What is an Indie Game?

[Dullshimmer]

With the rise of indies on PS4 and the somewhat unfortunate news that the Vita is not a focus for AAA titles, I've seen a lot of dislike for indies out there and it's led me to a couple questions. The first is what is an indie game? The second what do you think of them and why? Do you love them? Despise them?

To me an indie game is hard to pin down, which is probably a lot of the problem. To me they're games that include at least one of the following; they don't have a huge budget (or if they do it's crowd funded rather than publisher funded), they aren't backed by a major publisher, and tend towards digital distribution.

I enjoy indie games, but I don't tend to think of them primarily as indie games. I just simply think of them as games mainly. There are good ones, bad ones, and mediocre ones. Some are retro 2D, some high def 2D, others are 3D, some can even be fairly impressive visually. Some are very short and others have potentially limitless replay value.

So I don't know I think having indie games is a good thing largely. Are there duds? Sure. Is every indie game for everyone? Well, is every AAA game for everyone? I don't really think so. But enough about what I think? What do some of you think regarding indies?

 

[cigarley]

"Indie" is a really hard term to define, but the general consensus is that it's a game that's either 1) Developed by a small, independent company, or 2) A game without a large publisher. Unfortunately neither definition fits the bill 100%, since something like Bastion is widely considered to be an indie game even though it was published by Warner Bros. Likewise, Minecraft is considered an "indie" game due to its more humble roots, but the franchise is such a financial juggernaut that it's hard to refer it as "indie" anymore.

I guess it's kinda like indie music. At some point it meant that it was music that wasn't under one of the major labels, but now it's used to describe anything that sounds like that shitty music you hear at the end of every Scrubs episode with a moral. The point gets lost as lines continue to blur.

Personally I love indie games, the aforementioned Bastion or even something like Dragon's Crown (developed by a studio of less than 22 people) are some of my favorite games this gen, and it seems like indies seem be the only ones that are really trying when it comes to horror games as well.

 

[Jacky]

.........

 

[Heath]

 

[Dullshimmer]

"Indie" is a really hard term to define, but the general consensus is that it's a game that's either 1) Developed by a small, independent company, or 2) A game without a large publisher. Unfortunately neither definition fits the bill 100%, since something like Bastion is widely considered to be an indie game even though it was published by Warner Bros. Likewise, Minecraft is considered an "indie" game due to its more humble roots, but the franchise is such a financial juggernaut that it's hard to refer it as "indie" anymore.

I guess it's kinda like indie music. At some point it meant that it was music that wasn't under one of the major labels, but now it's used to describe anything that sounds like that shitty music you hear at the end of every Scrubs episode with a moral. The point gets lost as lines continue to blur.

Personally I love indie games, the aforementioned Bastion or even something like Dragon's Crown (developed by a studio of less than 22 people) are some of my favorite games this gen, and it seems like indies seem be the only ones that are really trying when it comes to horror games as well.

I agree with you here. It's just a funny thing. The concept of an indie game is just tossed about so frivolously as something to love or something to hate. I mean all the people who say "I didn't buy my Vita or PS4 to play indies", just seems shortsighted and a bit like saying "I didn't buy my PS4 or Vita to play games." It just seems hard to even figure out what an indie like the examples you give. Don't get me wrong I'm disappointed that the Vita's support is being reduced, but I guess I just don't view it as the end of the Vita necessarily.

I guess I just wanted to see what others thought indie games were and why they are loved or hated.

Is there a reason for the ellipses there Jacky?

Heath, that's pretty funny. Do you know if that game was any good?

 

[Heath]

Heath, that's pretty funny. Do you know if that game was any good?

No idea. Since it's a licensed game and 99% of those suck, I think I'm gonna play the odds and say no, no it probably wasn't.

 

[Chandler Wood]

I would say that Indie is anything that is self-pubbed rather than backed by a major publisher.

When a game's creative direction isn't dictated by suits looking for the profit margin, but by the passion of the creators of the game.

 

[Shawdad]

With the PS3 generation, I found myself playing far more "indies" than AAA titles. I've been gaming since I received my Atari 2600 on Christmas morning ( I still remember it like it was yesterday!) a day that would place my feet on the path of a gamer for the next 30 or so years.

I've played so many games over the years that it is getting harder to find games that interest me or just show me something new. I've found that many of these indies are doing just that. I do agree that some of them seem overpriced, even though I have no clue how much it cost them to make.

 

[Dullshimmer]

Yeah I've probably played more "indies" in the last generation or so too. I wouldn't quite say that it's because they always give me something new. Some do, some simply play the nostalgia card and show me something that hasn't been done for awhile until recently (which I enjoy also). It's basically that I tend to play most anything and enjoy most games at least to some degree for what they are or for what they're trying to do. There are exceptions to this though.