Declaration of Independence

It's the early eighties: in the school playground children swap Spectrum and Commodore 64 games recorded over their parents' Whitesnake casettes. Some of the games they slaved over for months in their bedrooms, others are selling pirate copies for tuck shop money. The independent coding scene was huge back then - unknown developers could become legends overnight through freely produced games. Today, gaming is a multi-million pound industry and it's not so easy for independent coders to get their work published in the mainstream market. However, with next gen going online it appears that the little guys of the development scene are about to get their five minutes in the spotlight.

Large coding houses are starting to give independent coders a fair crack of the mainstream whip and allowing a host of fresh new minds the freedom to bring something new to the market. Services like PS3 Network and Xbox Live Arcade are snapping up new talent like there is no tomorrow. If you use the latter, chances are you have heard of the frantic shoot-em-up Geometry Wars. Granted, Bizarre Creations (an existing coding house) developed this game, yet it displays levels of innovation and unique design rarely seen on Microsoft's grey giant. Because these games are so cheap to develop there is no high risk if they prove too weird for casual players or sell poorly. This means that coders have more freedom to cut loose and let their creative minds wander without pressures of sales figures.

Enter Jenova Chen: the innovative force behind independent title flOw, available on PS3 Network. Championed in the gaming press, it is a great example of what can happen if developers are given complete independence to let their creative juices splurge over to the screen. "flOw is part of my MFA graduation thesis; a test bed for the game design methodology I summarized in my thesis based on a positive psychology theory called 'Flow'. In terms of inspirations, it has a lot to do with nature, ocean, and minimalism" says Chen. Previously available as a flash game on his website, the game uses Sony's motion-sensitive SIXAXIS technology and focuses on helping an aquatic organism absorb smaller creatures in order to evolve – a world apart from the Need for Speeds and Grand Theft Autos of the world, yet still a captivating experience.


Many larger titles, especially those on Xbox 360, rely on online content as our desire to take games onto the net reaches new peaks. Dave Perry (of Shiny Entertainment) has strong feelings about gaming on the net: "Online is the new trend in our culture. On one hand, having well designed online features will definitely be a big boost to the game. On the other, having conventional online support might not work as well. If you go with online, you had better design it very well. Half-cooked food never tastes good, and it might make you ill." Perry has a new concept, which is set to take gaming back to the bedroom: 'Top Secret' could almost be seen as the X-Factor of the game industry (cue unanimous groans from hardcore gamers everywhere) but in reality it could be the shot in the arm the indie scene needs. The premise is simple: groups of independent coders get together and pool their ideas for a new online role playing game and build early test versions for Perry's consideration. The group with the best idea receives full artistic license to develop their game proper and take it online with full financial backing. What better way to let the bright and untapped minds of today's freeware scene make their work known to the world?


"Personally, the fact that today's mainstream video game market is filled with realistic action / war games really indicates the needs for other types of games," muses the Shiny boss. "Games geared towards different emotional experiences such as Sims, Nintendogs and Brain Age are having a hell lot of sales these days. Instead of alienating the casual gamers, I think what is happening now is that everybody is trying to embrace them." Nintendo definitely have the right idea, and with games like PS3's Little Big Planet and Home, along with Xbox 360's recent shift towards more creative titles, indy gaming is definately starting to get the acknowledgement it deserves.