🚫 STOP describing your game using other games

Ever read something like this before?

• "It's a mix of Pokémon and Halo."
• "It's like Street Fighter meets Hollow Knight."
• "It's as if Cadash and Neutopia had a baby." (Ever heard of those??)

This is a common problem. Describing your game by listing other games is tempting, but not a good idea, and I'm about to convince you why.

If someone says to you, "Tell me about yourself," hopefully you wouldn't respond and be like, "I'm my mom and my dad." Right? I really hope you would give yourself a characteristic, so do that with games also.

-Dana Trebella

1) It requires your audience to be familiar with those games

OK maybe you're familiar with Pokémon and Halo, but what about Cadash and Neutopia? No? Well, you might have just lost a sale. (I love these games BTW.)

Even if they've heard of one game but not the other, that only paints half a picture for them (and it might be the wrong half).

2) It creates pre-conceived notions, setting high expectations

If you say your game is "Pokémon meets Halo," your players may expect certain things. Pokémon is a world-class game with tons of handcrafted monster designs, amazing music, and the full power of industry juggernaut Nintendo behind it.

Can your game compete with that? Probably not.

You could simply say that you're making a cool indie game about finding monsters to collect. Saying that, instead of name-dropping specific games, comes with less baggage.

3) Players prefer to discover the similarities on their own

Which thought would you rather a player have?

1. "Oh, cool, this game reminds me of my favorite game."
2. "This claims to be like my favorite game but it's (probably) not as good."

When players find their own ways to think about your game, they own that comparison more than they would if you hand fed it to them. It can be like finding a secret in your game.

🐷 Case study: Pixel Washer

My game Pixel Washer is an overhead action game about washing dirty objects. It's a chill, relaxing game, with soothing vibes and simple gameplay.

It's partially inspired by a hit game called PowerWash Simulator, but instead of realistic 3D visuals, my game uses big, chunky pixels like you'd find on retro consoles like Sega Genesis or Super Nintendo.

One obvious way for me to describe my game would be like this:

"Pixel Washer is like PowerWash Simulator meets Stardew Valley."

Let's break this down. What comes to mind when I say PowerWash Simulator? I'll brainstorm some thoughts:

• Power washing
• Soothing sounds and sensations
• Beautifully rendered, realistic 3D graphics
• 40+ hours of gameplay
• Online co-operative gameplay

There's more to the game, for sure, but this is a pretty good list of what players might expect from a game that describes itself as PowerWash Simulator meets X.

Which of these expectations does Pixel Washer meet?

• ✅ Power washing – the core mechanic (and a lotta fun!)
• ✅ Soothing sounds and sensations – lovely to look at and listen to
• ⛔️ Beautifully rendered, realistic 3D graphics – we have beautiful 2D sprites
• ⛔️ 40+ hours of gameplay – As a "solo dev", I'm targeting 5-10 hours
• ⛔️ Online co-operative gameplay – Again, solo dev (but maybe someday!)

So even though PowerWash Simulator helped to inspire Pixel Washer, I want to avoid disappointing players by suggesting that it competes with a AAA title.

Now, say if I were having a conversation with someone, like in a real-life scenario at a conference such as GDC or PAX, and they brought up PowerWash Simulator, then I could maybe say:

"It's like if PowerWash Simulator were made for Super Nintendo."

Since they already brought up PowerWash Simulator, it's fair to own the comparison. I like the mention of Super Nintendo here, because it both firmly positions the game in the pixel art category, and places restrictions on it, such as reducing its scope and removing online multiplayer.

But! There's still the concern that this person has no idea what Super Nintendo is. They're probably familiar with Nintendo, but they might not know or care about consoles that released in the early 1990s.

When you don't know what someone knows, it's best to assume they don't know. (You know?)

How to describe your game instead

Let's skip mentioning other games (or consoles) entirely. Instead, let's focus on the gameplay verbs, and the look and feel of the game.

Here's Pixel Washer's current short description on Steam:

Pixel Washer is a cozy, zen-like game where you play as a cute piggy power washing beautiful pixelated worlds. Wash sprites, upgrade your power washer, and find hidden secrets.

Naturally this is a work-in-progress and I'll continue to update it over time. Mentioning no other games allows me to simply describe what it'll be like to play the game. I can set my own expectations here, I can say things like it's short, or it plays great on Steam Deck, or whatever I want.

Anyone could read this and understand without having significant knowledge of other games or the games industry.

(For more tips on how to make a good Steam page, see my video on the topic.)

Summary

Next time you're tempted to describe your game by mentioning two (or more) other games, consider this:

1. It requires your audience to be familiar with those games
2. It creates pre-conceived notions, setting high expectations
3. Players prefer to discover the similarities on their own

Naturally, some successful devs do this anyway, citing their inspirations in their game descriptions and it's fine. In some cases it might make sense to do this –

Say if you're targeting very specific players like MOBA players, it's a safe bet that they know what League of Legends is, but in most cases, it's best to describe your game as it plays, and leave other games out of the conversation for now.

Let your players find those connections themselves!

Game dev updates

For the first time in a few months, signed copies of How to Make a Video Game All By Yourself are back in stock! I've got just 8 books left. Want one? 📙

I've also turned back on game dev coaching and/or consulting. Talking with me for an hour about your project might be just what you need to push forward. I also follow-up with an email that summarizes our talk, packed with links:

Good luck with your game! If you're looking for a chill hang out for game devs, join the Valadria Discord. Otherwise look for another email in a couple weeks.