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Lessons From Jon Shafer's Rise and Fall As an Indie Game Dev

Inside this article, you're going to learn how a game dev successfully marketed their indie game. Built an audience of diehard fans. Got funded over $100,000. Got gamers to buy his pre-orders for $50 bucks. But in the end, the project failed.

This is a cautionary tale about Jon Shafer. Shafer started his own indie game dev company back in 2012. By 2013, he had gotten funded for over $100,000 for his early access game: At The Gates.

And he was also making extra money from selling pre-orders. And what's crazy is, he was selling pre-orders for $50. Think about it... $50 for an indie game!

So for about 2 - 3 years the game was progressing ok. But around 2015, updates on Kickstarter were slowing down. And by 2017, people were getting angry. And by 2020, all updates stopped. And now the game is dead.

How did Shafer get so much success in just one year? And how did he lose it all when he had so much momentum, and fans supporting him financially?

Well, here's some insights from Jon Shafer's story so you can get the same success with your small indie game -- but at the same time avoid all his mistakes so you don't fail.

Here's the first insight you need to know...

Indie Insight Number 1: Be Prolific and You'll Succeed

Jon Shafer, was the lead programmer for Civ V. And at first glance, you might think that this was the biggest reason why Shafer's indie game, At the Gates, was a huge success in terms of getting funding.

Yes, maybe name recognition in the 4x gaming community helped. But I like to dig deeper. I like to find the non-obvious reasons why some video games sell and some don't.

The real reason why Shafer's indie game was a success at first, was not because of his resume or his name. It's because he was prolific at indirectly marketing himself.

Let me show you what I mean...

Before Shafer was hired on by Firaxis, he started off by modding Civ III and IV. He built a name for himself. Modders knew him by his name "Trip". Trip was one of the best modders for Civ III and IV. He also wrote a guide on how to mod Civ IV using Python.

This got him the attention of Firaxis, and they hired him on to help program Civ IV expansions, Warlords and Beyond the Sword (and as a personal note, Civ 4, Beyond the Sword is my all-time favorite game). From there, he landed his role as the lead programmer for Civ V.

He then left Firaxis in 2011. But he didn't stop being prolific. He then started writing a devlog (JonShaferOnDesign.com). He also started a podcast with a friend talking about video games and board game design (TheGameDesignRoundTable.com).

By 2013, he built a audience of fans through his podcast and his devlog. So when he launched his Kickstareter in 2013, that's how he was able to get over $100,000 in funding so quickly. This is why he was able to sell pre-orders of an indie game for $50.

Now, what worked in 2013 is not going to work today in 2025. In other words, just because you have a devlog and a podcast, it doesn't mean gamers are going to line up and read and listen... and then support you financially.

But here's the insight I want you to learn here... because the fundamentals are the same...

Shafer's success came to him AFTER he put a lot of free time into something. He did modding for free. He wrote a guide to help other modders, for free. He was prolific at just doing stuff.

This got him attention of Firaxis.

He then wrote a lot in his dev log -- for free, no pay. He also spent hours recording a free podcast.

And he was one of the first to have a devlog and a podcast. Not many people were doing devlogs back in 2011. This is important, because there are platforms TODAY that don't seem like good places to talk about your game. Most people just go on TikTok or Twitter or maybe Reddit. But if you want to get attention, you can't go where everybody is going. You gotta take a risk, and try something different. And I'll talk about this later in the step-by-step guide...

Again, he was prolific. Almost all of the stuff he did on his free time. He just put out content, and gamers and fans and people gravitated to that.

This is what I mean when I said he was "indirectly marketing" himself. While he was helping other people with his content, guides, podcasts, he was also marketing his name.

Because he was so into his genre, he had a lot of great insights. And he talked about 4x gaming like a fan would -- which resonated with players and not just devs.

For example, he talked a lot about how the mid-game and late-game in 4x games bog you down and the game gets unmanageable. And he talked about ways he could fix that problem. This resonated with other people who love this genre. He understood the issues and problems in his genre... and he talked about how his indie game can solve those problems.

And in my indie game marketing tips, you'll notice a common theme: figure out what problems, issues, and frustrations your potential customer has in your genre... and then talk about how your game aims to fix those problems. That's how you get people's attention: when you show them that you understand what they want and need, and then talk about how your game solves those wants and needs.

And so because Shafer understood what players want and hate in the 4x genre, this resonated with people.

This is why people supported him (and even I paid $50 for the pre-order). He knew what we wanted from a 4x game, and he set out to fix problems and give us something new, fresh, and innovative.

And as his fan-base grew, and word-of-mouth spread, he got more and more attention from other sources. Other big name game devs started to support him, tweeting about his game. And this word-of-mouth spread outside of Shafer's own small audience, into a bigger audience.

It wasn't because Shafer was the lead programmer for Civ V that got his indie game to become a success. It was because he was prolific. He put out content that helped people. He talked about problems and frustrations in his genre and how he wanted to fix them -- and this resonated with players and not just devs. He did it all for free. He put in the work. He didn't just sit in his room and code a video game.

But you'll soon learn about Shafer's downfall, and what made him lose everything he worked so hard to build up.

So let's keep going onto...

Indie Insight Number 2: The More You Tell, The More You Sell

Marketing is all about communicating. And the saying goes....

"The More You Tell, The More You Sell"

This saying is true, because it's people who talk most about something that get all the attention... that get all the rewards.

or example, Christopher Columbus "discovered" America. So why is it called America and not Columbia?

Because Columbus didn't believe that the land he "discovered" was a new continent. He thought it was India.

But Amerigo Vespucci, another explorer, talked about the "New World". He wrote about it. He published a famous letter, Mundus Novus, in which he talked about the "New World" and how it's a continent all on its own.

He wrote many more letters about this topic. For this, Amerigo's name was put on the new continent, and not Columbus's.

You see what I mean? The more you tell, the more you sell.

Shafer was prolific. He wrote about game dev and design back in 2011. Not a lot of game devs did that. He put out hours and hours of a podcast. He was out there, creating content, putting in a lot of free time into marketing.

But this is why most indie game studios don't get any traction: they don't constantly talk enough. And when they do talk, it's about them, their game. They never appreciate what their target player wants to hear.

Or worse, a game studio will start talking about their game 3 months before their game launch. When you're a small indie game dev, 3 months is not enough time to build an audience.

This is the takeaway I want you to get from this insight:

It takes years to build an audience. So it's important to start early. And this is what Shafer did -- he spent about 2 years talking about his game ideas. He didn't build a game and then started talking. He started talking, got a small audience, then started building his game.

But even though Shafer was successful at marketing his game, and building an audience, he ran into some troubles...

Indie Insight Number 3: Other People's Money Is A Recipe For Disaster

Getting other people to help you fund your indie video game sounds like the intuitive thing to do. It feels like it's the only option indie game devs have. Without funding, there is no way a game can be made.

And so indie devs set out to get outside cash. They go to investors, they go to Kickstarter, or try to attract a publisher, or put up a Patreon. They want outside cash so they don't have to worry about how they'll support themselves while they're making a game.

This sounds like an ideal situation, hey? You got all the money you need to help you support your life. You can code all day, and not worry about working a day job. You can build your game, and not worry about if you need money this week.

Spending other people's money sounds easy. But there's a hidden catch. And Shafer realized this right away.

First of all, trying to raise funds is distracting. It will take away months or years from your life, and it takes you away from what you love doing: making video games.

In one of Shafer's devlog entries titled, "Trials & Tribulations of Kickstarter", where he explains...

"Many people don't realize creators ultimately end up with a fairly small slice of the Kickstarter pie. You can immediately cut 20% off the top due to processing fees and failed transactions. Then there's the cost of fulfilling rewards, marketing (yes, it's important), both planned and unplanned contract work, licensing multiple software packages – the list goes on and on."

You don't realize how much of a drain raising money is.

And, other people's money is not free money. You do have to eventually pay it back. Investors expect a return.

Also, people who funded you on Kickstarter hound you and demand your game when it's past its due date. This takes a toll on your mental health, as it did for Shafer.

And what do you do when you run out of your funding? You can't just go back and ask for more.

The reason other people's money is a recipe for failure is because you put all your focus on how you're going to get money... and less focus on building a great video game.

Other people's money is NOT sustainable. You get addicted to it. And you need it in order to survive.

Shafer learned this lesson hard. He ran out of money. That's why updates slowed down. No more money. And then his biggest fans started to get mad. And calling him a scammer. Which he was not.

His game scope was too big. He got into "game dev hell". And all this negative feedback took a toll on Shafer's mental and physical health. And that spiraled into less and less work, less effort on the game, and less communication.

When you use other people's money, you lose all control over your game. Your funders and investors now have become your boss. They have expectations. And they make you do stuff you don't want to do.

So what's the lesson here? How can you use this cautionary tale to help you build an audience and launch a successful indie game?

Number 1 Lesson: Expect To Spend Half Your Time Looking For Customers And The Other Working On Your Game...

When a game dev works for a studio, they don't have to worry about getting customers... they don't have to worry about finance and accounting... and for the most part, they don't have to worry about paperwork and admin.

Their job is mostly spent developing a game and meetings. Yes, this can be a grind, and there's a lot of pressure to get work done. But they spend probably 90% of the time developing, and not worrying about business activities at all.

But the minute they step out on their own and start their own game studio, these game devs realize there is no BUFFER between them and the customer.

The company was in charge of finding customers, marketing, promotion, and creating content. The company was a buffer between the game dev and the customer.

And once a game dev starts their own studio, that buffer is all gone. And now it hits them:

"Oh shit. My employer no longer pays my wage... I gotta find customers to pay my wage?!?".

So their first instinct is to find another "buffer" between them and the customer. That's why Kickstararter, or Patreon, or finding a publisher is so important. Because these add an extra buffer between them and the customer.

And hey, if you're lucky to get a successful Kickstarter, or find a publisher, or get Patron money, great. But the reality is, most small indie game devs don't.

And that's the lesson here: when you start your own indie game studio, all that buffers you from you and the customer is gone. It's now just you, your game, and your customer.

There is nobody lining up to buy your game. Your income isn't guaranteed like it was when you were employed. And finding a publisher or investors isn't only hard to do, but isn't the answer either because now you just have new bosses and more pressure telling you what to do.

So it's a shock to a game dev that they now have to spend time looking for customers. And their hope is that if they just finish their game, then maybe they'll get lucky and a YouTuber will cover their game, and a game journalist will talk about them, and the game dev won't have to do any of this "finding customers" stuff.

But the reality is, most small indie studios fail because they fail to get customers and fail to build an audience. And Shafer was good at finding customers, and getting funding. But his mistake was that the scope of his game was too big, his funders turned on him when the game was taking too long to finish, and he stopped communicating with those customers.

So, let's put this lesson into action. Let's use Shafer's best strategy in building a fan base, and let's apply it to you and your game. Here's what to do...

Your Action Plan: How To Create Content That Resonates With Your Target Audience

A lot of game devs are looking for that "buffer" between them and customers. In other words, they don't want to spend time looking for customers. They want other people to do that.

But if you can't find a publisher, investors, or backers... then you gotta work. Again, there are no shortcuts in business success.

So, let's work.

Ok. So it's not 2011 anymore. Devlogs, podcasts, even social media is oversaturated. Again, that's because the marketplace is oversaturated with new indie games being published everyday. And everybody is using the same platforms trying to promote their game. It's a very noisy place. And it's hard for small indie game devs to get heard.

But the fundamentals never change. Just like Amerigo Vespucci did in 1500, and just like Shafer did in 2011, the idea is the same: the more you tell, the more you sell. The platform might change. But the strategy never does: talk about your stuff as much as you can.

So here's your action plan right now.

The best platform to talk about your game isn't YouTube, Reddit, Twitter, or TikTok. Like I said, those platforms are oversaturated. So, let me show you a better strategy to get heard...

Step #1: Figure Out What You Have In Common With Your Target Player

I read all of Shafers devlog... and I listened to all of his podcasts upto 2014. He rarely talked about technical stuff about game dev. He mostly talked about the problems with the 4x genre. And he talked about ideas on how to improve on it.

For example, he talked about how he loved Spelunky. And he talked about his ideas on how he could incorporate roguelike elements into a 4x game. And remember, this is around 2012 -- these ideas were new, and fresh. It's why players gravitated to this content: because Shafer was talking about new and innovative ideas for the 4x genre.

My point is, what do you and your target player have in common? It's probably not Unity code. It's probably not how to draw pixel or polygon art.

The only thing you as a game dev and your target player have in common is, you both love a certain GENRE. So start there.

So what I want you to do is, to define your genre. And focuses only on that: your genre you share in common with your target player.

This might seem simple. But if your content is all over the place (i.e. you talk about anime, then movies, then video games, then talk about your favorite games, etc.), you won't attract your target player.

Stay focused on what you and your target player have in common: your genre.

Ok, next...

Step #2: Talk About Your New, Fresh, Innovative Ideas You Want To Bring To That Genre

Self-promotion is often ignored. Talking about you and your game doesn't get attention -- especially if you're a small indie game dev. Yes, if you're huge, and a lot of people know you, then sure, talk about what you want. But not right now. Right now when you're small and nobody knows you, it's important to put your ego aside, and put the spotlight on the player. That's how you start building traction.

So if you can't talk about you and your game, then what do you talk about?

Again, focus all your content on your genre. And what you talk about is your passion for your genre. For example:

These are the topics that will connect you with your target player. That's because it's not about you, about self-promotion -- it's about them.

And as a game dev, you have a certain authority over players. You've probably thought about your genre and understand it better than most people. You have insights about your genre that not a lot of players have heard of.

And this love for your genre is what motivated you to make your own game. And this passion will resonate with players. And this passion is what will help you attract players.

Ok, good. Now where do you post this content?

Step #3: Post Your Content On Steam Community Hub: News section (Or Itch.io)

In 2011, it was a risk to put up a blog and create a podcast. That's because how would anybody find it? But as you started creating content, people found you. But as these platforms got oversaturated, it got harder and harder to get noticed.

And what about social media? Well, how many people are on TikTok looking for small, innovative indie games? Not a lot. Most people on social media are there for other reasons than just window shopping for new indie games. Plus, you're fighting against an algorithm that changes all the time.

That's why I encourage you to use Steam Community Hub, the News section to post your content (or Itch.io). The reason is, Steam basically gives you an easy way to publish content. But the biggest reason is, that's where gamers are hanging out. People are on Steam to find new games (or Itch.io).

So use the News tab as your Devlog. And remember to talk about topics that your fans can resonate with (see Step 2). And sure, post updates, and talk about your game as well. But put the spotlight on the player.

To help you do that, anytime you self-promote or talk about your game, answer the question:

"...and how does this benefit the player?"

Say for example, you want to talk about a new feature you're working on. Instead of just showing off the feature, also show how this new feature will benefit the player.

And remember, the more you post on Steam (or Itch.io), the more traction you will get. There is no such thing as overnight success. It unfortunately takes time to build an audience. But that's ok. It's worth the time because this is how you market your game, build an audience, and increase your chances of a successful game launch.

Your Action Step Right Now:

Go into your Steam Community Hub, News section (or Itch.io). And write a quick note about 10 things you love about your genre. And then relate it back to how your love of your genre inspired you to make your game.

To help you start, go...

Hey, my name is {your name}. I'm making a {you're genre here} called {your game name}. Here's 10 things I love about this genre and why it motivates me to make my game...

{Then talk about those ten things. And then talk about how those inspired you to make your game}.

And make a commitment to do this once a week. And if you run out of ideas, the go back to Step #2 and read my list. But I promise you, once you start, you'll always come up with new ideas.

And it's ok to post updates and also talk purely about your game. But make sure to show players how they will benefit.

So do that right now. It doesn't matter how far you're into your development. The idea is to start building an audience as soon as you can. These will be the people that will wishlist your game, and buy your game at launch. So it's worth the effort to do this work, right now.



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Thanks for reading! Hope you got one insight to help you market your indie game and start growing your audience, and finding customers!

Later!

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Dariusz Konrad
Email: dariusz at mainquestmarketing dot com
Discord Username: dariuszkonrad
LinkedIn: My entrepreneurial successes
Work: Game devs I've helped so far