As indie game developers, we pour our passion into every aspect of our games. We spend endless late nights fine-tuning mechanics (adding secret endings), perfecting the art, and creating experiences we hope players will adore. But the truth is, we’re often too close to our projects to see them objectively. You test endlessly, only for the first person who plays it to break it within seconds.
That’s why I’m bring my Indie Game Gauntlet back!
What is the Indie Game Gauntlet?
It’s simple: I want to play your indie game live on stream and give you my unfiltered reaction. No prep, no research beforehand, just me experiencing your game exactly like any other player would for the first time.
Submit your game by November 16th for a chance to be selected for the live stream event on November 22nd. From all the submissions, I’ll randomly select up to 6 games. Each selected game gets a dedicated 30-minute spotlight where I dive in fresh and share my reactions in real-time.
Why This Matters for Your Development?
When was the last time you saw someone play your game with no context at all? Not a friend being polite or a reviewer with a bias, but another game developer offering spontaneous reactions. Those moments are priceless. You’ll immediately see where players might get stuck, thrilled, or confused. You’ll realize those “obvious” mechanics might not be so clear after all.
This type of feedback is incredibly valuable, and it’s something many indie developers miss out on. I’d love to provide that experience for you!
What’s In It For You?
- Live, genuine reactions from a game developer’s perspective
- Authentic feedback that money can’t buy
- Exposure to a live streaming audience
- Edited YouTube video after the stream so you can come back and watch over and over if you want!
- Support for your work – if your game isn’t free, I’ll purchase it to support you as a fellow creator
- Community engagement as viewers discover new indie gems
Ready to Submit Your Game?
Putting your game out there for unfiltered reactions can feel intimidating, but the reality is, if you’re serious about indie development, this raw feedback is essential! I often ask people to playtest my games and end up discovering new mistakes about 60% of the time.
Submissions close November 16th. The live gauntlet happens November 22nd on my Twitch. Follow me on Bluesky for updates! Submit your playable Game/Demo below.