link[/url]
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Hipolito · Post by **Hipolito** » Sun Jul 12, 2015 1:15 pm

Real Lives 2010: Educational life simulator in which you live out the life of a randomly generated person born somewhere in the world. Make decisions to deal with your economic, health, family, and geopolitical situation.

[url=steam://url/CommunityFilePage/476203114]Steam client link[/url]
Browser link

jztemple2 · Post by **jztemple2** » Sun Jul 12, 2015 2:29 pm

Hipolito wrote:Real Lives 2010: Educational life simulator in which you live out the life of a randomly generated person born somewhere in the world. Make decisions to deal with your economic, health, family, and geopolitical situation.

[url=steam://url/CommunityFilePage/476203114]Steam client link[/url]
Browser link

Hmm, doesn't really sound like a lot of fun, at least not for me. Going to have to vote no thanks on that one.

JetFred · Post by **JetFred** » Sun Jul 12, 2015 2:50 pm

I hate certain types of face renderings (in this case it's probably the uncanny valley) as well as some less realistic styles that are still supposed to represent normal people. That being said, if the game has images from different countries and fairly specific cultural events, it could be more educational than fun, but fascinating. Seems like something that could be really poorly done, too, though. Not sure about the direct dependence on Google maps and Flickr, as good as those can be most of the time.

JetFred · Post by **JetFred** » Wed Jul 15, 2015 3:40 pm

Redemption is in the current ultra-cheap Groupees greenlight bundle.

Hipolito · Post by **Hipolito** » Sun Jul 19, 2015 2:35 pm

Balrum: Rejoin civilization after a 20-year forest exile in this isometric RPG with turn-based combat. Build a home, run a farm, have a pet, go questing and dungeoning. Looks great! (And if this doesn't make up for last week, I'll eat my mouse.)

[url=steam://url/CommunityFilePage/483253619]Steam client link[/url]
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jztemple2 · Post by **jztemple2** » Sun Jul 19, 2015 2:39 pm

Looks very promising! Definitely interested.

MindToyGames · Post by **MindToyGames** » Mon Jul 27, 2015 9:41 pm

Hipolito wrote:Redemption: Eternal Quest: Create a roster of RPG characters and watch them grow and age as you send them on adventures. By one of us!

[url=steam://url/CommunityFilePage/471942448]Steam client link[/url]
Browser link

It got Greenlit today, thanks for the notice, Hipolito! 28 days, not bad. Much better than the 4 1/2 months for Streets of Chaos. lol

JetFred · Post by **JetFred** » Mon Jul 27, 2015 10:32 pm

I don't know if you WANT the cheap route advertised or not, but it's in another ultra-cheap bundle here.

MindToyGames · Post by **MindToyGames** » Mon Jul 27, 2015 10:48 pm

JetFred wrote:I don't know if you WANT the cheap route advertised or not, but it's in another ultra-cheap bundle here.

I thought i'd need it to get greenlit, but it turns out the first one was enough.

Hipolito · Post by **Hipolito** » Sun Aug 02, 2015 3:52 pm

The Consuming Shadow: This sidescrolling horror game may not look like much, but it's by Ben "Yahtzee" Croshaw of Zero Punctuation and 5 Days a Stranger fame.

[url=steam://url/CommunityFilePage/469475287]Steam client link[/url]
Browser link

jztemple2 · Post by **jztemple2** » Sun Aug 02, 2015 5:18 pm

Hipolito wrote:The Consuming Shadow: This sidescrolling horror game may not look like much, but it's by Ben "Yahtzee" Croshaw of Zero Punctuation and 5 Days a Stranger fame.

[url=steam://url/CommunityFilePage/469475287]Steam client link[/url]
Browser link

Well, that's... interesting. Not really my cup of tea, but does look like it has some interesting production value.

I guess it could count on getting at least one positive review

Hipolito · Post by **Hipolito** » Sun Aug 09, 2015 9:56 pm

Block'hood: City builder in which you focus on a city block instead of a whole metropolitan area. Manage resources and discover hidden inhabitants by using certain combinations of building blocks and resources.

[url=steam://url/CommunityFilePage/453456723]Steam client link[/url]
Browser link

jztemple2 · Post by **jztemple2** » Sun Aug 09, 2015 10:08 pm

Hipolito wrote:Block'hood: City builder in which you focus on a city block instead of a whole metropolitan area. Manage resources and discover hidden inhabitants by using certain combinations of building blocks and resources.

[url=steam://url/CommunityFilePage/453456723]Steam client link[/url]
Browser link

A very interesting take on a city builder! I like this approach and it's a definite "Yes" vote for me.

Hipolito · Post by **Hipolito** » Sun Aug 16, 2015 12:11 pm

Starship: Invasion: Four-player co-op Homeworld-like game in which each player controls a capital ship and helps fight off waves of enemies.

[url=steam://url/CommunityFilePage/496377386]Steam client link[/url]
Browser link

weashell · Post by **weashell** » Fri Aug 21, 2015 1:01 pm

For your shiny list, Overfall