The games industry’s indie scene is expanding as major publishers retreat from riskier projects, with boutique companies stepping in to back smaller studios with experimental ideas. Photograph: Go Nakamura/Reuters
As gaming’s biggest publishers retreat into safer bets, a new generation of independents are building an alternative from the ground up
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During the 1990s, a new strata of independent film studios and distributors revitalised the Hollywood movie machine. The likes of Miramax, New Line Cinema and October Films challenged the ageing behemoths of the industry and pushed forward offbeat directors such as Quentin Tarantino, Darren Aronofsky and Jane Campion. The decade is widely considered an artistic high point for western cinema after the bloated mainstream excesses of the 1980s. Could something similar now be happening in games?
Certainly, we have a comparable setup. The big players of the games business are in various states of creative disarray: Electronic Arts (EA) has been bought out by a Saudi-led consortium, which is likely to lead to more cautious, hit-driven decisions; Microsoft bought Activision and Bethesda and then ordered waves of redundancies; Ubisoft has cancelled several titles and is posting big losses. Those companies are also facing rising development costs, so they’re circling the wagons, focusing on legacy brands and freezing recruitment. It’s hard to imagine any left-field works of genius emerging from this imaginative quagmire.
Meanwhile, smaller developers who are starved of investment through traditional routes, are quietly formulating a counter-economy. Over the past couple of years, we’ve seen the arrival of boutique publishers, set up by successful studios, and designed to support grassroots talent. Kinetic Publishing was formed by the creator of successful indie ghost-hunting game Phasmophobia to support new studios; Outersloth is the funding arm of Among Us creator InnerSloth, launched in 2024 to support idiosyncratic game concepts; London-based Kepler Interactive, formed in 2020, was behind Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, the most critically acclaimed title of 2025. Last week saw the announcement of Inner Pocket, a publisher founded by industry veterans and dedicated to “intimate and engaging” experiences.
Critially acclaimed and indie-made … Clair Obscur Expedition 33. Photograph: Sandfall Interactive
There has, arguably, never been a better time for this kind of grassroots revolution in games publishing. Digital distribution via stores such as Steam and the App Store has given studios a global marketplace, while social media platforms are providing comparatively cheap marketing avenues. A decade ago, it would have been costly to show new games and strike deals at big events such as E3 – but now, most titles are revealed via online showcases or through communities of fans on Discord and Reddit. At the same time, developers are able to bypass traditional publishing deals to finance projects, seeking help from regional arts networks and funding bodies, and joining local hubs for support. At the latest Develop Conference in the UK, studio collectives came together, combining forces and sharing expertise.
This isn’t a cure-all. The games industry is still a complex and intimidating market and, with a focus on digital distribution, discoverability is still a major issue for new titles – how do you gain attention, and an audience, when there are hundreds of new titles released on Steam every week? But as mainstream publishers quietly drop more ambitious and experimental projects, there is a growing community of new companies, networks and funding bodies looking to help. As John Buckley, head of publishing at PocketPair, said recently, “We’re going to see more hit games coming from publishers you’ve never heard of.”
Nineties movies such as Sex, Lies and Video Tape, Reservoir Dogs and Slacker emerged from a new Hollywood culture of film school nerds, cheap equipment and funding models only a few steps up from maxing out credit cards – and a growing independent production system was there to support them. For years, chin-stroking critics asked the now-lampooned question: when will video games have their Citizen Kane moment? Now, perhaps the more pertinent version is: what will be the industry’s Blair Witch Project?
What to play
Serene … Cast n Chill. Photograph: Wombat Brawler
If you have ever enjoyed a fishing minigame in an RPG then Cast n Chill is worth a look. It’s a pixel art fishing game set in beautiful nonspecific North American lakes, rivers and coastline. As the title suggests it is fairly serene – though you have to spend time upgrading your rods and boat if you want to catch some real monsters. It’s also got two-player couch co-op, a feature I’m always looking for so I can play with my sons. Keza MacDonald
Available on: PC and Mac via Steam**
Estimated playtime:** 18 hours
What to read
Profit before safety... US senators are investigating child safety on Roblox. Photograph: Ramil Sitdikov/Reuters
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US senators are investigating child safety on Roblox, accusing the game’s creator of prioritising revenue and engagement metrics over children’s wellbeing.
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Sneaking about in the alleyways of gaming history, open-world gangland adventure Mafia is approaching its 25th year. IGN celebrates with an entertaining oral history of the series – it’s an article you can’t refuse.
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As a lifelong fan of weird and divisive video games, I enjoyed this piece on 6 out of 10 bangers – the sorts of games that score “low” but only because they’re bizarre, twisted and glitchy, which can be compelling qualities. Resident Evil Gaiden and Amiga classic Shadow of the Beast are mentioned. I’d add PS2 curio Mister Mosquito (where you play as a mosquito trying to suck blood from a suburban family) and crazed PlayStation driving game Runabout (known as Felony 11-79 in the West), where you run around a city trying to unlock as many vehicles as possible. They don’t make ‘em like that any more.
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What to click
Question Block
So realistic there’s probably an eight-hour wait at Dover … Euro Truck Simulator 2. Photograph: SCS Software
A question this week from Jon, via email:
“I love driving games, but I don’t want to compete online – or even compete at all, if I’m honest_. I played Forza Horizon 4 to death without actually progressing in the festival at all and I bought GTA V just so I could hop in a car and circumnavigate San Andreas without shooting anybody._ Are there any other race-free driving games I could try?”
There are plenty in the indie space if you don’t mind a drop in visual fidelity. Slow Roads is a popular browser-based driving game, where you simply select a terrain and then drive along endless roads. An upgraded version is coming to the Steam store in October with a few more road types and vehicle customisation options, and the demo is available now. The Long Drive is slightly more demanding, a vehicle-based survival game where you drive around a post-apocalyptic landscape ensuring your food, water and fuel don’t run out. It’s been stalled on Steam early access for years and has probably been abandoned, which I feel is a nice metaphor for this whole sub-genre. Elsewhere, BeamNG.drive is an in-depth vehicle physics simulator where you configure a car to your specifications and then drive it through a sandbox world – it’s in early access on PC but a PS5 version has been promised. The cheery open-world driver Motor Town does offer missions to carry out, but mostly it’s about whizzing about in a range of different vehicles. And there’s always Euro Truck Simulator 2, which has drives long enough to feel aimless, even if you do have packages to deliver.
If you have a question for Question Block – or anything else to say about the newsletter – email us at pushingbuttons@theguardian.com.
