“Why should we just give up the entire month of November?” – The indie games going head to head with GTA 6

Grand Theft Auto 6 is ready to launch on November 19, and it is a pretty secure guess that it is going to be the largest sport launch of all time.

The “prolonged look” preview of GTA 6 in August was considered over 31 million instances on Netflix in 4 days, and Sensor Tower stories that the sport has already been pre-ordered by more than 5.6 million people, with the overwhelming majority plumping for the dear $100 final version. The agency estimates GTA 6 has already generated greater than $550 million in income, although the sport’s precise launch remains to be nicely over a month away.

The gravity nicely of GTA 6 is so nice that it has induced main publishers to scurry as distant from its pull as potential. Xbox has pushed Fable again from Q3 2026 to February 2027, for instance, whereas Cloud Imperium stated it bumped the oft-delayed Squadron 42 into subsequent 12 months to keep away from “the consideration buzz noticed of GTA 6”.

However a couple of firms are selecting to launch to take a stand in opposition to Rockstar’s crime blockbuster.

“I am not going to lie, [launching alongside GTA 6] is an announcement,” says Blazej Zywiczynski, the CEO of Fairy Mount, which is releasing the technique title Flame, Forest and Flood on November 19.

“That is Barbie versus Oppenheimer. On the one hand, you may have a decades-old, established franchise with tens of millions of squealing followers that grew up with it. On the different, you may have a totally new title made with love and care by skilled builders.”

Flame, Forest and Flood is not precisely a comparable expertise; Zywiczynski describes it as “a multiplayer technique sport for players and non-gamers of all ages”, whereas GTA 6 is, nicely, GTA 6. However he feels that his sport affords one thing that Rockstar’s crime romp doesn’t, and targets a special set of gamers.

“Not like GTA 6, we’re truly introducing new gameplay, by no means earlier than seen in games,” Zywiczynski says. “And whereas we will not let the gamers shoot a grandma in the face, we will give them a sport they’ll play with their grandma. GTA 6 and FFF are catering to very totally different audiences, on totally different platforms, with totally different aesthetics and sensibilities.”

The Fairy Mount boss says that launching alongside GTA 6 is about “making a stance for the small gamedev scene”, including that he is not phased that GTA 6’s finances – which is reportedly well over $1 billion – is “actually 40,000 instances larger” than his title’s.

“That does not intimidate us in the slightest,” Zywiczynski says. “Why should we just give up the entire month of November to a automotive thief simulator with a large case of scope creep?”

Price a strive

One other sport that’s launching nearly totally in opposition to Grand Theft Auto 6 is Volvy’s Adventure: Reslimed; in a blog post, writer Devolver Digital described Volvy’s Journey as the games business’s “largest launch on November 19”.

Developed by Doinksoft, the title stars Devolver’s Nineteen Nineties-platformer-inspired mascot, which the label created for Summer time Sport Fest 2023. The sport’s Steam web page describes it as “a spectacular remaster of the unique remake of the unreleased action-platformer starring the most well-known online game mascot of all time”, so it is honest to suspect it is a barely lower than critical endeavour.

“We determine there’s no less than a niche there, even when GTA shall be gobbling up all of the accessible bandwidth”

When requested why Devolver is launching this sport on November 19, advertising and marketing supervisor Robbie Patterson replies: “Why not?”

“Grand Theft Auto 6 is not launching on Steam alongside PS5 and Xbox, so we determine there’s no less than a niche there, even when GTA shall be gobbling up all of the accessible bandwidth from a PR perspective,” he tells GamesIndustry.biz.

“It is also a chance for us to have some enjoyable with the concept that our plucky mascot is the solely factor with sufficient clout to go up in opposition to the largest online game launch in over a decade.”

Consideration seeker

When Grand Theft Auto 6 launches, it’s doubtless to dominate the whole lot for a superb whereas; conventional media retailers shall be doing opinions, guides, and an infinite quantity of assume items on the blockbuster, whereas influencers will little question be streaming the sport en masse. As such, it is going to be onerous to garner any consideration if you’re a smaller studio.

“Slicing by means of is not a lot of a problem while you confidently state that you just’re releasing on the identical day as GTA 6,” Patterson says. “We’re fortunate in the sense that Devolver has constructed up just sufficient of a popularity that a couple of individuals take discover of that. You’ll be able to count on to see Volvy popping up in varied methods in GTA’s wake as we play cat and mouse with their advertising and marketing. It stays to be seen what sort of competitors we can count on on Steam come November 19, however hopefully Volvy followers previous and new flip up in droves to help their previous pal.”

As well as to being a famend indie writer, Devolver boasts advertising and marketing prowess that different unbiased builders, equivalent to Fairy Mount, do not share.

“We’re the whole lot that GTA isn’t”

“There is definitely lots of noise round GTA 6. And sure, out-screaming them could be sort of onerous, however why would we try this?” Zywiczynski says. “I do not assume extra noise is what individuals need. Actually, we need to provide them an alternate to the noise. We’re the whole lot that GTA isn’t. A comfy expertise on PC they’ll share even with their gaming and non-gaming associates, youngsters, vital others. No noise. Just pure, good enjoyable. There are lots of people who find themselves on the lookout for precisely that.”

He continues: “If we wished to make some noise, we’d do it in fashion. I would invite Sam Houser to come face me in a karaoke joint of his alternative. CEO to CEO. I am fairly positive the code prevents the CEO of Rockstar from declining a rock-off problem.”

Requested about his gross sales expectations for FFF, Zywiczynski says that it is not “significantly good” to have these “in a market as crowded as ours”. However he argues the business’s economics imply his smaller title is, in some methods, a safer guess than a blockbuster like Grand Theft Auto 6.

“If the reported finances of $2 billion for GTA is true, they’ll have to promote over 28.5 million copies at $100 a pop so as to break even,” he explains. “For FFF, that quantity is nicely beneath 10k copies at a a lot cheaper price. Even when each single proprietor of a current-gen console purchased GTA 6, their ROI will barely attain 5x. FFF will get there with round 30k copies offered. This raises critical questions on the sustainability of budget-blown AAA as an entire. What number of games on the market can confidently guess on promoting 30 million copies? Elden Ring would barely recoup. Murderer’s Creed does half of that on just some entries.

“There’s additionally one other attention-grabbing matter right here, specifically the place the cash goes. You’ll be able to spend $100 on GTA 6, out of which accurately $0 will return to the builders in the trenches. Or you possibly can spend it on five-to-ten amazingly assorted, experimental, envelope-pushing games the place 70% or extra of your cash will go immediately to the builders, serving to them make extra nice games in the future.”

When requested the identical query, Devolver’s Patterson jokes that “clearly we need Volvy to overtake GTA 5 as the largest online game launch of all time.”

He continues: “However we’re additionally lifelike. That is primarily a chance for Devolver and Doinksoft to launch an ideal sport that we’re all proud of whereas having some enjoyable alongside the method. We have been delighted by the response thus far, so who is aware of – if Volvy makes it onto the prime sellers record, then perhaps a statue shall be so as.”

Dangerous manoeuvre

Talking to GamesIndustry.biz, analysts argue that launching alongside Grand Theft Auto 6 might be not a good suggestion.

“Any console announcement or launch that week will largely go unnoticed,” says Joost van Dreunen, CEO of analyst agency Aldora and writer of the SuperJoost Playlist e-newsletter. “GTA 6 creates its personal consideration vortex, and in an already cluttered market you would be burning advertising and marketing {dollars} for nothing.”

Louise Wooldridge, senior analysis supervisor at Ampere Evaluation, provides that “usually talking” it is “most likely not” a good suggestion, however “primarily for firms who’re competing for the identical participant”.

“Though GTA is seemingly ubiquitous – transcending media – there may be nonetheless an viewers on the market that’s not keen on it and possibly won’t play it,” she continues.

“Naturally, a title that sits inside a extra area of interest style – like a technique, cosy, or family-focused sport – may coexist with GTA 6 way more simply than an open-world action-adventure title the place overlap is probably going to be vital.”

“There may be nonetheless an viewers on the market that’s not keen on it”

Wooldridge says that “the overwhelming majority” of Grand Theft Auto 5 gamers come from different large motion games, equivalent to Fortnite and Name of Obligation.

“Far fewer stream into the sport from narrative-driven single-player content material,” she explains. “And whereas the consideration round GTA 6 suggests it’s going to – no less than to start with – surpass the attain of GTA 5, it’s unlikely to massively disrupt titles which have little or no in frequent – whether or not that is style, theme, play fashion, or scale.

“There may be additionally the take that GTA 6 is going to broaden the market. The large hype round the sport may re-engage lapsed players with the medium, and a few of this elevated consideration and engagement may spill over into different titles.”

PC ploy

Each FFF and Volvy’s Journey: Reslimed are launching on Steam, whereas GTA 6 is launching on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Collection X/S. Rockstar’s crime romp will come to PC sooner or later in the future, however for the time being, the PC is a GTA 6-free zone.

“Not like console publishers, these on Steam won’t face the full impression of GTA 6’s launch. It is definitely an opportunity to seize consideration and set up engagement earlier than GTA 6 ultimately reaches the platform – a window of alternative,” Wooldridge says.

“This chance is especially sturdy for titles which might be distinct from GTA 6 and provide an alternate expertise.”

Van Dreunen provides: “There will be some spillover on PC and probably cell in phrases of general consideration, however these markets are totally different sufficient to keep pretty insulated from any console launch, even GTA 6. It’s kind of like publishing a hotly anticipated fantasy novel and anticipating it to pull readers away from the self-help part. It will not.”

Regardless of whether or not it is a good suggestion or not, what can builders launching in opposition to GTA 6 do to minimize by means of the noise?

“The wise transfer is to keep out of the channels GTA 6 will inevitably dominate,” van Dreunen says. “For a smaller outfit, leaning into your personal group goes a good distance towards staying clear of the noise. There is not any level making an attempt to outgun an organization with an clearly larger gun.”

“It’s kind of like publishing a hotly anticipated fantasy novel and anticipating it to pull readers away from the self-help part”

Wooldridge’s recommendation is comparable, however distinct; she argues that it is “not potential to ignore Grand Theft Auto 6, so the launch technique should be designed round GTA slightly than making an attempt to fake it merely is not occurring.”

“Do not place your sport in the identical body as GTA 6, emphasise what GTA 6 is missing or would not provide,” she continues.

“Concentrate on style, tone, or play fashion variations that make your sport distinct. Differentiating the proposition is essential. Additionally, exploit the platform hole! Maybe which means placing disproportionate effort into Steam advertising and marketing and visibility.

“It is also vital to begin constructing momentum in the weeks main up to November 19.”

She concludes: “As soon as GTA 6 lands, it is going to be onerous to be heard above the noise, so use the time earlier than – and even the weeks after – to construct consciousness and curiosity.”