'Indie Fund' Open For Game Submissions

Now accepting game submissions is the "Indie Fund," a funding source for independent developers financially backed by indies such as World of Goo's creators, Braid's Jonathan Blow and flOw's Kellee Santiago. Interested parties can apply here. The Indie Fund investors, creators behind some of the most successful indie games to hit the market, announced the fund in March this year. Submissions to the Indie Fund should preferably "introduce something new to gaming," be in playable prototype form and developed by a small financially-efficient team, the group explained. Submitted games should also be able to make money through proven business models. Applicants submit a video and information about the creators. The goal of the project is to help "encourage the next wave of game developers," according to the official website. The fund also calls itself "a serious alternative to the traditional publisher funding model." One factor that sets the Indie Fund apart from traditional publishing deals, according to 2D Boy's Ron Carmel, is that it provides the funding "without the overhead or the loss of freedom associated with a publishing deal." For games signed under the Indie Fund, there are no milestones, although developers must give the investors monthly builds to keep up to date on a game's progress. "You are free to experiment and evolve your design as you go, so long as you don’t run too far over budget," the website says. The model also supports proportional payment, and developers have no long-term obligation to the backers. With submissions now open, the Indie Fund said that it is currently "looking forward to seeing all the weird, amazing, surprising, silly, scary, titillating games you’re willing to throw at us."