

The straight-forward answer is: they will, under the right circumstances.

But let’s not get ahead of ourselves. Let’s talk about you, the developer, first.



Imagine you’re walking down the street, you’ve just received your paycheck of the week, and you’re going down to the bank to pay a couple of bills.



Just as you’re rounding the corner, someone you’ve never seen before stops you and says:



“Hey, so, I’m planning to start this detox juice store- this place just became available for renting and it’s a steal. I love juice and fruits, and me and my friends subscribe to Diet Now magazine so we know a lot about nutrition. Also, when we had a lemonade stand back in elementary school, we sold like 300 lemonades in a week. So, here’s the plan: you give me your paycheck and your next four paychecks, and then when our store becomes super famous, you’ll be rich.”



Now, I’m going to take a wild guess here and imagine your answer would be ‘no’.



First of all, who the hell is this kid?

Second, what do you care about Detox Juice?

Third, if you were going to spend your precious paycheck on anything other than your bills, it’d be to help your wife start that lovely coffee shop she’s wanted to open for years.

And fourth, why don’t they get a loan at the bank???



You see where I’m going with this?



But you don’t understand! My game is really good and-

You know what extremely successful games and extremely unsuccessful games all have in common? The person creating them thought it would be the next League of Legends. Or, you know, that it’d at least pay for itself.

Sad truth is: most games will never even see the light of day, let alone become a success even when they are good!



So you’re saying I shouldn’t approach an artist with a rev-share idea?

No.

What I’m saying is, if you are going to approach an artist with a rev share idea, you need to be aware of what you’re actually asking them.

While you think you’re asking “Hey, want to work on a really awesome game and then get a lot of money???”

What you’re really asking is “Hi, can I borrow $5000 dollars?”



Let’s go back to our Detox Juice scenario, but now we’re going to look at it from an artist’s perspective.



1) Who the hell is this kid this developer?



Why would a professional artist ever work on an extremely risky project with a person they have never met?

Why would an artist give their time to someone who just proved, by approaching them with such an offer in the first place, that they are actually quite naïve and are just starting out in the industry?

Seasoned developers know what they’re doing: they know how much art cost, they know how contracts work, and they know there is no such thing as a guaranteed hit.



2) What do you care about Detox Juice someone else’s personal project? If you were going to spend your precious paycheck time on anything other than your regular paid work, it’d be to help your wife start that lovely coffee shop she’s work on that graphic novel you’ve wanted to create for years.



I’ll take a shot in the dark here: 99,99% of artists are creative people. Creative people create stuff.

Most artists have their own comic, novel, game, art book, film, even music that they would kill to have time to work on.

No matter how strange it sounds: a lot of artists cannot afford to buy their own time.



So why, why in the name of all things holy would they take that precious, almost non-existent free time to work on someone else’s idea? (spoiler: they would not)



3) Why don’t they get a loan at the bank???



Now, if you’ve made it this far into the article, good for you! Because here’s where the tough love stops, and the helpful advice begins. (ok, there’s still a bit of tough love coming, but bear with me).

This is the single most important point in this whole text: Why should an artist, who has never met you, who does not have any personal investment in your project, be the one to get a loan to make your game happen?

If anyone should be taking any financial risk here, that person is you.

If you’re so sure your game is going to make the cut, that your film will be the next Avatar, that your comic will make Marvel and DC want to cry, then put your money where your mouth is.



And here’s how to make that happen even if you’re a teenager living in your mother’s basement:



-Get crowdfunded:

These days, you don’t even need to reach into your actual pocket! You can pitch your project to your audience, show them how awesome your IP is and get them to fund the entire production process.

This is also an awesome tool to simulate the success your future project will have: are people actually interested in it? Are people willing to pay for it? Is this product unique enough to stand out? Are you actually organized enough to do this? Do you have a realistic plan? Do you know the logistics behind what you’re attempting to do?



-Get a personal loan:

You know the different between an artist and a Bank? Banks are there to lend you money.



-Get a really, really personal loan:

Can’t get a bank to help you? Aren’t old enough for that? Pitch your idea to your family, to your friends, to people who love you and care about you and your projects. They’re a thousand times more likely to reach into their pockets than a stranger on the internet is.



-Work and save up:

Is this really important to you? Then make a realistic plan out of it and commit to creating a fund for your project.



But I just wanted a team/I’m a student/I’m just starting out/I’m doing this on my free time:

Here’s the good news: so are a lot of other people.

There are 4398753452948796709347 forums on this internet dedicated exclusively to indie development. Go out there and find your indie team, be awesome, take over the world, etc etc.



TL;DR:



Do:

-Find other hobbyists/students who want to be in a team for free

-Be honest and upfront about your rev-share intentions

-Tag your post according to whatever forum/board rules you’re posting on

-Join indie forums and appropriate communities

-If you still decide to approach a strange artist on the net: do it with the same attitude and grace you would use when asking a stranger to lend you money. Because that is what you are doing.

Do not:

-Offer “exposure”. This means the same thing as “monopoly money”

-Ignore forum rules and post in the wrong places. By most job forums rules, rev-share/royalty posts are not considered job offers. Respect that.

-Approach artists that have clearly stated they do not work with rev-share/royalties

-Withhold information and/or try to pass off your rev-share/royalty project as anything other than what it is.

-Prey on the naïve. That’s just sad, bro.





That said, good luck and don’t give up ;)

