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There Is An Indie Renaissance Happening Right Now
Like I mentioned, the timing of great video games was perfect for my adolescence. But things change. I'm sure I'm not the first person who has simply seen their available time slip away from them as they grow into adulthood and are forced to take on actual responsibilities. I don't worry about video game price so much as I worry if I'll have the 80 hours necessary to properly guide my Witcher through the swamp of Magictopia or wherever.
Polygon
Nowadays, this just gives me an anxiety attack.
As a video gamer, have you ever had an idea pop into your head and thought, "Damn, that would make an AWESOME game!" But if you're not already a game designer, it would be a little daunting to actually create it, right? Where would you even start? (Do you have to like ... call Xbox?) Even if you knew how to program, AAA video games are made by huge teams of people over multiple years for millions of dollars. Even as an indie developer, you're probably going to need employees and capital upfront long before you're able to start designing your cast of mages and dwarf ladies.
Meanwhile, an idiot like me can come up with a card game idea in the shower, and in a couple of minutes, I can draw a quick version on cut up pieces of paper. In a week, I can have a workable prototype printed on demand for about 50 bucks, and within a month, I can have a free PDF online for anyone in the world to download. The ease of entry for indie developers into this space has led to a $200 million board game renaissance, driven by companies that people crowdfunded from their house. It's one of the only genres of entertainment I can think of in which the indie titles might be more popular than the ones from the big corporate publishers (you probably haven't seen the brands Milton Bradley or Parker Brothers around much since Hasbro ate them.)
Milton Bradley
Artist's rendering.
But the market is still there, thanks to hits like Settlers Of Catan, Fluxx, Munchkin, and countless others. This isn't Magic: The Gathering happening in a dingy basement anymore. It's your cool aunt playing Cards Against Humanity. The reason is, thankfully, that board games are hip again.
Chris has a new party game called Cheer Up! on Kickstarter right now.
For more check out The 7 Best Board Games for Destroying Your Friendship and 6 Board Games That Ruined It for Everyone.
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