The Success of the story driven first-person game Dear Esther proves that it’s not all doom and gloom for the indie game scene. Developed by UK developer thechineseroom, Dear Esther tells the story of “A deserted island… a lost man… memories of a fatal crash… a book written by a dying explorer.”

Locations on the island are randomized, so each playthrough is different. The $9.99 game made back its $55,000 investment within a few hours of its release on the Steam store. The game’s ad on the Steam website looks more like a mystery/romance novel than a video game. This disproves so much conventional wisdom about what it takes to make a successful indie game that other so-called “indie” platforms should stand up and take notice.

Source: GameBandits.com.