Fez is a 2012 indie puzzle-platform game developed by Polytron Corporation and published by Trapdoor. The player-character Gomez receives a fez that reveals his two-dimensional (2D) world to be one of four sides of a three-dimensional (3D) world. The player rotates between these four 2D views to realign platforms and solve puzzles. The objective is to collect cubes and cube fragments to restore order to the universe.
Fez development team at the 2012 GDC IGF (from left): composer Rich Vreeland, designer Phil Fish, sound designer Brandon McCartin, programmer Renaud Bédard
Indie developer Shawn McGrath (pictured in 2011) contributed the game's core mechanic, but left early in development.
Composer Rich "Disasterpeace" Vreeland, 2012
Image: Phil Fish at GAMMA 3D 2008 (3069071319)
An indie game, short for independent video game, is a video game created by individuals or smaller development teams without the financial and technical support of a large game publisher, in contrast to most "AAA" (triple-A) games. Because of their independence and freedom to develop, indie games often focus on innovation, experimental gameplay, and taking risks not usually afforded in AAA games. Indie games tend to be sold through digital distribution channels rather than at retail due to a lack of publisher support. The term is analogous to independent music or independent film in those respective mediums.
The 1982 ZX Spectrum was popular with hobbyist programmers in the UK.
N is a 2004 browser game that later was developed into a commercial indie game, N++ in 2015.
The Independent Games Festival exhibition during the 2013 Game Developers Conference in San Francisco, California, where indie developers can showcase their games to attendees
Image: Flotilla planning (Blendo Games)
