More Than One Flop from Bankruptcy : Rethinking Sustainable Independent Game Development

Abstract

Since the mid-2000s saw runaway videogame successes created beyond the traditional studio paradigm, ‘indie games’ have received increased attention from distributors, console manufactures, documentary makers, festival organizers, and, crucially, a new generation of game makers looking for alternative career trajectories. However, very few indie games are commercially successful, and even fewer are followed up with a second commercial success. In this chapter, we draw from ethnographic research with Australian video game developers to unpack the myriad challenges indie game developers grapple with as they strive for sustainability. Many developers, despite deploying the language of tech start-up culture, were less interested in ‘growth’ and ‘profit’ than they were in simply being able to keep the team together to make the next game.