Fedil's Blog A unique individual with a unique perspective

When trying to become a developer for iPhone and iPad apps it takes more than just coding skills. I understood this when I decided to take on the task, but I didn't really know how important the other aspects were. Besides coding you need to always think about the graphics, marketing, and promotional techniques.

Having a solid coded app and a graphically appealing app are important but are not as important as marketing and promoting. No matter how good your app is it won't be successful if people don't know about it. There are a ton of apps in the iTunes App Store, so you have to try to get your app seen by as many people as possible.

I didn't know how hard this would be at first. I figured, like most, that if you developed a nice product that it could sell itself. While this is true in a sense, it can only sell itself if people know about it or stumble across it. So I started doing research on ways I could work on promoting my apps as I develop them. I'm still working on figuring out what works and what doesn't.

For my first game, RatScrew, I decided to try a couple of services to see if it would help things along. The two I chose were prMac and iSpreadNews. prMac is basically a press release distribution service. They will distribute your press release about your game to their vast distribution network. This will get the name of your app out there and get some exposure. Hopefully this will be seen by other news and iPhone and iPad app sites. They also have a press release writing service where you can pay them to draft your press release.

iSpreadNews is more of a submission service. They submit your app to a variety of iPhone and iPad app related forums, review sites, and blogs. There are no guarantees that any of the sites will review or even publish your apps info, but it is another way to get it out there. iSpreadNews service also reaches international sites. So it helps expand your market beyond just the US. This has a good side effect. If your app gets popular in one of the other iTunes App Stores then it might get noticed by US review sites.

I will probably use both these services again when I release my next app. After that time I'll have an idea of how effect they are and give a review on each service.

RatScrew for the iPhone and iPad has officially been released and is available on the iTunes App Store. RatScrew is an iOS game adaptation of the fun card game Egyptian Ratscrew. Some other common names for the game are Egyptian War, Egyptian Rat War, Egyptian Rat Slap, ERS, or just Slaps. No matter what you call it, it is highly addictive and fun.

RatScrew does a good job of capturing the feel of playing the real card game. It even has fun sounds that will make you feel like you are really slapping someone. It also has customizable slap rules so you can set up the game how you like. The game allows you to play against the computer, but the real fun is getting together some of your friends and playing. You can play up to 4 total people. Of course if you are going to have that many people, the iPad is probably a better choice to play on since it has a bigger screen.

This game is also appropriate for any age. So it is also a fun family game. Since it is a game based on pattern recognition and reflexes, it will also help kids develop or hone those skills. So it is entertaining and educational!

So whether you are an Egyptian Ratscrew veteran or are completely new to the game, you'll have a blast playing this game. RatScrew is available on the App Store now.