Some of this has been tested, some of it has been not. This is part tip/part discussion about what’s best (that’s why I think it should be left outside of the main tip thread).
Getting good reviews comes down to consistent improvement. So if game B has more points than A, it gets better grades (at least that’s what the wiki seems to make clear and afaik this is true). So if everything else is the same (Great Combination of Genre/Topic, no bugs, etc.) you’ll get better and better grades. That and other observations I made might help some get better results. I welcome comments/criticism.
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Only make RPGs. Using the slider positions 0/100/100, 100/100/50, 100/100/100 will help you make perfect games more easily than more fickle genres like Action.
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Only develop for G64. It has no costs and it has higher market share than PC until it tanks a few years down the line.
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Add one extra feature with every game. So start off with Text-based graphics and no sound. Then 2D v1 and then 2D v1 + Basic sounds.
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When you run out of new features, make your custom engine. You should have enough research points and money. Add everything and like before add one new feature with each new game.
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Developing for anything but G64/PC is only possible after you get Target Audience. Without it, you’ll get games that won’t fit with the TES, Gameling, etc. audience (Young) resulting in less money. I personally stuck with developing for the G64. If you do it right, you end up with 5M in the bank on just one custom engine and no licensing costs. After that you can either go Gameling (it’s great for RPGs and remains popular for a long time) or switch to PC. The advantage of the latter is that it’s wide audience allows you more freedom with Great combinations of RPG and Topics (like Vampire).