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Do you need a company for you're first game launch?

Started by Mark dreamer of worlds Oct 21, 2012 at 5:49 PM 6 replies 2.3k views

Original Post

Oct 21, 2012 at 5:49 PM

Hello, I am working on a game (starting to program and converting art to 3D). But before I even touch the completion of my game, a big question came to mind. I do not have a company and do I need to have a company to publish my first game independently?

This is more for the Europe /Belgian people. Is there anywhere I can find the laws about this, or can I just publish the game without having a "one man company" registered to the officials and just pay the needed taxes from the money that I earned for it?

(this is all hypothetically since the chances are big that it is gonna be free to play.)
And although this game might become free, I still want to know this kind of information for further projects.

I don't know if this thread is posted right, but if its not please notice me so I can replace it.

Greetings Mark

sneak peak in the first level design:
[attachment=11845:room sketch1.jpg]

Radikalizm

Oct 21, 2012 at 8:22 PM

Belgian law concerning these matters can be quite confusing, your safest bet is to consult a lawyer for questions like these.

Katie

Oct 21, 2012 at 9:19 PM

No, you don't need a company yet. Don't worry about stuff like this. If you finish your game, there'll be loads of time to sort this out then. Write code, sort out other problems later.

Tom Sloper

Oct 21, 2012 at 11:10 PM

If you get money for your game, you are in business. If you get money for your game, you need to find out about business law in your area, and you'll probably have to pay tax. None of that requires you to form a "company" per se.

Hodgman

Oct 22, 2012 at 12:42 AM

Here in Australia, if you're making money, you need to register as "an individual acting as a business", which you can do in 10 minutes using a web form on the Tax Office website.

The Belgian government tax office website would probably be a good place to start.

Lateralis

Nov 9, 2012 at 1:58 PM

I asked a guy who used to go to my university and started up his own business (which is now pretty successful) a similar question, and he said that there is no point in worrying about the business side of releasing your first game until it is completed, because if you spend time learning about the intricacies of the business side of releasing your game while developing it, you're going to waste a lot of time. He said his team spent 10 months researching and taking care of business issues before their product was done, and said the time would've been much better spent perfecting it, releasing it, making money, and THEN using the money to hire lawyers and advisors whose daily job it is to take care of those things.

I've no experience in actually releasing a game (though I will soon, which is why I asked him), and this is second-hand information, just to point that out.

alh420

Nov 9, 2012 at 2:23 PM

I don't think you need a laywer, or much research really. Just ask an accountant about the tax laws in your country, and he can tell you if you need to register (for tax) before starting to sell.

Then stop worrying about it until you actually make money.

Here in sweden, you can also get cost free advice about doing business from various organisations, some tax funded, that are meant to stimulate businesses in the local area. There might be some like that in Belgium too.

Sik_the_hedgehog

Nov 11, 2012 at 1:07 PM

Yeah, for stuff like this you probably should be consulting an accountant instead, given that it's the kind of stuff they're specialized on. Hire an accountant and tell him/her exactly what approach you plan to take, then the accountant will help you figure out what to do.

A lawyer will be needed but for other stuff (you're always bound to somebody wanting to screw over you).

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