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A survey of investors and funders that support games developers discusses the most common mistakes made when applying for financial aid.
A major problem is that many developers are asking for investment and funding too early in the project, according to Tandem Events, organisers of both this survey and the Games Funding Forum.
"“Developers need to understand at what point it is appropriate to approach a VC for investment,” said Merica Fund Management investment manager Josh Levy.
“Although we’re always on the look out for good ideas, we really need to see some evidence of traction beyond the concept phase. We deploy our capital to help accelerate the growth of a proven business model, so unless you’ve got a handle on your monetisation, it’s probably still too early.
"Because the amounts of money we invest at the seed and early stage are relatively small, we need to make sure the money is not being used to fund you through the learning phase or to fund the build of an MVP or prototype.”
Other common mistakes identified included asking companies to invest in a game rather than a business, and providing investors with too much information. Developers were advised to keep their pitches simple and concise – a maximum of 10 to 15 pages.
The subject – and many others related to investment – will be discussed further at the Games Funding Forum on October 23rd. You can find out more at the half-day conference’s official website.
Develop readers get 10 per cent of tickets with the code GFFDEV.
