Last week Green Man Gaming’s Ian McGregor (CMO), Alex Cook (EVP Commercial Aquisition) and Adele Simpson (EVP Performance Marketing) wrapped up UKIE’s Insights Month with a frank, look at what really powers a successful game launch. Below is the distilled cheat-sheet of hard-won advice you can apply today.
“If you build it, they’ll come” is game-dev folklore, not fact. With 14k new titles landing on Steam every year, organic tweets and a handful of influencers rarely pierce the noise. Green Man Gaming’s panel urged studios to sketch a marketing timeline as early as the first playable—tiny devlogs, Discord AMAs, early branding beats. One minute a week is better than radio silence.
Wishlists alone are “not the holy grail,” said Ian. Ditto Steam reviews or Discord numbers. But track all three together and follow their trajectory—rising lines mean momentum, which investors, publishers and storefront algorithms love.
The team’s bluntest advice: “If you’re not ready to launch, don’t launch.” That means fully localised store pages, polished trailers, region-correct pricing packages and a backlog of content to drip-feed post-release. Half-built pages and placeholder screenshots kill conversion and investor confidence.
Checklist before hitting ‘Publish’:
Alex likened single-store launches to “selling Coke in only one supermarket.” Green Man Gaming’s new Distribution Managed Service (DMS) places games across 180+ vetted PC retailers.
Case studies: Ready or Not saw a 20 % revenue lift three months post-launch; GTFO climbed to global #1 on Steam during a coordinated multi-store promo. Wider reach, coupled with tight price control, beats platform monoculture every time.
Adele recommended allocating roughly 60% of spend to brand awareness (influencers, YouTube takeovers, PR) and 4 % to performance ads targeted by first-party data. GMG’s internal campaigns hit 400%+ ROI by retargeting known platform-fit users and running constant split tests- video vs. static, CTA A vs. CTA B- until cost-per-acquisition bottoms out.
Gamers follow developers, not faceless publishers. Admit mistakes, share roadmap detours, course-correct in the open. A genuine voice retains communities far better than sporadic, hyper-produced trailers. “Give your players a reason to love you,” Ian said, “and they’ll follow.”
Watch the Full 60-Minute Session
Ready for the deep dive—complete with KPI charts, audience questions and real campaign numbers? Catch the replay here:
▶ How to Improve Reach, Control & Revenues for Successful Game Launches
https://youtu.be/3u6Mn1fyU8M