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We see the term banded about all the time, but what exactly is an indie game?
Typically, it's used to describe a game created by a small team, and without the financial support of a large publisher. Sometimes that definition gets stretched, though, and it's certainly not the case for the popular sea-based adventure Dave the Diver. With its simplistic pixel art style and quirky, experimental gameplay, it certainly looks like a typical indie at first glance, but in reality, its developer, Mintrocket, is a subsidiary of Nexon, a very large South Korean publisher.
For this reason, the game's inclusion in this year's Game Awards Best Independent Game category has raised some eyebrows, and in a recent Twitch Q&A session, the event's producer and host, Geoff Keighley, was quizzed about the thinking behind this decision.
"Independent can mean different things to different people, and it's sort of a broad term," Keighley says. "You can argue, does independent mean the budget of a game, does independent mean where the source of financing was, is it based on the team size? Is it the kind of independent spirit of the game, meaning a smaller game that is different?"
He adds, "It's a really complicated thing to figure out and come up with strict rules around it, so we let people use their best judgement, and you can agree or disagree with the choices."
Over on Twitter, Keighley's comments have reignited the debate over what an indie is, and while nobody is arguing that Dave the Diver is anything other than a delightful and well-made game, many feel it shouldn't be considered indie.
"Dave the Diver is NOT indie. If you play it, you'll see for yourself," says @JuJuBlu1. "They def had a sizable budget. SO MANY different systems and mini-games. Lots of cutscenes. Incredible OST. It's a surprisingly big game."
In the same boat is @SuperSquidoodle, who writes, "It's very inherently clear that the game under a billion dollar studio isn't an indie, and @LiamBME, who says that indie is "undefinable at this point," though some games, such as Dave the Diver, are "easy to define as 'not' indie".
User @DominicTarason reckons there's room for debate when it comes to funding or studio size but, "a hard line should be that 'Indie' means self-owned. Neither studio nor game should be owned or held by a corporate interest."
Even with a big publisher behind it, Dave the Diver has some stiff competition on its hands as the other games in the running for Best Independent Game at The Game Awards 2023 are Cocoon, Dredge, Sea of Stars, and Viewfinder. Baldur's Gate 3, which some argue has a right to be included in the indie category, is a frontrunner alongside Remedy's long-awaited sequel, Alan Wake 2, with both games receiving eight nominations each. The winners will be decided on December 7.
