To survive as an indie dev, "I must reuse everything," says solo designer who pivoted from an aerial combat sim to a hotly-anticipated city builder

The developer of anticipated city builder Bulwark: Falconeer Chronicles has explained the design philosophy that's led to the connective tissue between his two very different games. 

Developed by Tomas Sala, Bulwark, as the game's full name might suggest, is linked to Sala's previous game not just by its creator, but by its setting. His 2020 breakout, The Falconeer, is an aerial combat game, in which soldiers battle for control of the skies over the threatening Ursee atop the backs of massive warbirds. The warbirds and the Ursee return in Bulwark, but the two games share almost zero gameplay similarity - though that's all part of Sala's entire development ethos.

In a recent tweet, Sala outlined his "personal rules for indie dev survival," starting with the need for originality and a sensible scope. He explains that without "ridiculous funds/means," if a game idea exists already, or if his own idea is too detailed, then he either won't be able to compete with the first game, or won't be able to bring his own offerings to life. Woven into those rules are the idea that "I cannot make a universally beloved game," and that "luck, random chance, or external multipliers" aren't something that a developer can rely on.

But the thing that interests me most is Sala's sixth and final rule, which states that "I must reuse everything, starting with the IP, everything I create must become part of my brand/world/setting. So it can grow into something ridiculous." That rule is something that Sala has clearly stuck to - with little connective tissue between Bulwark and The Falconeer as games in their own right, it's their shared world that's at the heart of Sala's emerging portfolio. 

It's a philosophy that's clearly a major part of game development - any member of any studio will tell you that learnings and assets are re-used wherever possible to enable simpler, cheaper pipelines. In the indie space, you can see that in direct sequels, like the Zelda-inspired turnip Boy games, and in highly stylised follow-ups like Deltarune or Haunted Chocolatier. All that said, however, it's comparatively rare for a studio to try and weave a narrative thread through two such different games. 

While Sala suggests that visual clarity and narrative consistency are both important parts of his design process, one traditionally key aspect of game development isn't: fun. Plenty of devs have discussed their attempts at 'finding the fun' in a development prototype, but in a follow-up tweet, Sala says that "my core failing is this lack of obsession with fun," and that he's never been interested in making "second to second fun" in his games. In another tweet, he notes that "I am simply not interested in making that perfect addictive gameplay loop you can just slip into," and that "fun is nice but a side project."

It's a bold approach, but certainly one that I can respect - plenty of developers have made names for themselves by sticking more to their own interests than the whims of the wider industry. If Bulwark: Falconeer Chronicles' Steam Next Fest demo is anything to go by, Sala's approach is one worth sticking with.

Check out our list of upcoming indie games for more.