Depths of Peril Creator Steven Peeler Speaks Out On Going Indie
Now that my article on mainstream developers going indie for The Escapist is out, I thought I'd share more of the interview responses I got while preparing it. These guys had a lot of great things to say, and a ton of interesting quotes and valuable information were left on the cutting room floor.

Today, I share insights I received from Steven Peeler, creator of my favorite RPG of last year, Depths of Peril.

Rampant Coyote: Before going indie, how long were you in the mainstream industry, and what industry companies / titles / platforms did you work on?

Steven Peeler: Before starting up Soldak, I worked at Ritual Entertainment for a little over six years and primarily created games for the PC. Most of my time at Ritual was spent working on Elite Force 2, Heavy Metal: FAKK2, Blair Witch 3, and some unannounced/unreleased games. I also made minor contributions to Sin, Condition Zero, Counter Strike XBox, and Black Hawk Down: Team Sabre.

Rampant Coyote: What propelled you out of the door of that cushy mainstream game development job to join the ranks of the self-employed?

Steven Peeler: I actually get asked this a lot. I left for a lot of reasons, so my answer each time is different depending on who is asking and my mood. Here’s just a few of the reasons: I really wanted to work on an RPG and Ritual only made shooters, there were some annoying politics going on that was really frustrating, I disagreed with the direction the company was taking, I was really tired of pushy publishers, and I just wanted to do my own thing.

Rampant Coyote: I assume you left the mainstream gig feeling like you had a handle on What it would take to make games on your own. Were there any aspects of indie game development took you by surprise? Were there any lessons you had to learn quickly?

Steven Peeler: Yeah, I would say I felt I had a good handle on creating a game on my own.

This didn’t exactly surprise me, but there are a lot of non-game things you must do as an indie like setting up your business, taxes, creating a website, marketing, taxes, interacting with your customers, and more taxes. Did I mention taxes?

One thing that did surprise me is how hard it is too find good artists and level designers that actually have free time. I guess in retrospect this really shouldn’t have surprised me. Most of the people I find either aren’t very good, are already crunching (working more than full time) at a game company, or can’t/won’t work for royalties.

Another thing I have learned the hard way, RPGs are complex beasts especially when you go and add things like a dynamic world and opposing factions.

Rampant Coyote: What have been your biggest struggles / challenges / disappointments as an indie?

Steven Peeler: The biggest struggle has simply been to get enough attention so that we can make enough sales to continue. We’ve already created an innovative, fun game, but getting the world to notice that is harder, possibly even harder than making the game in the first place.

Personally my biggest disappointment is how much piracy that goes on in the PC market. Since we are a small developer, that has a hard time getting attention, you would think we would have very little piracy. Unfortunately, that’s not the case at all. It’s depressing how many sites are pirating Depths of Peril. What’s even worse is that after working on the game for almost 3 years, some #$%^ posts a crack on some pirate site, and the forum users thank him. I even saw one pirate site that was getting donations. Sigh, ok, enough on piracy, it’s depressing even typing this.

Rampant Coyote: Do you still prefer being an indie over your mainstream game job? If so, why? If not, why haven't you returned to mainstream, big-budget, big-studio development? At the end of the day, why are you an indie?

Steven Peeler: Overall, I enjoy being an indie more. The mainstream game job paid way better however. Hopefully that will change in the long run though.

It’s great to be able to do whatever I want to do. I never would have been able to create Depths of Peril in the mainstream. Nor would I have been allowed to bring Depths of Peril to the Mac market. I don’t have a boss. My commute is now about 10 seconds to get across the room. I no longer have to go to meetings. I no longer have to deal with publishers trying to withhold payments to get their way. I no longer have producers with an art background telling me, as the lead programmer, how to fix a technical problem. And this list could go on for a long time.

This isn’t to say I would never get back into the mainstream industry. If it ever happens, I would just be pickier about who I would go work for.

Rampant Coyote: Any other comments you want to make about the difference between mainstream & indie development?

In the mainstream industry, no one would have let me create Depths of Peril or bring it to the Mac. This is the big difference between being an indie and working in the mainstream. As an indie, I have the freedom to try new things and I don’t have to have proof that it will be a financial success.

One of the other big differences is, as an indie, I work directly for the gamers. I sell directly to gamers through our website and I talk directly to gamers through our forums.

At a mainstream developer, you directly make games for publishers. Obviously, ultimately you want to please the gamers. However, you pitch your game idea or prototype to publishers. The publisher is the one that decides whether or not your game gets made. The publisher pays you. Most developers never make any money except what the publisher gives them. So like I said, at a mainstream developer, most of the time, you are making games for publishers, not the gamers.

Rampant Coyote: And is there anything else you want to add?

Steven Peeler: I think I’ve gotten in my fill. :)

Labels: Indie Evangelism, Interviews, Roleplaying Games

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