With 20/20 hindsight it was obviously a good idea.
But at the time of making the decision, it was an unbelievably risky plan and the odds were stacked against it. As a matter of fact, for every successful 2D platformer made with care and love that gets released and becomes successful, there are dozens that fail miserably and that you will never hear of.
Yes, believing in yourself and taking risks makes success possible, but remember that it does not guarantee it.
Luck and a good review from a relevant reviewer. The devs of Nightmare Reaper credit Civvie11’s reviews of their game to the multifold increase of sales after they sent him a redeem code. And that’s not the only game that he’s helped out.
My friend quit his job and has been making indie games since 2015. It’s been 20 10 years and he’s made like $40,000 total in the time with all his games combined. His wife pays all the bills. Every time he releases a new game he tells everyone this is the one that’ll make him a million bucks. He points to games like Hollowknight, Stardew Valley, Undertale etc as proof.
Hey, you. You’re finally awake. You were trying to cross the border, right? Walked right into that Imperial ambush, same as us, and that thief over there.
Yeah but the vast majority of those failed games look bad and are mediocre gameplay wise. Even if they are a true passion project. They don’t come close to the quality of games like Hollow Knight, Dead Cells, Rogue Legacy, Inside or even Pizza Tower. Most sidescrollers (including metroidvanias, rogue likes and souls likes) released on Steam are of low quality because it’s very easy to make a basic game in that genre.
Yes the genre is risky but if you make a very good looking game that stands out with top notch gameplay you increase the odds of success significantly.
Budding indie devs need to realize whether they can make such a game. If not they need to find another genre that is less crowded or a genre with a very high demand, like the horror / liminal space genre those games have a much higher success rate compared to the average platformer.
Depends on their financial position overall. If you live below your means and save up, especially in a professional position, you can offset expenses with passive investment income. Retirement is really just getting to the point where passive income and using up savings can last you until you expect to die.
If you have passive income that covers your bills, then the main difference between working and not working (or doing work without guaranteed income) is that you’re not getting ahead as quickly anymore. You’re not necessarily even falling behind, though even that state could be maintained for a while depending on how much you have saved and what kind of credit you have access to.
But yeah, if you’re living paycheck to paycheck, this isn’t an option, you’ll have to do the work around your other job.
If take no risk then you guarantee to fail. You just got to take those risks. And if it fails, don’t give up. Just get up dust yourself off and try again. Just at different approach.
With 20/20 hindsight it was obviously a good idea.
But at the time of making the decision, it was an unbelievably risky plan and the odds were stacked against it. As a matter of fact, for every successful 2D platformer made with care and love that gets released and becomes successful, there are dozens that fail miserably and that you will never hear of.
Yes, believing in yourself and taking risks makes success possible, but remember that it does not guarantee it.
luck has a lot to do with success, people often forget
Luck and a good review from a relevant reviewer. The devs of Nightmare Reaper credit Civvie11’s reviews of their game to the multifold increase of sales after they sent him a redeem code. And that’s not the only game that he’s helped out.
If you didn’t prepare for it, you often can’t use the luck when it passes buy.
And the other way around, too. With the best conditions, you also need luck. (while still fully agreeing)
My friend quit his job and has been making indie games since 2015. It’s been
2010 years and he’s made like $40,000 total in the time with all his games combined. His wife pays all the bills. Every time he releases a new game he tells everyone this is the one that’ll make him a million bucks. He points to games like Hollowknight, Stardew Valley, Undertale etc as proof.If it has been 20 years since 2015 then I think I overslept.
It certainly feels like 20 years since 2015. Covid and Trump have easily stressed 20 years out of me.
This has scientific backing and isn’t just a feeling: https://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-news/covid-pandemic-accelerated-brain-aging-study-rcna220048
Hey, you. You’re finally awake. You were trying to cross the border, right? Walked right into that Imperial ambush, same as us, and that thief over there.
Huh, I seem to have woken in 2011
In a just world, your friend would be able to create as much art as he wants without having to worry about who is paying the bills.
That’s literally what he’s doing. Ironically, his wife is a professional artist. She does digital art for a AAA game studio.
He’s definitely taking the wrong approach by trying to catch lightning in a bottle.
Without people like him, we wouldn’t have innovative indie games.
Yeah but the vast majority of those failed games look bad and are mediocre gameplay wise. Even if they are a true passion project. They don’t come close to the quality of games like Hollow Knight, Dead Cells, Rogue Legacy, Inside or even Pizza Tower. Most sidescrollers (including metroidvanias, rogue likes and souls likes) released on Steam are of low quality because it’s very easy to make a basic game in that genre.
Yes the genre is risky but if you make a very good looking game that stands out with top notch gameplay you increase the odds of success significantly.
Budding indie devs need to realize whether they can make such a game. If not they need to find another genre that is less crowded or a genre with a very high demand, like the horror / liminal space genre those games have a much higher success rate compared to the average platformer.
Depends on their financial position overall. If you live below your means and save up, especially in a professional position, you can offset expenses with passive investment income. Retirement is really just getting to the point where passive income and using up savings can last you until you expect to die.
If you have passive income that covers your bills, then the main difference between working and not working (or doing work without guaranteed income) is that you’re not getting ahead as quickly anymore. You’re not necessarily even falling behind, though even that state could be maintained for a while depending on how much you have saved and what kind of credit you have access to.
But yeah, if you’re living paycheck to paycheck, this isn’t an option, you’ll have to do the work around your other job.
People forget that Hollow Knight didn’t do very well at first, also. It took an excruciatingly long time for it to pick up steam.
There is a great Bo Burnham clip where he talks about this.
If take no risk then you guarantee to fail. You just got to take those risks. And if it fails, don’t give up. Just get up dust yourself off and try again. Just at different approach.