Becoming Indie
Weapon of Choice creator Nathan Fouts left mega-studio Insomniac to make games on his own terms. But is it worth the trouble? And will anyone follow his lead?
2/2/2009 7:30 PM | 0 Comments | Page 4 of 4
"I'm trying to keep the momentum up for the marketing," Fouts says, several months after previewing
Weapon of Choice at the Community Games launch party and the game is available for purchase on the Xbox 360. "I've got to keep rolling this giant ball. Every day I wake up and see the ball slow down a little bit, and I can't believe it's as much work as it is."
The original art for the glossy "game cards" Fouts and family handed out to gamers as a cost-effective means of promoting
Weapon of Choice.
Just because an indie game is for sale, that doesn't mean that anyone's going to buy it. "People underestimate the marketing dilemma," Bogost says. "How do you get people to your work? Even with the Community Games channel, you have to get people from somewhere else to their Xbox 360, and then to the right place on the channel."
To address this concern, Fouts has printed up glossy promotional cards for
Weapon of Choice and mailed them to family to hand out at their local GameStops. Even though he's sick as a dog, pulling the receiver away from his mouth and unleashing a hacking cough every few seconds, you can still hear the irrepressible excitement in his voice. Verve is contagious and it's only a matter of time before other game developers follow his lead -- especially if that first royalty check from Microsoft clears the bank.
