How we choose the small studios we write about
Developer Spotlight is our recurring format for teams that are too small to have a publicist and too interesting to ignore. Here is how a game gets into it.
Most coverage of small games happens after they are already successful. By then the interesting part — the decision, the constraint, the thing the team could not afford to do and solved another way — has usually been sanded off the story.
Developer Spotlight exists to catch that earlier.
What gets a game into the format
- A decision worth explaining. Not a feature list. Something the team chose, ideally something they chose against the obvious option.
- Something playable. A demo, an early build, or a released game. We do not write about roadmaps.
- A person willing to talk about the work. The format is about how it was made as much as what it is.
What does not get a game into the format
Payment. Spotlight coverage is editorial and free, and it will stay that way. If we ever introduce paid promotion for developers, it will be a clearly labelled placement in a different slot, it will look different on the page, and it will never buy a favourable word. A developer must never need to pay us to be found.
How to reach us
A short note about what you made and what was hard about it beats a press kit. We read everything, we reply to what we can, and we will always tell you if the answer is no.
Sample article — placeholder editorial content for the Phase 0 shell.
Provenance
- How this was made
- Original reporting and writing by Webitlio.
- Reviewed by
- Editorial desk