For a while there, it seemed as though both Microsoft and Epic Games were signing as many deals as they could to have games added to their respective platforms exclusively – for a period of time. Many indie devs praised these deals for offering greater stability and freedom for the studios. Unfortunately, the well seems to have dried up.

As reported by PC Gamer, Casey Yano – the co-founder of Slay the Spire studio Mega Crit – spoke during GDC on the current status of support from large platform holders in particular when it comes to indies, saying:

“I talked to at least five small teams, like 35 [members] and under, during GDC, and they're like: Cuts, cuts, cuts, funding cancelled, talks that were going on for a year, cancelled. It sounds like it's shit. We're definitely very privileged to be able to self-fund. [Otherwise] I'd be very, very, very scared right now.”

Expanding on this further, Chris Bourassa claimed that both Microsoft and Epic Games have greatly decreased their funding for platform exclusives, stating that these types of deals have “come down in scope,” adding that “The Gold Rush is over. I come from the Northwest Territories. The town I'm from was built on gold, and then they found diamonds further north. Maybe another paradigm shift is waiting for us, but I definitely think the scale of the deals I'm hearing about is significantly diminished from the big swinging days.”

Whenever there is a new console or service/platform, it’s always the same story, in which indies help prop up and support these burgeoning products – only to then be abandoned once the platforms have achieved enough success to try for bigger fish.

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KitGuru says: What did you think of the Game Pass / Epic gold rush? Was its end inevitable? Let us know down below.

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