Do you support Indie / innovative games?

I'm going to go right ahead and confess that i do not buy many games, i play a lot of games, but i don't really pay for them.

This started when i was a kid, on the first Playstation.

A friend of mine had an chipped Playstaion, i used to go over to his house to play video games, basically everyday.

Before that i had a Super Nintendo since i was like 5, but only played a handful of titles on it, and a Mega Drive 2 (Genesis in the Us) which i loved and had like 10 games for it.

So, yeah, i loved going to his house to play some Playstation.

And so, i asked my mom to get me one for my birthday, we weren't rich, but she said yes, and i got one for my birthday, and it came with an awesome demo, and then i got a couple of games, and fun times.

But then i started going to my friends house again, and i would see all these great games he had, and then i would go home to my couple of games, and...

I wasn't satisfied with just these games i had, because, well, i had played them a lot, and i wanted sometihng new, but games were and still are expensive.

So ultimately, i asked my mom if i could chip it like my friend did, so i could play all these games and she wouldn't have to waste so much money on it, and nobody cared about piracy back then, a lot of ppl still don't give a shit actually.

And from then on, i always had my consoles chipped, cos i just didn't have the money to keep buying games, and i basically didn't even care if it was wrong or not, i was young.

But now i'm 22, and i think this is has nothing to do with age, but from one point, i started looking at things differently.

For expample, I look at great games on XBLA and, i kinda feel obligated to support these games, cos i feel like, these are the guys who'll be making games in the future, or these are the kind kind of games i want to see more of, or this is the way i want this industry to go in.

Having played so many games all these years, good and bad, and not having payed for most of them, now makes me want the support the ppl that really deserve my money.

To tell you the truth, if i was unemployed, i still wouldn't pay for games, but i have some spare money now, and i want to give some of it back to the ppl that make this industry great.

For example, I played Alan Wake, didn't pay for it, and now they released American Nightmare, and i didn't even care if American Nightmare was worth my money or not, i payed those 15 Euros because i lked Alan Wake and i want to support them in some way, because i want them to continue making great games, Remedy is a small studio with great talent, and they really deserve support.

I bought numerous games on XBLA, Trials HD, S'Plosion Man, Renegade Ops, Bastion etc., all games i liked, and all games and i want to see more of.

I bought Beyond Good and Evil on XBLA, even though i had actually bought that game on the PS2, just because i want to see a sequel to that game.

I bought Gotham City Impostors, because i really liked it, and i want to see more games like that being released digitally, instead of getting stupid ass single player components, just to justify the retail price tag, a la Unreal Tournament 3...

And that goes both ways, not every game needs a stupid multiplayer component, that's just wasted time and money, that the developer could have used to make the main game better.

I have gone and bought games that i had already played and enjoyed, just to support the developers.

Lost Odyssey, Bayonetta, and Darksiders, for example.

I'm going to buy the Witcher 2, on the 360, cos, not only is that a great game, but the guys behind that game seem like a cool bunch of dudes, and totally understand gamers, and threat us with respect, something you don't see much anymore.

I will be supporting I Am Alive, because of all the things they are trying to do with that game.

And most importantly, i have always bought, and will buy the new SSX game when it comes out over here on March 2nd, cos we really need more video games that are just fun times, like all video games used to be, so many games are so serious nowadays, that a game like SSX just feels a like breath of fresh Freaking Cold Big Air!!!

Anyway, sorry for the long post, this is not really a confession, you guys can judge me all you want.

But, i want to know if any of you has a similar story,

And do you guys feel the need to support indie, innovative games?

Good ones, yes.

I don't buy them particularly because they're indie, no. They get no special support out of me. If they interest me, I buy them, same as any other game. Generally too few of them do enough mechanically to do the job, though.

Niche Japanese games do get my irrational support, however. They're in jeopardy.

A: I don't see what the contents of your post have to do with indie games.

B: Indie != innovative and innovative != indie. There is pretty much the same percentage of derivative garbage on both sides.

@Blind_Evil: Yeah, that's kind of what i'm saying, sometimes i' don't buy a game for the game itself, but more for the ppl making it, that might not have another chance to make another game, if teh game they just released does not sell well enough.

We've seen some great developers close down in the past few years.

@BPRJCTX: Yeah, dev houses get shut down sometimes because quality games don't get supported or get bought mostly used.

I also see too many of my favorite games not get sequels due to peoples' hesitance to speak with their wallets. Mirror's Edge is always my primary example.

@nintendoeats said:

A: I don't see what the contents of your post have to do with indie games.

B: Indie != innovative and innovative != indie. There is pretty much the same percentage of derivative garbage on both sides.

@nintendoeats said:

A: I don't see what the contents of your post have to do with indie games.

B: Indie != innovative and innovative != indie. There is pretty much the same percentage of derivative garbage on both sides.

A: You're half right, i had a thought, and i just went with it, thinking as i was writing, lol, but i think my experience with all the video games i played, is the reason why i now feel the need to support different innovative games.

B: Yeah i know, but sometimes a great idea is hidden' in a bad game, and if enough ppl support that great idea, the developers can have a second chance to make a great game.

That has happened before, and if we're lucky will continue to happen', although i do hope they starte getting it right the first time, that's the better option.

@Blind_Evil said:

@BPRJCTX: Yeah, dev houses get shut down sometimes because quality games don't get supported or get bought mostly used.

I also see too many of my favorite games not get sequels due to peoples' hesitance to speak with their wallets. Mirror's Edge is always my primary example.

Yes, i loved Mirror's Edge, i didn't buy it launch, cos i really didn't think it was worth full price, but i still bought it new at a discount, because i loved almost everything about that game.

It was just a breath of fresh air, and that's the kind of games i like to support.

I hope the second game gets announced soon, i know they've been working on it since they finished the first, although with a small team for a whille, but i heard that they started working on it full steam last year, so i hope it gets officially announced at E3.

indie if i find the game interesting. i got minecraft and terraria because i thought the game were good from watching other people play. i usually buy games when i want them.

I buy the humble indie bundle every year for $15. It is a great value even though I usually end up playing only one or two of the games to completion. Man I hated Aquaria.

I buy far too many indie games. My steam list is literally full of indie games. Not all of them are good. In fact, many of them are pretty bad.

Indie certainly doesn't necessarily equate to innovative, that's for sure.

I buy good indie games... Just as I buy good AAA games. A game can be innovative as hell, but if I don't enjoy it, I won't buy it, simple as that.

thought your post was just a load of self entitled drivel.

I only buy games that are good. I don't give a shit who made it.

You, sir, sounds like a person I wouldn't like. And yes I do buy Indie games if I want to play them, I don't pirate games.

I respect the people who have used time and money do make the game, I don't shit on them by pirating their game.

Yes. Achievement Get : Every Humble Bundle Purchased So Far.

I don't play games to support an industry or developer. I play them for my own entertainment.

First off; horrible post consisting entirely of single sentence paragraphs. Try to string some ideas together for a better read.

Secondly, you're coming off very whiny and self entitled, and from what I understand there are a lot of people like you, "Oh I only pay for games created by small indie teams." Weird hipster nerds using piracy to stick it to the man. I don't have a lot to say to you other than that you're not that special, get over yourself.

No I don't go out of my way to support indie developers.

@Village_Guy: Didn't you read it.

I said that when i like the game i'll go out and buy it.

It's better than not playing it at all, meaning, the developer won't see my money either, but pirating it, i give the game a chance to grab me, and if it does, the developer gets my money.

Look at it as an extended demo.

You try to judge me, but you probably rent and buy used games, which is just so much worse.

Cos then, not only are you not giving anything to the developers, but you're giving money to the GAME's and Gamepot's, who just take the developers money right out of their pockets.

At least with piracy nobody gets the money.

I'm not trying to defend piracy, but ppl who buy used games or rent are just as bad or even worse than pirates.

BTW, look at this:

A game i just bought today!!!

Yeah, woke up early, and went out to buy a game, the day it came out.

What a filthy pirate i am...

@Rumour: No, not at all, you totally misunderstood my post.

I do support the popular Indie games because of the creative freedom they have. Who knows what someone will come up with? However, I usually support the games that have gathered a lot of hype from the gaming community. There's just too much to play so if it's under my radar I'll pass it by. I used to buy a ton of Xbox Indie Games because some of them are really well executed and very cheap if you did a little research. The sheer amount of my backlog put a stop to that.

The latest Indie game I threw money at is the pre-order of Retro City Rampage.