Hello everyone!

Today I want to exchange ideas with you about something that has been on my mind for a long time.

Ants vs. Elephants

I am an indie game developer. I need to understand very well what that exactly means. Because the pie I am trying to take a share from is very large. There are very big actors here. Sony, Tencent, Microsoft, etc. They are trying to share a 200 billion dollar pie, and all of them want the whole pie for themselves (Figure 1). The top 10 companies in the world already own half of this pie. While I am trying to take a share from this pie, I am actually like an ant trying not to get crushed under the feet of hundreds of elephants fighting each other.

As long as I do not attract their attention, there is no problem. But the moment I start to take a visible share from the pie, it is certain that they will try to crush me. We have seen EA do this many times. Those who know examples like Bioware, Redwood Shores, Mythic Entertainment are aware. Of course, this is a bold future prediction. I do not know yet if I can grow that much. But this awareness is something I and many indie game developers like me should know: these big game companies are completely capitalist corporations, and their only goal is to ensure that their shareholders make more profit every year. Because of this, there is no place for emotion in these companies. They are not human, therefore they will not think about my well-being. If we think more poetically, they are my enemies. They are alpha predators. They act like cancers that will crush me and keep growing the moment I catch their attention.

Should all the ants gather and take them down?

So what should I do in such a situation? Should I keep the hope that “these big companies will publish my game one day”? Should I enter the candy houses of these old witches, whose nature is to be my enemy, so that they can feed me?

I am not saying anything to those who want to do this. Everyone can live their life as they wish. But my pride prevents me from doing so. So there are two things I can do: either grow on my own without entering their battlefield and be content with a certain level, or walk together with other indie game studios that think similarly to me and grow together. I do not have a concern like all the ants coming together and defeating the giant elephants. It is enough for me to reach a point where I do not need to seek help from the elephants that want to crush me. However, there must be more than one indie developer who thinks like me so that we can support each other.

Now we’re getting to the interesting part

While thinking about all this, something came to my mind. While I have such expectations from developers like me, what am I doing for them? I try to support them as much as I can, I promote them on my own pages, I make bundles with those who want. I recommend their games to content creators who like us. But is this enough?

Is this struggle only in the game industry?

Figure 2: Retail grocery markets in my country

I asked myself these questions while I was walking to the giant retail grocery market (think of Walmart in the USA) under my house to buy milk (Figure 2). This giant market is actually the elephant of the small local market that tries to sell on its own 100 meters away. (Figure 3) That local market is run by a single person and it is definitely not cheaper than the giant elephant market. How could it sell cheaper? The giant market has tens of thousands of branches across the country and can buy a chocolate one million at a time. Therefore, even if it buys each for 1 dollar and sells it for 1.1 dollars, it can still make 100k dollars profit. Because it has this power.

But the local market on the corner can buy at most 1000 at a time (if it even has storage), and it has to buy each for 1.5 dollars. It is already at a disadvantage. To make a profit, it has to sell for 2 dollars so that it can make 500 dollars profit.

Figure 3: Small local market

So why does that market owner continue? I do not know. Maybe they have no other choice. Maybe they do not want to kill their baby. Maybe an old man who cannot use a credit card can only shop there, and the market owner survives thanks to his prayers. Maybe they have a socialist stance against the capitalist order. I do not know.

Their situation is exactly the same as mine. A big AAA game studio can spend 100k dollars to make an average game, then sell it to 100k people at 50 dollars with a 900 thousand dollar marketing budget. Probably no one likes it (Oh hi Starfield!), people curse the company, but they still make 4 million dollars profit. I do not have such a chance. I can only make 3 or 4 games by spending my lifetime, my savings, and my health, and I have only one or two bullet for it to sell. That is why I can never compete with them.

The fight isn't just against the big game studios

While thinking all this, I changed my path and decided to buy milk from the local market. My fight, in my own way, should not only be with billion-dollar game studios. It should be with all billion-dollar companies that benefit from this system in the same way. If I am going to play games, I should play indie games. If I am going to the grocery market, I should go to the local market. If I am going to buy a gift, I should buy it from small boutiques on Instagram. In fact, let’s get serious. If I am going to publish a game, I should publish it on GOG and Humble, not on Steam.

Okay, let’s be honest, this would cost me a lot. Since Steam is almost a monopoly right now, not putting my game on Steam would be suicide. Unfortunately, I cannot declare total war on the system we are in. Still, it is necessary to take a stance. I will continue to do this as much as I can. I will look into how I can put Livber and Kardiya on GOG and Humble.

These are not my final thoughts, of course. If anyone is reading this, I would like to discuss. I hope my thoughts are understood. Lastly, I would like to tell you a short parable:

While Abraham was being thrown into the fire by Nimrod, a small ant carrying a drop of water to extinguish the fire was asked by the other animals in the forest: “What use will that much water be, do you think you can extinguish the fire?” And the ant replied:

“Even so, let my side be known.”

The milk I bought at the local market