Well, it’s been one week since I first published Game On to the Android Marketplace. The statistics so far; I've received over 2,000 downloads, 13 reviews, and an average of 4/5 stars. I've also received a ton of e-mail from my users which I'll talk more about that shortly. I know these numbers are quite small but as my first attempt to get anything on the Market, it's not too shabby, especially for a v.1 application.

To date, I’ve learned a few things on how the Market operates and that, while most of the feedback has been extremely positive and constructive, there was also a bunch of complete dip-shits who probably shouldn't be owning cell phones, or even worse, breeding.

But first, here are my thoughts on the Android Marketplace experience.

My download rate dropped off rapidly as soon as Game On had fallen below the first page of the recent application section. People seemed to be searching only for new apps instead of searching for something in particular. I had about 1,000 downloads in the first 24-36 hours of release. The second 1,000 took the rest of the week to complete.

In the beginning, it seems, people just downloaded Game On without even trying to read the app description. This resulted in some low reviews. Fortunately, there were some very astute users who defended the app and called my detractors what they really were; blithering idiots who clearly had not read the description or any directions at all.

Most of the bad reviews have stopped, because, quite simply, it really is a kick-ass application. But also, the only users using the app now are the ones searching for it.

The Google Marketplace itself leaves a lot to be desired. There is an expectation that you should be able to respond to comments and questions. As things stand now, you can’t, and all I can do it sacrifice chickens to the gods in the hopes that Google will fix this ASAP. The only true interactive feedback mechanism is the the "Email Developer" button. (more on the e-mail feedback in a bit)

Moreover, the 350 character description word limit is impossibly small. For me to construct a meaningful description of the application, include some release notes, inform users of updates, and respond to common issues or bugs in a measly 350 characters (provided it is even read by the teeming masses) makes no sense whatsoever. There also exists no version control and to order ranking based on revisions. This is a major defect that needs to be addressed.

Even worse, there is no browser based interface to the Marketplace outside of the developer back-end and that only allows for updates and rudimentary download statistics. Every comment made on Game On must be read from the G1 phone. Holy Jesus Christ! What a debacle. Google, please take note; fix this now!

Now, on to the e-mails....

User emails have been very helpful. Well, most of them. I respond only to the (even remotely) well constructed e-mails that I've received. This feedback has been very helpful for prioritizing feature requests and I feel like I can establish a relationship with my user community. Outside of these shining examples of humanity (the few, the proud, the brave), I do get a disproportionate number of bozos and nut cases writing about Game On. A good majority of these e-mails are written in broken English or hAx0r / l33t speak. Give me a fucking break! Grow up and learn how to write.

Here are some examples for your reading pleasure:

“What r batting (SIC) odds? Plzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz explan (SIC)” - All betting odds are explained in the HELP section of the app, you dimwit.

“Force close - sux - you sux” - Please tell me what you are doing and maybe I can replicate the issue and fix it.

"Do I need money for bet?" - No duh!

"How ppl tel when bet r going" - I have no fucking clue.

Despite the endless supply of idiots, I have been graced with a good number of intelligent and really useful users out there, posting both good and bad reviews. Bad reviews and criticism don't bother me. It means someone took the time to explain their displeasure, and by extension, how I might make a better product at the end of the day.

Anyway, I would like to thank every nice and intelligent user of Game On for their feedback. I promise to make this application even better so stay tuned. There is still so much more that this application can become.