How to Launch Your Game on itch.io
This guide covers everything I've learned about launching games on itch.io. From page setup to pricing to visibility, these are the strategies that actually work.
Why itch.io?
itch.io is where indie games thrive. There's no gatekeeping, so anyone can publish. Pricing is flexible: free, fixed, or pay-what-you-want. You set your own revenue share, even 0% if you want to keep everything. Web games run natively in the browser. The community actively seeks out indie games. And the game jam ecosystem gives you built-in visibility and feedback.
It's not Steam, and that's the point. itch.io rewards experimentation and rewards developers who engage with the community.
Before You Publish
You need a few things ready before you hit publish. At minimum, you need a playable game (downloadable or browser-playable), a cover image at 630×500 pixels, at least 3 screenshots, a description, and genre/tags selected.
For a better launch, add a trailer or gameplay GIF, a detailed description with features, a press kit, social media accounts, and optionally a Discord server.
For the best results, plan your devlog posts in advance, prepare an influencer and press outreach list, draft your launch announcement, and build community before you launch.
Your Page Is Your Storefront
The page is where people decide whether to play your game. Every element matters.
Cover Image
Your cover image is the most important visual. It shows up in browse pages, search results, collections, and social media embeds. At 630×500 pixels (or 315×250 minimum), it needs to work at thumbnail size.
Make sure it's legible when small. Test it at thumbnail scale. Show your game's vibe through art style, mood, and genre cues. Include the title and make it readable. Use bold colors and a clear focal point to stand out in a grid of other games.
Screenshots and Media
You need 3-5 screenshots at minimum for credibility. A GIF showing gameplay in motion helps a lot. For serious launches, add a 30-90 second trailer.
For screenshots, show actual gameplay, not menus. Capture exciting moments. Keep a consistent aspect ratio. Include UI if it's attractive.
For GIFs, aim for 5-15 seconds of action. Keep them under 10MB so they load fast. Show the core gameplay loop. Make them loop smoothly.
Description
Structure your description for people who skim. Lead with a catchy one-liner that hooks them. Follow with a sentence explaining the genre, what you do, and the goal. Add 2-3 sentences expanding on the concept. Then list features, controls, and credits.
Don't write walls of text. Don't start with "This is my first game..." or be overly humble. And don't forget to explain what the game actually is. People need to understand what they're getting into.
Tags
Tags determine where your game appears in Browse. Use all relevant tags. Be specific: not just "action" but "top-down-shooter." Include accessibility tags if applicable. Add multiplayer or local-coop tags if relevant. Use popular tags your game genuinely fits.
High-value tags to consider: specific genres like roguelike, metroidvania, or visual-novel. Art styles like pixel-art, low-poly, or hand-drawn. Themes like horror, cozy, or atmospheric. Multiplayer modes like local-multiplayer or online-co-op. Accessibility features like colorblind-friendly or one-button.
Metadata
Fill in everything. Genre, engine/tools used, as many relevant tags as possible, all supported languages, accessibility features like configurable controls, and multiplayer mode (single-player, local, online). The more complete your metadata, the more discoverable your game becomes.
Pricing
itch.io gives you three pricing models: free, pay-what-you-want, and fixed price. Each works for different situations.
Pay-What-You-Want Works Best for Most Games
PWYW with a $0 minimum typically outperforms fixed pricing for indie games. You'll get 3-5x more downloads than fixed price. About 10-30% of downloaders choose to pay something. Total revenue often ends up higher despite the lower per-buyer average.
To optimize PWYW, set a suggested price to anchor expectations. For short games under 30 minutes, suggest $2-5. For medium games of 1-3 hours, suggest $5-10. For full games over 5 hours, suggest $10-20.
Explain why support helps. Something like "This game is pay-what-you-want! Any support helps me make more games and keeps updates coming." And offer incentives for paying: bonus content, soundtrack, behind-the-scenes PDF, or name in credits.
When Fixed Pricing Makes Sense
Use fixed pricing when you have an established audience, when the game is highly polished, when there's significant content (5+ hours), or when you need predictable revenue.
For price points, $2-5 works for short games and prototypes. $5-10 for medium games with niche appeal. $10-20 for full games with high polish. $20+ for large games from established developers.
Free Games Still Make Money
For portfolio pieces, game jam entries, experimental projects, or building audience for future paid games, free makes sense. But even free games get donations. About 30% of itch.io spending comes from amounts paid above the minimum.
Getting Discovered
itch.io doesn't have Steam's algorithmic promotion. You drive your own visibility.
Discovery works through search (driven by tags, title, description), Browse Popular (driven by downloads, ratings, recency), Browse New (driven by publish date), collections (players adding your game), devlogs (your updates), and occasional editorial features (staff picks, mostly luck).
Getting Indexed
Your game must be indexed to appear in search and browse. You need to be published publicly (not unlisted), have playable or downloadable content, have a cover image, not be a placeholder page, and follow content guidelines.
Things that prevent indexing: external-link-only pages, no downloads or playable content, unlisted visibility setting, and missing cover images.
The "Most Recent" Boost
When you first publish, you appear in "Most Recent" which gives a small visibility boost. This only happens once, so timing matters.
Publish when your page is complete. Don't publish early then update because you only get one "new" boost. Avoid weekends when more games release. Consider the timezone of your target audience.
Devlogs Are Your Secret Weapon
Devlogs show in followers' feeds, appear in "Recent Devlogs" sections, signal active development, build community trust, and help with SEO.
Post during development to build anticipation. Post at launch for the announcement. Post after launch for updates and new features. Aim for 1-2 per month during active development.
Good topics include behind-the-scenes process, new features and content, responses to player feedback, technical challenges you solved, art and music showcases, and sales milestones (thank your players).
Game Jams
Game jams are the single best way to get visibility on itch.io. You get a built-in audience with thousands of views in days, a dedicated gallery where your game is browseable, feedback through ratings and comments, networking with other developers, portfolio pieces that show your range, and low stakes to prototype freely.
Jam Strategy
For choosing jams, large ones like Ludum Dare and GMTK bring more traffic but more competition. Small or niche jams give you a better chance to stand out. Theme-aligned jams let you play to your strengths.
During the jam, post progress on social media, use jam hashtags, document your process, and engage with other participants.
For your jam page, polish it even for a jam game. Good screenshots matter. Write a clear description of what the game is. Include controls.
After the jam, play and rate other entries for networking. Respond to all feedback. Consider post-jam updates. Write a devlog about what you learned.
Jam Games Can Become Real Games
Many successful indie games started as jam entries. Celeste started as a jam game. Superhot began as a 7-day prototype. Hollow Knight evolved from a jam concept.
The path is: collect feedback, identify what worked, polish and expand, then re-release as standalone.
Marketing Without Money
You don't need a budget to market on itch.io. You need consistency.
Social Media
Be on Twitter/X for the largest gamedev community. Use Reddit, specifically r/indiegaming, r/playmygame, and genre-specific subreddits. Try TikTok for short gameplay clips. Build a Discord server and join relevant communities. Post devlogs and trailers on YouTube.
For a content calendar, post weekly for Screenshot Saturday and progress updates. Post bi-weekly devlogs. Announce bigger milestones monthly.
Post GIFs of gameplay, behind-the-scenes process, development challenges, before/after comparisons, memes about your game, and player reactions.
Reaching Out to Influencers
Micro-influencers with 1K-50K followers are your friends. Find them by searching "[your genre] indie games" on YouTube, looking for streamers playing similar games, and checking who covered games like yours.
When you reach out, personalize each email. Show you know their content. Make it easy by including all the links. Be brief. Don't mass email, don't demand coverage, don't be pushy about timing. Follow up once, politely.
A simple template works: introduce yourself, mention you noticed they cover your genre, describe your game in one sentence, explain what makes it unique, offer a free key with no pressure, and include links to your page and press kit.
Press
For bigger launches, contact indie game press like IndieGamesPlus, Rock Paper Shotgun, Kotaku's indie section, and genre-specific sites. Same principles as influencer outreach: personalize, be brief, make their job easy.
Launch Timeline
Three to six months before launch, start your social media presence, join relevant communities, begin devlog posts, and build followers.
One to two months before, finalize page assets like screenshots and trailer, prepare your press kit, draft your influencer and press list, and announce your release date.
One to two weeks before, send keys to influencers and press, schedule your launch posts, prepare your launch devlog, and give your page a final polish.
On launch day, publish the game, post your launch announcement everywhere, engage with all comments, monitor for bugs, and thank early players.
During the first week after launch, respond to all feedback, fix critical bugs immediately, post an update devlog, and share positive reviews.
Ongoing after launch, keep releasing regular updates, engage with the community, plan future content, and consider sales and bundles.
Common Mistakes
For page mistakes, don't publish before your page is ready. Don't skip the cover image or use a bad one. Don't write wall-of-text descriptions. Don't launch without screenshots. Don't use wrong or missing tags.
For marketing mistakes, don't wait until launch to start marketing. Don't just post "game is out" once. Engage with the community. Don't expect itch.io to do the marketing for you. Don't ignore feedback.
For pricing mistakes, don't set a high price without an established audience. Don't undervalue your work at $0.99 for 10+ hours of content. Always set a suggested price on PWYW. Run sales occasionally.
For development mistakes, don't let scope creep delay your launch forever. Don't wait for "perfect" instead of shipping. Collect early feedback. Don't abandon the game after launch.
Analytics
Track page views (how many found your page), downloads (how many tried your game), conversion rate (views to downloads), ratings count (engagement level), rating average (quality perception), revenue, and referrers (where traffic comes from).
Diagnosing Problems
If you have low views, it's a marketing problem. Post more on social media, try new communities, use better hashtags, write more devlogs.
If you have high views but low downloads, it's a page problem. Improve your cover image, get better screenshots, write a clearer description, check your pricing.
If you have high downloads but low ratings, it's a game quality problem. Fix bugs, improve the tutorial and onboarding, address common complaints.
Long-Term Growth
Building an Audience
itch.io followers are valuable. They get notified of new releases, they see your devlogs, and they're likely to buy future games.
Grow followers by asking at the end of your games, mentioning it in devlogs, linking from social media, and focusing on quality over quantity.
Your Catalog Compounds
Your second game is easier to launch than your first. You have existing followers, you can cross-promote between games, you have an established reputation, and you've learned skills.
The strategy is: launch first game and collect followers, promote game 2 to game 1 players, bundle games together, and let each game grow your audience.
Sales and Bundles
For running sales, 20-50% off is common. Time them around holidays. Announce on social media. Update your devlog.
For joining bundles, they increase exposure, bring new players, and work well for older games. itch.io sometimes organizes charity bundles worth joining.
Web Games on itch.io
HTML5 and WebGL games have advantages on itch.io. Instant play with no download barrier. Mobile-friendly if you support touch. Easy to share with direct links. Great for jams because they're quick to try.
For optimization, loading time matters so keep the initial load small. Show a loading bar or percentage. Test on Chrome, Firefox, Safari, and Edge. Add touch support if feasible. Provide a fullscreen button.
For embed settings, use 960px width (or your game's native) and 540px height for 16:9. Enable mobile-friendly if responsive. Enable the fullscreen button. Disable scrollbars.
For performance, lazy-load assets, compress textures, minimize your JavaScript bundle, use WebGL efficiently, and test on lower-end devices.
Resources
For official documentation, check the itch.io Creator Docs, Getting Indexed guide, and Pricing Guide.
For communities, visit the itch.io Community Forums, r/itchio, r/indiegaming, and r/IndieDev.
For tools, itch.io Butler is a CLI for uploads, and Presskit() generates press kits.
The Short Version
Before launch, make sure your game is playable and polished enough, your page has a great cover image, you have 3+ screenshots and ideally a GIF or trailer, your description is clear and scannable, all relevant tags are selected, you've decided on pricing, you've started your social media presence, and you've posted devlogs.
At launch, your page should be 100% complete, published publicly, announced everywhere, and you should be engaging with comments.
After launch, respond to feedback, fix bugs quickly, keep posting devlogs, and build toward your next release.
Most successful indie games took years and multiple releases to find their audience. Your first game probably won't be a hit, and that's fine. Each release teaches you, grows your audience, and brings you closer to the game that breaks through.
Ship it. Learn. Repeat.