ABSTRACT
After independence is divided into two sections. In the first part, Ruffino maps the history and current condition of academic research surrounding independent videogames. After an initial interest toward the meanings of independence in videogame culture, studies around indie games have focused on the broader connections and relations of interdependence that are established through game-making practices. The academic interest toward these issues is now more urgent than ever, as the number of workers involved in independent modalities of labor is becoming an overwhelming majority. The industry is facing a “second wave” of independence, where self-funded and informal labor, as well as temporary and subcontracted jobs, have been fully introduced and legitimized. In turn, these new conditions often make economic and creative fulfillment harder to achieve. In the second part, the sections and chapters forming the present collection are introduced and summarized. The edited collection offers various research strategies and case studies to better understand how independence could return to stand as a signifier for narratives that are more inclusive, liberating, and less exploitative.
