Twitter is a Game: The Rules [v1.0]
I need to acquire an average of 1 new follower a day on @theindie5views Each month I review the total number of new followers. If I am successful in reaching my rather meagre target then I have completed the level and can move on.
If am unsuccessful I lose a life. I have 3 lives. Once all lives are lost the game is over and I must stop using my Twitter account.
Level Up If I reach my target of 30 followers per month or collect a Super Bonus Pass then I level up. Once I reach level 12 I have completed the Stage and I will think about increasing the following count to an average of 3 per day. To be honest I haven't thought that far ahead, however the increase seems like the natural progression as well as potentially limiting the use of powerups and bonus items.
What, no end of level boss? Hmm, No it's not that kind of game, well not in the typical video game sense. Instead of coming face to face with an end level boss, once I've completed a level successfully I meet an After Level Merchant. Don't worry I'm don't know what I'm talking about either. But wait, let me explain about the merchant, essentially it means every time I level up I will either;
purchase a game made by an indie from the App Store (because I'm on iOS);
help fund an indie game via Kickstarter / indiegogo;
make a donation to an indie via their site;
vote to greenlight a game on Steam and perhaps even purchase a game on Steam (pushing the boundaries of my mobile collection :D) and
lastly, not forgetting the HumbleBundle
I will make the purchase/donation/support randomly but heavily influenced by the indie community on Twitter. Feel free to offer me advice or pitch a game you think I should take a look at.
So what happens if someone stops following me? I'm hoping it won't be too much of a regular occurrence but in the event of losing a follower it only affects the total count and not the monthly target. If I start the month with 67 followers I must gain 30 new followers to avoid losing a life but if I lose a follower then unless it's one of the new 30 it won't affect how many I've gained. Make sense? It does in my head.
What about false Twitter accounts? I won't be painstakingly checking whether the people following me are legitimate people, although, more often than not the majority will be indie game devs, studios, gamers, designers, artists, musicians, marketeers and other people of similar ilk. It's also fair if I follow myself from one of my alt accounts. I have about 8 accounts but only actively use 4 including @theindie5iews. I am also allowed to Retweet myself (from @twitfortheday only) as I build up my follower count but it's against the rules to favourite my own Tweets.
I think that about covers it. Of course I might revise the copy here to simplify it and make it read better, however the rules, restrictions, powerups and bonus items will (read, should) remain unchanged for the first 12 months from May 31st 2014 - the official launch of the [iv] Tumblr. I will post my progress, updates and After Level Merchant results using the hashtag #twitterisagame until I think of something more original like #tivtwig (the indieviews Twitter is a game).