Hi all!

A week has passed since the release of Blocks That Matter! Let’s go some recap on the reception, the sales and internet coverage.

>> PLAYERS RECEPTION

The reception was pretty good and warm. A lot of people got the mood of the game (a tribute to blocks games) and loved the challenge offered here.

There are also some remarks from players on things that could have been better. Mainly the fact that some chests are not reachable on the first run of a level (you will have to come back later with new abilities), or the fact that some jumps are tricky to perform due to the isometric display of the blocks.

We can measure the tenderness for the game in our French Xbox dashboard where the game is at the head of the top 50 (with a 4.5/5 rating), next to our friends at Arkedo and Pastagames!

In other countries, the numbers are a little bit less good, but still really acceptable:

– UK: 6th of the top 50 with 4.25/5 (next to a great game called Sequence)
– US: 49th of the top 50 with 4/5 (the Xbox dashboard interface shows the first 50 best rated games… so we are close to be outside the charts!)
– Japan: 85th with 3.85/5 (so we are not in the dashboard in top rated section)

There is no rating yet in Spain, Germany, Italy or Canada.

>> SALES

On the sales side, to make it short, and to stay corporate, I would tell that the sales are “BTM”: “Below The Mediocrity”.

Let me show you my Google document chart to illustrate the sales depending the countries:

During this first week, we sold only 443 units!

Here is now a little history day by day, showing the purchase numbers/trials downloads and the conversion rate (between brackets)

– d01 : 113 / 1564 (7.2%)
– d02 : 115 / 1096 (10.4%)
– d03 : 75 / 708 (10.5%)
– d05 : 55 / 503 (10.9%)
– d06 : 45 / 342 (13.1%)
– d07 : 40 / 266 (15%)

– global : 443 / 4479 (9.8%)

No need to be an economist to see that the sales sharply decrease day after day. The only positive point here: the conversion rate increase!

To finish with the numbers section, here is my favorite chart:

To be fairly honest, we didn’t expect to sell an incredible amount of BTM copies during the first week. Our friends at Arkedo and Pastagames told us that this is not a sufficient platform to pay off the development of a game.

However, we didn’t think that the sales numbers will decrease that quick! Maybe the process will be reversed in next weeks if the reviews we saw the last few days give some interest for the player… we will see that and keep you informed!

>> THE STAKES

Releasing BTM on XBLIG was in our opinion the best way to introduce ourself on a digital store and also to show our ability to product a console game (even if XNA is a way more easy place to be compared to more constrained services like XLBA).

We hope get some experience from this release (experience on conception, community building, promotion, sales) and then be more prepared and have more weight and more credibility when we will be searching for a digital distribution platform for the PC version release.

And among sales, the credibility is also brought by what the journalists and blogger thinks about the game.

>> INTERNET COVERAGE

From the moment the game passed the peer review process, and when the trailer was online, we sent the 50 review code to the press from all horizon: big websites, smaller ones, French, English, American… Sometimes with direct answer and feedback, sometimes not.
We were really surprised to see the immediate reaction and enthusiasm of bloggers and some website, and astonished by the no reaction of some bigger websites.

Anyway, we were really pleased to find spontaneous articles on some websites where we didn’t send anything! It’s always putting smiles on our faces to see this!

Here are some links on the internet Blocks That Matter coverage during the first week. The list is not exhaustive and each link comes with a little quote.

“If ever there’s a sequel, they’ll have to refer to their own game among the best games containing Blocks that Matter”
AchievementLocked.co.uk (EN)

“For Blocks That Matter, our first impression was the good one: it’s a success that we hope will get the public attention”
GameSideStory.com (FR)

“(Blocks That Matter) will bring you more fun than some XBLA games even more expensive”
Arunotaku’s Life (FR)

“I didn’t get up to make coffee because of Blocks That Matter.” INDIE GAME OF THE WEEK
Dig Boston (EN)

“If you only buy one indie game this week make sure it’s this one”
Xboxer360.com (EN)

“Charming, colorful, whimsical, and clever. Blocks That Matter is all of these things and then some.” MUST PLAY
CrushFragDestroy.com (EN)

“Don’t miss this one”
Destructoid.com (EN)

“This marvellous slice of originality is a true gem” INDIE GAME TOP PICK
DIY (EN)

“Blocks That Matter is everything you could want from an Indie platformer – and thoroughly deserves to become a breakthrough hit.”
INDIE GAME OF THE WEEK
DealSpwn (EN)

“A game from the heart”
ConsoleSyndrome.com (FR)

“It would be a shame to miss this independent game gem!”
Playitlive.fr

“(BTM) provides a unique experience for gamers wrapped in charming graphic”
GAMINGtruth.com (EN)

“If you had any doubts about the indie scene’s relevance, now would be a fine time to have your preconceptions challenged.” 8/10
Eurogamer.net (EN)

“In the end, BTM is surprising: clearly not at its place on the XBLIG marketplace, where it seems nearly too polished compared to the usual productions”
Barredevie.com (FR)

“BTM mixes platforming and puzzling with a certain verve and a lot of cleverness […] and can be consumed with delight like a bloc of strawberry candy”
Nolife (FR)

“Very pleasing and fascinating, we’re not going to spit out on such a 2D plateformer game, especially from that standing! BTM is one of those games you stuck on for hours. Thanks Swing Swing Submarine, we want some more!”
Gamedice (FR)

This is it for this week! We will try to do the same stuff on the next one!

William
Guillaume