Develop 2012 in Brighton's first panel – hosted by PocketGamer.biz publisher Steel Media's very own MD Chris James – was designed to focus on how developers can make their games stand out in an increasingly crowded mobile market.

Perhaps inevitably, however, much of the talk focused on what developers shouldn't do, rather than what they should.

Bot farms, inevitably, were chalked off as a no-no – even incentivised downloads are frowned upon by some, suggested Appromoter co-founder James Kaye – but another mistake according to PapayaMobile's Oscar Clark is relying on platform holders to push your game.

Marketplace muddle

"I totally applaud Apple's ability to build the App Store to that scale, but it has completely failed when it comes to discoverability," declared Clark.

"If you keep content that's been there for 3-5 years, people aren't going to come back and find your game," he added of the App Store.

"If you're relying on the app stores themselves for your market, you're absolutely going to fail, because they're not on your side. They're looking out for themselves."

Robin Clarke of Appy Nation also pointed out a fundamental problem with app icons.

There's a disconnect, he claimed, between the kind of icons that get people to tap on a game again and again, and the kind of icons Apple looks to feature on the App Store.

Top of the apps

One of the main reasons some developers fail, however, is because many studios launch games on mobile marketplaces with little idea as to what is popular at that time.

"It's worth bearing in mind an awful lot of people come to stores blind, not knowing what people are playing at the moment," said Clarke.

"Devs need to get that straight."

There's also the problem that mobile gaming is a victim of its own success, according to Flurry MD Richard Firminger. Bigger players are now entering a market where indies previously flourished, outspending them in all regards in the process.

"Discovery is a significant challenge, and those in the room rightly feel threatened because there are lots of huge players with big VC money," he opened.

"The market is changing and the cost of buying ads is rising, I'm afraid. It takes around 100,000 downloads to get in the App Store's US top 20 free chart. If you were to buy your way in using ads, that would come in at between $120,000 to $140,000."

Free for all

There are obvious ways to increase your chances of getting spotted by consumers, however. Namely, going free.

"I'm never sure whether free-to-play is still a debate, but it's kind of 'done' for me," added Firminger.

"For everyone that wants to build, scale their business and really make their mark in the mobile industry, this is the way."

Appromoter co-founder James Kaye highlighted other obvious tricks that can give a game an advantage.

"I would say the one thing I harp on about is unfortunately a quality game," said Kaye.

"You can't just slap a big brand on a J2ME game and get it placed any more. Quality and production values are key."

There's also an argument for launching games in more niche genres.

"Getting a top placing also depends on your category," concluded Kaye.

"Going into the action category on the App Store and getting a top placing, for instance, is very difficult."