A new indie-focused games publisher has been announced, and they have a pretty tough stance on a hot button issue in the gaming industry – crunch time.
The new publisher, Modern Wolf, is looking to bring “strategy and strategy-adjacent” indie games, while also having “zero tolerance on crunch,” and a big commitment to “ethical game development practices.”
Here’s the initial lineup of five games the publisher has in the pipeline:
- Necronator: Dead Wrong | Toge Productions
- Deck-building meets lane defense from the creators of Infectonator 3: Apocalypse.
- Release: Early Access Q4 2019
- Platforms: PC, console, mobile
- Ostranauts | Blue Bottle Games
- A starship captain sim in a gritty blue-collar sci-fi solar system, from the makers of NEO Scavenger.
- Release: Early Access soon
- Platforms: PC
- Skeleton Crew | Cinder Cone
- Pinball-like and physics-based dungeon brawler from the creative director of Smoke & Sacrifice.
- Release: Autumn 2020
- Platforms: PC, console
- Out There: Oceans of Time | Mi-Clos Studio
- Space exploration adventure on an epic scale, from the creators of Out There: Ω Edition and Sigma Theory.
- Release: Winter 2020
- Platforms: PC
- Rogue State Revolution | LRDG
- The first geo-political roguelike: you’re the democratically elected president of a Middle Eastern republic, but how long can you stay in power?
- Release: 2021
- Platforms: PC
The publisher will also take an “active role in holding itself and its development partners to the highest standards possible” in maintaining a healthy work environment for the studios they rep.
How do you feel about more publishers and developers taking an active stance against crunch time in game development? Sound off in the comments below!
