Indie game marketing: the store page, the wishlist and a timeline that starts a year before launch

Indie game marketing starts months before launch, with a store page that goes live early, a short trailer that shows the game in action, and a way for interested players to follow along. Collect wishlists on your store page, show progress in public, put the game in front of creators who play your genre, and you arrive at release day with an audience and not a hope.

This guide is for a solo developer or small team. It lays out the assets you need, the order to build them, the places that carry a small game, and the numbers to watch.

The assets every release needs

• A store page. On PC this is usually a Steam page, set up through Steamworks. Put it live as soon as you have a trailer and a few screenshots, marked as coming soon, so players can start following the game.
• A trailer under a minute. Show actual gameplay in the first five seconds. Players decide fast. Add the title and genre early and end with the release window.
• A capsule image. The small thumbnail is what people see in lists, so it has to read at a glance: title legible, one clear image, genre obvious.
• A press kit. A single page with a short description, key features, screenshots, logos, the trailer, platforms, price and contact. Creators and journalists should not have to ask for anything.
• A demo. A short, polished slice that shows the core loop is often the strongest marketing a small game has.

Write the short description as one sentence a stranger can repeat: genre, hook, platform. If you cannot say it in a sentence, the store page cannot either.

Why wishlists matter

A wishlist is a player saying they want to hear when the game is out. Platforms use that interest to decide how much to show a game, and a launch with a large wishlist base starts with a crowd. Make the "add to wishlist" action easy to find from every link you share, and ask for it in every trailer, post and demo end screen. Set your own target from the wishlist and sales figures other developers have shared publicly for your genre, and update it as you learn.

A twelve month timeline

When	What to do
12 to 9 months out	Define the hook, the genre and the audience. Post early footage. Start a devlog. Open a community space such as a Discord server.
9 to 6 months out	Publish the store page with a first trailer. Start collecting wishlists. Build the press kit. Begin showing the game to creators.
6 to 3 months out	Release a demo. Join a demo festival such as Steam Next Fest if the dates fit. Gather feedback and fix the loudest problems.
3 to 1 month out	Send keys to creators in your genre. Lock the release date. Prepare the launch trailer and the store page text.
Launch week	Release, reply to every review and comment, post updates, thank the community.
After launch	Patch fast, announce updates, and keep the page active for the following weeks.

Steam Next Fest is a recurring demo event run by Valve. Check the Steamworks documentation for the current dates and the rules for entering.

Where small games find players

Creators and streamers

Pick creators who already play your genre and have an audience of the right size. Send a short, personal message with a key, the trailer link and one line about why their audience will like the game. Our guide to finding and vetting influencers explains how to check a creator's audience, and the terms of creator deals covers what to agree before they film.

Short video

Short clips of the most satisfying moment in the game travel well on TikTok, YouTube Shorts and Instagram Reels. Post often, show the game and not the logo, and use the clip that gets the best reaction as the basis for the next one.

Communities

Forums and subreddits for your genre accept a developer sharing progress when they join the conversation first and read the rules. Posting a link and leaving does not work. Reply to comments, ask questions, and share what you learn.

Press and newsletters

Smaller sites and newsletters that cover your genre often respond to a clear email with a trailer and a key. Write the subject line as the pitch: genre, hook, platform.

Localisation

Translating the store page and the game text opens markets where fewer games compete. See what the work involves in our piece on game localisation agencies.

Numbers to watch

• Store page visits and the share of visitors who wishlist.
• Wishlist growth per week, and which post caused each jump.
• Demo downloads, the average play time and the share that finish the first level.
• Trailer watch time and where viewers stop.
• Reviews and the wording players use to describe the game.

The way players describe your game is useful marketing data. Copy their phrases into your store page and trailer captions. If many describe it as "a cozy farming game with a twist", that line is your pitch.

What an assistant says when a player asks for a game like yours

Players now ask assistants for game recommendations in plain sentences: "find me a small roguelike with deck building and a cozy setting". The answer names a few titles and one line about each, built from store pages, reviews, wikis, videos and articles. A game with a clear genre description repeated across those places is far more likely to be named, and described correctly, than one whose pages all say different things.

Check it on release week and again each month. Ask three or four questions a player would ask for your genre and mood, and note whether your game appears, whether the genre and platform are right, and which pages the answer cites. AI Knows Us can run those questions across the main assistants for a title or a studio and list the sources behind each answer, which tells you which pages to improve first.

Questions about marketing an indie game

When should I announce the game?

As soon as you have a trailer that shows real gameplay. Earlier exposure gives you more time to collect wishlists and feedback.

How much should I spend?

Spend time before money. Free routes such as devlogs, communities and creator outreach carry most small games. Paid ads are for later, once the page converts well.

Do I need a publisher?

Not always. A publisher brings funding, reach and experience. Self publishing keeps control and a larger share of revenue. Decide with the figures in front of you.

What makes a good trailer?

Gameplay in the first seconds, a clear idea of the genre, and a closing line with the release window.

How do I handle negative reviews?

Reply calmly, fix real bugs quickly and announce the fix. Players notice a developer who listens.