http://r-stylelab.com/company/blog/mobile-technologies/how-much-does-mobile-game-development-cost
https://venturepact.com/mobile_app_price_calculator
I may not be creating the game/ app fully but it is still very important to understand the budget that I would need to create the fully envisioned. And about how I would be able to fund the game.
By 2018, less than 0.01% of mobile apps will generate enough revenue to cover development and marketing expenses. The growing adoption of smartphones drives competition among vendors, and very few companies will eventually succeed. However, 2016 is going to be a turning point for indie developers – provided they bring their bright app ideas to life. What factors impact mobile game development and design cost?
Developing a mobile game: cost-by-type correlation
The cost of game dev is largely determined by the type of application:
- Casual. A simple solitary game that fits any genre and doesn’t require particular skills to play. A user can pick it up at any time and doesn’t have to save the score at the end of a session. According to James Portnow, the founder of Zero Games, the common features of casual mobile apps include repetitiveness and lack of finality. Most high-grossing freemium games like Candy Crush Saga and Clash of Clans are casual by nature. They employ 2D graphics and possess limited functionality. However, users can access additional features (like rich visuals, high-quality sound, extra lives and special currency) through in-app purchases and upgrades. A typical casual game costs around $ 50 thousand to make. Rovio invested $ 140 million in the Angry Birds app – a project that eventually brought over $ 200 million in revenues in 2012 and has been trending ever since. In most cases, casual apps’ commercial success is driven by clever marketing and easy distribution;
- Social. Such games are simultaneously played by multiple users on social networks like Facebook. They are similar to browser games, accessing limited amount of user data through oAuth protocols and mobile networks like OpenFeint. In terms of infrastructure, a social app incorporates payment tools and stats display mechanisms (to encourage users play & spend more). These apps are usually built with social networks’ development kits (like Facebook SDK), although post-development Facebook API’s integration is also possible. A social game application like Farmville costs $ 100-300 thousand;
- Cross-platform. The games can be played through social networks, mobile apps and web browsers. IT companies release applications for multiple screens in order to reach out to their target audience and expand market presence. Such successful games as Slotomania, Bubble Island and Diamond Dash originally became instant hits on Facebook and moved to iOS and Android later. Cross-platform custom application development requires great expertize in coding and software integration. Thus, a comprehensive gaming solution may cost up to $ 300 thousand;
- Games with complex graphics. Puzzles, shooters and adventure games with elaborate graphics are usually the mobile extensions of popular desktop franchises like Mortal Kombat and Need for Speed. However, there are some console-quality applications designed for mobile devices only – for example, the Badland app for Android, which employs detailed 2D visuals and an inspiring soundtrack. Developing a complex, visually rich mobile game is a time-consuming and expensive process. Thus, a game like Real Racing 2 apparently costs $ 2 million.
Other cost factors behind mobile game development process
- Vendor. Choosing the right developer is the most important business decision you have to make. The stages of game production include marketing research, prototyping, coding, UX/UI design, editing and, finally, testing. The US/EU bids for dev services can be estimated at $ 60-100 thousand a month (or $ 60-150 per man-hour). Thus, an indie shooter like Tower of Guns (3D engine, high-quality images) that took over 3800 man-hours to develop may cost $230-570 thousand. In order to cut dev expenses, many companies outsource game development to Eastern Europe. Countries like Belarus, Poland and Ukraine offer high-profile specialists with great expertise in coding and visual design. Their prices range from $ 25 to $ 50 per man-hour, while the quality of app development meets the high US/EU standards. If you consider outsourcing game dev, it is better to hire a dedicated team and choose the “time-and-material” pricing model. Since most game app projects are subject to changes, the TM approach will allow you to pay only for the actual hours spent on the task;
- Design. The notion doesn’t refer to visuals alone. Mobile game design, as well as development, is a multilayer process which requires assistance of such specialists as game artist, lever editor, UX and UI designers. A game artist sketches ideas and characters, draws scenery and applies textures. A lever editor creates architecture for various segments of an application, including objects and landscapes, and maintains the desired level of complexity. UX and UI designers improve the general feel and layout of a game, respectively. If your app contains two-dimensional images and doesn’t switch levels, you can do without level editing and 3D-modelling (these specialists charge $ 50-150 per man-hour). However, you cannot save on UX, UI and visuals. Every dollar invested in user experience brings $ 100 in return;
- OS. The choice of a platform naturally influences game design and dev costs. The integration of third-party APIs, payment systems and administration features for Android applications is usually 10-20% cheaper (in comparison with iOS). However, it’s not the main point. We strongly recommend that you conduct a comprehensive marketing survey to define your target audience and OS destination. Many successful applications like SongPop initially entered one platform and expanded its OS presence later. Despite the fact that SongPop is no
My app will likely come under the casual game category as this is the cheapest to make and would make the most outcome and get my message across quicker and more efficiently. The costs that I have found for the man hours depends on the developer and how much they charge typically the charge $60-100 thousand per month or $60+ per man hour.
I also found a price calculator to help with budget
Total
$73,970
Platform
Android+$3900
IOS+$3900
Design
Animated UI+$7800
Game Animations+$13000
7 – 12+$5200
Security
Via Social Networks (Facebook, Linkedin, Twitter etc)+$2600
Security Not Important (For initial MVP versions)+$0
Data
Social Networks (Facebook, Linkedin, Twitter etc)+$3380
eCommerce (Payments, BI, Salesforce etc)+$4680
Cloud Database (Fit for simpler MVPs)+$4550
Admin & Other Features
User Management (Manage user’s roles & permissions)+$6370
Reporting and Analytics+$6500
Notification Control+$10010
In-app purchases (Economist, Angry Birds)+$1950
Integration (Marketing automation, CRM)+$130
This data shows that making an app is an expensive process to get a fully realised concept to the market and that is just for making the app the other costs such as marketing is something else.