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[GAME] Pre-Civil War Events (the game)

I am a fairly new developer, I currently have three published apps (two of which are paid apps) and I have not had much success with my paid apps (literally one download between both of my paid apps.) My developer name is FullMetalDev.
Pre-Civil War Events (the game)
Perfect for those taking any U.S. History, American History, or A.P. U.S. American History class, its even great for the history junkies.
I have a new application called "Pre-Civil War Events (the game)" that is almost finished and ready to publish to the market. It is a game similar to that of Jeopardy but you are being asked questions regarding the events leading up to the U.S. Civil War. It requires froyo(2.2) or higher and adobe flash player 10.1. Currently it contains multiple choice questions, fill in the blank, and short answer questions.
Due to my lack of success with paid applications in the Android Market, I am asking this: Would anyone be interested in this app after it is published? (this is just to get an idea of whether its worth it to continue the project or not)
Also, any suggestions would be appreciated.

Not with the current ui design... concept is not bad though
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Why the apps having the worst users' reviews are shown as "Recommended Apps" ???

Why the apps having the worst users' reviews are shown as "Recommended Apps" ???
Hello,
How are the "Recommended Apps" selected by the Marketplace?
I am tired to see all the apps having actually the worst users' reviews be selected by Micorosoft and promoted on the Marketplace.
For instance, this week I see as recommended the games "Castlevana Puzzles" (rated only 1 star over 5) and "Deer Hunter" (rated only 1.5 star over 5) !!! Most reviews of these games state that they are not very good.
So therefore, by WHOM are they recommended ? I wonder. Not by the users for sure.
In my opinion the most important opinion is the customers' one.
MS, please stop 'recommending' apps that the users said they don't like.
How to find on the Marketplace only the apps that the USERS RECOMMEND (not MS), that is to say the ones with 3, 4 or 5 stars?
Thank you

I believe it is based on the number of downloads, which is a completely different metric from the ratings.

Jim Coleman said:
I believe it is based on the number of downloads, which is a completely different metric from the ratings.
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I don't think so. My app appeared on the featured list once for a while and it only has <100 downloads to this date!
It looks to be fairly random to me.

Blade0rz said:
I don't think so. My app appeared on the featured list once for a while and it only has <100 downloads to this date!
It looks to be fairly random to me.
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That'd be nice. Maybe if devs know that even crappy apps will be randomly "featured" they'll have a little pride and reduce apps that aren't so shoddy.
It's also nice because apps that might otherwise not be seen will get some time in the spotlight. Could be a big deal for someone - I know it would be for me.
Back in the WMP9 days I made a few skins that people liked for their simplicity (they were designed to be "always on top"). After MS featured them on a skins site and they got a high rating they amounted to about half of my site traffic.
A little free attention from MS can make a huge difference for a smalltime dev.

Bleak Morn said:
That'd be nice. Maybe if devs know that even crappy apps will be randomly "featured" they'll have a little pride and reduce apps that aren't so shoddy.
It's also nice because apps that might otherwise not be seen will get some time in the spotlight. Could be a big deal for someone - I know it would be for me.
Back in the WMP9 days I made a few skins that people liked for their simplicity (they were designed to be "always on top"). After MS featured them on a skins site and they got a high rating they amounted to about half of my site traffic.
A little free attention from MS can make a huge difference for a smalltime dev.
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I totally understand your point of view.
Nonetheless, I would probably like/prefere to have an "Apps recommended by users". I mean the apps with the best feedback from the ones that really tested the apps. Indeed, number of download means nothing.
Strange that the Marketplace does not include this. It seems natural to me.
It would be good because:
- it will encourage developers to make good apps and get a high ranking,
- it will allow users to discover and install apps that have a positive feedback. It does not mean that a lot of people aready installed it. Maybe only one or two people only installed the app, found it very good. Thanks to its high ranking, the app will be discovered by other people.
Also, I do not think that apps such as Deer Hunter or Castlevania need to be promoted like they currently are on the Marketplace: firstly, they are mediocre Xlive games. Secondly, better to promote independant small developers that Xlive games developed by Microsoft. Microsoft do not really need to promote their own game, especially when they are not so good.

arturobandini said:
I totally understand your point of view.
Nonetheless, I would probably like/prefere to have an "Apps recommended by users". I mean the apps with the best feedback from the ones that really tested the apps. Indeed, number of download means nothing.
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Keep in mind, ratings can be gamed as well. One vote for 5-stars could result in a 5-star rating for a 1-star app.
A while back I had an issue with the Zune software - wanted to get a list of all of my songs based on whether or not they were ZunePass (DRM) songs, or MP3's I'd bought with my 10 monthly song credits. The idea was to use the credits on the songs I've listened to most but hadn't yet unlocked.
I was having getting the software to do what I want, so I asked how to do it in the Zune forums. When that didn't get the answer I wanted, I communicated with some Zune MVP's via Twitter. They connected me with one of the Zune application development leads at MS (also on Twitter) and I directed him to the article in the Zune forums where he helped me troubleshoot and fix the issue.
One of the things I like about MS is that when I poke around, they usually put me in touch with someone who can directly solve my problem (like the app dev lead).
In this case, he provided me with a simple work-around for the problem I was having, but if you need a new app feature it's nice to be able to tell the guy in charge directly.
Oh, and if you end up taking this approach I'd love it if you'd post the link to your Zune forums thread here so I can follow along since it's an issue I might encounter soon.

Looking for a good 'Word' Game

Guys,
I'm looking for a good 'Word' game for the TF.
Not one like Scrabble or where you have to re-arrange a group of letters to form as many words as you can.
No, what I'm trying to find is one where you are first presented with a collection of letters in a large block and you then have to tap on each letter to form a word. You are then given a score for either the length of the word or the type of letters used.
As you tap away and a word is formed, the remaining letters above drop down the screen to replace the ones you have used and are then replaced with new ones from the top... if you get my drift.
I don't like timer's as I like to take my time, pause if I want or come back to a previously saved game.
It's a bit of an ask but can anyone recommend such a game?

You're describing the Dropwords game almost exactly (it does have a timer).
There are free and paid versions on the Android market:
https://market.android.com/details?id=com.eekgames.worddrop&hl=en
Regards,
Eric

Perfect Eric... Nice one.
When you said it had a timer I very nearly gave up on it as I don't like timers, I like to take my time and save so I can come back later.
However, because you took the effort to post I should take the effort in trying it out.
I'm very pleased I did because on loading I immediately noticed you can select a variety of speeds for the timer..... including a 'non-timer'.
Also, you can save the game and return later.
Perfect Eric..... perfect.

Good suggestion....it's a lot of fun...but it's not optimized for tablets...it would be even better then.

@Beards,
You're welcome. It's one of my favorites.
You actually helped me out - I never bothered to check out the timer options.
Thanks!
@rpavich,
It may not be optimized for tablets, but it works great full-screen on my Transformer.

Some time ago, I was also looking for a similar game (on a different OS). So much so that I made my own, which seems to fit your criteria. The name is Wordsler and is available in the Android Market (I don't have 8 posts here, and apparently not allowed to place a direct link yet).
It's got a non-timer mode, a 2 minute timer mode, and an online mode (where everyone gets the same sets of letters within a 24 hour period).
This is just a spare-time hobby, and I'm not great with graphics, so it's nothing fancy or shiny, but I think the gameplay works quite well.

Silkswift said:
Some time ago, I was also looking for a similar game (on a different OS). So much so that I made my own, which seems to fit your criteria. The name is Wordsler and is available in the Android Market (I don't have 8 posts here, and apparently not allowed to place a direct link yet).
It's got a non-timer mode, a 2 minute timer mode, and an online mode (where everyone gets the same sets of letters within a 24 hour period).
This is just a spare-time hobby, and I'm not great with graphics, so it's nothing fancy or shiny, but I think the gameplay works quite well.
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For anyone else, here's a direct link to the game Silkswift mentions.
I had a quick look at the two pictures shown of the game on The Market. It wasn't much to go on but I downloaded and installed.
Unfortunately as soon as I went to run Wordsler it then asked me to download two sets of libraries.
Nothing is mentioned on either The Market or your developers Web Site of these libraries being required so to anyone not knowing what these are or what they do, I think most people will then do as I did which was to close the App down and uninstall.
If Wordsler is going to need additional files to run you do need to let the downloader know in advance and explain why they are needed and what happens when they are run.

HI Beards,thanks for checking it out. My apologies for not mentioning the additional libraries here. The description in the market does mention them at the beginning (with a few stars for emphasis), but it probably could use a better explanation. The extra libraries are part of the android-qt project (port of Qt apps to android).

Silkswift said:
HI Beards,thanks for checking it out. My apologies for not mentioning the additional libraries here. The description in the market does mention them at the beginning (with a few stars for emphasis), but it probably could use a better explanation. The extra libraries are part of the android-qt project (port of Qt apps to android).
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Yes, going back to The Market I see you have now added the information on the libraries required. You also now mention it may be better to install over Wifi.
This is a good call and another reason why you needed to mention the additional libraries in The Market link.
It would also be good if you stated the actual size of the additional download. That way the installer knows full well what to expect, which in turn makes for a happier user of the software.
Although I don't think it is what I am looking for (I prefer a much larger rectangular block of letters with actions similar to that of Dropwords).
However, I'll give it a try for you. Will report back later... have a very busy day ahead.

Silkswift said:
HI Beards,thanks for checking it out. My apologies for not mentioning the additional libraries here. The description in the market does mention them at the beginning (with a few stars for emphasis), but it probably could use a better explanation. The extra libraries are part of the android-qt project (port of Qt apps to android).
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Good game dude, i'll rate it on my computer since we can yet on market. Like said previous, you have a lot of extra sceen, so bigger blocks would be great. It would also be nice to have "Validate" button up with the words, and maybe a "Clear all" for quickly deselecting all, but that doesn't really matter. Thanks for the free DL!
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[App] LoL Brain - the Android app for serious summoner stats

Hi. I intern at a software company called AltEgo. As of late, we've been making apps for League of Legends. Our newest app is LoL Brain. It basically compiles various statistics about yourself and then lets your compare them to other summoners based on champion, role, tier, division, etc. Apart from statistics comparison, it also stores your full match history from when you started using the app. And just like with the LoL client, you can check out the basic stats and match history of other summoners. I've actually found this app to be quite useful. I often work with the lead developer for the app so I know this app will be going places. If you want to check it out, you can grab the latest build off the Google Play Store (play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.altego.rainman). The app is currently in alpha so expect bugs to be fixed and updates to be made. You can keep up to date with the app by checking out our blog (which is run by me) (lolbrain.wordpress.com) or by visiting our website (altego.com). Feedback is always really helpful so anything you guys have to say about the app would be great.

JF_AltEgo said:
Hi. I intern at a software company called AltEgo. As of late, we've been making apps for League of Legends. Our newest app is LoL Brain. It basically compiles various statistics about yourself and then lets your compare them to other summoners based on champion, role, tier, division, etc. Apart from statistics comparison, it also stores your full match history from when you started using the app. And just like with the LoL client, you can check out the basic stats and match history of other summoners. I've actually found this app to be quite useful. I often work with the lead developer for the app so I know this app will be going places. If you want to check it out, you can grab the latest build off the Google Play Store (play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.altego.rainman). The app is currently in alpha so expect bugs to be fixed and updates to be made. You can keep up to date with the app by checking out our blog (which is run by me) (lolbrain.wordpress.com) or by visiting our website (altego.com). Feedback is always really helpful so anything you guys have to say about the app would be great.
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let me try and vote at playstore

How to market your android games and apps part 1

Ok you put time and effort into your games or apps but still cant seem to get downloads. You might even see a game or app similar to yours but for some reason they are charting but your not. There are over 100,000 developers and over a million apps on googleplay. What are they doing that your not?
1) Website- I see a lot of developers that have a single blog page for all their apps. Look at the format of google play and match your website as close as you can to what google play has. Why? Customers are use to a certain format and like things that look familiar . Think like a customer when building a website and put the same effort as you were in programming your apps.
2)Social Networking-Make a twitter and facebook account. Any app release you have or updates post them.You can even interact with customers and get feedback directly from them. Use this as a tool to learn from real people and adjust your game or app based on feedback.
3)Make Niche Apps- There is no way indie developers can match the power of big companies. Rather than try to take on gameloft or EA focus on niche apps. Small apps like car locators or how to cook books. Small apps like these have been know to get more downloads vs making a game going against a bigger company. Small focused apps or simple games with great graphics can draw people to your app.
4)Post in Forums- Post your game or app in several forums. Be careful as many forums are not really indie friendly. Most forums have a section where you can post games or apps away from where regular forum users cant see. Also you might run into jealous developers who have nothing better to do then degrade your game. Post in several forums to bring in users but remember this is only a small part of your marketing efforts. This forums is very developer friendly though.
5)Rate Me Button- In your apps your should have a rate me button and a googleplay button that points to only your apps in google play. You can also have a button to your website to give the customer a more personal touch.
6) Paid vs. Free- I would suggest you make 4 to 5 free apps before making a paid app. Most customers do not want to pay and only enjoy free apps. You can make a paid version but be warned if you make a paid version users might
1) uninstall the free version
2)buy the paid version
3)refund the paid version but keep the apk on thier device
4) Now they have the paid version for free.
I will make another how to market your android apps part 2 soon. Till then good luck with your games and apps.

These are helpful tips seeing as me and a friend just released our first app a month ago, thanks!

yoshihat said:
These are helpful tips seeing as me and a friend just released our first app a month ago, thanks!
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Your welcome hope your friends apps does well