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Getting a publisher is a big moment for any indie game developer. But since countless games are on the market today, making your pitch stand out may be the most important thing you can do. As both creators and indie mobile game publishers for over a decade now, we at Mijiba have seen a lot of pitches, and we’ve noticed that the good ones have a few things in common.
In this article, we’ve summed up that knowledge into five essential tips to help you pitch your game and increase your chances of grabbing a publisher’s attention.
1. Showcase Your Team’s Experience
Publishers want to work with developers with a proven track record and specific expertise in game development. They want to see that your team has the strategic and tactical skills to consistently deliver over the long run.
Simply put, publishers are more likely to invest in teams that have proven the capability to execute their vision.
How can you show that you have what it takes? These three steps are a good place to begin:
As humans, we tend to gravitate toward what we know and love, yet we also seek novelty. Micro-innovations—small but meaningful changes to well-known mechanics—can make your game unique, yet still familiar.
Identify core mechanics and start with those that have proven popular and engaging. Then, make it your own: introduce innovative elements that stem from the core mechanic. This could be a new art style, combining two mechanics, unique character abilities, or a fresh narrative approach.
When you pitch a publisher, highlight your innovations. Use comparisons to existing games so they know what to expect and what makes your game unique.
What you’re aiming for is a balance between novelty and familiarity. That’s the sweet spot.
Sun Ke, Head of Strategic Partnerships at Mijiba, explains it like this: “Examples of micro-innovations are two games we have published, Crossy Road and Rodeo Stampede. Crossy Road uses familiar game elements, building on the classic Frogger mechanic, but adds different characters and environments, and players love it. Rodeo Stampede is a running game with a cowboy catching animals. It combines this with a simulation system to raise and collect the animals, creating a unique experience that has also proven very popular. Familiarity and novelty!”
The core gameplay loop is the essence of your game—the primary mechanic that players will engage with again and again. It needs to be polished, engaging, and fun so that players will want to keep coming back. A strong core gameplay loop is the foundation for everything that follows.
Start by focusing on the basics: are your fundamental gameplay mechanics smooth, intuitive, and bug-free? If not, keep at it until they are. Do a lot of playtesting. A publisher certainly will when they are evaluating your pitch! Don’t forget that publishers are gamers too.
Get as much feedback as you can, and use it to continuously iterate and enhance the core loop. Prioritize playability and user experience over adding new features. From the publisher’s perspective, a solid core game loop means better retention, and with a solid game economy built around it, that means a good ROI. At the end of the day, a publisher is making a business decision.
We talked about uniqueness, but in the pitch itself, your USP is more than how unique the game is. This is about the pitch itself.
What is your special sauce? Is it the experience of your team? Is it how your game uses player data to iterate gameplay? Is it the strength of your player community? You need to identify your USP and tie it into the pitch as a “wow” moment.
Via Paradigmid
To create that “wow” moment, you need to become a storyteller. Work on this skill! You may consider a framework like The Hero’s Journey for structuring your pitch, with your USP being that one special thing that has helped you slay all the dragons your team has faced so far.
To reiterate: If you don’t already know how to pitch, learn.
5. Be Ready with Data that Matters
Metrics provide publishers with a clear understanding of the game’s viability and market fit, and they will look at everything as part of their due diligence.
Metrics they will want to see may include, but not be limited to:
They may also want to see churn rate, cost per install (CPI), virality metrics, user acquisition metrics, user feedback and reviews, feature engagement, ad monetization metrics, demographic data, and technical performance metrics.
As for benchmarks, it depends on the publisher. But…better is better, so keep working to improve them (especially retention).
Final Thoughts
Your mobile game publisher pitch is not something to throw together. Remember, you are not just pitching a game; you are pitching a team that built a game, and what makes the whole package unique.
For the game itself, you don’t need to reinvent the wheel. Find that beautiful place where familiarity meets novelty and an addictively fun core game loop. And, from the very beginning, measure everything.
Tie all that together into a well-structured pitch, and your chances of standing out among the crowd go way up.
We hope you’ve found something useful in these tips. Happy pitching!
