How to promote your indie game with a tournament
Use a free tournament in your own game to get players inviting friends, creators streaming it and a community forming around a launch, demo or update.
An indie studio can promote its game with a tournament by giving players a goal, a date and a reason to bring friends, ideally around a launch, a demo weekend or a big update. Host the tournament free on RoundsWon, invite creators to play and stream it with their own stream card, and add your Discord and store page as free steps to enter. Players who compete tend to care, and players who care tell others.
When a tournament makes sense
A tournament works best when:
- your game has a competitive mode, a score, a time or anything that can be ranked
- you have a moment to build around: a launch, a demo, a free weekend, a new season or a festival
- you want a community, not just sales: people who come back, talk and help each other
If your game is single player, a leaderboard still works: the best time, the highest score or the fastest clear within a set period.
Pick the format
| Your game | Format |
|---|---|
| 1v1 or team versus team | Single or double elimination |
| Many players in one match | Battle royale lobbies, scored by placement and kills |
| Score, time or speedrun | Leaderboard: players send a score with a screenshot or clip link |
| A long event over weeks | Round robin groups, then a playoff bracket |
See Tournament formats explained. If your game is not in the RoundsWon list, pick "Something else" and type its name.
Set it up
Open Host a tournament and pick:
- Run an open event, so it goes on the RoundsWon wall where players looking for tournaments find it.
- Show sponsors, so you can put your studio's logo, store link and an offer on every page and stream card.
- Stream overlay, so every player and creator gets a live stream card.
- Give a prize if you have one.
In the Sponsors step, add your studio as the sponsor:
- Their link: your store page or wishlist page.
- Their offer: something real, like "Wishlist now" or a launch discount you are actually running.
- Title sponsor: the page header says the tournament is presented by you.
- Players visit their page to enter: the entry form links to your store page, and Enter works once it is tapped. The visit is counted in your report.
- Under Other free steps to enter, add Join a Discord with your community invite.
Get creators involved
Creators are the biggest multiplier for a small game:
- Invite a handful of creators who play games like yours. Offer them early access or keys.
- Ask them to play and stream it. Each one gets their own stream card link, which shows the match they are playing and a QR code that opens the tournament.
- Run a creator bracket as a showcase, then an open tournament for their viewers.
- Use the Every player streams switch for a creator only event, so every entrant must have a stream link on their profile. Viewers can tap any player on the tournament page to watch them.
Give players a prize that fits
The best prizes for a game tournament come from the game itself: a cosmetic, a name in the credits, a custom item designed with the winner, signed art or a physical collector's item. On RoundsWon a prize can be cash, a physical item or anything else, shown on the page with a picture. You give it to the winner directly. See Tournament prize ideas that are not cash.
Run it well
- Keep the rules short and put them in the description: build version, settings, how to join a match.
- Turn on check in so no shows drop out.
- Add your team as admins or scorers so disputes get handled quickly.
- Stream it yourself with the bracket overlay, ideally with a developer on the mic. Players love talking to the people who made the game. See Tournament stream overlays.
- Put the bracket on your site and press kit page with an embed.
Hook it into your game
If your game has online matches, your servers can report results with the RoundsWon API the moment a match ends, and webhooks can tell your game when the next match is ready. That is optional: players can always report their own scores on the page.
After the tournament
- Post the winner, the final bracket and the best clips.
- Send creators the clips of their matches.
- Look at the sponsor report: visits to your store page from the page, the stream overlay, the QR code and card links.
- Ask players what they would change, in your Discord.
- Announce the next one. A monthly cup keeps the community active between updates.
FAQ
Is a tournament worth it for a small indie game?
It can be, if you have a moment to build around and a way to reach the first players, such as creators or your Discord. Start with a small bracket and use the sponsor report to see what it brought.
Can I make wishlisting my game a step to enter?
You can make a visit to your store page a step to enter. RoundsWon counts the visit, but can not see whether someone wishlisted or bought the game.
Does my game need to be released?
No. A tournament works for a demo, a playtest or a beta, as long as entrants can get the build.
Can my game servers report scores automatically?
Yes, through the RoundsWon API. Without it, players report their own scores on the tournament page.