In your Reddit AMA, you emphasized that you share indie games for free and do not charge developers for coverage. How has that shaped the trust around your account, and what do you think developers should understand about building authentic relationships with creators and communities?
Joe Henson: I’ve never charged a developer for coverage and I never will, so when I post a game, everyone knows it’s there because I genuinely like it – I’ve shared hundreds of games now and not one has paid a penny. Nobody’s sat there wondering if it’s an advert. That trust built is the entire account, and it’s why I can be honest – I’m not protecting a client, I’m protecting the audience’s time.
What devs should understand is that creators and communities can tell the difference between a relationship and a transaction. Be a person, not a press release. Watch a creator’s stuff before you pitch them, personalize the message, and make your game easy to cover – a press kit and clips that are simple to grab. And start those relationships months before you need them, because a cold pitch in launch week is asking a stranger for a favor.
For 80 Level’s audience of artists and developers, what is the most practical marketing advice you would give to an indie team that has a strong game but limited time, no dedicated marketer, and a fear of sounding too “salesy” online?
Show, don’t sell. I spent over a decade as a painter and decorator, and nobody ever accused me of being salesy for posting a photo of a finished room, haha. That’s all it needs to be – here’s what I made, here’s what happened when someone played it, here’s what I’m working on next. If you talk like a human who loves the thing you’re building, you can’t really sound salesy – you’re not selling, you’re sharing.
With limited time, do two things. First, sort your Steam page, because every bit of attention you earn gets sent there – a capsule that reads at thumbnail size, a short description that says what the player actually does, your best screenshot first. Second, capture clips while you playtest and post one clip a week with a plain sentence about what’s happening. That’s thirty minutes of marketing a week, and done for a year, it beats a launch-week blitz every time.