In a recent interview with members of indie collective/developer New Blood, I asked them how they attribute their current success in the face of so much misery, layoffs, and studio closures in the industry."We're not beholden to shareholders or investors or anything like that," said studio boss Dave Oshry."We get to make what we want—that's our whole motto: 'we hate money.
Oshry contrasted this with the growth at all costs mindset he sees on the corporate side of the industry, which he argues is detrimental to making good games and enjoying yourself while doing so. At around 30 people, Oshry's content with the size of the fully remote developer:"I care personally about our developers and everybody working at New Blood, making sure everybody's happy and having a good time, and making sure that everybody's voice is heard.
"You don't want to be employee number 356772 that reports to somebody that reports to somebody that reports to somebody that makes the decisions. It sucks. The magic is gone. You will not enjoy videogames anymore if you work in a big game studio.