Why Among Us’ Innersloth is funding your next favorite indie game

As a seasoned gamer and follower of the indie game scene, I’ve seen firsthand how challenging it can be for small studios to secure funding and bring their innovative ideas to life. The success of Innersloth‘s “Among Us” in 2020 made CEO Forest Willard acutely aware of their ability to support other developers and games.

Forest Willard, CEO of Innersloth, became aware shortly after “Among Us” took off in 2020 that his company had the capability to aid other developers and games. As he shared, “We picked up on this notion when we learned about a few games with publishers facing difficulties and yearning for autonomy. Luckily, such situations were typically resolved through talks between publishers and developers. Innersloth never bought out any studios. However, we were captivated by ‘Mars First Logistics’, recognized its potential, and worked out the necessary business arrangements to bring it on board.”

Although “Among Us” is crucial for Innersloth’s financial support of other indie games, it was actually “Mars First Logistics,” developed by a different studio, that ignited Innersloth’s funding initiative, Outersloth. Imagine combining the building physics from “The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom” with a space setting, and then employing your constructions to move cargo across Mars. Released in Early Access by solo developer Shape Shop in 2023, this game piqued the interest of Willard and Innersloth’s communications director Victoria Tran, ultimately inspiring them to devise a business strategy.

At Summer Game Fest on June 7, Innersloth’s investment in Outersloth was showcased publicly by Tran and Willard. They introduced Outersloth and revealed nine of the games it’s producing – with more to come! Among these are a role-playing card battle game from Trinket Studio, creators of “Battlechef Brigade,” and “Project Dosa” by Outerloop Studios, known for “Thirsty Suitors.” The variety of genres in Outersloth’s lineup is vast, but all the games share a common thread: they operate independently.

As a gamer and observer of the indie scene, I’ve always expected Outersloth to play a secondary role compared to Innersloth. So our strategy was to seek out independent studios that demonstrated they could thrive without a full-service publisher. Regarding the game itself, we haven’t quite found the definitive answer yet, but when it clicks and everything falls into place, we’ll know for sure.

As a dedicated gamer, I can tell you that “Among Us” remains Innersloth’s top focus. And when it comes to supporting other game developers, the approach of setting up a fund instead of becoming a publisher was crucial for us. We’re more than willing to offer valuable connections and guidance, but ultimately, the teams have the power to shape their projects as they see fit. By doing so, we ensure that their creative process stays uninterfered with and their intellectual property remains their own.

Outersloth adopts a revenue-sharing model with a recoupment clause to offer fair business deals for the game developers they back. According to Tran, this is standard practice in the video game industry: Upon investing in a game, Outersloth recovers its investment following the game’s release. Subsequently, the developer and Outersloth share revenue until the initial investment is repaid. Post-repayment, Outersloth retains a smaller percentage for an agreed period. The specifics of the revenue-sharing percentages will be disclosed at a later time, Tran added.

Over the last two years, securing funding has been challenging for most studios. However, for marginalized developers, this hurdle feels almost impossible to overcome as they receive the smallest share of funding. Funding has never been easy to come by in the industry, and providing a living for an entire development team is one of the toughest aspects of the job. Unfortunately, things have become even more difficult.

As indie game developers ourselves, my team and I have experienced firsthand how challenging it is to secure funding. We’re grateful for the opportunities and recognition we’ve received, and we want to give back by inspiring others to pay it forward in their own way. We wouldn’t be here without the support of our industry friends and players, so it feels natural for us to extend a helping hand whenever possible.

In the past two years, the video game industry has experienced a significant contraction. Despite an increase in consumer spending – $57.2 billion in 2023 versus $56.6 billion in 2022 – there has been a surge in layoffs and studio closures. More people lost their jobs in the first half of 2024 than during the whole of 2023. This isn’t solely due to financial instability within the industry. However, the future spending projection for 2024 remains uncertain, with Circana analyst Mat Piscatella predicting a possible decrease of 2% or as much as 10%. The video game industry is facing unprecedented challenges in this year marked by closures and layoffs, even for studios that have had successful launches.

As a gamer, I’m excited about the prospect of funds like Outersloth ensuring a lasting future for some indie game studios. So far, none of their announced games have hit the market yet, with only “Mars First Logistics” in Early Access. Nevertheless, Outersloth intends to continue investing in games and welcomes applications from developers. This is an unusual move in the gaming industry – indie studios supporting other indie studios financially.

Normally, larger companies such as Microsoft, Google, and Sony are the ones who establish these investment funds. However, there are other funding initiatives like Weird Ghosts and Wings Interactive, which focus on diversity in their investments. Outersloth’s investment fund is similar to the latter type. For example, WINGS uses a revenue-sharing model until the investment is recouped, enabling developers to retain IP rights. The main distinction lies in the level of support provided: WINGS offers extensive assistance in publishing and business development, while Outersloth seeks self-sufficient developers but is willing to provide guidance when required.

In his view, providing various financing and distribution methods tailored to developers’ requirements is a significant advancement. He emphasized the importance of ensuring their longevity and prosperity as an integral aspect of this process. It’s not just the independent studios that thrive but also larger corporations with greater flexibility and resources to undertake more projects. Ultimately, he believes that prioritizing people’s well-being is the key to progress, and he aspires for Outersloth to contribute positively in this regard.

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2024-07-16 15:49