Publishers who want to be only one to see game?

If you do send in a prototype for an exclusive look you may want to ask for a specific end date before you decide whether to send it in. Try to give them a bit more time than they ask for, but make sure you are all on the same page.

- KrisW

TKJimbo: To clarify, it's not that they want to be the only one to have EVERY looked at it, it's that they want to be the only one to have the prototype under consideration during the time they're considering it. Often (but not always, be sure to read guidelines) you can submit an inquiry letter to multiple companies; but GENERALLY SPEAKING, only one company at a time should have the playable prototype in-hand and under consideration (unless they know ahead of time that multiple companies are actively looking at it). Nobody wants to spend 100 man-hours of valuable playtesting time evaluating a game only to be told by the designer that another company already signed it. Once it's rejected, you can move on to the next company. No company expects that they're the only ones to have ever seen a particular design, period, they just expect exclusivity during the evaluation period. There are exceptions, especially as you move towards the more mass-market end of the spectrum.

SinJinQLB: Game companies are almost universally VERY VERY bad at responding in a timely manner. There are exceptions, of course. I would give it a month, maybe two after an inquiry letter before either following up or (more likely) moving on to the next company. If the prototype is under consideration... the time frame is even crazier. I think the rough average in my experience is 6 months. A year is not uncommon. But I've had fast answers too (a couple of weeks), and in the extreme slow case, 4 years (though I had written it off as "not going to happen" long before that). Checking in every couple of months on the prototype is reasonable (don't pester), and at some point you'll get a feel for the "not going to happens" and realize when to politely let them know you're submitting elsewhere. Bonus hint: if they apologize for how long it's taking, and say that it's ok if you submit elsewhere, don't say "oh no, that's ok, I can wait", say "thank you, I will, but do let me know if you get a chance to try it out" and start submitting elsewhere.

Usually I don´t give my prototypes exclusively to one publisher.
If they want to, they must give me some commitment / warrenties.

But I think it is indispensable to inform them about the submission to others, and of course to tell them if an interrest of one of the other publishers becomes definite. Having them playtes your game while the contract with someone else is (almost) signed would be unfair.