Once, through some strange chain of events online, I became friends with a necrophile and sadist.
Only where fictional game characters are concerned, I should probably add.
At one point, he started worrying about the size of his YouTube channel and Steam Curator page and asked me for advice.
So I told him:
"You have 1,700 YouTube subscribers. I have about 300 followers on Instagram and only around 30 followers on my Steam Curator page. Shouldn't I be asking you for advice instead? How did you get 1,700 subscribers?"
Apparently, that was different.
He explained that most of those subscribers had arrived back when his channel was largely devoted to doing unpleasant things to the corpses of attractive female game characters.
Those were his people.
Since then, however, he had changed direction.
In an effort to avoid upsetting YouTube quite so frequently, the channel had moved away from attractive female game-character corpse abuse and towards attractive game characters wearing nice outfits and generally having a pleasant time.
There are still occasional ragdoll accidents.
Unfortunately, the views are no longer what they used to be.
According to him, targeting necrophiles and sadists had basically been a cheat code.
Over the previous two months, around 30 people had unsubscribed.
He assumed they were necrophiles and sadists too.
He had no idea what to do next.
Then he pointed out that Horrorstagram had about five times as many Steam Curator followers as he did.
Which was an interesting thing to hear while sitting on around 30.
I can't say I entirely understand his unusual sexual tastes.
People like different things.
Then again, I like gore, slashers and pretty female game characters, so perhaps I'm not in the strongest position to judge.
Still, I had a look at his YouTube channel and Steam Curator page.
I'm not a marketing professional.
But both descriptions were barely descriptions at all. They were mostly just a handful of keywords.
So I told him:
"Wouldn't it help if you described your tastes more clearly and in a bit more detail? That way, both your audience and game developers would have a much better idea of exactly what you're interested in, and perhaps you'd have a better chance of attracting the right people and forming more useful relationships.
Right now, the only real way to work out what sort of person you are is to watch about twenty of your newer, slightly less unhealthy videos."
He reacted as though I had just revealed some profound marketing secret.
He seemed remarkably pleased with the idea and thanked me quite sincerely.
Well.
I had only told him what I actually thought.
Still, receiving such excessive gratitude from my professional pervert friend was rather nice.
Anyway.
I only have around 30 myself, but Steam Curator followers seem remarkably difficult to acquire.
I've recently started writing longer reviews on Blogger and linking everything together, so perhaps that number will gradually grow.
I'm not expecting very much.
The blog is much the same.
I didn't start it because I had grand plans to turn it into some profitable side business.
Although, if it eventually gets enough visitors for me to put AdSense on it and earn a little money, I certainly wouldn't complain.
Mostly, I just enjoy finally putting into words all the things that used to remain inside my head.
And, if I'm being a little selfish, I think I might actually be even more grateful if you followed my Steam Curator page than if you regularly read the blog.
Of course, I'm equally grateful for both.
But if my Steam Curator ever somehow acquired tens of thousands of followers, perhaps I could finally act important.
Ah.
That's not the important part.
The important part is that the more people follow my curator page, the more people may also see the games I choose to curate.
And if that can help a small horror developer, however slightly, and give them another reason to keep making their own strange, frightening or entertaining games, I'd quite like that.
That's really what I'd like Horrorstagram to be useful for.
Anyway.
You certainly don't have to follow my Steam Curator page just because you've found this one.
But if dropping by my Blogger every now and then to kill some time has somehow become part of your routine, please consider following Horrorstagram on Steam as well.
It might help me.
And perhaps it might also help some small horror developers get their games in front of a few more people.
Maybe.
And one last thing for developers.
My public contact email address is horrorgamesinstagram@gmail.com.
If someone contacts you claiming to be Horrorstagram from another email address, please be careful.
More importantly, Horrorstagram will never contact you first and ask for either a Steam key or a Curator Connect copy.
If you'd like to send me a game, please offer me a copy through Steam Curator Connect.
If there is some unavoidable reason why Curator Connect isn't an option, perhaps you've already filled all the available slots and you absolutely insist on forcing a Steam key into my hands instead, then yes, I will accept it.
But I will never approach you first and ask for one.
So if someone calling themselves Horrorstagram emails you first and asks for Steam keys or review copies, that isn't me.
Please don't waste your valuable Steam keys on an impersonation scam.
These scams seem particularly likely to catch newer developers, so if you're releasing your first game, be especially careful.
https://store.steampowered.com/curator/41272875-Horrorstagram/