Sometimes the shortest path to the top 10—or more downloads, increased sales, better reviews—is to bend the rules a little. At least, that’s what some developers think. They’ve created sneaky ways to manipulate the system at the expense of honest developers, and the Amazon Appstore has seen them all. In the Sneaky Tips to Boost Downloads, Increase Sales & Get Banned delivered at Casual Connect USA, Peter Heinrich, developer evangelist at Amazon, described the unsavory details, recounted some of Amazon’s experiences dealing with the worst offenders, and discussed how you can protect your own creative work to make app downloads better for everyone and not get banned! One tip to protect yourself that he shared was, “Make friends at each app store. Know who you could contact if you discover that something is amiss.”
As Developer Evangelist at Amazon and specialist in mobile game development and web services, Peter Heinrich is a frequent contributor to Amazon’s developer blog. He also often speaks at technical conferences on best practices for creating games on mobile platforms. His expertise includes all aspects of game development, including design, architecture, coding, marketing, analytics and monetization. Recently he answered questions about his work from Casual Connect and shared his insights.
Casual Connect: Tell us about the work you do. How did you come to work at Amazon?
Peter: I’m a developer evangelist, which means I spend a lot of time with people who make mobile apps and games, talking about trends, best practices and new techniques. I was a game developer for many years, doing mostly tools and engine work, before joining Amazon in 2011.
CC: What is your favorite thing about your job?
Peter: I love to travel and meet game developers around the world. No matter where I go, I’m surrounded by passion and enthusiasm – it’s energizing.
CC: How have your past career experiences been helpful to you as a developer analyst?
Peter: Every stage of my career has taught me a little more about my strengths and what I want to accomplish. I’ve learned that I’m good at explaining complex technical material, which I get to do every day in this role.
CC: What inspired you to pursue this career?
Peter: In my opinion, game development offers more diverse and interesting challenges than any other kind of programming. I love that on any day you may be solving an audio problem, programming AI, developing a custom compression algorithm, fine tuning 3D camera movement, optimizing network traversal, or creating a cool new shader. What’s not to like?
CC: How did you become involved in the game industry? How did you make your start? What do you find to be the most fun part?
Peter: My first job in the game industry was porting a PC flight simulator to the Amiga. It was a great introduction to game programming, since I got to see first-hand how a professional title came together. I worked with some amazing developers and mentors.
CC: What are some of the challenges you have faced as a developer analyst? How did you overcome these challenges?
Peter: Providing the just right level of detail can be the hardest part of my job, since I often speak to groups of developers with a broad range of experience. I try to err on the “more detail”, believing a little too much is better than not enough. I always provide my contact information, too, and encourage people to follow up with me if they have any questions about anything I present.
CC: What do you do in your free time? What are your hobbies?
Peter: I do a lot of reading and also compose a little. I live in the Northwest, where my family spends our summers camping and fishing. Winters are for snowboarding.
CC: If you were not in this industry, what would you be doing?
Peter: Film actor? Rock star? Sports hero? So many options…
CC: What was your dream job as a child?
Peter: Growing up I always wanted to be a train engineer.
CC: What has been the proudest moment of your career so far? What led to this moment happening?
Peter: Co-founding two indie game studios was incredibly difficult and rewarding. One we boot-strapped; for the other we raised VC. That company was eventually acquired.
CC: What do you think will be the next big trend in the industry in the next three to five years? How are you incorporating this trend into your future plans?
Peter: AR and VR are grabbing the headlines, but I think the most disruptive force in gaming will be Esports. I also believe RFID/NFC will become an integral part of most toys as manufacturers race to connect with mobile.
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