Re: Agent Alona (Combin Ation Game)
And this is all assumption but if No of Donations Received : 406 and since its the blog just maybe it was $20 each donation hes already made a crap ton.
I thought that as well. But then I examined the data and concluded that he wasn't raking in that much at all.
Let's take an (obviously oversimplified) estimate and say that all of those 406 donors donated $30. It adds up to $12,180 ignoring taxes. DLsite will be eating a chunk of future profits too from sales made on there.
Combin_ation has been working on this game for a year now. So this gives him a monthly wage of roughly $1015. This puts him slightly above the average monthly wage of a citizen from Belarus or Russia; and $400 below the monthly average in Estonia. (Source: unece.org/pxweb/dialog/varval.asp?ma=60_MECCWagesY_r&path=../database/STAT/20-ME/3-MELF/&lang=1&ti=Gross+Average+Monthly+Wages+by+Country+and+Year)
We obviously don't know where the developer lives, but unless he lives in a poorer country in Eastern Europe it is extremely unlikely that he is earning above the average monthly salary.
Once again, it comes down to context. Is $12 grand a crapton of money? Sure.
Is it a crapton of money when it is all you have to pay your bills, buy food, clothing, heat your home, and have a social life like any other human being for a whole year?
No. It really isn't.
To put things even more in perspective working full time in the UK on minimum wage earns you £13,124 a year. ($20'244.) This divides up to $1687 a month. A person working full time on the minimum wage is potentially earning over 50% more for their work than this developer.
Now, it is entirely possible the developer has another job. In which case: Kudos for taking a hobby which also nets you some income. (I am 90% sure that he doesn't have another job though based on blog comments he has made.)