FAQ: Indie Author badge

[DrWilloughby]

NOTE: I AM NOT A MODERATOR, DONT PM ME FOR THE BADGE, PM A MODERATOR INSTEAD

Q: Some members have an *indie author* badge underneath their name. What does this mean and how can I get one?

A: People with that moniker are people who belong to the "indie author" group. Basically it means they've published at least 1 game. (commercially either online or retail etc..) It also means they can access the private forum. Anyone meeting the above criteria can ask to be added to that group by private messaging a moderator.

[Sharpfish]

Hey this is like an achievement on the xbox 360... it's motivational, makes me want to finish one of the games i've been working on for the past 3 years instead of trying to do everything 'perfectly' ;)

I will release 'shatty clone with rough gfx' tommorow night and get me my badge! :)

[Bad Sector]

I will release 'shatty clone with rough gfx' tommorow night and get me my badge! :)

Argh! The badge destroys the indie scene!

:-P

[barrygamer]

Hmm, in the other thread it says this can be any game, freeware or not. That would give me a badge for a pretty lame freeware game I made. As someone said, "I don't care to belong to any club that would accept me as a member." It should be for established indies, I think... anyway.

Perhaps it should be a requirement of the badge to put the relevant games/projects in your sig/profile (many people do that anyway). Also, a full public profile? All I mean is, in return for claiming that status, provide the info for people to see.

Hmm, can't believe I'm talking about a badge.

PS I'm working toward my badge :-)

[Artinum]

Yes, the awarding of this badge seems a little open to abuse! I haven't programmed in years - back then, coding graphics meant an advanced chapter at the end of the programming guide book rather than several books in their own right. Gosh, I feel old now...

Anyway - in my youth I wrote a multiple choice text adventure entitled "The Rather Silly War", which eventually migrated from RM Basic to Turbo Pascal and thus became playable by anyone with DOS. If I set up a website geared to promote this - either freeware or in a doomed effort to sell it (!) - I would technically qualify for an Author badge.

I think the intention is for the badge to signify that the, er, wearer is an experienced and professional developer. This has two problems - first, that defining such a term is almost as difficult as defining what makes a developer "indie"; and second, that new developers will be excluded from the "club" until they have managed the task they are probably asking for advice on.

[Dan MacDonald]

Tom Cain was nice enough to dig up the origional post stating the requirements for access to the private forum. I think they parallel nicely what we are intending for the Indie Author badge.

http://forums.indiegamer.com/showthread.php?t=285

Quoted here for quick reference

The basic criteria for entry is..

1) you have your own site and domain name
2) You have a game either self published or published and selling already
3) The main focus of your business and site is game development/sales of your own title/titles

[DrWilloughby]

Feel free to edit my original post if you want to change the requirements. :)

[mooktown]

heh, I've been a member over 2 years and I wasn't even aware there was a private forum...

[Dan MacDonald]

If you look it was created nearly 4 years ago, and it doesn't really get talked about much. It's a lot more visible now though :)

[masterkey]

what if you have been a team member of an indie game having composed the score?

[drummingpariah]

what if you have been a team member of an indie game having composed the score?

It's not exactly a fine line. Were you a driving force in the creation of the game? I've contributed to several games so far (Battle for Wesnoth, for example) but that does not by any means make me a development team member. I believe that if you can give a strong argument as to why you should have the badge, you'd be considered. Since you're asking a question rather than telling a story, I'd assume that the answer is no, unfortunately.

I certainly understand the reasoning behind it being "any" game. Just the fact that you have a finished product, whether it's a tetris clone of a hl2 mod, makes a massive difference in your own mindset and in potential producers/investors' minds. Make sure your idea isn't something you'd be ashamed to show off, though (I'd be a little ashamed to officially release a tetris clone as my crowning achievement). Just my .02, I'm pretty new around here but enjoy a good discussion.

[ulfster]

who do you have to write a request pm? because i wrote like 3 already to moderators/admins and didnt get a reply yet? thx for information

[Jeff]

Hey there -- still waiting on my request from about a month or so ago.

[Red27]

I think there might be an access/permissions type problem that is preventing any new IndieAuthor badges from being awarded.

I'd like an update on this also, if any of our Mods are around?

[Kneehat]

Does that private forum still exist? How do I get access to it?

[kostiakot]

Does that private forum still exist?

[chrisroyale]

Could anyone tell me who has the power to set me up with a badge? I PM'd a couple of mods about a year ago and didn't get anywhere.

Thanks,
Chris.

[Uhfgood]

Badges?!? We don't need no steenkin' badges!

[TheMysteriousStranger]

What actually goes in in the private forum? (or should I just avert my eyes and go back to reading the bible, in the hopes my piety will save me from mentioning the sinful private forum?)

Or in other words - is it worth applying for the badge? What goes on in private that doesn't go in the other forums?

[Reactor]

The private forum is pretty quiet most of the time, but every now and then someone will pop up with something to talk about. I think the badge is worth having, if you can get it (good luck with that), simply because it's nice to see who's crossed the finish line.

[dannthr]

Sucks for us 3rd party asset developers though :(!

Where's the Indie Composer badge????

[Applewood]

Well, it's meant for people who have finished games, so you can always finish a game... ;)

No offence, but like developing a game, developing assets is really easy. Finishing a game to marketable quality is not, hence the badge is to show who's talking from experience and who is merely talking.

[dannthr]

Depends, did the person finishing the game to marketable quality use marketable quality assets? ;)

[TheMysteriousStranger]

heh, nice badge :)

If he can have indie composer, can I have one that says "indie waste of space"?

[BantamCityGames]

I need the "I spend way to much time on indiegamer forums" badge

[Applewood]

Depends, did the person finishing the game to marketable quality use marketable quality assets?

Obviously. I'm not trying to put you down, we use contract art all the time. But the authoring of it is not completing an indie game. Skilled for sure. Just not the skill this board is aimed at.

I'm sure there's plenty of artist only forums where programmers are considered the meat that make it animate :)

[Spiegel]

Also, its aimed at everyone that has made and selled a game (a complete game), its not meant solely for programmers.

For example, as an artist you could use rpg maker and create an rpg with your art, selling it on your website. That would make you eligible for the badge.

[ragdollsoft]

Ok then we should have a few subcategories like:

Amateur wannabe indie: profit from games<$1,000
Amateur indie: profit from games<$10,000
Semi-pro indie: profit from games<$100,000
Professional indie: profit from games<$1,000,000
L33t indie: profit from games<$10,000,000
Profit from games>$10,000,000 ->no longer indie, you corporate douche!

[Applewood]

Well you know my views. Anyone in the first three categories shouldn't be here at all as they're not independent.... ;)

I'm not independent of a Michelin star, I simply can't cook.

Sadly, that rules me out too as despite releasing a few indie titles I don't do it all the time. Maybe the next one will do it.... :)

[cyodine]

*sucks in his gut and tries to squeeze into the author forum* Being a starving indie I won't take up much room ;)