We like itch.io. As an indie publisher, it’s a welcome use of easy point-and-click tools to create a customized webstore that (in our near future) can be embedded right on your site. That’s why we’re happy to launch our BRG Summer Sale from now until July 1st, 2019.
Hello again, Broken Ones. What’s this? Two new posts in a single week. Since we’re not launching anything new this month, you might be wondering what kind of madness this is. Fear not, for this is but another chapter in my ongoing tradition of sharing our sales results for the year. Why? To help those who are also trying to break into the industry or simply want to feel better (or worse?) about their own results.
For those of you interested in the inner workings of indie RPG publishing, it’s time for another instalment of Measuring Success, my ongoing financial presentations for Broken Ruler Games. Rather than go quarterly or bi-annually, I’ve decided to keep things simple and go with annual presentations for the near future due to my very busy workload. And because of that very busy workload and in the interest of expanding on the meaning behind the numbers, I’ve decided to forego most of the writing for this year’s presentation and instead record my take on 2018’s results.
So here goes. Below are the Broken Ruler Games sales results for 2018, including quantities sold by product type, gross and net sales.
| PRODUCT | SALES | GROSS $ | NET $ |
| Killshot: The Director’s Cut | 40 | $223.39 | $138.26 |
| 39 | $203.40 | $132.21 | |
| Hardcover B&W | 0 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Hardcover B&W + PDF | 1 | $19.99 | $6.05 |
| Killshot: An Assassin’s Journal | 9 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| 9 | $0.00 | $0.00 | |
| Softcover B&W | 0 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Killshot: Direction | 1 | $5.00 | $3.25 |
| 1 | $5.00 | $3.25 | |
| Softcover B&W | 0 | ||
| Killshot Files #0 | 36 | $3.95 | $2.57 |
| 36 | $3.95 | $2.57 | |
| Killshot Files #1 | 12 | $22.91 | $14.89 |
| 12 | $22.91 | $14.89 | |
| Killshot Files #2 | 11 | $36.27 | $23.58 |
| 11 | $36.27 | $23.58 | |
| Ironbound | 138 | $1.40 | $0.91 |
| PDF (PWYW) | 65 | $1.40 | $0.91 |
| Blessed and the Damned | 73 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| ScreenPlay | 643 | $138.84 | $77.06 |
| 639 | $103.60 | $67.34 | |
| Softcover POD | 4 | $35.24 | $9.72 |
| Dial M for Monster | 626 | $21.90 | $14.24 |
| 626 | $21.90 | $14.24 | |
| Softcover POD | 0 | ||
| Fragments | 619 | $57.00 | $37.05 |
| Duel (PDF) | 619 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| By The General’s Hand (PDF) | 38 | $57.00 | $37.05 |
| High Plains Samurai: Legends | 1800 | $91.50 | $22.56 |
| 1793 | $0.00 | $0.00 | |
| Softcover B&W | 4 | $39.41 | $10.33 |
| Softcover CMYK | 3 | $52.09 | $12.23 |
| High Plains Samurai RPG | 34 | $435.00 | $273.29 |
| 31 | $330.00 | $214.50 | |
| Softcover B&W | 3 | $105.00 | $58.79 |
| TOTAL | 3980 | $1,073.43 | $631.24 |
| Killshot Directors Kit (Bundle) | 9 | ||
| The Ultimate ScreenPlay Bundle | 9 | ||
| IPR Sales | $276.01 | ||
| IGDN Convention Sales | $315.85 | ||
| TOTAL | $591.86 | ||
| ALL SALES COMBINED 2018 | $1,223.10 |
It’s important to note we participated in two charity bundles this year (the Puerto Rico Charity Bundle and ConTessa), which skews the sales to dollars ratio as we obviously didn’t actually make any money off those products.
And here is BRG’s overall results since I launched this company in 2012 with the past three years provided in detail. The total includes everything since day one.
| PRODUCT | 2015-16 | 2016-17 | 2018 | TOTAL |
| Killshot: The Director’s Cut | $140.08 | $75.42 | $138.26 | $1,688.43 |
| Killshot: An Assassin’s Journal | $5.95 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $22.64 |
| Killshot: Direction | $4.18 | $0.00 | $3.25 | $20.43 |
| Killshot Files #0 | $3.98 | $2.90 | $2.97 | $9.85 |
| Killshot Files #1 | $11.67 | $4.81 | $14.89 | $112.85 |
| Killshot Files #2 | $33.47 | $12.27 | $23.58 | $130.21 |
| ScreenPlay: The Rehearsal Edition | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Ironbound | $37.72 | $5.25 | $0.91 | $43.88 |
| ScreenPlay | $260.01 | $111.44 | $77.06 | $448.51 |
| Dial M for Monster | $0.00 | $40.08 | $14.24 | $54.32 |
| High Plains Samurai | $0.00 | $0.00 | $295.85 | $295.85 |
| Fragments | $0.00 | $0.00 | $37.05 | $37.05 |
| Killshot Directors Kit (Bundle) | ||||
| TOTAL | $497.06 | $252.17 | $608.06 | $2,864.02 |
Those annual totals have been divided up to showcase how they accounted for the overall percentage of BRG’s product lines and total earnings. For example, the total sales for Killshot equaled 8.19% of its overall earnings since the product was launched.
| PRODUCT | 2015-16 | 2016-17 | 2018 |
| Killshot | 8.30% | 4.47% | 8.19% |
| ScreenPlay | 57.97% | 24.85% | 17.18% |
| Ironbound | 85.96% | 11.96% | 2.07% |
| Dial M for Monster | 73.78% | 26.22% | |
| High Plains Samurai | 100.00% | ||
| Fragments | 100.00% | ||
| TOTAL | 17.36% | 8.80% | 21.23% |
Now for the analysis paralysis and this is where I’m going to save all of us the trouble of reading through my various thoughts on these numbers and record them for you. Feel free to scroll along as you listen (I tried to keep myself to a reasonable duration) and ask any questions you may have in the comments below.
We were once a beautiful world, young and fertile. Nothing but hope and opportunity lay before us. We were the chosen ones of our creators and lived a lavish lifestyle. Until the All-Father revealed his jealousy of the love his children gave to their creation and not him. His wrath nearly wiped us out. Now we are the enslaved and oppressed in the Five Cities, or those risking it all in the Wastes. But there are some who call no place home. They wander between all places and live by their own rules. Will any of them rise up to become the mysterious heroes we need
Broken Ruler Games is pleased to announce the release of the High Plains Samurai Roleplaying Game‘s core rulebook in softcover, print-on-demand, and PDF. After six years of development, this high-octane action story game of gunslingers, samurai, barbarians, gangsters, and steampunk in a post-apocalyptic world of superpowers is ready to challenge your Writers with everything you need to start telling original stories in the One Land.
After a successful Kickstarter in 2017, HPS has already gone on to receive a Gold ENnie for High Plains Samurai: Legends as Best Free Game of 2017. With the new core rulebook, you’ll be able to run all the one-shots and campaigns you desire in this improvisational storytelling game where the dice determine complications, not success or failure.
With the HPS core rulebook, you get…
Complete rules for playing the High Plains Samurai Roleplaying Game
Create original characters of every type, from leads to extras
Build and expand on the Five Cities and the Wastes
Apply character roles to give your character a code of honour
Gain new perks from your homeland to help define your character’s background
Explore the history of Chaos’ Wrath and its aftermath
Discover the key initiatives for the One Land & meet its major characters, including every warlord and Black Scorpion
An advice chapter for all players, Directors and Writers alike
Tips on playing evil characters seeking to destroy the One Land
You can discover more about HPS at highplainssamurai.com, including the Atlas of the One Land, our ongoing series of actual play recordings, additional advice from the game’s creator, and so much more. The High Plains Samurai Roleplaying Game is available now at DriveThruRPG, RPGNow, Amazon, and will soon be available through IndiePressRevolution.
As we prepare for the full launch of the High Plains Samurai Roleplaying Game, tales of intrepid heroes fighting back against tyranny have already begun to spread. Wanderers riding the Salvation tell of a lone warrior defending his favourite bar from a local gang seeking access to the tunnel running under Serenity Falls.
Tales From The One Land is a series of actual play recordings (both audio and video) revealing the action-packed excitement of HPS. Each session provides new players creating their own personal exploits with original characters and improvised storytelling to reveal one shared version of the One Land… a kind of HPS cinematic universe. For our first release, Todd and Vince (editor on HPS) sit down for a Session 0 to create a lead character, discuss the mechanics of the game, lay down some formats, and create some key initiatives. Enjoy and keep your eye on the High Plains Samurai website for future instalments.
Broken Ruler Games 