When I recently interviewed members of the indie collective/developer New Blood, I asked them about the reasons for their current success in the face of dire industry conditions, layoffs, and studio closures. He said, "We are not beholden to shareholders, investors, etc.; we are not tied to the industry, we are tied to our clients, and we are not tied to the industry. That is our motto: 'We hate money.'"

"We don't actually hate money, money is great, but if we wanted money we would make a survival horror craft game of 'Twilight. It's an open world survival horror craft deck builder roguelike 'Twilight'."

Don't expect to see such a version of "Dusk" anytime soon. Oshry believes that the studios remain healthy at a time when the gaming industry is shrinking because the developers are sticking to what they want to make: "The games we make are what we make for ourselves. The games we make are the ones we make for ourselves.

Oshry argued that this is in contrast to the grow-at-any-cost mentality he sees on the corporate side of the industry, which is detrimental to making good games and having fun while doing so. I personally care about the developers and everyone who works at New Blood, making sure everyone is happy and having a good time and that everyone's voice is heard."

Growth is something to be considered and curtailed at New Blood, with an attitude of "more people, more games, more stuff, more features, more loot boxes, more deals, more money, more lines going up," as Oshry characterized it In contrast, he argues that those who love the game should avoid being sucked into its trap.

"'Dave, I want to start gaming now, where do I start? ' I'm often asked. Don't do it; you should have started five to ten years ago. Go to technical school and get a decent job. Become a plumber. People need that.

"You don't want to be employee number 356772, reporting to somebody, reporting to somebody, reporting to somebody, deciding to somebody. That sucks. There is no magic anymore. When you work for a big game studio, you don't enjoy video games anymore."

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While the indie scene does not share that particular structural problem, Oshry notes that "it's rough out there" and is the first to admit that New Blood's success does not necessarily provide an easy rubric to follow: "At GDC, a good video game company I can't give a lecture on how to build a good video game company. But I can tell you one thing: work with friends and treat them as friends."

Oshry added in an email. Everyone seems to be asking how we continue to do well when the entire industry seems to be collapsing."

Dave "Garumin" Bonin, the recently hired New Blood developer who spearheaded Dusk HD, added that he had effectively been out of professional game development for over a decade waiting for an opportunity like New Blood. Garumin observed the industry's "revolving door, conveyor belt, kill-the-employee-for-profit policy." Well, okay," he said, "I went into pharmacy and wasted my life there.

But while "Ultrakill" and "Gloomwood" continue to bake in Early Access, with projects like "Fallen Aces" and a "Fallout"-style throwback CRPG waiting in the wings, the The future looks bright. Meanwhile, the "Metroid Prime" homage "Effigy" and the "Thief"-style "Serpens" from members Nate Berens and Thomas Porta are also of interest.