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Indie role-playing game
An indie role-playing game is a role-playing game published by individuals or small press publishers, in contrast to games published by large corporations. Indie tabletop role-playing game designers participate in various game distribution networks, development communities, and gaming conventions, both in person and online. Indie game designer committees grant annual awards for excellence.
In the early 2000s, indie role-playing discussion forums such as The Forge developed innovative design patterns and theories. In 2010, the game Apocalypse World established the popular design framework Powered by the Apocalypse, inspiring hundreds of similar games. Starting in the early 2010s, indie game publishing provided new opportunities for LGBTQ writers to share underrepresented stories.
Common examples of indie role-playing games include Apocalypse World and the Powered by the Apocalypse framework, The Quiet Year, Fiasco, Fall of Magic, Blades in the Dark, and Dialect.
Although there is no consensus on the exact definition of an "indie role-playing game," users of the term typically emphasize creative freedom and fair financial compensation for game designers. For example, an organizer of the 2022 Queer Games Bundle on Itch.io told Chase Carter for Dicebreaker:
“Our goal is a future in which there are no more starving indie developers. Where corporations don’t rule our brains pumping out endless sequels but instead we have a vibrant games community that produces countless works...To get there we need developers to gain experience and make many games, and that can only happen with time and a livable income.”
Some definitions of "indie role-playing game" require that all commercial, design, or conceptual elements of the game stay under the control of the creator(s), while others only specify that the game should be produced outside a corporate environment. All definitions agree that an indie role-playing game can be self-published. Some definitions additionally include small press games, because small press publishing frequently involves creator ownership and/or higher degrees of creative control for writers.
Multiple annual awards are given to indie games for excellence in multiple categories of design. The Indie Game Developer Network grants the Indie Groundbreaker Award in the categories of Most Innovative, Best Rules, Best Setting, Best Art, and Game of the Year. IndieCade offers awards for indie role-playing games in addition to video games. The ENNIE Awards and Diana Jones Award frequently honor indie role-playing games, though both awards are also awarded to games published by corporations. The Golden Cobra Challenge grants the Golden Cobra Award for freeform live action role-playing games, including indie tabletop role-playing games with freeform-like design elements.
Several previous award committees for indie role-playing games are no longer operational. The Indie RPG Awards were presented to indie games from 2002 to 2018, with the main category of Indie RPG of the Year and sub-categories Best RPG Supplement, Best Free Game, Best Production, Most Innovative Game, and Best Support. Dicebreaker launched the Tabletop Awards in 2022 and awarded it yearly until the website was shuttered in 2024 following the sale of the Gamer Network to IGN. The 200 Word RPG Challenge granted awards from 2015 to 2019.
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Indie role-playing game AI simulator
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Indie role-playing game
An indie role-playing game is a role-playing game published by individuals or small press publishers, in contrast to games published by large corporations. Indie tabletop role-playing game designers participate in various game distribution networks, development communities, and gaming conventions, both in person and online. Indie game designer committees grant annual awards for excellence.
In the early 2000s, indie role-playing discussion forums such as The Forge developed innovative design patterns and theories. In 2010, the game Apocalypse World established the popular design framework Powered by the Apocalypse, inspiring hundreds of similar games. Starting in the early 2010s, indie game publishing provided new opportunities for LGBTQ writers to share underrepresented stories.
Common examples of indie role-playing games include Apocalypse World and the Powered by the Apocalypse framework, The Quiet Year, Fiasco, Fall of Magic, Blades in the Dark, and Dialect.
Although there is no consensus on the exact definition of an "indie role-playing game," users of the term typically emphasize creative freedom and fair financial compensation for game designers. For example, an organizer of the 2022 Queer Games Bundle on Itch.io told Chase Carter for Dicebreaker:
“Our goal is a future in which there are no more starving indie developers. Where corporations don’t rule our brains pumping out endless sequels but instead we have a vibrant games community that produces countless works...To get there we need developers to gain experience and make many games, and that can only happen with time and a livable income.”
Some definitions of "indie role-playing game" require that all commercial, design, or conceptual elements of the game stay under the control of the creator(s), while others only specify that the game should be produced outside a corporate environment. All definitions agree that an indie role-playing game can be self-published. Some definitions additionally include small press games, because small press publishing frequently involves creator ownership and/or higher degrees of creative control for writers.
Multiple annual awards are given to indie games for excellence in multiple categories of design. The Indie Game Developer Network grants the Indie Groundbreaker Award in the categories of Most Innovative, Best Rules, Best Setting, Best Art, and Game of the Year. IndieCade offers awards for indie role-playing games in addition to video games. The ENNIE Awards and Diana Jones Award frequently honor indie role-playing games, though both awards are also awarded to games published by corporations. The Golden Cobra Challenge grants the Golden Cobra Award for freeform live action role-playing games, including indie tabletop role-playing games with freeform-like design elements.
Several previous award committees for indie role-playing games are no longer operational. The Indie RPG Awards were presented to indie games from 2002 to 2018, with the main category of Indie RPG of the Year and sub-categories Best RPG Supplement, Best Free Game, Best Production, Most Innovative Game, and Best Support. Dicebreaker launched the Tabletop Awards in 2022 and awarded it yearly until the website was shuttered in 2024 following the sale of the Gamer Network to IGN. The 200 Word RPG Challenge granted awards from 2015 to 2019.
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