026: Making & Selling Games, Pt. 3

Balancing Creativity and Business in Indie Game Development

After briefly stepping away from the series to reflect on recent events in Türkiye, I’m now returning to explore the third installment of Making & Selling Games. The topics I touched upon yesterday—the power of resilience and collective action—feel surprisingly connected to this discussion on finding balance in the world of indie game development. Whether navigating political challenges or creative industries, striking harmony between vision and practical realities is essential.

When it comes to indie game development, one of the biggest challenges is finding the right balance between creative freedom and business viability. As a lecturer and mentor, I often see both sides of this spectrum—creative exploration in the classroom and practical business strategies in the incubation center.

In my game & XR design classes, I emphasize the importance of total creative freedom. For one of their assignments, I ask students to imagine and design a project as if they had no limitations in terms of time, budget, or skills. This exercise unleashes their imaginations, encouraging ambitious and innovative ideas. Yet, I also challenge them to take their ideas further by considering how their dream projects could be funded and what kind of business models could support their vision. Some of their proposals even involve concepts like the mass production of fantasy XR headsets or haptic devices for immersive experiences. After envisioning these limitless projects, I then ask them to reflect on whether they could create a prototype of their idea using their current knowledge, time, skills, and equipment. This step brings their dream concepts down to earth, bridging creative freedom with practical limitations.

On the other hand, when I work with indie game startups at the BUG Lab TEKMER game incubation center, the focus is much more pragmatic. By the time these teams present their project demos, they’ve already begun designing and developing their games. This stage requires not only a solid creative foundation but also a comprehensive business, marketing, and community-building plan for the future. The incubation center helps these startups bridge the gap between their artistic ambitions and the realities of the gaming market.

Interestingly, another incubation center, OGEM, which was founded by the municipality of Istanbul, has recently come under scrutiny during the political tension surrounding Istanbul's mayor. While OGEM could be considered a competitor to BUG Lab TEKMER, we’ve always believed in the collective power of collaboration to grow the indie game industry. BUG Lab TEKMER has consistently and happily shared its experience and expertise with all the other game incubation centers in Istanbul. This includes initiatives like Digiage, StartGate, Entertech Gamenter, ATOM, Digi Game Startup Studio, The Game Circle, GamesUP, GameTech, GameDev and many others. Together, these centers form a supportive ecosystem that fosters innovation and helps indie game developers thrive.

Generated by ImageFX, edited with Photoshop

One of the startup cofounders who participated in OGEM's programs recently responded to the allegations against the mayor, emphasizing that OGEM supported startups ethically. This cofounder highlighted that OGEM never asked to take away anything from the participating startups, such as intellectual property, revenue, or equity. These kinds of ethical practices and a spirit of shared growth are essential to building a thriving indie game ecosystem.

Striking this balance between collaboration, creativity, and business strategy is essential for indie developers. While creative freedom fuels originality and innovation, a sustainable plan ensures that their projects can reach an audience and thrive in a competitive industry. One approach I emphasize is starting with a clear, manageable scope—a project that fits within the constraints of time, budget, and the team’s skills. This doesn’t mean sacrificing creativity; it simply means channeling it within realistic boundaries to ensure the project's success.

In the next post, I’ll share real-world examples of indie developers—some who managed to balance creativity and business effectively, and others who struggled. The lessons from these stories can guide us in navigating this delicate balancing act.

Thanks for reading this far. Feel free to share your thoughts, and take care.