Hmm, I agree. Using version numbers wrong can be devastating.
If you are too shy about going for version 1, you will keep potentially interested players away for a long time. OpenRCT2 is a perfect example of this. They are currently at 0.1.2, but it's already a near perfect re-implementation of RCT2 with very little few bugs. Hell, I'd say even in version 0.0.3 was already “ready”.
If you go for version 1 too early, your game will be remembered as being “buggy” for years to come. Basically a good game developer should first sit down and write down a plan, even if it's a rough one. I have seen so many projects burn and crash simply for the lack of plan.
I think what many FOSS game projects fail to communicate correctly is when they are in WIP state. Even those which mention it clearly, almost no FOSS game makes it obvious how far the project has come. Either this info is not written down at all, or it's hard to track down with 2 clicks.
I think many games can be simply hard to grasp for complete newbies. Newbies deserve to at least
know what the whole point of your game is.
Then, many FOSS game websites are terrible.
To be fair, most game websites are terrible.
Most websites fail to summarize the game in a few sentences and put a
big screenshot right on the homepage.
The description of the games is often not well-written so that it could be understood by complete newbies.
I think FOSS games, even the good ones, are rarely explained well to outsiders.
Also, a good summary should only bother about the gameplay. Don't waste the readers time on the project's history, licensing, relationship to other games, etc. Also don't write how awesome your game is. That's just boring.
Descriptions like “A FOSS clone of Random Game XYZ” have to burn and die. Even for near-perfect clones. Nobody knows all the games. It's perfectly okay to mention and admit that your game is clone of another game, but this info has to go into the details or trivia section, it definitely does not have to be the first sentence.
I think
http://minetest.net s an example of what NOT to do. Big screenshot, that's a plus, but the summary on the homepage is just terrible. And the rest of the homepage really doesn't add much more information, it's hard to
really understand Minetest unless you're already knee-deep into this cult (of which I proudly am a part of! xD)
Meet Minetest.
A free, open source voxel game engine and game. Fully extendable. You are in control.
Well, at least it doesn't say “Minecraft clone” but this description says absolutely nothing about the gameplay. It's not even correct, because technically, Minetest is not a game, it's
only the engine. The game is called “Minetest Game” (which is even more terrible … XD).
http://openrct2.org/ is not much better. It says “clone” in the first sentence, after the second sentence is already starts to get tiresome to read and goes into technical details.
OpenRCT2 is an open-source re-implementation of RollerCoaster Tycoon 2 (RCT2), expanding the game with new features, fixing original bugs and raising game limits. The gameplay revolves around building and maintaining an amusement park containing attractions, shops and facilities. The player must try to make a profit and maintain a good park reputation whilst keeping the guests happy. OpenRCT2 allows for both scenario and sandbox play. Scenarios require the player to complete a certain objective in a set time limit whilst sandbox allows the player to build a more flexible park with optionally no restrictions or finance.
I like the
http://xonotic.org/ homepage better. It's to the point. But it includes the term “free-to-play”, this is a term which you should NEVER EVER use for free software games!
Xonotic is an addictive, arena-style first person shooter with crisp movement and a wide array of weapons. It combines intuitive mechanics with in-your-face action to elevate your heart rate. Xonotic is and will always be free-to-play. It is available under the copyleft-style GPLv2 license.
What I think this description is missing that Xonotic also has a lot of game modes.
I could probably go on forever like this but you get the idea.
Finally, I was being told that I am ignorant of most FOSS games as well. Note I have only mentioned some of the better-known FOSS games, not ALL of them in existance. And frankly, not all games are really noteworty or even just promising.