Ask HN :Launched a simple web game site, got 0 users - any advice on growing it? • Hacker News Board

Ask HN :Launched a simple web game site, got 0 users - any advice on growing it?

#1

Post by sagasu007 » Fri, Nov 08, 2024, 7:35 AM UTC

Hey HN,

I've recently launched a small web game site, and I'm looking for advice on how to grow it.

The backstory: I heard that building a game site could generate some revenue, and since I'm a fan of web games, I thought I'd give it a try. I spent a decent amount of time learning how to set up the site, find game resources, and optimize the pages. It was quite a rewarding experience seeing the site come to life.

However, after launching, I ran into a pretty significant issue: zero traffic. Not a single user. I'm feeling a bit stuck, but I know I have a lot to learn, especially as a beginner.

So, I'm here to ask for help: how can I attract users to a small game site like mine? Should I focus on SEO, social media promotion, or something else entirely? Are there better ways to validate that the games I provide are what users want?

I'd love to hear any experiences, tips, or advice that could help me get my first few users and start building momentum. Any feedback on the site itself is also more than welcome.

Thanks a lot for your time and any guidance you can offer!

Re: Ask HN :Launched a simple web game site, got 0 users - any advice on growing it?

#2

Post by stop50 » Fri, Nov 08, 2024, 7:36 AM UTC

Dropping the url here as a full post with an description?

Re: Ask HN :Launched a simple web game site, got 0 users - any advice on growing it?

#3

Post by sagasu007 » Fri, Nov 08, 2024, 7:43 AM UTC

stop50 wrote: post #2

Dropping the url here as a full post with an description?

Have I made any mistake? Just looking for advice and I can edit if the link needs to be removed.

Re: Ask HN :Launched a simple web game site, got 0 users - any advice on growing it?

#4

Post by sagasu007 » Fri, Nov 08, 2024, 7:46 AM UTC

sagasu007 wrote: post #3

stop50 wrote: post #2

Dropping the url here as a full post with an description?

Have I made any mistake? Just looking for advice and I can edit if the link needs to be removed.

OK I removed the URL. Really looking for help.

Re: Ask HN :Launched a simple web game site, got 0 users - any advice on growing it?

#5

Post by benoau » Fri, Nov 08, 2024, 7:55 AM UTC

Since you don't have a mechanism for bringing users to you you should take your game to the marketplaces where users are like itch.io or even Steam.

Re: Ask HN :Launched a simple web game site, got 0 users - any advice on growing it?

#6

Post by genezeta » Fri, Nov 08, 2024, 7:58 AM UTC

sagasu007 wrote: post #4

sagasu007 wrote: post #3

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Have I made any mistake? Just looking for advice and I can edit if the link needs to be removed.

OK I removed the URL. Really looking for help.

I think the comment above meant the opposite of this; that you could post the URL here with a description of the game and that way maybe you could get some visits.

As it is now -no URL, no description of the game- it's really hard to give you any advice on what might be the problem with it.

Other than that, try some game communities and forums. Post on some subreddit, publish it on itch.io, etc.

Re: Ask HN :Launched a simple web game site, got 0 users - any advice on growing it?

#7

Post by stop50 » Fri, Nov 08, 2024, 8:03 AM UTC

sagasu007 wrote: post #3

stop50 wrote: post #2

Dropping the url here as a full post with an description?

Have I made any mistake? Just looking for advice and I can edit if the link needs to be removed.

What i meant is: create a post on hackernews with your site and add a nice description on the post. this should get you a few users.

Re: Ask HN :Launched a simple web game site, got 0 users - any advice on growing it?

#8

Post by sagasu007 » Fri, Nov 08, 2024, 8:03 AM UTC

genezeta wrote: post #6

sagasu007 wrote: post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

OK I removed the URL. Really looking for help.

I think the comment above meant the opposite of this; that you could post the URL here with a description of the game and that way maybe you could get some visits. As it is now -no URL, no description of the game- it's really hard to give you any advice on what might be the problem with it. Other than that, try some game communities and forums. Post on some subreddit, publish it on itch.io, etc.

Thank you very much~ Here is the address: https://freewebgamer.com/ I tried to submit some for inclusion or send them to friends, but the effect was not good. Instead, I received more than 200 marketing emails in my mailbox, saying that if I paid $500, I could get 1,000 users. . It looks like a scam.

Re: Ask HN :Launched a simple web game site, got 0 users - any advice on growing it?

#9

Post by sagasu007 » Fri, Nov 08, 2024, 8:06 AM UTC

benoau wrote: post #5

Since you don't have a mechanism for bringing users to you you should take your game to the marketplaces where users are like itch.io or even Steam.

Thank you very much~ I roughly know what's going on. I'm not a game developer myself. I made a website myself, and I want to integrate some of the games I play on a daily basis here, and then see if there are people who like the same thing who can visit and use it. itch.io is a great website, (I may immerse myself in it for hundreds of hours, I'm hopeless) I just want to know if this is the case, what other suggestions do you have? Thanks again for your advice~

Re: Ask HN :Launched a simple web game site, got 0 users - any advice on growing it?

#10

Post by genezeta » Fri, Nov 08, 2024, 10:08 AM UTC

sagasu007 wrote: post #8

genezeta wrote: post #6

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think the comment above meant the opposite of this; that you could post the URL here with a description of the game and that way maybe you could get some visits. As it is now -no URL, no description of the game- it's really hard to give you any advice on what might be the problem with it. Other than that, try some game communities and forums. Post on some subreddit, publish it on itch.io, etc.

Thank you very much~ Here is the address: https://freewebgamer.com/ I tried to submit some for inclusion or send them to friends, but the effect was not good. Instead, I received more than 200 marketing emails in my mailbox, saying that if I paid $500, I could get 1,000 users. . It looks like a scam.

I'm going to be honest with you. And probably a bit harsh. Note that this is not personal but that your site is very clearly not good.

Basically, you put a bunch of trash games on a page. The effort you made is minimal. And so the result is not something that you can monetize. You cannot reasonably aim to make money for nothing.

The games themselves, as I said, are trash. They are the sort of games spammers use to put out hoping some poor soul will accidentally bite the bait and then distribute malware or whatever. Poor quality games, full of ads, and many of them don't even work. This is the shittier part of the internet.

Given those two points -poor content and very low effort on your part- I can't give you any advice other than tell you that this doesn't even look like a serious effort.