Revolutionizing Indie Gaming: Outersloth's ROGUE Spirit

Get #1483302188719659289In the past, I’ve been hesitant about games being funded by billionaires and corporations (and I’m not talking about the studios that make the games, but rather the millionaires and corporations that fund them through the game platforms). I still have my doubts about it, but I also acknowledge that it’s not all bad. In fact, I actually found something in Among Us Fortune that surprised me – perhaps the beginning of the indie spirit I’d always hoped transmedia storytelling would bring to the industry. #1483302188719659289 #2433340831073288747

The success of Among Us has already been transformative for indie gaming. But the best part of the story is what Innersloth does with its newfound popularity and capital. The studio isn’t sitting on its of treasure – it’s putting it toward a platform that could be transformative for the indie games sector. Meet Outersloth, Innersloth’s brand-new label for indie developers who want to promote and bring their games to market.

Outersloth: A Beacon for Indie Creativity

With the money from their Among Us windfall, Innersloth has created Outersloth – an organisation that will fund and support amateur game designers. The money will come with a ‘lifeline’ for independent game developers, one that shows other indie game developers they are supported and that others want to see their dream become a reality.

ROGUE Crafting Worlds and Experiences: Outersloth's Indie Playground

What kind of projects are getting the Outersloth treatment? Well, it’s already quite a varied bunch. Spanning genre from the simulated rover-building of Mars First Logistics to the card-battling action-RPG of Battle Suit Aces, the projects already under Outersloth’s wing boast as much diversity as they do enticing intrigue. Mossfield Archives, Mossfield Archives From the minimal, absorbing exploration of Mossfield Archives, to the overwhelming action of One Btn Bosses (a bundle of simple twitch gameplay modes) to the tactical depths of the space dogfighting roguelike Rogue Eclipse, every game bearing the Outersloth name looks set to bring something new to the indie fold.

ROGUE A Fresh Take on Game Development Funding

Not only does this model dramatically change how indie games are funded – it means moving away from a publisher system that traditionally holds all the cards and, for the developer, choosing between the immense pressures of crowdfunding or the ‘should we or shouldn’t we’ question of early access launches. ‘It just felt like a way for us to leverage the games we were creating into an opportunity for growth,’ says Ansari, ‘a way to continue to support people who have the creativity and the skill to make things but sometimes lack the execution strength and resources to see their vision to completion.’

ROGUE Exploring New Horizons with Outerloop Games

One of the biggest coming collaborations is with Outerloop Games, the house that Thirsty Suitors built, whose next game (working title: Project Dosa) is a mech exploration, community-building, cooking adventure that is still so stealthy that I don’t even have an embedded link for it! A sign of how Outersloth is incorporating a strategy of incubating a diverse stable of daring-to-be-different, distinct-from-mainstream, but still fun-to-play game concepts.

Among Us: Beyond Gaming

Yet Innersloth’s relationship with the indie games industry continues beyond Outersloth. The popular success of Among Us leads to its own animated TV show, unveiled at Summer Game Fest 2024. As the entertainment landscape broadens from PCs to TVs, there’s huge potential for indie games to step decisively out of the internet. Instead of remaining an in-group phenomenon, some of the words and ideas generated in online games may become part of larger, wider conversations in culture.

ROGUE A New Dawn for Indie Games

Outersloth is a sign of good things to come for the broader indie development community – an alternate road to success that frees developers from the gatekeeping of publishers or the gambling luck of crowdfunding. Reinvesting its Among Us earnings into the indie ecosystem is not just about funding individual developers, but nurturing the ecosystem itself.

The Essence of Being ROGUE

‘Rogue’ conjures the image of daring adventurers or wild cards who defy the status quo. In gamer vernacular, a ‘rogue’ represents breakthrough innovation and, alternatively, deviance. Outersloth is a rogue because they defy the establishment – Apple, Kickstarter and others within the conventional video-games development paradigms. Outersloth is also a rogue in their exclusive support of game projects that dare to be different – rogues. Rogue Eclipse is one of their rogue games.

Outersloth’s story is just beginning, but we can already see the ripples it’s sending across the seas of indie gaming. By hosting a variety of game projects and offering a proven path away from the traditional development cycle, Outersloth is securing a future for indie games – but they’re also showing game developers that a different kind of success is possible, one that prioritises gaming for the joy of it, and that adores its fellow developers as much as its fans. In doing so, they’re honouring the rogue spirit – carving out a future for indie games in which they remain richer and more vibrant for gamers everywhere.

And though much has changed since the humble, rogue origins of Innersloth, the story of the company that gave rise to Among Us is a rousing entry in indie gaming’s continuing saga, as its new arm Outersloth continues to improve the lives of indie game developers. By publishing everything from space epics, to mystery explorations, to interactive RPGs, Outersloth is proving that the rogue spirit of independent gaming is alive and well. From developers who want to create something new, to gamers who want something fresh to play, the future of indie gaming looks bright thanks to the rogue spirit of Outersloth.