The Indie Game Magazine June 2015 | Issue 50 | Page 4

editorial
Getting it Right the First Time

T

here’s often a lot of talk about ‘sequelitis’ in the AAA game space, with the Holiday season almost exclusively dominated by franchise blockbusters. I imagine people would lose their minds
if they didn’t get their annual fix of Assassin’s Creed, Call of Duty, and Madden football. Even
during the Spring, with The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt having just released and Batman: Arkham Knight just
a grapple claw away, I’m again reminded of all the sequels the annual AAA calendar is filled with.
Now there’s nothing inherently wrong with sequels, of course. In fact, I think it’s every developer’s
dr eam to create a game that’s so beloved by a growing fanbase that they want nothing more than to
continue adventuring in that universe. But at the same time, it’s interesting to think about how there
are so many indie games that exist in today’s market, yet so few ever spawn a sequel, let alone turn
into a franchise. While there are certainly exceptions to the rule - Trine 3 is currently in Early Access on
Steam and Five Nights at Freddy’s is on pace to set a world record for most sequels in a single year - most
successful developers tend to move on to new projects instead of continuing to develop an existing IP.
But why is that? Why aren’t we getting a Thomas Was Alone 2 or a sequel to the phenomenon that was
Super Meat Boy? I think the answer to that question is the same answer to what makes the indie community so wonderful: It’s not about the money, it’s about creating games that we love. Most publishers
in the AAA space must have had a heart attack when Team Meat said they had no sequel plans, with
the developers citing that “We feel like we did it right the first time” and that sequels tend to tarnish
the original and primarily serve as cash grabs. For Mike Bithell, he knew even before TWA wrapped
that the stealth-based Volume would be his next project. No matter how successful the game was, he
wanted his next venture to offer something different.
The indie mentality is so fundamentally different from the AAA space that it’s only natural there would
be such a disparity between the two when it comes to design philosophy. Of course, the stakes are
so high in AAA development - given that they require publishers to invest millions of dollars up front that it’s just smart business to ensure games are developed to be sustainable as franchises. It’s just so
interesting, at least to me anyway, that while AAA games are expected to earn a certain level of profit
that can be reinvested into sequels and spinoffs, indie games are truly made because a developer wants
to share something with the world, and any profit it makes simply helps fuel the next passion project.
It sort of makes you wonder: What would big budget blockbusters look like if developers had the freedom
to just make the games they dream about, instead of the product that will appeal to the most consumers? Well, as more successful indie games begin to fund subsequent AA experiences from passionate
developers who suddenly have the sustainable resources to bring their visions to life, I have a feeling
we’re going to find out. Exciting times, indeed.

Vinny

Parisi

Editor-in-Chief
Indie Armada Fleet Admiral