Where can we host game files?

[HanonO (Hanon Ondricek)]

@inventor200

Okay so itch.io supports upload and download, but does not allow other sites (like IFDB) to directly download files hosted on itch.io.

Think of IFArchive as “where the game lives for posterity”. People can download directly from there, but it’s more “backstage” - players don’t usually browse the Archive for discovery purposes unless they’re given a direct link to a file or know what they are looking for because you have to follow the link tree and there is no search.

Clicking these links on IFArchive will download the files.

IFDB can be thought of as the player-friendly frontend for IFArchive. No games are actually hosted there, but it shows you the best places to find the game and any related material. That’s where people rate games and is a hub for reviews, comments, ratings and information. Games are discoverable and searchable. IFDB can provide a link to IFArchive (and often will generate the direct “play online” button if it’s the right file type.) IFDB can also link to other venues such as Itch or Steam or a standalone website. Just like IMDB doesn’t have an actual movie, but has ratings, reviews, trailers, pictures, pages about the director and actors…etc.

Transparent

itch.io can be thought of as a more flashy frontend for your specific game (and a less restricted Steam-type experience). The author can customize the game page with reviews, information, links screenshots, and optionally a comment section or full-blown discussion forum with topics. And it will also host the game and uploaded companion files. You can link back to IFDB from itch if you like. Itch allows browser play directly on the page for correctly formatted games, and an author can also specify if players must pay to download, or offer the game for free with a “suggested” donation amount, or just a “donate to support this game” button. Itch offers several modes - my most used is “draft” mode where the game is not public, but the site generates a secret URL you can offer to players to beta test the site and your game and you can tweak the website to your liking before it goes public, you can offer “free download” keys, promote the game and more. Itch makes your game very discoverable to players and a wide audience that is not just searching for IF, but intelligently tagging your game’s specific features will cause it to turn up in game searches.

This game is download only:

Transparent by Hanon Ondricek

This one is playable on the page:

Fair by Hanon Ondricek

You can also get a “widget” with a play online button that works in an iframe (you can see this from my website)

[inventor200 (Joey "Jess" Tanden)]

@HanonO

Think of IFArchive as “where the game lives for posterity”. People can download directly from there, but it’s more “backstage” - players don’t usually browse the Archive for discovery purposes unless they’re given a direct link to a file.

IFDB can be thought of as the player-friendly frontend for IFArchive. No games are actually hosted there, but it shows you the best places to find the game and any related material.

@HanonO

itch.io can be thought of as a more flashy frontend for your specific game (and a less restricted Steam-type experience). The author can customize the game page with reviews, information, links screenshots, and optionally a comment section or full-blown discussion forum with topics.

Ah! Clear!

@HanonO

And it will also host the game and uploaded companion files. You can link back to IFDB from itch if you like. Itch allows browser play directly on the page for correctly formatted games

Okay, so I now understand what people meant by this. Originally, phrasing it like this with the assumption of online play support made it sound like I could upload the story file to itch.io and allow direct download of that story file from IFDB. But now it’s been clarified that you can only share the link on IFDB if you want to direct someone to the itch.io uploads for play or download, but only once the player is on the itch.io page.

@HanonO

You can also get a “widget” with a play online button that works in an iframe (you can see this from my website)

Oh! That’s pretty cool!

[HanonO (Hanon Ondricek)]

@inventor200

Originally, phrasing it like this with the assumption of online play support made it sound like I could upload the story file to itch.io and allow direct download of that story file from IFDB.

Right. IFDB can provide a direct download via IFArchive (or the play online button which runs the bare file in a browser interpreter), AND can link to itch where the player can download from there. IFDB can offer multiple links to different venues; you can link to itch, Steam, your personal website, etc. - like when IMDB offers links “here’s where you can buy the DVD for this movie, here’s where it’s on streaming services, here’s where it’s playing in your neighborhood…”