From monopolies to tiny tools by solo devs
Game Developer
AUGUST 12, 2024
This is a discussion about the large and largely underrepresented space of tool development from solo devs, individual artists, or tiny teams.
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Why art tests fail artists and the game dev industry
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OCTOBER 3, 2024
Art tests in game dev often harm diversity and fail to reflect real skills. It's time to rethink their use and adopt more inclusive hiring practices.
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Day of the Devs is going independent
Game Developer
JANUARY 29, 2024
Double Fine's Day of the Devs is spinning off into a nonprofit operation and moving its San Francisco event to early March.
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Japan aiming to support indie devs with new acceleration program
Game Developer
MARCH 25, 2024
The So-Fu program will help Japanese indie devs with product management, teach them more about game development, and how to pitch their projects to stakeholders.
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Steam's new API lets devs grant easier build access to players
Game Developer
NOVEMBER 12, 2024
Valve's newest update helps Steam devs give more clarity to players on game builds, and how it affects their saves.
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Capcom's close communication culture is key to sustainability, say Monster Hunter Wilds devs
Game Developer
AUGUST 26, 2024
Conversations among peers and strong support for RE Engine, make five-year-long dev cycles for games like Monster Hunter Wilds seem sustainable.
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Devs claim Apple has pulled a Unity in the EU with new Core Technology Fee
Game Developer
JANUARY 26, 2024
App Store devs interested in using third-party services in the EU will need to agree to new terms, and a fee that could eventually cost them €0.50 per install.
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Valve is beta testing a new system that lets Steam devs schedule Daily Deals
Game Developer
JANUARY 12, 2024
The system is currently invite-only but will enable selected devs to "self-schedule" the promotion.
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Amazon Games to publish new open-world driving title from Forza Horizon devs
Game Developer
MAY 29, 2024
Maverick Games, a studio established by former Playground Games devs in 2022, has found a publishing partner in Amazon Games.
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Wrapping up 2024 • Celebrating the life and works of solo developers
PreMortem.Games
DECEMBER 24, 2024
Financial success Solo dev Tuomas Auronen , operating under the name Redbeak Games , looks pretty relieved three days after the launch of his game Mortal Glory 2. The game is developed by Californian solo dev Michael Cosio, working under the name of Tainted Pact. Here Below is an attempt to pool resources between small devs.
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Solo dev Esteban Hernandez spent 7 years on Creo God Simulator: “I’ve learned perseverance”
PreMortem.Games
FEBRUARY 5, 2025
The toll on your mental health can be quite high for solo devs. The post Solo dev Esteban Hernandez spent 7 years on Creo God Simulator: “I’ve learned perseverance” appeared first on PreMortem Games. How do you deal with that? Thank you for bringing this up. Creo God Simulator is out now on Steam.
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Dev snapshot: Godot 4.4 beta 1
Mircosoft Game Dev
JANUARY 16, 2025
Normally our Beta 1 release notes summarize all the most exciting changes from the previous dev releases. Input Input saw a lot of incremental improvements and polish this dev cycle. dev cycle slightly too late to be included in 4.3. dev 1 ) and the MetalFX upscaler (mentioned above). down to 0.2 ( GH-97281 ).
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Solo dev Chad Crumbaker on his game Mekkablood: “Never thought it would be this difficult”
PreMortem.Games
DECEMBER 18, 2024
“I would say the largest advantage is having full control of the creative process and obviously not splitting the revenue with other devs.” The toll on your mental health can be quite high for solo devs. .” What are the biggest advantages of working solo? ” And the biggest pitfalls? How do you deal with that?
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Legendary Game Dev Environments Humble Bundle
Game From Scratch
MARCH 17, 2025
GameFromScratch.com Legendary Game Dev Environments Humble Bundle There is new Humble Bundle of interest to game developers, the Legendary Game Dev Environments bundle. There is also a huge collection The post Legendary Game Dev Environments Humble Bundle appeared first on GameFromScratch.com.
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Solo dev Lente lives and works on a boat and that shows in her game Spilled!
PreMortem.Games
FEBRUARY 14, 2025
On Twitter , shes known to her 22K+ followers as dev on a boat. I went to school twice for game dev, both times did not work out. The post Solo dev Lente lives and works on a boat and that shows in her game Spilled! Growing up living on a ship made a profound impression on her, leading her to buy an old boat for herself.
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Slay the Spire devs followed through on abandoning Unity
Game Developer
APRIL 11, 2024
Unity's Runtime Fee debacle cost it the trust of several indie developers, and led to Slay the Spire 2 being made in Godot.
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Playdate devs have earned over $500,000 through Catalog
Game Developer
APRIL 17, 2024
With more than 70,000 units sold and over $500,000 in gross revenue dished out to developers through Catalog, Playdate continues to grow.
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Dev snapshot: Godot 4.5 dev 1
Mircosoft Game Dev
MARCH 20, 2025
Our first development snapshot for 4.5 has arrived! As is often the case following a feature-freeze, several quality PRs were finally released from the collective backlog, as merging them at the time wouldve been too much of a risk. In truth, the quantity has been so great that we couldve gotten away with releasing a snapshot a week ago!
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Behaviour Interactive acquires Darkest Dungeon dev Red Hook Studios
Game Developer
SEPTEMBER 24, 2024
Days after shutting down Midwinter's 'Project T' and closing the studio, Behaviour Interactive has acquired another studio.
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WB acquires MultiVersus dev Player First Games
Game Developer
JULY 22, 2024
Player First's debut game has done enough to impress WB to bring the studio into the fold alongside Rocksteady and NetherRealm.
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Spiders devs to strike after alleging mismanagement, 'growing instability'
Game Developer
AUGUST 27, 2024
The Greedfall studio workers claim management refused to hear calls to improve its culture and alleviate working conditions that've caused burnouts and departures.
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70 percent of devs unsure of live-service games sustainability
Game Developer
APRIL 16, 2024
With so many games fighting for players' attention and interest losing out over time, time sink games are at risk of eventually losing steam.
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Humble Games' recent restructure is hurting devs and their games
Game Developer
JULY 30, 2024
Developers Squid Shock and Stairway are unable to push console updates, and the former is resorting to Patreon while looking for a solution.
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Avalanche Studios devs form bargaining agreement with Swedish unions
Game Developer
APRIL 12, 2024
Avalanche Studios CEO Stefanía Halldórsdóttir said the bargaining agreements help the studio "[become] one of the best workplaces in the games industry."
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Volition devs regroup as Shapeshifter Games after Embracer shuttering
Game Developer
JANUARY 30, 2024
"It's been five months since the closure of Volition, but I'm grateful to post that a group of us have re-formed as Shapeshifter Games." "
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Unity apologizes to devs, reveals updated Runtime Fee policy
Game Developer
SEPTEMBER 22, 2023
Unity's updated Runtime Fee will no longer apply to games made on Unity Personal, and will only apply beginning with the next LTS version of Unity.
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Mobile dev Pixelberry acquired by Series Entertainment
Game Developer
JULY 10, 2024
Pixelberry wants to use Series to get highly requested features out the door, while Series is looking to add its proprietary Rho engine into the developer's pipeline.
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Disco Elysium writer launches third splinter dev, Summer Eternal
Game Developer
OCTOBER 11, 2024
Other former ZA/UM staff and Disco Elysium writers have banded together to form Summer Eternal, an 'art collective/RPG studio' hoping to continue Elysium's legacy.
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Wayfinder dev Airship Syndicate lays off 16 employees
Game Developer
SEPTEMBER 23, 2024
Airship Syndicate has made its second round of layoffs this year, while reaffirming its commitment to a revamp of Wayfinder and unannounced 'future projects.'
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Solo dev Vladyslav Pidiashenko “I hope IHAS will inspire players to better their lives”
PreMortem.Games
OCTOBER 30, 2024
After finishing IHAS, I will start to build a strong team to work on games that are beyond my scope a solo dev.” IHAS will launch on Steam on 21 November The post Solo dev Vladyslav Pidiashenko “I hope IHAS will inspire players to better their lives” appeared first on PreMortem Games. How did you get the idea for IHAS?
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Gamedev.world launching Global Games Fund to support devs in emergent territories
Game Developer
APRIL 19, 2024
'Any developer, anywhere, and in any language, deserves access to funding structures and opportunities to make great games.'
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'This is just a death cycle': No More Robots gets candid about the state of indie publishing
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AUGUST 7, 2024
No More Robots founder Mike Rose explains how cynicism can ensure survival and offers indie devs some pitching advice.
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Report: Summer Games Fest trailers can cost devs up to $550K
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JUNE 6, 2024
Summer Games Fest's pricing structure for trailers is pricey, and can help (or hurt) smaller developers marketing their game.
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Embracer has conducted layoffs at Tomb Raider dev Crystal Dynamics
Game Developer
SEPTEMBER 20, 2023
Embracer continues to enact layoffs at its various subsidiaries, with the newest round said to be hitting various departments at Crystal Dynamics.
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SAG-AFTRA's new agreement lets game devs use AI voices
Game Developer
JANUARY 9, 2024
Amidst continued AI negotiations, SAG-AFTRA's locked down a way for developers to use digital voice replicas in future works.
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Ex-Gearbox Publishing devs form new publisher Cooldown Games
Game Developer
JANUARY 24, 2025
The team at Cooldown are looking to release games that require less dedication than live-service and multiplayer titles.
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Wyrdsong dev Something Wicked reportedly lays off majority of staff
Game Developer
MARCH 18, 2024
A current employee claims the studio had to let go most of its staff, almost two years after it was revealed.
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Pokémon Go co-dev Very Very Spaceship lays off staff
Game Developer
MAY 2, 2024
It's unknown if Very Very Spaceship's cuts have anything to do with Pokémon Go and Niantic or are of the studio's own accord.
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Godot founders had desperately hoped Unity wouldn't 'blow up'
Game Developer
SEPTEMBER 5, 2024
Godot was a big winner when devs revolted against Unity's Runtime Fee—but its founders were worried about a surprise influx of users.
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