How much does it cost to build a card game?

Card Game
7 min read

Nowadays, mobile game development is the hottest topic in the technology market and there are many opportunities for making cash. Card games are the most downloaded real money mobile application worldwide. Just think once, who doesn’t want to be a part of this money-making process that has reached every household? But to enjoy the perks of being the owner of a card game there are a lot of queries that need to be resolved in the first place.

Talking about card games and not even thinking of skills? Oh, it’s not possible. Skill plays a large role in card games.

How skill plays a large role? Let’s see.

Card games come under skill-based games and can’t be won without skills. It requires high skills, logic, and strategic planning to rise as a winner. Proper strategy planning is very important and it is something that comes from experience only. A player who has been playing card games for 5 years can easily defeat a beginner. So, the key takeout here is having a high level of competitive features that even new players can learn, earn, and enjoy at the same time. Outdated probabilities, maths & odds may not make an impact.

Key factors that determine the cost of card games:

  • Game design (UI/UX)
  • 2D/3D Avatars, Video chats, Emojis
  • Features, complexity, and quality testing
  • Game server hosting & maintenance
  • Game security
  • Game development region

Game design (UI/UX)

For any game, design is one of the most important parts that would allow your app to grow and scale. Because the game app market is ever-changing, opt for an advanced UI instead of a repetitive one. This would help you generate more users in a quick time, and the app will touch new heights. The UI/UX liked by users will take the app to the top spot in app stores. Normally card games don’t require much UI, but with every change in technology, it will be a huge advantage in the future if the app UI is attractive.

2D/3D Avatars, Video chats, Emojis

The games that are very famous nowadays include 2D/3D graphics. Avatars are becoming a new trend in this modern moving digitized gaming world. 2D designing games shall be done in a lesser duration in comparison with 3D designing. 2D designs are just like posters or pictures whereas 3D designs give a realistic feel like a boy playing football in a playground where there will be some rain shower, the goal post, some teammates will be there to cheer, and some audience.

3D Avatars are the new modern ways of capturing a large user base in a small time. 3D Avatars make the game very interesting and almost every player wants to play a game that offers the latest 3D avatars. From head to toe, everything will be designed in 3D which will create a new aura for the gamers. One of the best examples of 3D avatar-based games is 400 Arba3meyeh. So, it goes without saying that developing a card game with 3D avatars may cost a bit higher but it leaves a great impact on users that helps in generating revenue.

Video chats & Emojis – Most gamers always prefer to know about other gamers and increase user interaction. A chatting feature will definitely increase user interaction and the owner can also add some special features like emojis that helps express your feeling in a more precise way. Some users don’t like chatting and prefer video chats and providing a video chat feature will surely open the gate to growing a large user base.

Features, complexity, and quality testing

The cost of building a card game largely depends on the features, complexities associated with it, and the level of testing it gets after the development. Complexity is all about the money you can invest while developing the game.

Once you have planned your idea the next stage involves the development of your card game. This is the most cost-intensive and obviously the most important one. Based on complexities, games can be of different types as follows:

Simple 2D

These are the games that come with minimalist features. Games developed in this range are decent and offer great opportunities for driving engagement and revenues.

Mid-level game

Here the budget is good enough to empower some of the most well-known independent games. These mobile games have depth in their content i.e. levels, characters, stories, and impactful visuals.

High-level game

These games involve a great level of detail and are well-designed. Developing games of this standard involve intensive work on planning and designing. It takes somewhere around 1 to 2 years to completely develop the game. The development of this game requires a team of excellent & expert developers. It is a high-risk & high-reward market.

QA Testing

Once the development process is completed, the testing of the app begins. Testing is essential as it removes the bugs from the system for smooth functioning. Gaming applications can not afford even a small problem as they will degrade the user experience. Therefore the testing team should be cautious in every stage of the test code to ensure the best user experience.

Game server hosting and maintenance

Server hosting & maintenance will be one of the factors that may increase the cost of game app development. Server hosting is priorly an internet-based service where users access the application in a structured manner.

The cost of a server can differ based on the feature and user base. Choose a server that can handle 10k+ concurrent users to provide uninterrupted services to users.

Game security

Designing and developing an astonishing game is awesome but you need to also have a look at the security of the game. As card games involve real money, it becomes a necessity to have a secure payment gateway. The addition of UPI transactions will be a huge bonus alongside multiple transaction options. These features help in gaining users’ trust and the user experience also increases.

Game development region

Looking at the game development region is a hectic task. You need to figure out the exact region where the game is very popular. This may increase the budget more, as developing a game globally would cost less in comparison to developing region-wise. This is a small but important topic, you need to decide which game type and which age group you are targeting for a successful game. For example, here, in this case, your target age group will be 25 to 40. These are the people who are largely active on social sites and show interest in card games. Also, you need to follow the latest trends. People may don’t like outdated UI/UX. You need to decide on your target audience.

Wrapping Up!

Developing a card game is expensive work, isn’t it? Wrong. It depends on the type of development method you want to choose. Some key areas that need special attention while developing a card game are game design, server, security, development region, etc.

Are you looking for a game development company that is prominent in developing card games?

Artoon Solutions Pvt. Ltd. is having 14 years of developing mobile or web games with perfection in delivery. We have 250+ in-house proven and experienced dedicated teams of 2D/3D Designers, Frontend/Backend Developers, QA Team (Testers), Server management teams, and Project managers that can cater to every challenge.

Let’s get in touch and we assure you to turn your dreams into reality.

Also read: Things to consider before developing a card game

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