Marketing Indie Games as a Developer vs. Publisher

This is a Game Dev Podcast with my guest Phiomena Schwab, co-founder/CEO of Stray Fawn Studio, the creators of The Wandering Village, Dungeon Clawler, Nimbatus and Niche. She's the head of Stray Fawn's new publishing branch and she co-founded the Swiss Game Hub, a co-working space for game developers. We talk about what it takes to make successful games, community building, early access, publishing and women in game dev.

Links to my Guest

➤ Bootcamp games: Check out the games and leave a comment https://swissgamehub.itch.io/

➤ More learnings from Stray Fawn: https://strayfawnstudio.com/insights/

➤ Website: https://strayfawnstudio.com/

➤ X: https://x.com/PhilomenaSchwab

➤ Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/philomenaschwab.bsky.social

Listen to the podcast on the go (Spotify, Apple Podcasts, etc.):

➤ https://tyrollerjonas.podbean.com/

0:00 - Intro

1:17 - Game vs. Marketing

3:06 - Early Hits and Studio Formation

5:14 - From Hobby Team to Studio

6:43 - Community Building & Kickstarter

9:31 - EA to 1.0 With Community Push

11:16 - Finding First Fans & Adjacent Communities

15:55 - The Wandering Village: Fantasy-First

19:15 - Rapid Prototyping: Art vs. Gameplay

23:32 - Team Alignment & Genre Conventions

26:19 - Meaningful “Evil” Choices In Games

31:25 - Why Build in Public

32:23 - Kickstarter: When to Run or Skip

32:29 - 1.0 Bet: Localization, Delays & Beta Iteration

35:27 - Shifting to Small Bets

36:37 - Small-Project Playbook & Premium Mobile Sim-Ship

40:10 - Publishing Arm: Why & What Failed

42:18 - Publishing Is Mostly the Game

45:00 - Publishers, Funding & Deals

46:17 - Selecting Games & Avoiding Pitch Limbo

53:05 - What Publishers Evaluate: Demo, Proof & Better vs. Different

57:35 - Choosing Genres With Demand

59:50 - Bootcamp Validation & Itch Metrics

01:02:20 - Swiss Game Hub: 140-Dev Community

01:05:17 - Dungeon Clawler: “Claw Machine” Origin & Breakout

01:11:04 - Clones, Stolen Assets & Mobile Pitfalls

01:13:29 - What’s Next: Small Games, Story & Studio Votes

01:15:55 - Small Teams Fit; Brand Risk

01:18:49 - YouTube: Niche Passion vs. Mass Appeal

01:21:57 - Talking to Players & Moderation

01:24:06 - Own Your Audience: Newsletters, Discord & Events

01:28:33 - Swiss Game Dev Association & Many Hats

01:29:34 - Many Hats & Mental Load

01:33:19 - Wandering Village 1.0: Wishlist Conversion & Discounts

01:34:20 - Early Access vs. 1.0: Outcomes & Timing

01:35:38 - Why 1.0 Underperformed: Consoles, Genre & EA Length

01:39:27 - Post-Launch Priorities: Updates, Stretch Goals & Roadmaps

01:41:07 - Gender Balance, Role Models & Hiring

01:45:06 - Message to Future Women Game Devs

01:45:43 - Outro

My game "Thronefall":

➤ Steam: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2239150/Thronefall/

➤ Discord: https://discord.gg/gVYctptyg8

➤ Nintendo Switch: https://www.nintendo.com/en-gb/Games/Nintendo-Switch-download-software/Thronefall-2669627.html#Overview

My game "Will You Snail":

➤ Play Will You Snail on Steam: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1115050/Will_You_Snail/

➤ Join the Will You Snail Discord: https://discord.gg/G3mRDrK

For the game developers among you:

➤ Join our creative game dev community on Discord: https://discord.gg/Ye6zzfQ