‘We see it as an opportunity’: Indie studios releasing games this month explain how it feels to go up against GTA 6

A number of indie studios releasing games this month have explained how they feel about bringing their game out alongside Grand Theft Auto 6.

Rockstar‘s game is expected to dominate sales and play hours to such an extent that numerous other studios deliberately moved their own games’ release dates to a different month, so as not to clash with it.

A number of indie studios, however, are continuing with plans to release their game in November regardless of the presence of Rockstar’s game, and some of them have been sharing their thoughts on the situation.

Japanese publication GameSpark has interviewed 46 developers and publishers from the around the world and asked them for their honest opinions on releasing so close to GTA 6.

One of these was Dream Dock, the studio behind first-person fishing survival horror Dreadmoor, which was released on Tuesday.

When asked if they were scared of Grand Theft Auto 6, Dream Dock’s spokesperson replied (via machine translation): “Shouldn’t they be the ones who are afraid of us?

“Seriously, we’re excited about GTA 6 too, and we know it’s going to dominate the headlines for weeks. But GTA 6 has bulldozer-cut down the November release schedule. Some developers see that as a problem, but we see it as an opportunity.”

Another game that was released on Tuesday was Warhammer Survivors, and Auroch Digital lead marketing manager Will Flanagan said he was confident the game would do well in spite of GTA 6’s presence.

“Grand Theft Auto VI is one of the biggest games in the world,” he said. “But the great thing about gamers is that there are so many different genres they enjoy. That’s why great games can coexist.

“While our game may not have the exact same player base as GTA 6, Warhammer has a passionate fanbase in the gaming world as well. Over 500,000 people have added Warhammer Survivors to their wishlists and shown their support. We are incredibly grateful for the community surrounding the game and the support we have received so far.”

He added: “I also think the two games offer completely different experiences. So, if you’re a little tired of playing GTA 6, why not play Warhammer Survivors once or twice? It’s the perfect game to play while GTA 6 is installing. Just be careful not to get too addicted.”

Sonic Pico Park producer jokes that he hoped his game would be delayed

On Thursday, co-op platformer Sonic Pico Park is released, and the game’s producer Shintaro Shimazu says the release of GTA 6 is “not scary at all”, adding: “I’m a huge fan of the GTA series, so I’m really looking forward to it. However, the fact that I might not be able to stop playing it is not so much scary as it is just plain terrifying.

“Rather than focusing on GTA 6, we just really wanted people all over the world to be able to play it during the holiday season, so I was talking with SEGA President Utsumi about how we should release it before Black Friday.

“Personally, I thought ‘developing a massive game is incredibly tough, so there’s always a chance the release might get pushed back’, and I was actually hoping it would get delayed, but in the end, it didn’t,” he joked.

Also released on Thursday is Moomin: Midsummer Madness, a point-and-click adventure based on the Moomins. Crossbridge Game Studios said there was some concern about releasing near GTA 6 but not a great deal, because there’s very little overlap between both games’ audiences.

“When setting our schedule, we discussed the release date for GTA 6 many times – at one point, we even considered releasing our game on the same day,” the studio said.

“As developers, we spend an enormous amount of time trying to find the right release window for our own games. On the other hand, Rockstar inevitably secures the best release date because everyone else avoids it. So we even debated whether the very day everyone else avoids might actually be the best release date. However, in the end, we chose the release date that we felt was best for this game, regardless of GTA 6.”

Not everyone wants to play GTA 6, says Pon’s Summer director

This week also saw the release of Tanuki: Pon’s Summer, an open-world delivery game that was reviewed by VGC.

Game director Liam Edwards told the publication: “Well, I guess everyone’s a little scared, aren’t they? But I don’t think the people who enjoy Pon’s adventures and the many gamers who’ll end up buying GTA 6 really have much in common when it comes to where they play or what they’re looking for. Sure, some people will play both, but I’m sure there are plenty of people out there looking for an adventure that isn’t GTA 6.

“We have to focus on ourselves, not on what other people are doing. The gaming industry today is a world where dozens – no, hundreds – of games are released every week. Players don’t buy everything that comes out – instead, they pick out the games that interest them. The very idea of comparing Tanuki: Pon’s Summer to GTA 6 is kind of funny, isn’t it? In that sense, I don’t think we need to worry.”

VGC’s Tanuki: Pon’s Summer review made reference to the decision to release the game in between The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time remake and GTA 6, saying “its release timing may be in question, but the quality of this cheery adventure certainly isn’t”.

“Its publisher may have made the bewildering decision to release it during the one moment when the fewest people are going to be paying attention to it, but just because two enormous circles may currently be on your radar, that doesn’t mean little Pon hasn’t earned a smaller, but still very bright, spot on there too,” we wrote.