Since it's quite bananas that a lot of players still do not understand the economy behind game development, I thought it'd be best to just break down a real example of a really successful first-time developer who managed to make a deal with a publisher. They released a critically acclaimed game that sold 2m copies at 20$. How much does the dev actually earn? 🧵THREAD: How Selling 2 Million Copies of Your Game Can Still Leave You Broke Game dev economics are brutal. Let’s break it down. You make a hit. You sell 2M copies. And you still can’t fund your next game. Here’s why: 👇 1. Your game cost $10M to make. A publisher funded it. They also spent $2M on marketing. So you owe them $12M before you see a dime. 2. You price the game at $20. But let’s be real: most sales happen during Steam discounts. Your average sale price ends up around $10. 3. You sell 2 million copies. Success, right? Gross revenue = $20,000,000 4. Now subtract platform fees. Steam takes 30%. $20M – 30% = $14M left 5. Publisher takes first $12M to recoup dev + marketing. You haven’t made a cent yet. 6. That leaves $2M to split. Your deal is 70/30 — in the publisher’s favor. You get $600K. They keep $1.4M. 7. Now subtract tools + taxes. Engine licenses (~$15K) Taxes (~50%) You’re left with ~$292,500 8. So after selling 2M copies... You, the dev, have ~$292K in the bank. Your next game also costs $10M. You’ve got 2.9% of that. 9. You made a hit — and can’t afford to go again. This is the trap: Success doesn’t equal freedom. Not when platforms, discounts, recoup, revenue splits, and taxes eat everything. 10. Want to self-fund your next game? Then your current game has to: • Sell more • Stay at full price • Or be self-published Anything else = the cycle continues. 11. TL;DR: 2 million copies sold $20 million earned $292,500 in your pocket Dev life is way less glamorous than it looks. Stay sharp. Stay indie (if you can). 💀