Indie Game

Synonyms

Independent game

Definition

An indie game is a game created by an independent team of developers, typically with limited resources, without a publisher or with no significant involvement in the artistic process on the publisher’s part. Indie games are often experimental and/or employ a retro aesthetic. While the label is usually associated with digital games, it can also apply to analog (e.g., tabletop) games.

Overview

The term “indie game” became prominent in the mid-2000s (Garda and Grabarczyk 2016), although the concept of “indie” itself dates back to the 1980s (Hesmondhalgh 1999). “Indie” is a short form for “independent,” indicating creative autonomy which indie producers are deemed to possess. While the concept originated in the music industry (Hesmondhalgh 1999), it gradually expanded to other spheres such as cinema (Newman 2009), fashion (Hauge and Hracs 2010), and, eventually, games.

The diverse indie media form a loose continuum of “indie culture,” which “derives its...