


As an indie developer, you wind up pouring countless hours, resources, and money into your games knowing all too well they will likely never turn a profit. It becomes even harder when you have to compete against companies with far more resources and man power than you have. It doesn’t matter if you’re a writer, artist, musician, or craftsman who makes gorgeous furniture… art is a hard market. Palmer and the perspective she shares in her speech, and it has motivated me to share with you why I feel it’s ok for indie developers to turn to Kickstarter.įirst and foremost, most creative pursuits are hard to earn a decent living from. Because of this, I was inspired me to re-watch one of my favorite TedTalks with Amanda Palmer, as seen below. Sadly, there’s a negative stigma around using sites like this. To fix this problem, many indie developers have turned to fundraising sites like Kickstarter or GoFundMe, pleading for a little charity while also offering something in return. You have an incredible idea for a game, have poured your time and energy into it… and have come up short because you simply cannot afford to flesh it out the way you feel it needs to be. Nevertheless, money is typically one of the biggest issues on the table, especially in the indie game community. These resources aren’t always monetary, and can be as simple as finding yourself stumped on coding and needing a little one-on-one mentoring. This is especially true for mediums like game development, as the art of creating something can be tricky when you lack necessary resources. By asking for help, you are exposing a vulnerable part of yourself for others to see. There aren’t many people who enjoy asking for help it can feel awkward, embarrassing, and shameful. Over the course of your lifetime, you will have undoubtedly asked for help on numerous occasions.
