Creating new or re-skinned apps?

Hello,

I can’t make my own games (I don’t know how to code), but I made a few simple info apps, which are bringing in some income now. However, I do have one game on the market (it was developed for $750 USD), which is still having around 300 DL/day, but it monetizes very poorly, because it’s monetized by AdMob banners only (I started with this app and didn’t know anything about monetizing apps yet).

I’ve found a few sites, which sell codes for various games, and they seem lucrative, because the game is already fully developed and you only need to change graphics/sounds. But these are mostly random games and not ‘clones’ from popular games.

A lot of app courses teach, that it’s best to find something popular and create an improved version of it, or just more or less clone it. This is a bit more pricey, but potentially, it could bring more money.

I’d be happy to hear your take on this, guys. Does anyone have experience with re-skinning apps? And it’s better to publish games on Google Play or on Apple Store (iTunes)?

Thanks!

Maybe you could learn programming instead? The way you describe might be an easy way to get banned.

I’d like to learn programming, but I would have to start from scratch and it would probably take years for me to master it. I know HTML/CSS and some PHP, but this hardly qualifies me for anything more serious. There are some courses (like Chocolate Lab Apps xCode course) which claim that learning iOS programming is “easy”, but I’m not so sure about that…

The “cloning” process isn’t meant as an exactly 1:1 copy with different sounds and graphics. I know this type of games could put a developer in trouble real fast. But creating a “guess this logo” type of game, based on the inspiration of other popular games would not be a problem.

I’m currently not sure what would be best to do next. Market research is crucial - I’ve read about that before and now I know this from my own experience (my based-on-popular apps on Amazon are selling much better than my random apps).

There are many sites with source codes for sale and I already have a good number of active users, so I could promote whatever app I release with virtually no costs, and I would not have to rely only on users finding it via search. It’s also cheaper than developing a whole new game.

I’m just thinking aloud guys and I’d really appreciate your input. I don’t want to anger anyone. We are in a relatively small number here so even if 10 or 30 people decide to do the same thing, it’s not a problem. :slight_smile:

Well, if you know php you could modify that source code so your game is different not only in graphics and learn by analysing how it is made.

Is PHP anything similar to programming languages for Android?

Well, PHP is similar to C/C++ and Java used on Android is similar to them too. :slight_smile: Take a look at the code of some applications and check out for yourself.

Thanks, will do. I am proficient with HTML/CSS, but I’m a basic user of PHP (only good to tweak WordPress now and then), so I won’t be programming games any time soon. :slight_smile:

So, did anyone tried a re-skinning project? There are at least 3 good sites with Android source codes available to buy, but I’m not sure, if it’s worth it. Maybe I’ll risk a few 100 dollars and see if there is any potential.

Also, did anyone here publish a game on Apple Store? Is it harder or easier to get users on that platform?

It’s better to re-skinned apps. Because you have the basis which you have to fill up!