Could Minecraft have been the product of a big studio? That hardly seems likely. The most successful games are the ones that really pioneer a new playing style or genre. Eventually, that strategy leads to boredom on the part of the audience, who will wander off to find more interesting and innovative games.

The lesson for big game publishers and studios is this: The biggest risk of all is to take no risks. Unusual play styles or game mechanics, off-beat subject matter, mixing genres of games - all of these tactics and more have been tried as huge numbers of indie developers strive to create something that fascinates enough people to generate an living wage. The indie game developers that have attained a measure of success have typically done so through taking chances with game design. 'The lesson for big game publishers and studios is this: The biggest risk of all is to take no risks'Ĭertainly there's plenty of me-too games being developed by indie developers, but those are the indie developers who don't see a huge success. Everything an indie developer does is typically a risk, so it shouldn't be a surprise that indie developers take plenty of risks in game design as well. Many give up good jobs to seek their fortunes as an independent game, or leave positions at gaming companies to bring their own vision of a game into being. This is something that comes naturally to indie game developers, for whom the very act of becoming an indie developer is a risk. There are clearly some things AAA publishers can learn from indie developers, and here are five important trends among indies that AAA publishers and developers should seek to learn from. Indie games are still a breed apart from the traditional AAA development, though, even while some indie games are generating revenue numbers any AAA publisher would be proud of. Microsoft, Sony and Nintendo are all embracing indie development on their consoles, making it far easier and less expensive than it ever was before to create games on consoles. Even consoles, traditionally the bastion of high-cost game development, have welcomed indie developers with open arms. Indie developers have come into their own on platforms like Kongregate on PCs, the massive Steam digital distributor, and of course on mobile platforms. The shining example of success is Minecraft, which began as a quirky game worked on by one creator, and ended up a few years later as the target of a $2.5 billion acquisition by Microsoft.

Independent game development has gone from a rare, curious thing in the 1990s to a burgeoning part of the game business in the 2010s.

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