Rejecting Modernity: The Modern Gaming Industry, and why Indie Games Should Be Given More Attention
This one is entirely dedicated to our gamers. So.. the gaming industry. It is hitting close to it's breaking point, a point where gaming as a whole may very well delve back into the dark deep underground, where it has once risen from. A point where you will be shamed for even considering being a gamer, for gaming as a whole will end up becoming something of the past.
AAA games are no longer selling as well as they used to, the AAAA game genre (the most unofficial genre I've ever heard) is so ambitious in it's prospect of being greater than real life, that it genuinely is killing every company known to man who even attempt to develop, let alone release a game in this genre, the Xbox division was handed to someone who not only hasn't played a single game, but "wants every application to become an AI application" (something that if you've been following these guides, is a no go), Nintendo ain't doing so hot, Sony barely has any exclusives or has done anything noteable apart from Helldivers, and every time a live service game comes out, it drains the money of those who look into one, takes its leave like a mirage, never comes back and inevitably shuts down after a while of not being updated, and ends driving three more unlucky and unfortunate studios into bankruptcy or absorption.
It's a hostile cycle that will never end.. unless we make it end ourselves.
So, it's time to end this cycle, fix whatever is left of the gaming industry, and make the indie games reclaim their top spot once more. It's time to write a brand new future for us all. A future where anyone can make their own games and not have to worry about the AAA games taking all of the attention away. A future where announcements are consisted of indie games and more indie games. A better future for the modern gaming industry as a whole.
In this installment of Rejecting Modernity, I aim to shine a spotlight on the little guys, for their time, dedication and talent should be paid attention to more than the bigger guys (except SEGA, they rock).
Don't follow any big news, focus on the indie games.
For our first step, I suggest starting to block yourself from looking at and buying games that flaunt themselves as being AAA, or have major non-indie companies backing them (apart from SEGA). This is to maximize being suggested indie games instead of huge AAA games. You can do this very easily via Steam's own storefront, so take the initiative they've given you, and.. try to do it ASAP as they might turn around almost immediately and reject you from using this feature, something that Google has done for a lot of their features.. (we'll get back on to you, Google)
Also.. while we're on the subject of blocking yourself from looking at AAA games (again, apart from SEGA), start checking whether new games utilize a live service model, and is free to play. If the game you're looking at right now contains those prerequesites, don't even bother with it. Why? Well, by the time you even pay any attention to said live service game and decide to dedicate your time to it, it takes that time you've wasted, gets up, disappears like a mirage, takes a game studio with it and by the time you've realized things 1, 2, 3 and 4 have occured, thing 5 occurs, and everyone forgets the game even was a thing in the first place.
By the time 2025 came and went, there were more delistings and shutdowns than the live service games that actually managed to survive a few months including some from well-known names in both the gaming industry as a whole as well as the nicher tides, and there are still more delistings coming up as we speak, and bankruptcies just waiting to happen. So I say, screw those games, because when you turn around, there's a high likelihood it just gave in and died out of absolutely nowhere. A lot of these games seem to take the easy route and copy each other and as such.. they tend to fail as fast as they got seemingly popular. It's like a hazardous cycle - game is teased, hype builds up, game comes out, people play it for a while and get bored, game disappears like a mirage never to be seen again.
Instead, you should focus more on the indie gaming side of things as they are the things to get hyped over. A lot of indie games tend to get constant updates, modding support, the whole nine yards. Hell, some indie games outright give you the keys to their creation software, allowing you to make levels comparable to, or higher in quality of the official games. If you really wish to, and think that the Game Awards are being ruined by non-indie titles, stop following it or anything else. Focus more on what the small lads are doing, as they are the one that produce the most quality products. In fact, I suggest this little known game, you might of heard of it, it's called DELTARUNE, it's made by Toby Fox (who actually works with Nintendo) and it's a parallel story to UNDERTALE. If you like UNDERTALE, you'll like DELTARUNE too.
Stop supporting big companies, and support the little guys instead!
Hey.. wanna stop supporting any major gaming companies, but you don't want to create an entire movement just to do so, or attempt to stage a major boycott that won't go anywhere, because barely anyone cares about boycotting an entire industry?
Here's an idea: instead of buying any games owned by a major gaming company, pirate them instead! That way, you won't feel like you wasted tons of your money because you bought a game you didn't end up liking. You can even use this method to judge certain games without spending a single pretty dime! While the refund system on Steam is just as reliable.. say you wanna play longer than the allotted 2 hours to gauge your experience.. that, is where piracy comes into play and allows you to play for much longer! Say, like 5 hours, for example, and then delete the files if you feel the game isn't up to your standards.
In my opinion: If you notice a game is too low rated and people have genuine concerns instead of it being a reviewbomb or anything else, don't bother going through the effort, especially if it turns out it's extremely bad, controversial or worse, abysmal enough to get even Twitter saying how heinous it is. (Yes, I'm staring at you Concord, and also you, Leyley, you two are the best examples for this page)
Instead, use that money that you've "saved" to buy indie games that actually deserve the money. Hell, if you don't have the money, first, ask the original creator if it's okay to pirate their game. And if they say yes, go right ahead! After all, why let money stop what you can play? Just make sure to go buy the game, or donate to the devs once you have the money... it's always good to support the little guys. (In fact, I know a few indie creators who are fine with pirating, as long as you support them in other ways too (cough, cough Hakita cough, cough).)
If there's a niche indie game that I suggest you buy the most, and a game that really deserves both your attention and your money, it would go to In Stars and Time, a indie RPG where you're stuck in a probably indefinite time loop, forced to attempt to defeat the final boss over and over again.
Sell your console!
This one's entirely your choice, as you may not even wanna go this route, but the option is there if you feel like going the extra mile: If you happen to own an Xbox, Sony or Nintendo console, wait 'till reviews for the Steam Machine come out, then sell it away to buy those. Yes, I am suggesting you sell your console just to buy a glorified PC-console hybrid, and here's why: Microsoft's Xbox division is now going down the drain, due to recent, untimely events related to leaks, the current Game Pass price hike situation, and the CEO wanting the whole divisioon to be AI related nonsense (remember from the Microsoft entry in Rejecting Modernity?) Nintendo is currently going through a storm of bad decisions, bad pricing, and people outright demanding others to stop buying Switch Online and not to buy the Switch 2 as it'll fuel Nintendo's weird nature, and Sony.. look man, I can make the joke that the PS5 has no games, but everyone's made that joke so much it's practically dead now, so I can't make the joke myself.
However, the Steam Machine is supposedly a console-PC hybrid. And while, you're basically getting two for the price of one, very expensive, laptop.. remember that because it's tied to Steam, it's basically the first ever proper indie game console (I don't count the OUYA because the OUYA sucks, and even if some people are still using it, they're mostly using it for emulation and homebrewery soooo...), and you have a recipe for what can possibly be a great investiment, without having to go through the steps of inventing a new PC-console hybrid on your own.
Go for emulation!
If you wanna go one step further, and if you've started to follow the previous bullet point, you may choose to turn your all of your console games into backups and put them all into your PC or your future Steam Machine, in order to rely on emulation for playing old and new console games. This also allows you to have a one stop shop for your video games, without having to continuously switch between your Wii, your Wii U, your Switch, etc.
You could of course, use methods of piracy, but going down this route is actually one I'd suggest skipping out on (yes, I know, in this very same guide I suggested you do attempt to pirate any games owned by big companies, however doing that for emulation is quite risky), unless you really know what you're doing, as unlike those bigger games, pirating other consoles can lead to having to search through multiple sources at once, some could even result in you clicking on a forbidden site, or worse, end up actually getting you caught.
There, also, are tutorials on the internet on how turn your PC into a beast of an emulation machine but I, REALLY, do not know the area of legality that linking one of these is in, so I'ma just tell you that YT might have the answers you're looking for... and if you wanna go one step even further and go full FOSS, even willing to not use Steam, you may use a open-source launcher like Playnite to play your games from now on! (which.. might actually be getting a Linux version, how convenient!)
And now, time for a quick diversion:
A Short and Quick Guide to Cutting Off Support for EA
Have you heard? Recent scummy and greedy company EA has sold their assets to Saudi Arabia, an area well known for how much it hates it's gay stereotypes in real life, willing to put people to death over this fact! So, it's probably time to say goodbye to EA's LGBTQ+ representation, time to say goodbye to major studios, a lot of employees, and it's also time to say goodbye to EA in general, for this short guide will help you abandon EA.
For every EA game you "own", abandon them. If you've recently bought an EA game, request a refund for it. Instead, pirate the games you bought from them so you may TRULY own them. Otherwise, you'll be forced into a line of annoying DRM problems, physical disc issues, etc.
For those who are Sims fans, if you "own" the free-to-play version of The Sims 4.. do not continue using it. Much like before, you should instead gain access to a pre-F2P copy to truly own them.
After you've done that, delete your EA launcher and all EA accounts you own. Now that the Saudi governments has access to EA, they have access to your account, which means your privacy is now in severe danger, as they can probably gain access to said data from ANYWHERE in the world, and you do not wanna take the risk, do you?
Bonus Note: If you're planning to buy anything PopCap-related, say, PvZ Replanted, do not. It has been made to my attention that Replanted uses AI to remaster it's graphics (and it's also just the mobile port ported to consoles and PC). This breaks a point in the Generative AI guide in Rejecting Modernity and as such, isn't reccomended.
Instead, much like before, pirate any PopCap game you originally "owned" so you may truly own them. But, if you are planning to pirate the entire PopCap library instead of those you owned, don't pirate PvZ Replanted, because it's not even worth it to go through the effort just to play a subpar mobile port afflicted with AI "remastering".