The Indie Informer

by

Jill Grodt

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The Indie Informer is back from vacation today, and, it seems, there’s a lot of celebrating to go around. Two indies near and dear to my heart — Dressmaker and Scarlet Deer Inn — have crossed into six-figure Steam wishlists. For an indie game with a small team, discovery can be the absolute make or break for a game. Reaching this threshold is not only gratifying for the makers, but indicates their projects’ launch won’t pass by unnoticed.

I have long been a fan of Attu Games, ever since the wife/husband duo launched their debut game Feudal Alloy back when I was an intern at Game Informer. Eight years later, the team is set to release their second title. Unlike the devs’ first title, which was a hand-drawn charmer, the follow-ups art style took a new, and attention-grabbing, direction. Scarlet Deer Inn went viral last year for its hand-embroidered characters. The process of getting that to work boggles my mind, and creates a wildly unique feeling for the world. And anyone who has played the demo knows the game is unique in a lot of ways. This includes the unexpected turn to the seemingly cozy story. With the game set to launch July 21, it’s wonderful to see Scarlet Deer Inn getting well-deserved attention from players.

Also joining the 100k Wishlists club Dressmaker, the center of a recent personal introspection, glories in the limelight despite struggling to get attention long before its reveal during the summer. The team dives into this history in its Steam news post, saying:

“When we first pitched Dressmaker, we were told that the game may be “too niche”, that we shouldn’t expect much, that we might struggle to find our audience. Well, it is with lifted pinkies, feigned modesty, and the politest smile that we say, “Why yes, we did surpass 100,000 wishlists. How nice of you to notice!”

With a September release window, Dressmaker will hopefully earn many more players’ interest before launch.