Know the Cost Before the Port Begins: Lynci Now Comes with Fixed Prices

Lynci just got a major upgrade. And this time, it changes how porting is priced.

We have added new capabilities to Lynci to make game porting faster, more predictable and easier to plan, from technical analysis and platform adaptation to optimisation and testing support. But the biggest change is not a feature. It is a fixed price.

You can now know the cost before the port begins.

Why porting budgets keep surprising people

Most studios I talk to have the same story.

They got a quote for a port. The work started. Somewhere around the middle of the project the estimate stopped meaning anything: an engine upgrade nobody planned for, a controller rework that turned out bigger than expected, a certification failure that sent the build back for another round. Hourly billing kept running the whole time.

None of that is unusual. Porting is full of unknowns until somebody actually opens the project. The problem is who carries the risk of those unknowns. With hourly billing, it is you.

We wanted to flip that. So we did the technical work up front, built Lynci to make the repeatable parts of porting predictable, and now we can put a fixed price on the agreed scope.

No hourly billing. No guessing games. No discovering halfway through the project that the budget has doubled.

The Lynci pricing tiers

Here is what fixed-price porting with Lynci looks like today:

The exact price for each tier is confirmed after a free technical review - send us the details and we will tell you where your game fits.

What every Factory tier includes

A fixed price only helps if it covers the whole job. Every Factory tier includes:

• The agreed porting scope for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, WinGDK, Nintendo Switch 1 and Nintendo Switch 2.
• Engineering and platform integration, including controller, UI and performance work defined in the scope.
• QA: functionality testing (FQA) and compliance testing (CQA) by our in-house team.
• Console certification, including standard resubmissions.
• Standard post-release support, so you are not on your own the week after launch.

That is the difference between a price and a quote. A quote tells you where the project starts. A fixed price tells you where it ends.

How we place your game in a tier

The tier is not a guess and it is not a sales conversation. It comes from the state of your project. We look at five areas:

1. Engine and build. A current Unity or Unreal version with a stable build sits in Tier 1. A major engine upgrade or wider build repair moves the project up.
2. Platform work. How close your controller support, UI and performance already are to what consoles expect.
3. Online, saves and services. No backend work is the simplest case; cross-play, accounts or save migration add scope.
4. Project scale. Up to 250K lines of project-owned code for Tier 1, up to 750K for Tier 2 and up to 1.5M for Tier 3.
5. Typical game profile. Indie, premium indie, AA, or something beyond that.

The highest applicable factor sets the tier. If a game sits outside the Factory scope, for example a custom engine or a single-platform or mobile port, we prepare a custom estimate instead.

From first call to a fixed price

Here is how you get from "we want a console version" to a price you can plan around:

1. Brief and preliminary estimate. On the first call we talk about the game, the target platforms, the current build and the risks that could affect scope. You get a preliminary estimate before any technical review.
2. Technical review, 3 to 7 days. We check the repository, the build pipeline, controller readiness and performance. This is where we confirm the tier, the scope, the delivery time and the fixed price.
3. Onboarding, 3 to 7 days. You meet the team and get a producer and a lead developer for day-to-day questions.
4. Port and verify, 8 to 20 weeks. Weekly updates, technical reviews and performance gates.
5. QA and certification, 2 to 4 weeks. Testing, submission and standard resubmissions.
6. Release and support. Patches and the standard post-release period defined in the scope.

The technical review is what makes the fixed price possible. It is a form of technical due diligence: we find the expensive surprises before the contract, not halfway through the port.

What's new in Lynci

The fixed price stands on the new capabilities we have added to Lynci. Our porting team uses them for the repetitive technical work that used to eat most of a porting schedule:

• Technical analysis. Lynci Project Scan and architecture mapping show where a project will need work before anyone commits to a number.
• Platform adaptation. Platform refactoring, API and dependency conversion.
• Optimisation. Asset optimisation and performance work against each platform's targets.
• Testing support. Regression testing support, so fixes on one platform do not quietly break another.

Faster technical work is what lets us commit to a price and a delivery date. If you want the longer version of how we think about this, I recommend the real value of AI in game porting.

Engineers still make the decisions

Lynci takes the repetitive technical work out of porting. It does not take people out of it.

Experienced engineers review every result before it enters the build, and they stay responsible for the decisions that actually matter: architecture, performance trade-offs, platform requirements, and anything that touches how your game feels. Lynci does not create game content. Gameplay, art, writing and narrative stay exactly as you made them.

And the code stays yours. You keep full ownership of everything we deliver.

What can change the price

A fixed price is only honest if it is clear what it covers. The price changes only when the agreed scope changes, for example:

• new platforms added after the scope is agreed,
• DLC, new game modes, features or content,
• engine changes or major backend changes,
• substantial changes to the PC version after the baseline is agreed.

Each of those gets its own quote, and DLC gets its own fixed price once its scope is clear. If your game is still in development, that is fine too: a frozen PC baseline makes the price easier to set, and if PC work will continue during the port, we include it in the classification from the start.

Faster ports. Predictable costs. Full ownership of your code.

That is the whole idea behind this update. A technical assessment, a clearly defined scope and a fixed price, with QA, certification and post-release support already inside it.

If you want to see where your game fits, learn more on the Lynci page or send us the details for a free estimate. And if you would rather just talk it through, my calendar is open: book a meeting.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much does it cost to port a game with Lynci?

Lynci uses fixed prices in tiers: Tier 1 for indie games, Tier 2 for premium indie games and Tier 3 for AA games. The exact price is confirmed after a free technical review. Portfolio deals and AA+/AAA projects, including remakes, remasters and mobile ports, receive custom pricing.

Which platforms are included in the fixed price?

Standard Factory pricing includes PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, WinGDK, Nintendo Switch 1 and Nintendo Switch 2. Mobile ports and other platform requirements are handled through a custom estimate.

Does the fixed price include QA and certification?

Yes. Every Factory tier includes the agreed porting scope, engineering and platform integration, QA, certification with standard resubmissions, and standard post-release support.

How is the final price confirmed?

After a technical review of the repository, build pipeline, controller readiness and performance, which takes 3 to 7 days. The highest applicable technical factor sets the tier, and the price then changes only if the agreed scope changes.

Do I keep ownership of the code?

Yes. You keep full ownership of the code we deliver. Lynci speeds up repetitive technical work, while experienced engineers review every result and make the final technical decisions.