Welcome to the Retrolution: Indie Innovation and Old School Gaming

To The Moon, Indie AND at night. Boo-ya! How's that for some wordplay?!

From college students programming on mainframes surreptitiously during the night, to multibillion dollar corporations that started out of a home garage, the video game industry has always had an element of independent, or “indie”, production values. However as the video game industry began to rapidly expand and development costs and production values increased drastically it wasn’t long before one-man and small scale studios began to fall by the wayside. While indie gaming certainly survived, its role in the industry changed radically. With most small studios unable to foot the bill for licensing fees, specialized cartridge/disc formats, or decent software engines/tools, indie game development became a domain almost exclusively reserved for PC gamers. But, as the saying goes, "the more things change, the more they stay the same". As prices of both hardware and software decreased video game development once again became feasible for the everyday man, and with a surprising amount of support from console makers and major developers, a digital revolution unparalleled since the early days of the industry was born. While the crap to quality ratio of indie games isn’t that great, quality indie titles are regularly released.

Jamestown:Legend of the Lost Colony, made by three guys, probably in a basement.
Just saying.

I have previously talked about the evolution of gaming and its roots in the past, but as the video game industry has grown many developers have been quick to disassociate themselves from previous triumphs. While proud of their creations most developers and publishers are quick to point out where they have improved, what has changed, and where older successes “failed”. Better graphics, more accessible gameplay, improved sound, and technological advances such as online scoreboards and play, have not only been touted, but have become the focus of gameplay for many major publishers and studios. Indie developers on the other hand have not had the reigns and restrictions that come with running major corporations or multimillion dollar projects. If a two-man studio using free-to-use software tools makes a game during their nights and over weekends there is little fear or consequence of failure, as the only thing lost is their time; a luxury many studios don’t have. This freedom from consequence, combined with new views and takes on video game design and increasingly open distribution channels, has led to a paradigm shift in where games are going and how they’re viewed. Where games were once easily categorized into a genre by their subject or style it is now difficult to place many games in one genre alone, or even any genre at all. From rhythm-based strategy games to semi-educational shoot-em-ups games are, in a strangely paradoxical way, becoming more varied and more similar simultaneously.

It may not look that creepy, but Lone Survivor will make you crap your pants in fear.

On the flip side of the coin however is that with the comparatively limited resources and means indie developers have, games made by smaller studios are usually simpler and/or less graphically driven. Where lack of graphical prowess is seen as detrimental in most AAA titles, many indie game developers have managed to make the lack of visual horsepower in their titles both charming and powerful. I would even go so far as to say some games, such as Superbrothers: Swords and Sorcery: EP and Lone Survivor, may not have been as engaging without their neo-retro feel. With throwback-styled indie megahits like Braid and Super Meat Boy selling and making millions, major studios such as EA, Ubisoft, and even Square Enix are taking notice and following suit.

Rayman Origins, so beautiful, so bizzare. 

Many independent studios are limited in what they can do audio and graphic wise due to budgetary concerns or lack of experience, and often create retro themed or styled games. Other small studios have dedicated their time to creating homages to games they loved in their youth, or titles and series they feel are underappreciated or “deserve another chance”. While still others use the limitations placed upon them to innovate and make something never-before-seen, working within boundaries others have tread, but taking their titles in directions not previously seen. While not all indie titles fit these criteria, there are enough innovative and “old school” styled games from indie developers that the term “indie” has all but come to mean retro styled games, or innovative head turners. In turn major studios have found they can produce and publish indie-styled throwback titles at comparatively little cost, expect a good return on their investment, and please their customers all at the same time. That’s not to say that all throwback games have purposefully retro graphics, but for every Rayman Origins there are a dozen Dark Void Zero’s. The nice thing about this turn of events is developers are once again focusing heavily on gameplay, control, and storyline, letting graphics and music take a back seat for the first time in almost 30 years. Again, I’m not saying every indie game is ugly or sounds bad, Superbrothers: S&S:EP for instance has one of the most beautiful soundtracks I’ve ever heard in a game, while Braid, Bastion, and Eufloria are all beautiful looking titles, these, however, are the exceptions and not the rule.

Superbrothers:S&S:EP :long on name, short on graphics.
Still a fantastic title though, go buy it now!!

The point is independent studios are showing that good games aren’t defined by millions of dollars spent and years in development, that good control and engaging storylines can trump graphical prowess and orchestrated scores, that development of a great game doesn't need a hundred people working on the tiniest aspects, and that anybody can make a game, and anything can be a game, if we look at it in the right light. And that is the future of games: where anything and everything is a game; where old school sensibilities take innovative and groundbreaking new paths, and show us that in our search for better games, we had yet to overturn every stone. Indie games are trailblazing the industry in a manner rarely seen before, and providing the groundwork for future classics and retro-revivals alike.

If you haven't already find yourself an indie title to try out, maybe even one of the ones mentioned above, and support the cause, because while we may be the ones benefiting from their labors, indie-developers need all the support and feedback they can get. Who knows, maybe you'll even be inspired to make your own indie title one day, and who wouldn't want to see that?

Until next time, game on.