Freaking Cool Indies: Your Blueprint to Indie Game Success. More than just a podcast, it's your indiepreneur toolkit.
We cut through the noise to deliver research-backed marketing insights, practical publishing advice, and motivational stories from successful devs. Learn how to craft killer elevator pitches, build thriving communities, and navigate the wild world of game marketing.
We're here to help you not just make games, but sell them. Join us and turn your indie dream into reality.
Indie Game Business 101: Publishers, Contracts and Costly Mistakes
Indie game business 101: how to run your indie studio like a real business, from finding a publisher or self publishing to reading publishing contracts and avoiding costly mistakes.0:00 Run Your Indie Studio Like a Real Business2:01 Class Is in Session with Jay Powell6:46 Why 97% of Indie Games Never Get a Publisher11:28 The Most Expensive Mistakes Jay Has Seen14:12 Who's Who in the Games Industry19:41 Why You Shouldn't Launch in November24:57 The Relationships Devs Misunderstand Most29:10 Publisher vs Self Publishing34:42 Publishing Deal Math and Contract Red Flags40:21 When to Lawyer Up and Set Up Your Company45:44 Lightning Round and Play It ForwardJay Powell has spent almost 30 years on the business side of games, from agenting early publishing deals for studios like People Can Fly and Paradox to founding the Powell Group in 2010, now a team of about 20. He also runs Indie Game Business, the free podcast and Discord community with over 11,000 industry folks, and just launched the Indie Game Business School, starting with a completely free intro course on the business of video games.In this episode, Jay breaks down why 97 to 99% of indie devs won't land a publisher and what your backup plan needs to look like, who all the players in the games industry really are, and why launching in November is usually a big no for indies. He also walks through real publishing deal math, a $200K advance with a 70/30 split on a game that grosses $500K, plus recoupment, cross collateralization, net vs gross, and the publisher red flags that sank one promising cozy game.If you've been telling yourself you'll figure out the business side once the game is done, this one's for you.Take Jay's free Intro to the Business of Video Games course:https://powellgroupconsulting.com/indie-game-business-school/Follow Jay Powell!Indie Game Business School:https://powellgroupconsulting.com/indie-game-business-school/Powell Group Consulting:https://powellgroupconsulting.com/Indie Game Business (podcast, YouTube, Discord and free publisher list):https://indiegamebusiness.com/Links mentioned:Shuffles 'n Scuffles by Sour Circuit Studios: https://store.steampowered.com/app/3719450/Safe In Our World: https://www.safeinourworld.org/Blue Ridge Games: https://blueridgegames.com/How Game Devs Win With Shorts in 2026 | Jestr CEO: https://youtu.be/0MALLTQPMQgFrom Idea to Trademark: Protecting Your Indie Game the Right Way:https://youtu.be/iEOiXpO3F-UDan Long burnout episode:https://youtu.be/EhoeyB5dThE🔗 LINKS & RESOURCES📬 Freaking Cool Indies Newsletter: https://freakingcoolindies.com/FCI_newsletters 🎙️ Hangout on the go:Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2doPqk8Q9IKstjLDdSMn9nApple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/freaking-cool-indies/id1824774892❤️ CONNECT WITH ME 🕸️ Website: https://freakingcoolindies.com/🐦 Twitter: / https://x.com/F_Cool_Indies🎵 TikTok: / https://www.tiktok.com/@freakingcoolindies💼 LinkedIn: / https://www.linkedin.com/in/marnone/🦋 Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/freakingcoolindies.com
7 Oct 2026
What Makes Players Click, and Wishlist, Your Game on Steam?
Indie game marketing starts with a strong first impression. Learn how Steam capsule art and game trailers can help your indie game stand out, earn clicks, and build wishlists with Will Perkins from Continue.Will joins Mike to discuss understanding your audience, communicating your game’s appeal, testing key art, and creating trailers that give players a reason to stay. Plus, common marketing mistakes, working with content creators, and making creative collaboration count.What makes YOU stop scrolling on Steam? Let us know in the comments.CHAPTERS00:00 The Importance of First Impressions03:06 Understanding the Creative Process05:58 Key Art and Trailer Design Strategies08:48 Market Research and Audience Engagement11:48 Common Marketing Mistakes by Developers14:54 Effective Marketing Channels for Indie Games17:57 Engaging with Content Creators20:57 Navigating Genre Expectations in Key Art23:59 Iterative Design and Testing for Key Art27:05 Utilizing Resources for Effective Marketing32:00 Exploring Key Art and Thumbnails35:57 The Importance of Trailers40:12 Crafting Effective Game Trailers43:54 Understanding Trailer Types and Their Purposes48:11 Feedback and Collaboration in Trailer Production51:55 The Holistic Approach to Game Marketing55:57 Shoutouts and Community EngagementFollow Will and CONTINUE!CONTINUE: https://continueagency.com/Will on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/williamhperkinsCONTINUE socials: https://www.instagram.com/wearecontinue/Trailers we talk about:Dungeon Lurker Announcement Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dzn9mIXOHXkMighty Cuphead Adventure Teaser: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q21jZaUOa4QGemini X Announcement Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PINvArR1_nAAmbrosia Sky Act Two Announcement: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rJFKeIThOG4🔗 LINKS & RESOURCES📬 Freaking Cool Indies Newsletter: https://freakingcoolindies.com/FCI_newsletters 🎙️ Hangout on the go:Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2doPqk8Q9IKstjLDdSMn9nApple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/freaking-cool-indies/id1824774892❤️ CONNECT WITH ME 🕸️ Website: https://freakingcoolindies.com/🐦 Twitter: / https://x.com/F_Cool_Indies🎵 TikTok: / https://www.tiktok.com/@freakingcoolindies💼 LinkedIn: / https://www.linkedin.com/in/marnone/🦋 Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/freakingcoolindies.com
15 Sept 2026
The AAA UX Framework Indie Devs Never Learn
Former Ubisoft UX director Ruwan Fernando breaks down UX design, UI design, and video game accessibility for indie game developers, and why copying other games hurts your UX.Chapters0:00 - The Real Reason Your Game's UX Matters1:30 - From Indie Studio to Ubisoft, Ruwan's Origin Story4:51 - The Biggest Misconceptions About UX in Games9:53 - The UX Blind Spots Every Dev Team Has19:53 - The 5 Questions Every Indie Dev Must Answer30:19 - North Stars, Constraints, and the Cone of Uncertainty40:53 - The Comparison Paradox, Why Copying Other Games Backfires49:45 - Why Accessibility Is Just Good UX1:01:56 - Building the Canadian Game Awards Accessibility Category1:05:30 - Ruwan's Final Advice and Play It ForwardFollow Ruwan Fernando!LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ruwan-f/Website (Go Boldly): https://goboldly.coMentorship (ADPList): https://adplist.org/mentors/ruwan-fernandoLinks mentioned:The Gamer's Brain by Celia Hodent: https://thegamersbrain.com/Can I Play That (accessibility reviews): https://caniplaythat.com/AbleGamers: https://ablegamers.org/The Calling by BuriedCandy: https://store.steampowered.com/app/3830400/The_Calling/Chants of Sennaar: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1931770/Chants_of_Sennaar/WCAG accessibility guidelines: https://www.w3.org/WAI/standards-guidelines/wcag/Xbox Accessibility Guidelines: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/gaming/accessibility/xbox-accessibility-guidelines/🔗 LINKS & RESOURCES📬 Freaking Cool Indies Newsletter: https://freakingcoolindies.com/FCI_newsletters 🎙️ Hangout on the go:Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2doPqk8Q9IKstjLDdSMn9nApple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/freaking-cool-indies/id1824774892❤️ CONNECT WITH ME 🕸️ Website: https://freakingcoolindies.com/🐦 Twitter: / https://x.com/F_Cool_Indies🎵 TikTok: / https://www.tiktok.com/@freakingcoolindies💼 LinkedIn: / https://www.linkedin.com/in/marnone/🦋 Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/freakingcoolindies.com
Inside a recent episode
Stop Fighting Your Deadlines & Actually Finish Your Game
Published 15 Jul 2025 · Transcript excerpt
[…] It's like, don't, you know, focus on what's good enough for now because that's what ends up getting games made. It's a, Drinkbox is an old, there's a pretty old studio at this point, and like they have experience in getting games made, which I think is ultimately probably one of the most important lessons in making sure you have a career in indie games. But yeah, I would say outside of that, time management is important, but it's a tricky thing. And I guess know that it's a tricky thing. It's good to be aware of. And I think the last thing I want to say, especially to the soul developers, and this might feel contradictory to the other things that I was saying, but if you're doing this as a passion, if you're doing this because it's like you care about it, which often indie game developers are, don't be afraid to let that passion guide you. […]
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