#63 - Andrei Podoprigora: Indie Publishing, Pitching & Systems-Driven Games

Do indie game developers actually need publishers?

After 20 years in the industry as a developer, studio founder, and publisher, Andrei Podoprigora breaks down the honest truth behind indie publishing, what makes a game fundable, and why RIGHT NOW is a once-in-a-generation window for small studios.

We dig into systems-driven game design, why your Steam page is killing your wishlists, the one metric that matters more than wishlists, and the hard lessons from pitching 25+ VCs and hearing nothing but "no."

Whether you're a solo dev trying to get your first game funded or a studio deciding whether to self-publish, this episode is packed with actionable insights you won't find anywhere else.

Connect with Andrei:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/podopriguez/X: https://x.com/podopriguezWebsite: https://www.forklift.gg/

Connect with Harry:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/hphokou/YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@hphokouInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/hphokou

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Chapters:
00:00 Intro
2:05 Andrei’s 20 years in games: dev, studio, publisher, investor
5:05 Why now is still a huge opportunity for indie devs
8:07 The post-COVID industry hangover explained
12:03 Competition vs scarcity in indie games
15:07 Why small teams make avoidable mistakes
18:02 Systems-driven vs content-driven games
22:00 Why systemic games are winning now
25:02 Examples of successful systems-based games
28:05 Why designing systems is so hard
30:04 Are these the best times ever for gamers?
33:00 Why gamers complain so much
36:00 The brutal truth: most games fail to communicate clearly
39:07 How to make your game instantly understandable on Steam
42:00 The biggest misconception about publishers
45:07 Why publishing is not just one gimmick
48:15 Dino, indie publishers, and the Tim Bender debate
50:07 How to evaluate a publisher properly
53:05 Should indie devs work with indie publishers?
54:26 Roleplay: what a good developer should ask a publisher first
58:00 What a publisher actually does behind the scenes
1:01:30 What self-publishing really means
1:05:00 Why most teams underestimate marketing
1:09:30 How to think about traction before signing a deal
1:14:00 Building trust between devs and publishers
1:18:30 Indie support, content, and using media as a funnel
1:26:00 Why survival stories resonate with indie devs
1:29:00 Final thoughts for indie developers