Indie game developers have been the true underdogs in the gaming industry for the span of its existence. Indie games have been known to be unique with the most special games being totally different from the norm, creating a home for a dedicated following. This is due to the fact that indie developers more often than not develop games to give gamers a product they never knew they needed, as opposed to larger studios, who aim to give them what they’ve already been getting. From Xbox arcade puzzle games like Braid to Android Sandbox games like Terraria, indie developers have been releasing immaculate masterpieces that have shaped the way the industry saw and played games. We aim to show you indie developers who shifted the industry with their one-of-a-kind releases.
Mojang AB is a game developing studio based in Stockholm Sweden, originally founded as Mojang Specifications in 2009 by Markus Persson. In June of 2009 Persson, better known as Notch, released the first alpha for Minecraft. It quickly picked up traction within the gaming community earning Notch enough money to eventually be able to work fewer shifts and focus more on working on Minecraft. Soon enough he was able to quit his job entirely to work on his project which was already growing success. In November of 2011, Minecraft was officially released as Minecraft 1.0. In short, the game allowed players to create without much of an objective in its beginning stages, giving players the freedom to build whatever they desired. Minecraft allowed creativity in a way most other games at the time had not, creating an incredibly unique aspect that gamers had come to know and love.
Team Meat is another independent game developer founded in 2008 by Edmund McMillen and Tommy Refenes. Edmund McMillen commonly worked on his own flash games which eventually led to the creation of the infamous Super Meat Boy in 2008. The initial flash game was developed in a span of three weeks with the help of a coder named Jonathan McEntee. In 2010 the game was released on PC via Steam, and for Xbox 360 via Xbox live arcade, gaining rave reviews from gamers and game review critics alike. Super Meat Boy went on to wind multiple awards in its year of release and was later released on most other platforms due to its great extraordinary success.
With the evolution of how games are played in conjunction with their genre, many are curious as to how indie developers will find their way into the market. What we can say is their involvement in the industry is greatly appreciated and paved the way for many more to follow in their footsteps. With the tweaking of genres, to the change in game style, indie developers continue to show big name studios just what can be achieved when an inspired collective aim to develop their ideas even when they defy the boundaries set by the industry leaders themselves.
