Helium Rain [Steam, Official Site], the gorgeous space sim from Deimos Games is really quite good so it's a shame they've seen such low overall sales. In total, they've had around 14,000€ (~$17,000) in sales which is not a lot for a game at all.
The good news, is that out of the two thousand copies they say they've sold, a huge 14% of them have come from Linux. It's worth noting, that number has actually gone up since we last spoke to them, where they gave us a figure of 11% sales on Linux.
They also said this, which was nice:
Linux is now a first-class citizen too, thanks to volunteer players who helped fix issues on their platform.
You might think "well, considering how high their Linux sales are, shouldn't they fix the issues themselves?" and it's a good question. However, they're also keen to remind eveyone, that their source code is up on GitHub. Anyone can come along and suggest fixes and working with the community is a great thing.
Here's a reminder of what you can see in the game:
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Direct Link
Direct Link
They also said they plan to leave Early Access at the end of the summer, so hopefully their final release goes down well with people holding off while it's in development.
See the full update on Steam.
Thanks for the tip, TapocoL!
Article taken from GamingOnLinux.com.
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lucifertdark Apr 21, 2018
It's on my list of games to buy asap.
6 Likes, Who?
I think the lack of sales so far is caused by the game not being advertised enough. Before I read here about the game a few months ago I never even heard of it, and since then I haven't seen it advertised anywhere or at least mentioned in one of the gaming magazines. They seriously should consider ramping up their marketing.
1 Likes, Who?
I added it in my steam follow list. Looks promising, but I tend to refrain myself to buy early access games.
Don't get me wrong, sometimes early access is done right, moreover it's a good way to help small development studio; But I've seen many games stucked in early access and never finished. It kinda feels like gambling.
Don't get me wrong, sometimes early access is done right, moreover it's a good way to help small development studio; But I've seen many games stucked in early access and never finished. It kinda feels like gambling.
0 Likes
Hi, dev here - thanks for the kind words !
Just to clarify, we thank volunteers who helped us track issues down, but issues were always fixed on our side. We're not asking anyone to do our job for us ! We're just very happy that some users could help us by providing very detailed debugging information or by testing specific versions of the game.
Just to clarify, we thank volunteers who helped us track issues down, but issues were always fixed on our side. We're not asking anyone to do our job for us ! We're just very happy that some users could help us by providing very detailed debugging information or by testing specific versions of the game.
35 Likes, Who?
Ahh clarifaction from the dev this is the type of relationship we want as linux gamers ones that are happy to take bug reports etc. Not one that shoves a linux port out then clasps their hands together and go well linux port is done no reason to ever come to that.
2 Likes, Who?
I'll buy it later this month :)
Update: Done :P
Last edited by minkiu on 25 April 2018 at 6:59 pm UTC
Update: Done :P
Last edited by minkiu on 25 April 2018 at 6:59 pm UTC
4 Likes, Who?
Hi Stranger, thank you for chiming in! This game totally looks like my cup of tea! I will probably it at a later date, when my PC gets an overdue upgrade (look at those GPU and RAM prices :'().
I must say that I really like to have the convenience of steam and the freedom of GOG. It looks like the GOG release is not up to you, but is the Steam version DRM-free? Ideally, the game would be accepted on GOG and I could purchase it once to get it in both stores (did you think about HumbleBundle?).
Last edited by MayeulC on 21 April 2018 at 1:04 pm UTC
I must say that I really like to have the convenience of steam and the freedom of GOG. It looks like the GOG release is not up to you, but is the Steam version DRM-free? Ideally, the game would be accepted on GOG and I could purchase it once to get it in both stores (did you think about HumbleBundle?).
Last edited by MayeulC on 21 April 2018 at 1:04 pm UTC
1 Likes, Who?
Hi, dev here - thanks for the kind words !Great to see you here :)
Just to clarify, we thank volunteers who helped us track issues down, but issues were always fixed on our side. We're not asking anyone to do our job for us ! We're just very happy that some users could help us by providing very detailed debugging information or by testing specific versions of the game.
Just to be clear, the way I wrote the bit about fixing issues yourselves was meant as a jokey way :)
1 Likes, Who?
I meant to buy this game after I finished "Everspace" but since it was early access and there were so many other upcoming titles on the horizon, I decided to wait for a bit. I will certainly purchase it soon though.
2 Likes, Who?
I have had this on my wishlist for months. The latest combat video sold me, even though I'm not much of a combat type of guy. Looks very well done, and the sound effects too. Just bought it. Thanks for the reminder Liam!
0 Likes
This game looks really good - wishlisted, and will buy on final release.
It mentions Joystick support; can it be calibrated, and can you assign axes and buttons as needed?
It mentions Joystick support; can it be calibrated, and can you assign axes and buttons as needed?
0 Likes
GustyGhost Apr 21, 2018
It almost has the same exact stylization as Astrokill.
0 Likes
Bought it a while ago, haven't had a chance to play yet but it seems neat and developer seems like good people. Hope this gets found by a wider community so devs can make a bit of dough, even if (sigh) that means the Linux percentage falls some. Marketing is kind of a dirty word to me, but you play the game with the rules as they exist--want sales, gonna need a bit of that stuff.
0 Likes
Hi Stranger, thanks for Linux open source game for low, round price (and not that stupid prices x.99). Only thing missing for my 100% happiness is DRM-free (GOG?) version. Once it become available, I will buy it for full price!
0 Likes
Already bought, played, enjoyed, advertized, and i'm only waiting for full release to replay it to avoid being "burned" while in Early Access.
I really liked it so far.
I really liked it so far.
1 Likes, Who?
I've seen the question asked, so no, we're not using the Steam DRM features. I haven't tested in depth but I believe the game should run just fine without Steam started either. We'd love to have a GOG release when we exit Early Access, though it's not up to us for now :)
9 Likes, Who?
TheRiddick Apr 21, 2018
In early access period you can't expect much these days, lots of people have been burnt so low sales for a small developer is not surprising.
I've been burnt at least twice with early access myself.
I've been burnt at least twice with early access myself.
2 Likes, Who?
Interesting to note, but have heard from more then one developer that Linux sales are higher then they expected by far of the 1% claims of windows fan boys.
0 Likes
We'd love to have a GOG release when we exit Early Access, though it's not up to us for now :)
You can try itch.io for in development versions (it should be quite easy) or even your own site. So those who buy DRM-free releases only won't need to wait.
Last edited by Shmerl on 22 April 2018 at 3:10 am UTC
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