2 ms·

I think his third game (with the “tech support” theme) has a real chance of blowing up in a way that the first two didn’t. It’s an interesting “Papers, Please”-

I think his third game (with the “tech support” theme) has a real chance of blowing up in a way that the first two didn’t. It’s an interesting “Papers, Please”-esque concept, and I could see it getting great traction if executed well (great challenge balance, good-enough story, etc.). It intuitively feels pretty YouTuber-friendly, so developing early relationships with some smaller to mid-size gaming channels might be a good way to get on their radar and get alpha/beta versions of the game in front of their audiences. I definitely would not have said the same of the first two games, which didn’t appear to do much to stand out to potential customers. They were labors of love, pieces of art maybe, but that unfortunately doesn’t drive commercial success. Best of luck to the guy!

mistersquid 9y ago
I was initially skeptical of the idea of "Tech Support: Error Unknown" but Giguere's (OP author) description intrigued me for two reasons. First, the game narrative is novel and might appeal to industry types who only indirectly interact with CSR teams (i.e. not people who staff CSR or support but who familiar with or work in an industry that requires support). "Tech Support: Error Unknown" has the potential to create a myth structure around tech support and that is just hands down cool. :) But, the title really should move out of the realm of genericism. It should be evocative like "Tech Support Nightmares", "Bug not a Feature", or just "Error Unknown". Second, wow what a novel idea for a game. I wonder if the procedural "adversary"/interlocutor/chatter function were abstracted if a different algorithm could be used. For example, the algorithm for "Error Unknown" would be suitable for his game but a different algorithm might be better suited for actually simulating training for companies that need to train CSR reps. That could lead to a secondary (or primary) market of companies looking for ways to assess or train their reps. I also wish Giguere the best of luck and will be interested to try his new game when it's available.
- bleezy 9y ago
  I think Tech Support: Error Unknown is the perfect title.
  - purple-again 9y ago
    Agreed, it reminds me of the Game Dev games with all the bubbles popping up as you progress that was addictive and fun.

mistersquid 9y ago

I was initially skeptical of the idea of "Tech Support: Error Unknown" but Giguere's (OP author) description intrigued me for two reasons. First, the game narrative is novel and might appeal to industry types who only indirectly interact with CSR teams (i.e. not people who staff CSR or support but who familiar with or work in an industry that requires support). "Tech Support: Error Unknown" has the potential to create a myth structure around tech support and that is just hands down cool. :) But, the title really should move out of the realm of genericism. It should be evocative like "Tech Support Nightmares", "Bug not a Feature", or just "Error Unknown". Second, wow what a novel idea for a game. I wonder if the procedural "adversary"/interlocutor/chatter function were abstracted if a different algorithm could be used. For example, the algorithm for "Error Unknown" would be suitable for his game but a different algorithm might be better suited for actually simulating training for companies that need to train CSR reps. That could lead to a secondary (or primary) market of companies looking for ways to assess or train their reps. I also wish Giguere the best of luck and will be interested to try his new game when it's available.

bleezy 9y ago
I think Tech Support: Error Unknown is the perfect title.
- purple-again 9y ago
  Agreed, it reminds me of the Game Dev games with all the bubbles popping up as you progress that was addictive and fun.