Why Innersloth is funding your next favorite indie game

Published:

Innersloth CEO Forest Willard knew about it almost immediately after Among us‘ breakthrough success in 2020, that Innersloth had the resources to support other developers and games. “The idea came from hearing about a few games that already had publishers but were struggling and looking for independence,” Willard said. “On the glowing side, they were always fixed through negotiations between the publisher and the developers! We never bought anyone out. But then we saw Mars First LogisticsI thought it was chilly and understood the business plan well enough to sign it.”

Though Among us is crucial to developer Innersloth’s ability to fund other independent games, it was another studio’s game that brought the financial initiative we now call Outersloth to life: Mars First Logisticsconstruction and transportation simulator set on Mars. Basically take The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Realm‘s builds physics in space, then employ your creations to transport cargo across the planet. It was released in early access by lone developer Shape Shop in 2023 – and when Willard and Innersloth’s communications director, Victoria Tran, saw Mars First Logisticsthis forced the team to develop a business plan.

- Advertisement -

Innersloth’s investment in Outersloth has only grown. On June 7, at Summer Game Fest, Tran and Willard took the stage to publicly announce Outersloth and several games it’s funding. There are nine games in total—so far!—including a card-battling RPG from Trinket Studio, creators of Head of Combat Brigade; and Dosa Projectnext game from Thirsty Suitors developer Outerloop Studios. Outersloth’s roster of games is very diverse in terms of genre, but the games have a tendency to be relatively independent.

“We always knew Outersloth was going to be a secondary focus to Innersloth, so the whole plan was to find indie developers who could prove they didn’t need a full-service publisher,” Willard said. “In terms of the game itself, we still don’t have a single answer on what fits, but we know when it feels right and it all makes sense.”

Among us is still Innersloth’s first priority — so framing the initiative as a funder rather than a publisher was key, Willard said. “We’re happy to provide connections and advice, but the teams need to take ownership of what they want to do and how! That gives them freedom because we don’t want to interfere with their process and/or take over their intellectual property.”

Outersloth uses a revenue-recovery-share model to create fair deals for the developers it supports. Tran said it’s the basic way to do business in the video game industry: Outersloth invests in a game, then recoups that investment after it’s released, sharing revenue with the developer until it’s paid off. Once that investment is recouped, Outersloth takes a smaller percentage for a set period of time. Outersloth plans to share the details of the deal percentages “in the future,” Tran said.

For most studios, getting funding has been tough over the past two years, but for marginalized developers who receive the least funding, it seems insurmountable. Getting funding has never been basic either; making sure an entire development team can support development is one of the hardest parts of the job. It’s even harder now.

“As independent game developers, we knew that one of the hardest things to get is direct funding,” Tran said. “We’re very privileged to be in that position and have eyes on us, so we were hoping that we could create something that would hopefully inspire others to pass it on wherever they can and whatever that means to them. We were only able to do that with the help of our peers and players in the industry, so it seemed only right to help where we could.”

Over the past two years, the video game industry has not only experienced a decline in funding, but also a huge number of layoffs and studio closures; more people in the video game industry were laid off in the first half of 2024 than in all of 2023. And that’s not necessarily because the video game industry is doing badly financially. People in the United States spent $57.2 billion on video games in 2023, up from $56.6 billion in 2022, according to the Entertainment Software Association and data analyst Circan. The question is about spending in 2024, which Circan analyst Mat Piscatella is estimated to fall by 2%sanguine, or 10%, negative, in an interview with GamesIndustry.biz. All of this means that video game studios are having a harder time than ever in a year that has been defined by closures and layoffs; even studios whose releases were critically successful suffered this fate.

Funds like Outersloth will assist see a sustainable future for at least some studios — or at least that’s the hope. None of the announced games have been released yet, except Mars First Logistics during Early Access. Outersloth expects to continue investing in games, however, and is accepting submissions from game developers. It’s a move you don’t see very often—independent game studios funding other independent game studios.

Typically, these funds are created by larger developers and publishers: such as Microsoft, Google, and SonyThere are also other funding initiatives such as strange spirits influence fund Or Interactive Wingswho are specifically looking for diversity in their investments. The Outersloth investment fund operates more like the latter; WINGS, for example, uses a similar model where it shares revenues in varying percentages until the investment is recouped, allowing developers to retain intellectual property rights. The difference is that WINGS offers more intensive support in terms of publishing and business development; Outersloth looks for developers who are able to operate independently but are able to provide advice when needed.

“Having diverse funding and publishing models that can meet the needs of developers is a step in the right direction, and caring about their sustainability and success is a fundamental part of that,” Tran said. “It’s not just about indie developers being successful, but about larger corporations being able to have more flexibility and resources to take on more games. Ultimately, the way forward is for people to take care of people, and I hope Outersloth can help with that.”

Related articles