Thread 719781142

>single indie dev (1)
>7 years in development
>passion project for a niche genre/playerbase
>game comes out right before silksong
>22 reviews/112 players (can extrapolate miserable sales)
you ever feel bad for some indie devs?

>>719781142 (OP)
I think if you're making a game as hyped as silksong you have a moral obligation to other indie developers to not do this shadow drop sudden announcement shit

>>719781142 (OP)
>7 years to just make myst again
why bother. they even already made myst again anyways

Not really. The indies that are big successes aren't niche. Making a niche game, you have to know you're going to get terrible numbers today. Even people that claim to love indies buy very few of them, and even less buy more than one genre.

>>719781142 (OP)
he definitely should've delayed it, its been industry standard for years to make way for major releases if you're less popular.
that aside, advertising also plays a role. nobody just "finds" stuff anymore due to the sheer amount of slop being pushed out on a daily basis, it all has to be by word of mouth. if you're not shilling somewhere then you're shooting yourself in the foot

Indie developers do it for the love of the medium so sales don't matter to them.

>>719781262
But this is Myst with more references to the original Myst

>>719781142 (OP)
>you ever feel bad for some indie devs?
Not really. I literally do not care about development time, team size, or the circumstances surrounding the game's creation. All I care about is, is the game fun, or not? And that looks like it's not fun.

>>719781309
myst was never exactly a huge seller to begin with

>>719781142 (OP)
>>game comes out right before silksong
i doubt the audience for those games overlap much lmao

>>719781142 (OP)
>secretive world called Neyyah
what if it were called something slightly different tho?

>>719781232
No you don't.

>>719781142 (OP)
Sounds stupid and it looks like shit. I hope the troon goes bankrupt, stupid people need a reality check, i bet this dumbass quit his job for this and ate ramen and water for 7 years.

>>719781142 (OP)
Should've delayed the game.

>>719781351
>myst was never exactly a huge seller to begin with
Selling more than six million copies, Myst was the best-selling PC game for nearly a decade.

>>719781489
in the 90s lmfao

>release a point and click game in 2025
>make sure it's the most shameless riven ripoff of all time
>release it next to an indie titan
>wtf why did it bomb DAE feel bad for le dev?

>>719781317
you play jrpgs, i don't expect you to find a game where you have to think fun

>>719781489
they're almost 40 years late on cashing in on that trend.

>>719781523
6 million copies in the 90s is like 60 million copies nowadays.

>>719781142 (OP)
these are good numbers for a no-name solo niche game after 2 days

>>719781392
Yes you do

>>719781270
You'll always read the most retarded videogame related bullshit in /v/,not even youtube comments reach this level of stupidity.
If you came with a prototype for Minecraft, Terraria, or DOTA to any publisher before these games existed, every single one would reject you because "this is impossible to sell, is too niche".
Being "niche" is not the problem to sell, nor being good/ bad, woke or whatever. EVERYTHING that has ever been, is or will be successful do it because of good luck and/ or good marketing
>>719781142 (OP)
This game has none and has failed, that's life and capitalism, don't like it? Go live to Venezuela.

>>719781142 (OP)
>nah nah yeah nah

>>719781601
yeah, too bad point and click is a dead genre so you'll be lucky to sell 600 copies today :DD

>>719781547
>make sure its the most generic metroidvania imaginable

>>719781601
I don't think Myst if it came out today is selling even 6 million copies. Doesn't take a lot of genius to figure that out intuitively

>>719781142 (OP)
the act of creation in itself is worth it, of course if they expected thousands of sales they can be bummed out but I think that didnt with that genre, like I played Myst back in the day but I wouldnt ever play something like that again

>>719781351
Fucking imbecile

>>719781624
>make copy of a game popular in the 90s that isn't action based
>expect anything other than a bomb
You're the retard. I hate that 4chan became Reddit and everyone UMMMM ACKCHUALLYS everything

DOTA was a fucking free mod, even. Minecraft got popular because Notch made Legos into a 3D game and shilled it here, for free long before charging. Terrarria is Minecraft, but 2D.

This is literally just a Myst knockoff, and there was never anything niche about Warcraft 3 mods, or Legos.

>>719781142 (OP)
If it's a passion project, I always figure it's good for them when some small indie dev finally manage to finish whatever game it is they are doing. Granted it's always just a plus if passion is rewarded by the game selling well, but it is not necessarily required. Good luck for all those small devs these days though because god damn are there a lot of games already, and even more made every year.

>>719781142 (OP)
>you ever feel bad for some indie devs?
No. I fucking despise the modern discourse about the devs, crunch and all that shit. Shut the fuck up.
I only care about the quality of the end product
>b-but muh games are art
The artist must starve

>>719781142 (OP)
I'm not buying either.
Two games and both are not doing anything new. No innovation to be found. Why did you make these games?

>>719781142 (OP)
>you ever feel bad for some indie devs?
No. He at least could shill his game here or buy an ad. He didn't. To make game good game popular you either need an ad campaign or word of mouth, which requires even small amount of people to play it. You can't expect to release a game and have thousands of people play it without working on letting those thousands know your game exist. That's a part of development process.

>>719781765
not sure if there's a hidden joke here but i don't think there's been 1500 point-and-click games released this year, but only 94 open world survivals

>>719781232
It's a doggy dog world anon

>>719781981
Probably counts those AI made hidden objects games due to Steam tags

>>719781992
True, indie games like OP are a diamond dozen these days. Devs needs to stop being such pre-madonnas.

>>719781142 (OP)
Should have added ROGUELIKE ELEMENTS AKA A SHITTY FUCKING SLOT MACHINE GAMBLING POPUP TO PICK BETWEEN 3 SHITTY NOTHINGBURGER CHOICES AND PAY FOR REVIEWER SHILLING
Anyway, how does it compare to Blue Prince?

>>719781142 (OP)
What's this? A Myst-like? Looks kind of cool.

>>719781624
You named 3 games and one is a direct ripoff of the other but -1 dimension.
You are correct though that you always read the most retarded bullshit on /v/ from you :)

>>719781142 (OP)
Looks good

>>719781963
word of mouth for games like this are always after release
your goal is to sell ~1,000 in the first month. this is the number needed to ensure perpetual word of mouth for essentially forever. in 2026 during the Steam Summer Sale people will ask "anything like Myst? loved that game", and they'll be linked to this and it'll sell another 100-500 copies.
repeat every sale for eternity
judging by the numbers here this dev is at least halfway there.

>>719781142 (OP)
i want to create a simple top-down game that will look like pokemon or zelda (BUT NOT PLAY THE SAME), and i have no idea where to start

>a new mystlike
thanks anon, buying now

>>719781142 (OP)
>>719781547
Made me check on 3 poin&click adventures released this year and yeah the dev in OP just made a niche within a niche within a niche.
The genre moved way past appealing to nostalgia of dead 90s IPs.

>>719781142 (OP)
>point and click adventure

>>719781142 (OP)
This was on my wishlist, looks like a nice Myst clone, but Silksong is out in like 2 hours I'm not getting another game right now.

minecraft, stardew and other massive 1 hit wonders really poisoned indie minds.
Everyone is trying to cash out on their first game instead of grinding small but good games and working their way up with a solid fanbase.

>>719782443
Nah I see plenty of 1 head devs that join jams and such. Always a nice surprise to enjoy a jam game, click on their artist page on itchio and see a bunch of smaller projects released.

>>719781142 (OP)
i pirated this shit cause im a poorfag but I love mystlikes so I will be playing it after silksong for sure, I started it but didnt get far

>>719782369
>released this year
you have a 2023 game in your image

>>719781142 (OP)
>nuh yeh

>>719781262
>6 Years just to make super metroid again
Hollowfags disgust me

>>719782068
>pre-madonnas.
As opposed to post-madonnas?

>>719781142 (OP)
I appreciate the effort but point and click games are deader than dead. You think a zoomoid would be able to sit down and think for 3 minutes without going insane?

>>719782584
Thanks for pointing out. I misclicked. It was of course this one, a anniversary game with 4th wallbreak into the devs studio.
Also the next game is announced for next year.
https://store.steampowered.com/app/3636770/Servant_of_the_Lake/?curator_clanid=33593611

>>719781275
>nobody just "finds" stuff anymore
It was so much worse back in the day anon

You have no idea. If you didn't have a large budget then your game literally wouldn't be in enough retailers to succeed, not even getting into the marketing to actually attract players.

And if you didn't sell well in 1-2 years after release your studio was done, pack it up gg you're all unemployed now.

No slowly building a fanbase
No good word of mouth to share your game's listing on an online storefront
No going viral a few years after release

You either had a successful marketing campaign right out of the gate, or you died.

>>719781142 (OP)
Mate. What possible overlap you think that game has with Silksong?

>>719781142 (OP)
Mystlikes are a super niche genre but I think they have potential to be a lot less niche and capture the attention that the wider puzzle genre can capture. I think the issue with Neyyah is that Mystlikes in the modern era NEED to be very pretty explorable 3d environments like the Riven remake, the adherence to point and click and pre-rendered slideshow style gameplay will ensure this game stays in the niche corner from whence it came, though myslike fans will still play it cause they don't really have a choice because entries into their genre are rare.

>>719781489
Myst was a unique case in that it also put the CD-ROM into people's mind. It was on the forefront of a new medium.

>>719782745
>point and click games are deader than dead
You never even bothered clicking on the point&click tag on any drm launcher. Here have another one released this year.
https://store.steampowered.com/app/1170570/The_Drifter/

noose for furry

>>719782837
You are confusing dead with not existing at all. Even during the driest period for P&C new titles were still made. Genre was simply overshadowed by literally everything else.

>>719781142 (OP)
You have to be chronically retard to release a fucking point n' click in this millennium, he should be happy to get 3 digits players, i didn't thought there was so many of them still alive

>>719782904
You are simply retarded then. The genre is bigger than ever. During lucasarts time selling 300k was insane and put you as a "every kid played this" range. Nowadays many indie point&click adventures can go way beyond that no issue. If you think more normalfags who only watch ads don't pay attention to a genre you like matters for "dead" or alive then you are just a numbskull and probably a bitter shithead.

>>719782916
no one makes a mystlike game unless they're a super fan in the first place, it's a passion project.

Point and click games never died.

should've added RNG resource management and "choose one of three"
lmao what a fucking retard

>>719783021
They have simply taken different shapes as the times and hardware has changed.

AI sloppa never sells.

>>719783021
>>719783069
both of those draw from console adventures and simplified everything in the process

>>719783062
This was my biggest disappointment of the year. I did not play it but I saw so many journalists hyping up a new puzzle game. I was like "Hey I like puzzle games!", look at it and it was a fucking roguelite.

Mysts are a very niche game genre for a Boomer audience, and rare zooms who aren't completely brainrotted. You have to assume going in that you're making that game for the sake of making it, not to get rich off it. Make some shitty streamerbait FOMO if you want to try to luck in to money, bro

>>719781142 (OP)
He could still outsell concord over the time

>>719781142 (OP)
Mystlikes are THE most advanced form of dad game, games for the thinking man, real ponderers only. Zoomies need not apply. When you're ready to buck up and accept that you're not gonna live forever open up a game like this and let the sovl take you away on a surreal puzzle adventure.

>>719783160
>and simplified everything in the process
Well, yes, handheld games do need to be simpler out of necessity since people are expected to pop in and out of them at a moment's notice. Why are you whining about developers adapting to the hardware?
Anyway, point and clicks never died. They simply evolve with the times. If devs aren't willing to do the same, it's just as well that their games fail and that they perish of starvation.

>>719781142 (OP)
Anons are right in stating Myst-like games just don't sell well. Comparatively bigger titles with pedigre have done horribly as well, for example.

It's all in the name.
Neyyah is a stupid fucking name.
Doesn't even allude to anything to an English-speaker.
Sounds Indian, even. And nobody in their right mind wants anything to do with Indians.

>>719783246
*Mom game

This is the average Mystlike fan. Pretty based actually imo
https://youtu.be/cbYtWHoydrc?si=DRJiCublU1JGpk8J

>>719782837
Love that game. Like it's really neat sci-fi thriller I could easily imagine behind adapted into a movie.

>>719783246
This, you're physically unable to play shit like this unless you have 2 kids, a shit job and hate your wife

>Neyyah
I CAN SMELL YOU

>>719783338
I didn't play it myself yet but saw a bit of the ending when watching a friend but it looked crazy good.
>I could easily imagine behind adapted into a movie.
Funny you say that because one smaller previous game is a take on The Thing.
https://powerhoof.itch.io/peridium

>>719783305
remember the INDIE WONDER that was the witness? lots of talk for these numbers.

>>719781142 (OP)
yeah, everyone who bought silksong would have bought this game too if only it didn't release at the same time.

>>719781142 (OP)
>for niche playerbase
>22 reviews in the first day

That's actually a good start, you know.

>>719783495
I think the witness is what originally made me hungry for more thoughtful puzzle type games, too bad the puzzles in the witness kind of suck ass lol. Riven remake was fire tho

I think one aspect of Myst inspired games is that they forego the trait of having a a character to look at and relate to while exploring the world. The world, the buildings, the environment etc all become the abstract main character and that is why it is more niche than 2D point&click adventures.

>>719783570
>Riven remake was fire tho
another example.

>>719783628
idc man the game was good, if anyone reading this likes puzzles I would recommend that game to them confidently.

>>719783623
These games are puzzlers. Myst series is basically the exception that bothered with lore, story and characters as secondary as they were.

>>719783495
>>719783628
It's like these numbers are not very telling and the games did actually really well for their budget and scope.More worth it to look at numbers of reviews than players at the same time.

>>719783478
Hey, I didn't know that or that most games of the studio aren't on Steam. Thanks for info.

>>719781142 (OP)
>7 years in development
>can't wait another few weeks to release it
lol

also
>i am entitled to sales because i worked hard

>>719781142 (OP)
Game looks cool, but the lack of goblins is disturbing

>>719783684
I suppose they are kind of an expanded escape room. Games like the Door series are near to this type of point&click puzzle that is very drained of the adventure part.

>>719783715
No problem. Always worth checking with smaller devs. Often you find a treasure cove of smaller and more raw games. You may find them not as exciting or some may really scratch an itch in a very specific way you didn't know you wanted.

>>719781142 (OP)
As an indie developer you should not be financially dependent on the success of your games to survive.
Shit like this happens all the time and being flexible with your release date is important, if it's so important to release your game now or else you go broke, you should not be making games.

>niche game
>is niche
Whoa, no way.
If you wan't to move thousands with a fucking point and click adventure, you better make it funny, or you build up a franchise.
Once you are known for producing good point and click games, when your studios name is recognizable in the community, you can release something odd and sell a bunch of copies.

>>719781142 (OP)
As someone who made and released something that didnt sell trillions. I dont really care that much, if you make something just to make money youre doing it wrong. Make something for yourself that you want to make that you can be proud of not because it sells trillions but just that you followed through with doing something in your life that isnt just about greed but achieving a goal and vision you set for yourself.

>>719781142 (OP)
I mean it's niche, so I doubt the dev was expecting to be the next scott cawthorn. Not really sure what the problem is here.

>>719781270
Yeah, you are right, minecraft was a well established genre back when it released. Same with terraria. We had hundreds if not thousands of games like that. Vampire survivors? Well established before the goat dropped...

Honestly, it goes both ways. But deciding to pour 7 years into a niche, its either a hobby project, or a death sentence.

>>719781142 (OP)
This guy I feel bad for since Riven/Myst is based but it’s also niche

>>719783696
It wasn't really a jab at their quality. Just that there's clearly no audience for these games. The Witness was the biggest they got in public perception since Myst was the rage and even that was barely anything.

What's the point of making niche games? They sell poor numbers and you're literally wasting hours of hours on shit nobody ever plays.

>>719784196
You enjoy making them.

>>719784196
entire point is making something you would play yourself

>>719784196
True artists create because no doing so will make their head bursts.
And no, you can not recreate that effect by strapping a bomb to a guys head that will explode if he doesn't meet a quota, no can you replicate it with Algorithm Interfaces.

>>719781142 (OP)
if its a myst like itll probably get low volume steady sales forever as boomers buy it, its not exactly a huge release

>>719781523
You said never, the 90s is sometime

You could have made a game inspired by Riven without stealing the EXACT fucking art design of it. What a soulless imitation.

>>719781142 (OP)
>you ever feel bad for some indie devs?
Nah, point and click games suck.

>>719781378
It's not only about the audience, it's also about steam pushing your game on the front page

>>719784382
I think it looks cool

>>719784463
silksong or no silksong, point & click will never be on steam front page lmao
the slideshow you see are your personal recommendations that are unaffected

>>719784382
Indie devs have no creativity

>>719784196
What a soulless way to think

>>719784463
It's why indie devs beg on their hands and knees for wishlists and leaving a review because no one gets anything from volvo itself. Any algo push needs to come from your outside sources and then when you are big steam will push you because you are big.

>>719781142 (OP)
I can tell just from the thumbnail that this is ripping off Myst. I don't feel bad for anyone that makes boring derivatives of older games.

>>719782738
You forgot about
>a diamond dozen

>>719782263
Check out the original seiken densetsu

>>719784491
Yeah, because Riven looked cool.

>>719784746
That plays like Zelda? It's really good.

>>719784881
yes
i mean personally idm if its derivative "riven, but again" is good enough for me lol

>>719782623
GO TO THE BATHROOM!
YOU'RE SHIT-TING YOUR SELF.
POOP IS COMIN' OUT OF YOUR FUCKIN' ASSHOLE.

>>719781351
It's one of a handful of games that most pc-players tried at the time.
This kind of rewriting of history is fucking bizarre

>>719781142 (OP)
>point and click adventure
LOL don't pretend silksong is the reason this shit is flopping

>>719781351
> #1 selling pc game of all time

>>719785130
I think its sad because the puzzles in Myst were kind of mid compared to Riven. Riven in general is a way better game than Myst in basically every way but Myst is the one people know more.

>>719785130
like anon said it rode the cd wave, which was new shit at the time. myst was the reason a lot of people got this thing for the first time.

>>719785081
Also was one of the most ported games for years.

op here, just used the silksong pretext to shill this game btw cuz i knew v would never talk about it otherwise :) myst gang 4 lyfe

I just realized that the current AAA troubles are mirroring the point&click adventure genre dying for a a small time because the identity of impressive graphics was deleted by available tech catching up to go way beyond prerendered visuals

>>719785461
based. while I think Neyyah will remain niche, genuinely I think basically everyone who liked something like Blue Prince has a decent chance of enjoying a game like the Riven remake or something. I think Mystlikes have not reached their full potential.

>>719785313
>one day you burned your last cd without even realizing it...

I only own 2 point&click adventures as physical: Simon the Sorcerer 1&2 because I played that countless times on my grandparents win3.11 pc and Deponia 4 because these fuckers made buying a Silver tier PC Bild magazine with the game+steamkey on the disc cheaper than buying from steam.

>>719781142 (OP)
Buy an ad

>>719786203
ad my cock to your mouth

>>719784196
>They sell poor numbers
The point is not competing with mainstream. Porn games are a niche, and they get away with absolute murder in quality/quantity vs income.
>you're literally wasting hours of hours on shit nobody ever plays.
This parasite never made an edit just to make a couple of anons chuckle.

>>719781142 (OP)
>single indie dev (1)
Which means, either rich or homeless. So money doesn't matter.
>7 years in development
You mean 2 years of dev time and 5 years of theorycrafting like all these indie devs do.
>game comes out right before silksong
Didn't know metroidvanias and adventure game audience overlap?
>22 reviews/112 players
Better than 1 review and 1 player.
>you ever feel bad for some indie devs?
No,i hope most indie devs go under.

>>719781615
No you don't. Indie developers don't deserve special treatment.

>>719781142 (OP)
>39

NEEEEEEEYYYAAAAAAAAAAAHHH
NEYYYYAAAAAAAAAAHHHH

>>719784196
>10 billion people, most of them online, all competing
nothing has any point anymore unless you get very lucky or already have your foot in the door.

>>719781142 (OP)
I never played Myst but I enjoyed games that were inspired by it like blue prince and the talos principle. If this one is a love letter, should I try it as well?

>>719781317
>final faggotry pic
>80 IQ opinion
name a more iconic duo

>>719788197
I mean there is a point, you just have to do it for yourself. Perfecting your craft with the calm understanding that you might never 'make it'.

>>719788598
These aren't really that similar. Give Myst a try sometime and see how it is for you.

>>719781142 (OP)
>passion project for a niche genre
>100 players
i don't know what you expected

>>719784196
You've got it completely backwards, if you're an indie dev with few resources the niche games massively boost your chances at making money, whereas broad-spectrum appeal is much harder due to the competition. Having a 50% chance to make 10k is a lot better than a 0.1% chance to make a billion.

>>719788598
play the riven remake I promise you will like it

>>719788598
If you like the concept of walking around a space solving puzzle, absolutely. Mechanically and pacing wise I wouldn't call them that similar. It's infinitely easier than any of the "postgame" Blue Prince malarky.

>>719781142 (OP)
This kind of game is hard to sell these days. If my mom still had a computer I'd get it for her, she fucking loved Zork back in the day.

>>719781142 (OP)
This thread is more advertising than the dev would have had with any other release date.

>>719784382
this is the game in op?
fucking hell, checking it out now

>>719785313
i am now old enough to see CD drives be praised as revolutionary new technology, and then become obsolete and practically disappear
wild

>>719781765
This is why we can't have nice things

>>719781142 (OP)
>Myst-like point n' click
Pretty sure these numbers were expected by the developer.

Point!
and click.

>>719781142 (OP)
yes
fuck silkhonk ads

>>719788760
Okay
>spastic seething
>4chan post 719788760
you're welcome

>>719781142 (OP)
Bump for interest.

>you should drop everything you care about because of the current thing normgroids are hyping

no I won't