Underground/Alternative game designers

[Zerodash]

In regards to many underground, alternative, non-mainstream, or "artsy" musical artists, its difficult to track down their records. Most mall music stores don't carry much of the underground stuff due to its fringe audiences.

The same, I assume, holds true for gaming. I know that there is are underground game designers, yet mostly from heresay. I am having a difficult time finding much info on them, let alone on ways to get their efforts.

Does anyone know of any good resounces for fringe developers?

[Captain Vegetable]

That's an awesome sig, man!

[Gohron]

You can find a lot of underground developers by checking out cheaper engines (cheap as in affordable for normal people). While many never come to light there are some "Garage-programmers" out there still.

[skelly]

PomPom, independent developer from the UK. Well worth a visit and download.

[Diff-chan]

Check out the entries from the Independent Games Festival. A lot of the stuff is quite brilliant. Shattered Galaxy, which won like two years ago, is easily the best designed MMORPG (actually its more of an MMORTS/RPG, but I diguress) out there. Bad Milk, which won last year, is a brilliant concept, and the gameplay is fun. Pencil Whipped is the most bizarre FPS Ive ever played, but it is also brilliant, just needs some TLC to be really great.

[Blaine]

The IGF is a great source of a lot of smaller developers.

Every year though it seems like they get bigger, budgets of over $50,000 on some of these games.

I can see spending money on a game, even that much, but once you start spending around $100,000 it sorta loses it's charm.

[skelly]

I'm surprised people still like Pencil Whipped. The sprites were cute. That game play was crap... At least last time I tried it.

[xS]

nippon.shootemups.da.ru

Freeware shootemups. Check out Ziet Formula, Perfect Cherry Blossom, Cho Ren Sha 68K,Crimson Blade, N0iz20, Xadlak Plus, R rootage, and Genocide circuit 1.

And don't the various romhacking groups count as underground developers? Do a search on Aeon Genesis and Demiforce. Their lineups are excellent.

And be sure to google SONIC FAN MADE GAMES HQ. Great Sonic related stuff over there.

[Blaine]

Warning Forever is a cool freeware shooter.