Yesterday Alexander Reshetnikov, who runs Emika Games, announced that he would be taking a break from game development, apparently because of how little money he made from…
Why it matters: Steam’s refund policy has been both lauded and controversial ever since it was first introduced, but an announcement from a solo indie developer yesterday represents a new extreme case of how it might punish developers. Being able to refund any game for any reason within a two-hour playtime limit, within two weeks of buying it, is definitely good for customers, but is a one-size-fits-all policy the right thing? Yesterday Alexander Reshetnikov, who runs Emika Games, announced that he would be taking a break from game development, apparently because of how little money he made from his latest game — Summer of ’58. In the announcement, Reshetnikov noted that a large number of customers had bought the game, finished it in under two hours, and then refunded it. “I do not earn anything to create a new game,” he said.
