Shovel Knight has sold 300,000 copies
Shovel Knight has sold 300,000 copies. Is that a big deal? Yes.
Shovel Knight is the product of a six person team over about two years of work, and although it was crowdfunded for over $300,000, that's a drop in the ocean of the budget needed even for a retro-style game.
It is therefore pretty gratifying to see Yacht Club Games celebrating such a huge milestone:
300,000 may not seem like a lot when triple-A games are usually expected to sell at least a couple of million, but back in August, Yacht Club provided a detailed breakdown of development costs and sales projections. At the time, it revealed that the team had set an aspirational goal of 150,000 sales, which it has now doubled.
Shovel Knight's budget was $3 million, although its actual cost is a little hazy as Yacht Club Games members ended up giving up their own salaries to fund the project. 300,000 sales equates to gross revenue of $4.5 million from the $15 ticket price, so there's a profit there, although discounts, sales, distributor fees and other costs will eat a huge hole in that figure.
Yacht Club Games said sales revenue would first be used to fund further development of promised stretch goals and other content after launch, but I like to think the indie has made a little stack of cash for its next project, too. Which we're looking forward to seeing, by the way.
Shovel Knight is available on Linux, Mac and PC through Steam, as well as 3DS and Wii U via the eShop.