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Independent developers should make the PC their primary platform, the developer behind Frozen Synapse told Develop.
Mode 7 Games’ joint managing director Paul Taylor said the PC’s open nature is what makes it a strong gateway platform for independent developers and new talent.
“PC is a really great place for people to start, and it’s really important for other platform holders to understand that a lot of really good indie games are being grown on PC,” he told Develop in an interview.
“I really support people developing on PC because it’s open, you can reach your audience really easily.
“It’s very important for indies because you spend so much time and effort making a game that you have to maximise it once it’s done. And you have to get to those audiences that wouldn’t otherwise see it.”
Choosing which platform to develop their game on is a major decision for all developers, playing a part in the kind of audience they reach and the interest they receive before the game is even released.
Taylor also revealed that Frozen Synapse was originally intended to be a Nintendo DS title.
However, in order make the turn-based tactical strategy game for the audience they wanted to reach, they realised they could “execute this better first with a mouse and keyboard and the PC was the right place”. He added that the potential to appear on Steam was another draw.
Exclusivity on services such as PSN and Xbox Live has split opinion among developers. Limbo, which was a one-year Xbox Live exclusive, is an example that went on to appear on PSN and PC and continued to sell.
Frozen Synapse has sold over 400,000 units to date on PC, Taylor confirmed when Develop contacted him.
Though Taylor and Mode 7 have moved onto new projects, an iPad version is still in development and is expected towards the end of the year.
