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Huffpost Live talks 'silver gamers' with our own Jess Conditt

David Hinkle — Wed, 20 Mar 2013 17:45:00 EST

Last night, our very own Jess Conditt appeared on an interesting Huffpost Live segment discussing older gamers and the stereotypes surrounding older individuals and their inability to work the doodads on the clicker - technology. And yet, some senior citizens are using video games to maintain mental acuity.

Jess specifically goes into how Indie games run the gamut from the simple to the most complex gaming experiences on the planet; how they may cater to today's older gamer and how the iTunes App store and the upcoming Ouya will factor into things. The segment itself is around 20 minutes long, so grab a snack before you settle in and hit the play button on the video above.

Huffpost Live talks 'silver gamers' with our own Jess Conditt originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 20 Mar 2013 17:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Katamari creator Takahashi meets the Tenya Wanya Teens

David Hinkle — Tue, 19 Mar 2013 19:45:00 EST

Tenya Wanya Teens is a new game from Katamari Damacy and Noby Noby Boy creator Keita Takahashi and his wife Asuka Sakai. Their studio, Uvula, is creating Tenya Wanya Teens in collaboration with UK outfit Wild Rumpus and indie game site Venus Patrol, the latter which describes the game as "a coming-of-age tale about love, hygiene, monsters and finding discarded erotic magazines in the woods."

Tenya Wanya Teens was originally set to be unveiled during GDC, as a party game for two players using massive 16-button controllers. Game designer Robin Hunicke posted this image of the prototype controllers onto Instagram recently, and Wild Rumpus is currently working on the final controllers that will be unveiled alongside the game next week. Plans are also in motion for an actual release to the gaming public at large, ridiculous controller and all.

Katamari creator Takahashi meets the Tenya Wanya Teens originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 19 Mar 2013 19:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Nation of Indies teaches Austin devs how to become indie

Jordan Mallory — Sat, 02 Feb 2013 13:30:00 EST

The folks behind Austin, Texas' Juegos Rancheros initiative have taken it upon themselves to mitigate the damage caused by the absurd number of gaming layoffs that have affected this region over the last year, and they're doing so through education.

Nation of Indies is a free, single-day crash course in becoming an indie developer, with talks on different methods of funding procurement, small business management techniques, software tool investment and long-term sustainability. Indie developers Semi Secret, Tiger Style and others will be on hand, lending their expertise on how to transition from being someone's employee, to running your own studio.

The symposium takes place on Sunday, February 10, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Central, and RSVPing is encouraged.

Nation of Indies teaches Austin devs how to become indie originally appeared on Joystiq on Sat, 02 Feb 2013 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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You light up my life: What Steam Greenlight is for indies, from indies

Jessica Conditt — Thu, 06 Sep 2012 20:00:00 EST

Steam Greenlight isn't for everybody. Literally - five days after pushing Greenlight live, Valve implemented a $100 barrier to entry in the hopes of eliminating the barrage of prank game ideas by people who don't "fully understanding the purpose of Greenlight."

Before the fee, it was difficult to know what Greenlight was going to mean for the indie community, since its "new toy" sheen hadn't yet dissipated. It's even more difficult to gauge what Steam itself wanted Greenlight to accomplish, with or without the fee.

In its launch announcement, Valve says Greenlight will serve "as a clearing house for game submissions" and "provides an incredible level of added exposure for new games and an opportunity to connect directly with potential customers and fans." If that sounds a lot like Kickstarter, it's because it sounds a lot like Kickstarter. This isn't a bad thing; it equates Greenlight to something that has run the online course and has experienced public showdowns and successes, something known.

While a few developers benefit from the high-speed, viral-hinged community vetting of crowd-sourced creative sites, even more have failed. Still, sites such as Kickstarter truly can help raise awareness for a legitimate project, even if that interest doesn't transform into cash. In this sense, Greenlight has an advantage, in that it's not trying to raise money. It only wants attention.

Developers want their games to reach astronomical levels of awareness as well, and recently this translates into a fixation on one particular service for the success or failure of their projects - Kickstarter, and now, Greenlight. Hundreds of pitch emails switch from titles such as "Snappy the Turtle, a new indie adventure game" to "Kickstart Snappy the Turtle" or "Vote for Snappy the Turtle on Greenlight." This shifts the focus away from the game itself, in both the mind of the developer and the person receiving the emails.

Since most people receiving the emails are video games journalists and potential publishers or fans, it's safe to say they don't particularly care about Kickstarter or Greenlight - they care about the game. So should the developer, more than anything.

Those who have succeeded on the development side offer a unique perspective on Steam Greenlight. We asked a few what they think about the service, the $100 and its impact on indies: Adam Saltsman, Markus Persson, Edmund McMillen, Christine Love and a group discussion among Rami Ismail, Zach Gage, Greg Wohlwend and Mike Boxleiter. Their thoughts are below.

Continue reading You light up my life: What Steam Greenlight is for indies, from indies

You light up my life: What Steam Greenlight is for indies, from indies originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 06 Sep 2012 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Activision starts mobile publishing initiative for indies

Alexander Sliwinski — Wed, 13 Jun 2012 10:15:00 EST

Activision, the "that's no moon" of publishers, has created a strategic relationship with mobile platform and analytic company Flurry Inc. to publish indie titles. Actually, it's to "identify and assist third-party developers in the development, publishing, distribution and promotion of independent titles on iOS and Android platforms."

The interesting part here is the games will be published under the Activision Mobile Publishing brand, but indie developers retain the rights to their intellectual property.

"Activision and Flurry are uniquely qualified to provide mobile developers with funding, resources and unmatched marketing expertise, while also allowing them to retain their intellectual property," said Activision Publishing CEO Eric Hirshberg. "We are confident this relationship and our new platform will yield significant results and are excited to launch it."

It'll be interesting to see what type of indies this relationship nets. For anyone interested in hopping into this pool, we stress: have a good attorney.

Continue reading Activision starts mobile publishing initiative for indies

Activision starts mobile publishing initiative for indies originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 13 Jun 2012 10:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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'GameTap Indies' launches lil' guys into cyberspace

James Ransom-Wiley — Tue, 27 Feb 2007 18:30:00 EST

Filed under: Mac, PC, Online, Business

GameTap has launched its 'Indies' program, an initiative to market and distribute independent games through its subscription-based service. While GameTap Indies will supposedly "take effect immediately," there's no sign of it today. A representative confirmed with us that launch titles won't be announced until GDC, when, during the Independent Games Festival, GameTap will present its first ever 'GameTap Indie Award' to three "hand-picked" recipients.

The trio will have their games showcased on GameTap, assumingly headlining a selection of less-heralded indie titles. One recipient will receive a $10,000 advance for signing a 5-year distribution deal with the GameTap Indies label; two others will receive $5,000 for signing away similar distribution rights.

It's a strong play from GameTap -- still seeking a firm identity -- and will hopefully encourage similar services to support independent development more aggressively. Will 'Indies' help to negate the stigma that GameTap is a bloated client with little original content to offer? Mr. Turner and company certainly hope so -- Sam & Max and Myst Online can't do it alone much longer.

'GameTap Indies' launches lil' guys into cyberspace originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 27 Feb 2007 18:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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