The Indie Fund Offers An Alternative Model For Small Developers

Plenty of big names like Valve, Microsoft and Naught Dog will be showing off their accomplishments at GDC 2010 this week, but a collective of indie developers hopes to to grab some attention as well, both at the show and after. By pooling minds that have produced titles like "Braid," "Flower" and "World of Goo," the Indie Fund hopes to create alternatives for small-scale developers looking to get past investment barriers and put their game concepts into production.

"In broad strokes, when we approve a title we start making periodic payments to the developer," Indie Fund member and 2D Boy co-founder Ron Carmel told Ars Technica. "Once the game ships, the developer first repays the investment back into the fund, and then shares revenue with the fund for a limited time."

Carmel's presentation on Tuesday is slated to address current industry standards and propose solutions. Money is a huge part of that, but providing financial pathways for emerging developers to gain footholds is only the first step.

"Funding indie games is just a means to an end," Carmel said. "What we really hope to accomplish with this effort is to help games evolve as a medium of expression by funding the indie scene, where much of the innovation in video games is currently happening."

If you're at GDC this week and you have game, but you don't have a studio or a publisher, Carmel's speech may be worth listening to. The Indie Fund's website says that they aren't currently taking submissions, but even if you can't get them to cover your start-up costs, you may be able to glean some wisdom.

Do you agree with the Carmel's analysis of the game industry for indie developers? Do you have a game that you're trying to get funding to produce? Share your thoughts in the comment section below.

Tags gdc 2010, the indie fund