5 ms·

No trying to be offensive but Indie Developers, might be the only ones at this particular point in time, to make a difference with their creations, in a field t

by sheldor 14y ago

No trying to be offensive but Indie Developers, might be the only ones at this particular point in time, to make a difference with their creations, in a field that looks so stale. I believe they deserve their reward, if not more, from the current bundle.

jere 14y ago
I agree. I love indie games and I think they are important. I'm simply noting that many indie game studios would kill to have this kind of revenue.
benbeltran 14y ago
There's a great book on this by Anna Anthropy (auntie pixelante) http://www.indiebound.org/book/9781609803728 http://www.indiebound.org/book/9781609803728 Being a gamer my whole life, it's sad to see how the industry has been in a rut ever since the PS2 era. As of late however, it's very interesting to see how indies are picking up what the big companies left during the SNES era. Also noteworthy for those who are just beginning tojoin the indie game scene, there are some nice games out there that haven't been in a humble bundle yet: look for games by nifflas, cactus, jon mak, kenta cho and auntie pixelante.
- Fargren 14y ago
  Don't forget Ben Chandler. He's one of my favourites.
- ericd 14y ago
  Thanks for those. This reminded me, though - I play indie games for their originality, so I'm always sad when I see ones that aren't very different from what came before. Specifically, I really wish indie game devs would stop focusing so much on making new takes on platformers - it seems like they make up a disproportionate number of indie games, probably because they're less ambitious endeavors than strategy games or other types. But, I and many of the others who are no longer buying AAA games because they're looking for something new are sick to death of platformers, regardless of whether it has a new twist on gravity control, or time control, or beautiful artwork, or some other unique twist. It's still a platformer, and the core gameplay is usually not actually different despite the twists. Maybe I'm just not the target market, though. Some wonderful counterexamples to this plague of platformers - Hammerfight (in a previous bundle), Starfarer, Lugaru (previous bundle), Bastion (current bundle), Plants and Zombies. Hammerfight in particular is one of the most entertaining indie games I've played in years and totally unique, I highly recommend it.
  - wlesieutre 14y ago
    Braid has a pretty cool narrative going for it as well, not just the time control mechanic. Have you played it the whole way through? I really wanted to like hammerfight, but I had some mouse sensitivity problems that kept popping up. Do you know if it was made in flash? Definitely felt that way to me. They cane up with a fun mechanic for a game and built a cool world around it, which I can definitely appreciate.
    - ericd 14y ago
      I never finished Braid, good to know! Yeah, I think Hammerfight is a pretty finicky game. It worked well for me (built in mouse-sensitivity buttons on my mouse helped a lot), but if it hadn't, I don't think it would have been very fun. If you get it working well, though, it's an absolute blast.
      - wlesieutre 14y ago
        You should give Braid another go if you have the time, I played it on and off for months before finishing. In terms of games that make you actually think about what they're saying, I've yet to find a better one. "Art games" excluded because they usually aren't fun.
  - CrazedGeek 14y ago
    On the other hand, as a platformer fan, I have absolutely loved the glut of indie platformers -- from the beauty of Braid and An Untitled Story to the hardcore stylings of Super Meat Boy, VVVVVV, and Distorted Travesty, it's been a glorious last few years for me. Really, I think a larger issue are the iOS-to-PC ports that just don't have much gameplay depth. Swords and Soldiers and Snuggle Truck are bad in that regard.
    - ericd 14y ago
      haHA! So you're the reason they keep making those :-D I guess I've just shifted to being fan of other types... most arcade games can't hold my attention well anymore either, and I'm not deluded enough to think that's true for other people. Agree on the recent trend in games that have very little gameplay depth... there have been some notable exceptions (Game Dev Story, King of Dragon Pass), but for the most part, I'm pretty depressed about the state of iOS gaming.

by sheldor 14y ago

jere 14y ago

I agree. I love indie games and I think they are important. I'm simply noting that many indie game studios would kill to have this kind of revenue.

benbeltran 14y ago

There's a great book on this by Anna Anthropy (auntie pixelante) http://www.indiebound.org/book/9781609803728 http://www.indiebound.org/book/9781609803728 Being a gamer my whole life, it's sad to see how the industry has been in a rut ever since the PS2 era. As of late however, it's very interesting to see how indies are picking up what the big companies left during the SNES era. Also noteworthy for those who are just beginning tojoin the indie game scene, there are some nice games out there that haven't been in a humble bundle yet: look for games by nifflas, cactus, jon mak, kenta cho and auntie pixelante.

Fargren 14y ago
Don't forget Ben Chandler. He's one of my favourites.
ericd 14y ago
Thanks for those. This reminded me, though - I play indie games for their originality, so I'm always sad when I see ones that aren't very different from what came before. Specifically, I really wish indie game devs would stop focusing so much on making new takes on platformers - it seems like they make up a disproportionate number of indie games, probably because they're less ambitious endeavors than strategy games or other types. But, I and many of the others who are no longer buying AAA games because they're looking for something new are sick to death of platformers, regardless of whether it has a new twist on gravity control, or time control, or beautiful artwork, or some other unique twist. It's still a platformer, and the core gameplay is usually not actually different despite the twists. Maybe I'm just not the target market, though. Some wonderful counterexamples to this plague of platformers - Hammerfight (in a previous bundle), Starfarer, Lugaru (previous bundle), Bastion (current bundle), Plants and Zombies. Hammerfight in particular is one of the most entertaining indie games I've played in years and totally unique, I highly recommend it.
- wlesieutre 14y ago
  Braid has a pretty cool narrative going for it as well, not just the time control mechanic. Have you played it the whole way through? I really wanted to like hammerfight, but I had some mouse sensitivity problems that kept popping up. Do you know if it was made in flash? Definitely felt that way to me. They cane up with a fun mechanic for a game and built a cool world around it, which I can definitely appreciate.
  - ericd 14y ago
    I never finished Braid, good to know! Yeah, I think Hammerfight is a pretty finicky game. It worked well for me (built in mouse-sensitivity buttons on my mouse helped a lot), but if it hadn't, I don't think it would have been very fun. If you get it working well, though, it's an absolute blast.
    - wlesieutre 14y ago
      You should give Braid another go if you have the time, I played it on and off for months before finishing. In terms of games that make you actually think about what they're saying, I've yet to find a better one. "Art games" excluded because they usually aren't fun.
- CrazedGeek 14y ago
  On the other hand, as a platformer fan, I have absolutely loved the glut of indie platformers -- from the beauty of Braid and An Untitled Story to the hardcore stylings of Super Meat Boy, VVVVVV, and Distorted Travesty, it's been a glorious last few years for me. Really, I think a larger issue are the iOS-to-PC ports that just don't have much gameplay depth. Swords and Soldiers and Snuggle Truck are bad in that regard.
  - ericd 14y ago
    haHA! So you're the reason they keep making those :-D I guess I've just shifted to being fan of other types... most arcade games can't hold my attention well anymore either, and I'm not deluded enough to think that's true for other people. Agree on the recent trend in games that have very little gameplay depth... there have been some notable exceptions (Game Dev Story, King of Dragon Pass), but for the most part, I'm pretty depressed about the state of iOS gaming.