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by NateG 4534 days ago
I created a web game called Pit of War (http://www.pitofwar.com) about three years ago and it has been generating enough monthly income to pay all my bills and affords me the ability to travel and live anywhere I like. It isn't completely passive but that is because I choose to add new features and updates. It is a niche game but the Internet is a big place with lots of people. :) Books like The Long Tail and The Curve have taught me that you don't need to have the #1 product in an industry to make a good living.
1 comments

How do monetize? Selling in game items? Advertising?
The game has two currencies. Hard currency (Trophies) that are mainly bought with real money and soft currency (Gold) which are found in game. It is a fairly standard practice for those familiar with Free-2-Play (F2P) games. It was difficult to balance things so paying players and free players could compete on level footing but after three years I feel I've found a nice balance and if judging from player feedback the majority also feels the same.

The game's forum uses advertising but the income is negligible, maybe around $10 per month. This is likely due to the fact that it is the same eyeballs looking at the ads and it is not a high traffic forum.