What Independent Game Developers Expect from Recommender Systems: A Qualitative Study

Abstract

Digital distribution and electronic recommender systems have transformed the digital games industry. They serve as the enabler of new business models that allow independent game developers to publish their projects without the mediation of third party publishers and decrease costs of game production. This paper aims at analyzing the relevance of recommender systems from the perspective of independent game developers. For this reason, a qualitative study using semi-structured expert interviews has been carried out. The results of this study support (i) independent game developers to improve their business models, and (ii) designers and owners of electronic recommender systems to provide enhanced services for their content creators.