Freaking Cool Indies
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.
Episodes
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 N...
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 cre...
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...
Hilltop Studios founder Scott Christian and writer Matt Bernard break down how two theatre kids built an award winning indie game, then bet the whole studio on a gothic horror mystery for their next release, Curse of Resthaven.Wishlist Curse of Resthaven: https://store.steampowered.com/app/3796150/Curse_of_Resthaven/Buy Lil' Guardsman: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1924360/Lil_Guardsman/Chapters:0:00 - Cold open: from cozy car...
MobileSyrup Gaming Editor Bradly Shankar breaks down exactly what makes a journalist cover your indie game, from the GIF that saves them time to the embargo timeline that nearly sank a launch.Chapters:0:00 - Welcome Bradly Shankar, MobileSyrup's Gaming Editor0:54 - How journalists actually find their stories2:10 - What makes an inbound pitch stand out2:48 - The GIF trick that makes a journalist's life easier4:56 - Why your personal...
Short form video is how game devs win in 2026. Jestr CEO Mahdeen Abrar breaks down how to use YouTube Shorts, TikTok, and Instagram Reels to get your game discovered, with 1.2 billion views and 700 campaigns behind the strategy.Mahdeen Abrar is the CEO and co-founder of Jestr, a creator marketplace that connects indie and AA studios with vetted creators who make shorts about their games. In under a year, Jestr has launched 700+ cam...
A games recruiter who has made 500+ hires breaks down how to actually get hired in game dev right now: why mass applying online is a trap, how to network without feeling salesy, and the interview hack that makes studios want to say yes.💪 7 Day Marketing Challenge:https://freakingcoolindies.com/resources/🩵 Follow Patryk!Website/Newsletter: https://patryksuchy.com/8Bit: https://8bitplay.com/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/pat...
This indie game went viral through streamers on YouTube and Twitch with zero ad spend, and turned a two hour prototype into 200,000 Steam sales. Solo dev Mateo Covic breaks down his streamer outreach, wishlist, and content strategy for Paddle Paddle Paddle.Chapters00:00 Introduction to Paddle Paddle Paddle02:47 The Development Journey of Paddle Paddle Paddle05:54 Marketing Strategies and Community Engagement09:00 The Role of Stream...
Accessibility in indie game development is the most overlooked way to reach more players, sell more copies, and build a bigger community. Zach and Vinny from AbleGamers break it down. Support the Play It Forward campaign (100% goes to AbleGamers):https://www.gofundme.com/f/freakingcoolindies 0:00 - What accessibility really means for indie devs2:55 - What AbleGamers actually does day to day6:58 - New adaptive tech and why it's expl...
Chris Zukowski (How To Market A Game / HTMAG) is one of the most trusted voices in indie game marketing. In this episode, Chris breaks down how he built his audience, why Steam visibility isn't your real problem, and why he bets everything on an owned mailing list over social media. ⏱️ CHAPTERS00:00 – Intro00:59 – The origin story: from IBM to How To Market A Game06:30 – "Everybody's doing this wrong": why Chris s...
The framework indie devs use to keep RPGs, deck builders, and narrative games from breaking during production. Learn game content structure and documentation with Grimoire CEO Jill Vanparys.0:00 - Your game is built on scattered docs (and it will break)1:43 - Welcome Jill Vanparys, CEO of Grimoire3:10 - What is content chaos and why does it hit game devs hardest7:30 - How one version mismatch breaks your entire game10:00 - Why crea...
Indie game marketing with YouTube Shorts and TikTok is one of the most powerful tools a solo dev has, and Landon from Broken Flame Games has cracked the code.He's been building his debut Steam game Vault of the Vanquished (a coin-flipping roguelike that's basically Balatro meets Slay the Spire) while posting short-form content almost every weekday. And it's working.In this episode, Landon breaks down his entire system: how he build...
Mallory Loar was one of Discord's first marketing hires, and she built the Hype Squad, a superfan program that scaled from a handful of passionate Discord fans to millions of members globally.In this episode, Mallory breaks down exactly how indie devs can build that same kind of loyal, word-of-mouth community, even with zero budget and a one-person team.You'll learn:→ Why followers and community members are NOT the same thing→ How ...
Subscribe to DevDucks Youtube Channel: @DevDuck Ben's Twitter: https://x.com/_devduckWhat does it take to sustain a 5-year indie game development journey? DevDuck (Ben Nowak) shares his secrets to consistent game dev progress through authentic devlogs, morning routines, and the "No Zero Days" philosophy that's kept him building Dauphin for years while growing to 176K YouTube subscribers.Ben reveals how he balances his d...
Steam isn’t a storefront — it’s an algorithm.And if you don’t understand how it works, your game gets buried.In this episode of Freaking Cool Indies, I’m joined by Jarvs Tasker (Head of Communications at Happy Volcano) to break down how Steam actually decides which games get seen — and what indie devs can do to improve their Steam pages without spending more on ads or social media.We cover:- Why ...
Game Localization for Indie Games. Learn how proper localization boosts Steam wishlists, global reach, and revenue, with expert insights from Alconost’s Yana Tarasevich.Did you know only 36% of Steam players use English as their primary language? If you’re shipping your indie game in English-only, you're missing a huge global audience, and leaving potential wishlists and sales on the table.🌐 Connect with Yana:LinkedIn:...
Discover how Annie and Lucas transformed a 48-hour game jam entry into A Little to the Left, selling over 2.5 million copies through authentic marketing and genuine passion. This husband and wife duo from Halifax, Nova Scotia, behind Max Inferno Games, prove that sometimes the best business strategy starts with caring deeply about your craft and trusting that authenticity will find its audience. From their kitchen table conversatio...
Think you need to grind 15 hours daily to succeed in gaming? Veteran Twitch streamer Dan 'Indie' Long proves otherwise. Learn the hidden costs of gaming success and sustainable strategies.🏆 7 Day Marketing Foundations Challenge: https://freakingcoolindies.com/resources/📬 Newsletter: https://freakingcoolindies.com/newsletter/🌐 Connect With Dan:https://www.linkedin.com/in/therealindie/https://indiegamebusiness.com/https://www.twit...
Discover how empathy driven marketing can transform your indie game's success by understanding player motivation vs behaviour. Andrew Pappas from RenGen Marketing reveals why download numbers and analytics create blind spots, how to research what players really want through Steam reviews and Reddit, and practical frameworks for creating content that resonates. Learn the Strange Horticulture strategy for finding hidden audiences, ma...
Discover the 3 main types of indie game funding and learn which option is perfect for your studio. From traditional publishers to venture capital to revolutionary project financing, we break down exactly when to use each funding model, common pitch mistakes that kill your chances, and how to determine if your game is actually ready for funding conversations with Almost Ready Games Fund co-founder Harlis Öunapuu.
🌐 Connect With Harl...
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