The Queer Games Bundle is now live!
One of our favorite times of year in gaming is the release of the Queer Games Bundle—an ongoing grassroots project designed to alleviate the financial struggles of indie developers, particularly those from the queer community. With over 500 games for the cost of one AAA title, the bundle is a massive win for both players and creators alike—and it sidesteps the underbelly of the corporate game development middle man.
“If we had the budget of an AAA game, we could give every solo developer in this bundle a livable wage multiple times over for a year and every single team a massive funding boost,” as quoted by the organizers on the bundle’s landing page. “Imagine what the developers and artists in this bundle could create a year from now if they weren’t worried about starving or how to pay their rent this month.”
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Flexible, Wallet-Friendly Price Scaling
The Queer Games Bundle offers a unique proposition: for $60—the cost of a typical AAA game—buyers receive access to an impressive collection of games, software, and zines from 271 queer artists on itch.io. For those who cannot afford the full price, a sliding scale option ranging from $10 to $20+ is available. However, the organizers strongly encourage purchasing the $60 version to maximize support for the creators involved.
“Purchasing the Queer Games Bundle is a direct action that you can take right now to support queer people in a life-changing way,” claims the bundle. And they have the numbers to back it up: In 2022, the bundle featured a staggering 583 games, and raised $114,704.24 for queer creators.
The bundle not only serves as a financial lifeline for queer developers but also as a nurturing ground for diverse artistic expression. By investing in the bundle, supporters are not only funding current creations but also enabling the development of future projects. The organizers envision a scenario where, freed from financial distress, these artists can innovate and produce groundbreaking content.
And, hey, it’s Pride month. There’s not a better time to game gayly, and not a better way to do it than to go directly to the creators.
Sources: itch.io
