Button City 2020 Financial Model

Button City is a 3D narrative adventure game (Unity 2018.4 LTS) starring animal characters on a quest to save their local arcade. Core loop: explore low-poly diorama worlds, talk to NPCs, complete mini-games and side quests, and progress a Saturday-morning-cartoon storyline. Three full embedded arcade games (Gobabots - 4v4 team brawler; rEVolution Racer - drift racing; Prisma Beats - rhythm game) act as in-game activities and in-narrative set pieces. Collectibles and cosmetics extend replayability. Designed for broad "wholesome" audience ages 8–35; ESRB target E for Everyone. Multi-input support (controller, touch, keyboard/mouse). Built-in localisation pipeline (YarnSpinner + SuperTextMesh, CSV import).

No formal TAM/SAM/SOM framing in deck. Comparable context provided:

• Night in the Woods (comparable): 417,000 Steam sales at $19.99. Note: deck methodology = Steam reviews × 50, rounded down.
• The Haunted Island, a Frog Detective Game: 35,000 Steam sales at $4.99.
• Arcade Spirits: 10,000 Steam sales at $19.99.
• Wholesome Direct (May 2020): 8,000+ concurrent YouTube viewers; 120,000+ total views post-broadcast; Button City featured as the opening game.
• Press coverage: Kotaku, Nerdist, GamesRadar.
• "Wholesome games" trend cited as growing, with Ooblets, Snacko, Bugsnax as rising comps. No market size figures given.

• Model: Premium buy-to-play (one-time purchase). No subscription, DLC, or IAP mentioned.
• Price point: $19.99.
• Target platforms: PC (Steam/Mac), Nintendo Switch, PlayStation, Xbox.
• Distribution: Digital storefronts (Steam implied by comps methodology; console storefronts by platform). Physical distribution not mentioned.
• Localisation add-on: EU and Japanese markets targeted post-launch via localisation investment.

• No revenue to date disclosed (pre-launch).
• Wholesome Direct showcase (May 2020): 8,000+ concurrent viewers; 120,000+ total broadcast views.
• Media placements: Kotaku, Nerdist, GamesRadar.
• No Steam wishlist count, social following, Kickstarter, or early access revenue disclosed.

• Price: $19.99.
• Localization cost: $4,550 per language (35,000 words × $0.13/word).
• Budget line items: Production, Music & Sound Contract, Administrative, PR - all redacted as $XX,XXX placeholders. Total investment needed also redacted ($XX,XXX USD).
• No CAC, LTV, refund rate, or margin data disclosed.

Comparable genre (narrative adventure / wholesome):

• Night in the Woods - the ceiling comp at 417,000 Steam units.
• Frog Detective, Arcade Spirits - mid-tier comps at 10,000–35,000 units.
• Gone Home cited as a breakout success.

Moat / differentiation claims:

• Three embedded full mini-games spanning action, racing, and rhythm genres - unusual depth for the narrative adventure genre.
• Wholesome/cute aesthetic at a moment of rising "wholesome games" demand.
• Indigenous-led creative direction (Art Director Shandiin Yazzie Woodward, Diné/Navajo) cited as a diversity differentiator.
• Broad platform target (5 platforms) vs. some comps limited to PC/Mac.
• Early press and showcase visibility (Wholesome Direct opener).

Team (slide 19):

• Shandiin Yazzie Woodward - Co-founder / Art Director; prior: graphic/multimedia designer at Meow Wolf; 2D/3D art, animation.
• Ryan Woodward - Co-founder / Programmer; prior: interactive developer at Ideum (Smithsonian installations); co-founded Albuquerque Game Developers Guild (501c3).
• Benjamin Hanken - Programmer; former research scientist; prior: Ideum (National Portrait Gallery interactives).
• Valentina Hawes - Artist (3D stylised characters); prior: indie games + 3 SteamVR home environments with Scraggy Rascal Studios & Valve.

Funding ask:

• Total investment amount: redacted ($XX,XXX USD).
• Use of funds (slide 13): cover development labour costs, game console dev kit costs, multiplatform release (PC, Mac, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation, Xbox), and localisation for EU and Japanese markets.
• Budget categories: Production, Music & Sound Contract, Administrative, PR - all amounts redacted.
• Deck appears to be a dual-purpose document: seeking a platform publishing deal (slides 9–11 address "Why Platform?") AND / OR direct investment (slides 13–14).

Archetype + why: Single-title indie game revenue model - "Premium launch + tail sales" P&L. This is a one-time-purchase game with a defined launch window and a long-tail Steam/console sales curve. No recurring revenue, no subscriptions. Closest archetype: DTC content/media title P&L with platform revenue share, COGS (dev labour capitalised then amortised), and a launch-spike + decay sales curve. Not a SaaS, marketplace, or subscription model.

Forecast horizon & granularity:

• Pre-launch: Monthly cost burn through target Q1 2021 release.
• Launch year (2021): Monthly unit sales by platform (PC vs. console), gross revenue, platform fees, net revenue.
• Post-launch tail: Years 2–3 annual, capturing discount/sale cycles (Steam sales) and back-catalogue console performance.
• Total horizon: 3 years (2021–2023).

Key drivers & assumptions:

*Revenue drivers:*

• Price: $19.99
• Platform revenue share: 30% - industry standard for Steam, Nintendo eShop, PSN, Xbox
• Net revenue per unit: ~$14.00
• Total projected units: 100,000 - studio's own projection; PC 50,000 / Console 50,000
• Launch-year capture: 60% of lifetime units sold in year 1 (common for indie titles with day-1 spike), 25% year 2, 15% year 3
• PC/Console split: 50/50; console further split evenly across Switch, PS, Xbox
• Discount/sale revenue haircut: blended 15% discount across lifetime units (Steam sales events lower ASP)

*Cost drivers:*

• Development budget: Redacted - primary open question; suggest placeholder $150K–$300K range for indie of this scope
• Music & Sound Contract: Redacted
• Administrative: Redacted
• PR: Redacted
• Localisation per language: $4,550; assume 2 languages (EU + Japanese) = $9,100
• Console dev kit costs: ~$10K–$30K total (Nintendo, Sony, Microsoft kits); standard for small studios
• Platform certification / QA fees: ~$5K–$15K across 4 console platforms
• Ongoing: minimal; primarily marketing/community costs post-launch

*Key sensitivities:*

• Unit volume (10,000–400,000 plausible range given comps)
• Platform mix (console revenue more concentrated on Switch for "wholesome" demographic)
• Launch timing vs. competing titles

Scenarios (Base / Bull / Bear - which variables flex):

• Bear: 30,000 lifetime units (Arcade Spirits comp), PC-only or delayed console ports, no localisation. Net revenue ~$420K.
• Base: 100,000 lifetime units (studio projection), 5-platform release, 2 localisation languages. Net revenue ~$1.33M over 3 years.
• Bull: 200,000 lifetime units (between Frog Detective and Night in the Woods), strong Switch performance, 4+ languages. Net revenue ~$2.7M over 3 years.
• Flex variables: lifetime units, platform mix, launch-year capture rate, discount haircut, localisation scope.

Required sheets / outputs:

1. Assumptions - all inputs with / tags, unit projections by platform/year
2. Revenue - monthly unit sales by platform, gross/net revenue, platform fee deduction
3. Cost / P&L - development budget (when provided), operating costs, localization, marketing/PR; gross margin and operating income by period
4. Cash flow - pre-launch burn rate, launch receipts (note: digital storefronts pay on 30–60 day delay), runway
5. Scenario toggle - Bear / Base / Bull unit and price assumptions feeding revenue and P&L
6. Comps reference - Night in the Woods, Frog Detective, Arcade Spirits unit/price data for benchmarking