......wow.... thats really lame. I mean, I could just start a contest, get 50 people to buy my game then call off the contest because of "lack of interest". I understand the difficulty that indie developers go through trying to get their apps noticed and such, but this is just corrupt.
Wow very true. I was thinking of joining this too. It seemed like a lot of people were interested as well...
Sorry guys. We gave away one price on the first day. We want to promote our game and we want to make good contests, but if we get like 10 emails within 3 days, then it is not worth the effort. There were no 50 downloads. From the 10 emails half of them were people, who had the game with a promo code anyway. And if you downloaded the game just for the contest and you don't like the game, you can always charge back your money from apple. We are not EA to throw money away for nothing. We even gave away iPod Touches in contests, where maybe 20 people participated, but it is not good for us. So if you want free stuff and contests in the future, then participate and show some interest to motivate us. You still can participate in the iTunes giftcard giveaway in this topic: http://forums.toucharcade.com/showthread.php?t=66213 And if you want to win something, then take the rules seriously too. Contests are there to get back something. So if we ask for liking our facebook site, then do it. And if you don't want to like us, because you are just for the prize there, then don't participate. Honesty is the best base for good relationship. You want something, we want something. You do your part, we do our part. You get something, we get something. And if we don't get, what we want, we keep the right to call off the show and you have to live with it, because it doesn't cost you anything, but it costs us too much. So simple is that. And keep in mind, that in this forum are indie developers, who are mostly one man shows with less (or at least not more) money, than you, who try to work hard for your and their enjoyment. So, don't be always just demanding. Cheers
okay, i see your point, but what about the people who've bought your game and done everything fair and square? For these people, they've obeyed the rules and kept their part of the deal! At least compensate us with gifts or something. Also, "And if we don't get, what we want, we keep the right to call off the show and you have to live with it, because it doesn't cost you anything, but it costs us too much." Selfish much? We have to live with it? What? We were never demanding, we just wanted to participate in this giveaway you organized. Since you organized it, I never thought you'd be as lame as closing this down all of a sudden, with only one single winner... That's just low. If you're not doing so well financially, don't close any contest you've set up. Finish any contest with some dignity, then think of some way to help you raise money - a new unique app or something. Don't take it out on us. All we're here to do is help you on your sales and gain some notoriety, so again, the least you could do is repay us. On a side note, 10 participant emails on the first days aren't that bad. You could've given it more time and surely more mail would come! Lastly, i can't help but highlight the fact that your apology post kept implying that we were the ones to blame. "keep in mind, that in this forum are indie developers, who are mostly one man shows with less (or at least not more) money, than you, who try to work hard for your and their enjoyment." Who are you to know about all of us? Don't you think we know how much indie devs dedicate themselves? That's why we're doing this for you! I hope you open your eyes and don't sneak your way out of this. Man up, run this contest and who knows, maybe your app sales will rise. cheers
I know I followed all the rules for this particular contest. I am one of those who have the game through a promo code, but I entered only after you said it was fine and told us to state our iTunes review names. Besides, even if I wanted to buy and pay for the game, I wouldn't be able to anymore. Developers need to announce upfront with a warning that a contest might be canceled due to lack of response. If such an announcement is not made, everyone will only fairly assume that the contest will carry on as advertised. And very frankly, if -- without any prior warning -- a contest is canceled midway, the contest organizer will come across as less than honorable. I understand the difficulties indie developers face, and logically no one will want to pay out more than they can reap. But for those of us who did follow the stated rules for this contest (and not your other contest), it feels as if the contest organizer did not follow their own "rules". If the majority of contests end the way this one did, the result is fewer of us will bother to participate in future contests, which would really be a vicious cycle. Luckily, this is not yet the case. I would also like to add that if the financial expense is too great for your company, then you shouldn't have offered a $9.99 prize per day. It could have been limited to a $0.99 app or one prize for a week. Of course that wouldn't have as great an attention-grabbing effect as a bigger prize, but at least the contest wouldn't have to end in failure.
I agree with what runformoney1110 and cloudcastles said. Stop blaming us for your faults. You will only ruin your reputation by cancelling the contest. It's not about the $.99 that I paid for the app. It's about the idea that you cancelled the contest even for those who did everything correctly. It's truly a shame.
Guys, believe me, I understand your point. I am sorry that I had to cancel this. Probably I would have finished it even with loss of money (as I did with all other contests until now), but the main point is, that the whole thing was technically impossible too. We are a hungary based company, so we have no possibility to maintain an US iTunes account with a credit card. I topped up my US account with iTunes gift card and I believed, I can send gifts to other US accounts this way, but I had to realize, that Apple doesn't allow gifting with iTunes balance. I have sent the money to the first winner via PayPal, but this "solution" would have been a hassle for the long term for everybody. And if the topic was watched over 500 times and our website get visited 3000 times a day and I get 10 emails, then it IS a lack of interest. Sorry. And the "follow the rules" part was never about people, who actually followed the rules, so why even reply? I know and you know who followed the rules and I appreciate it, that you did.
You're practically murdering your credibility. I mean, I know I'll never purchase another app from you nor will I recommend any to people I know... Especially because you tried to pin the blame on us. You should have known about the gifting app rules and regulations before making this contest. Canceling it makes you look sloppy, arrogant, and shallow.
