Innersloth 联合创始人警告开发者：“有一些非常糟糕的交易”

schedule4 Min Read

The rising tide of indie developers becoming indie game publishers and funders has been a fascinating development for the world of video game dealmaking. While all of these small studios would be entitled to keep their winnings close and exclusively fund internal projects, a number have chosen to strategically share their wealth, offering deals that improve funding competition in the world of independent game development.

This run of publishers has introduced a new set of experienced developers to the world of term sheets, negotiations, and redlining—and over the last year, developers-turned funders speaking to Game Developer have described what they've seen like something out of a horror movie. Innersloth co-founder and programmer Forest Willard, who also oversees the company's Outersloth fund, is one such founder shocked at the state of affairs his peers are enduring.

Now he's (cautiously) raising the alarm bell for other devs. In a conversation at Seattle Loves Indies Creator Expo (SLICE) 2026 Willard offered Game Developer an update on Outersloth's funding efforts, as well as some frank thoughts about the dealmaking environment for game developers. According to him, he's reviewed a number of deals other developers are signing to make their games, and says there are "truly abysmal deals for games that do not deserve that."

"I wouldn't ever blame anyone for taking that kind of deal," he said, acknowledging that for some developers, just being able to make their dream game is a "level of success." "And to that end, I almost can't blame people for [offering] that kind of deal." But there's another level of success that he "wishes and hopes for everybody:" to actually make earn money on a game after it releases.

"Some of these deals are not conducive for that," he said. "There's some really bad deals—I can definitely blame people for offering those."

Willard didn't offer any specific examples, but he did say he's seen some developers continue dealing with those publishers after taking such abusive terms. "They must be doing something incredible [because] it doesn't actually make sense to me."

That status quo seems to genuinely agitate Willard. "I've thought about actively opposing it," he said, comparing the situation to a hostage crisis where you ask someone to "blink twice" if they're being held captive.

But that agitation speaks to something unique about Willard's position—and the position of other indies parachuting into the world of funding video games. He has great power, and knows it comes with great responsibility—but he can't save every struggling developer.

Outersloth "can never be enough" to fund all indie developers

Willard addressed this dynamic earlier in the day at SLICE, during a fireside chat he participated in with fellow Among Us creator Marcus Bromander. The two came into game development from a position of privilege—Willard had previously worked at Microsoft and had been saving money with the intent to jump into indie development (he called himself a "self-induced nepo baby"). Moderator Ty Taylor observed that the pair were "providing that safety" for other developers through Outersloth.

But not for all developers. Willard replied that they can only occasionally provide that safety net, adding that it would "never be enough" for all indie developers. "It can't be. No one can ever be enough."

He seemed to almost state that as a reminder for himself, not just the audience. "I have thought about going out and being like 'hey, if you've got a deal from these publishers, let me know, I'll sign you instead,'" he admitted with some degree of trepidation. He seemed aware such a promise could invite a flood of distress calls from embattled indies. But trying to help every developer because of how bad the deals are doesn't fix the bad deals.

"This is another reason why Outersloth will never be enough, right?" he said. "If I did have limitless funds or a billion dollars, I would make that statement."

Rather than litigate whether or not Outersloth "should" be doing more to help developers, it's worth comparing Willard's reaction to those deals to comments made by Hooded Horse CEO Tim Bender on the Game Developer Podcast about how bad publishing deals aren't just bad for developers, they violate the spirit of effective contracts.

"The reality is the best way for contracts to allocate risk is to have them borne by the part that can best absorb that risk," Bender said at the time. "We're in a situation where so many publishers over the years have told devs 'look either you make lots and lots of money to get what you want or we will essentially take the scraps of most of what you make and you're just going to kind of have to wing it and muddle it from there.'"

Willard and his peers at Outersloth are behaving like the kind of party Bender described. When his urge to save his fellow indies is paired with Bender's earlier thoughts, it reinforces his description of just these deals are approaching an all-time low, and why the arrival of every new indie developer-turned publisher is greeted with cheers from the game industry.

Every business has a push-and-pull between parties seeking the best financial outcome—but the world of contracts in indie game development might be more dire than the public knows.

About the Author

Senior Editor, GameDeveloper.com

Bryant Francis is a writer, journalist, and narrative designer based in Boston, MA. He currently writes for Game Developer, a leading B2B publication for the video game industry. His credits include Proxy Studios' 4X strategy game Zephon, Iron Anchor Studios' Down With The Ship, and Amplitude Studio's 2017 game Endless Space 2.