Final week, indie writer Critical Reflex hosted its annual showcase, that includes a number of hard-to-define titles together with Altered Alma, a cyberpunk-infused Metroidvania from Barcelona-based 2Awesome Studio.
2Awesome is finalizing its largest title thus far, which raised over €260,000 from more than 5,100 Kickstarter backers. Launched in 2024, the marketing campaign initially aimed for €40,000.
As Altered Alma nears completion, 2Awesome co-founder Alexander Santiago tells GamesIndustry.biz that the group is optimistic in regards to the recreation’s launch.
“Wishlist numbers are wanting actually good; we featured in Steam Subsequent Fest and had a very good reception. We’re at all times going to totally different occasions. We have been within the Indie Enviornment at Gamescom, which is a seal of high quality as a result of the video games are curated. If you get in that, your recreation has one thing. We’re getting into the appropriate path.”
Improvement on Altered Alma began in 2023, at a time when the business had “large tasks and large budgets,” says Santiago. “Altered Alma was a difficult and impressive mission for us. It is the largest recreation we have executed, greatest group, greatest scope, greatest every part. It is an open-world Metroidvania, so it requires effort.”
Drawing on this expertise, Santiago is assured 2Awesome will streamline growth for its subsequent mission. The group plans to proceed the Altered Alma franchise with a extra targeted scope.
“Wanting on the total business for newer IPs and tasks, it is targeted on smaller budgets and targeted video games – doing one or two issues rather well. I believe that is the place we’re proper now. There are at all times larger budgets, and hopefully we’ll have a sequel within the oven in some unspecified time in the future.”
Since its founding in 2014, 2Awesome Studio has relied on a number of funding sources. “It is all been Kickstarter, authorities funding, loans, [and support from] publishers,” he notes.
Earlier than Altered Alma, the group ran two profitable Kickstarter campaigns. Their first title, Dimension Dive, raised €36,996 from over 1,000 backers and launched in 2017. AK-xolotl, funded in 2022 with €132,807 from a €15,000 goal and over 2,500 backers, launched in 2023.
The developer additionally presents outsourcing as an extra revenue stream. “It isn’t our core enterprise, however we have to hold the lights on, so we offer companies for others. There isn’t a one answer that matches all.”
Santiago notes that outsourcing and co-development are additionally difficult markets to enter. “It was a pure evolution for us with our first recreation, deciding to do the ports in-house. It was a technical determination to achieve expertise; not due to a long-term plan, simply because we wished the know-how.”
” We’re making an attempt to gauge the market now and, with our data, match into it”
“After that, we labored with Focus Residence Interactive to port Othercide to Swap,” he continues. “Then we bought a repute, and it unfold by phrase of mouth. That is what works greatest for us, like, ‘Ah, yeah, these guys ship what they promise, say, 99% of the time, on a regular basis.’ That is fairly distinctive within the business.”
2Awesome Studio seems to have developed a profitable method to indie growth, balancing a number of revenue streams and a transparent franchise roadmap.
Nevertheless, Santiago says there is no such thing as a common method for operating an indie studio. “I want I had the method,” Santiago laughs. “We do not have it. We’re planning for the following two or three years, which hopefully consists of the sequel for Altered Alma.”
“As I stated, we’re a smaller studio. We now have some modifications within the plan, issues we could not do within the first recreation that we wish to embody within the sequel. We’re making an attempt to gauge the market now and, with our data, match into it; particularly as extra smaller groups ship larger successes. There are two sides – smaller and greater tasks. We’re making an attempt to slot in each.”