"Indie Publisher Boss Laments Team's Struggle Post-Oblivion Remastered Release"

The unexpected release of The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered on April 22 sent shockwaves through the gaming community. While fans rejoiced, indie developers who had planned their game launches for the same day found themselves in a challenging situation. Jonas Antonsson, co-founder of indie publisher Raw Fury, took to social media to voice his concerns about how "massive" shadow-drops from big-name games can overshadow smaller releases.

"I loved (when younger) and still absolutely love Oblivion and I’m personally excited to see it get a breath of new life and being introduced to a whole new generation of players," Antonsson shared. However, he highlighted a significant issue for indie developers: "But from the perspective of indies and indie publishers, this is the problem with these sorts of massive shadow drops. Everything more or less gets buried. We don’t have the cash nor muscle to throw around, so everything is carefully planned. Including when to release, based on other releases etc - to try to maximize the chances of getting attention."

Antonsson specifically mentioned Post Trauma, a puzzle horror game developed by Red Soul Games and published by Raw Fury on the same day. This game, inspired by PS2 era classics, challenges players to navigate environments, tackle threats, and interact with other lost characters in the depths of the Gloom. "Love the game that dropped but feel the pain for our team and especially the developer we’ve worked with for years - who has poured his heart and soul into his game," Antonsson lamented.

Raw Fury's frustration was evident in their sarcastic tweet on April 22: "Thank god Post Trauma was the only notable release of today and nothing else happened!"

From Bethesda and parent company Microsoft’s perspective, the shadow-drop of Oblivion Remastered has been a resounding success. The game has seen a strong launch on Steam and has dominated online discussions, with players reminiscing about the game’s quirky character faces, nostalgic bugs, and beloved memes.

The impact of Oblivion Remastered has been felt even by other games under Microsoft's marketing push. This week, Kepler Interactive, the publisher of Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, acknowledged the 'Barbenheimer' effect of launching the same week as Oblivion Remastered. Both titles debuted directly into Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, intensifying the competition.

For Raw Fury, setting the release date for Post Trauma without knowing about Oblivion Remastered’s shadow-drop may simply be chalked up to bad timing. It's a reminder of the unpredictable nature of the gaming industry.

For those diving into Oblivion Remastered, we offer a comprehensive guide that covers everything from an expansive Interactive Map, complete Walkthroughs for the Main Questline and every Guild Quest, tips on How to Build the Perfect Character, Things to Do First, every PC Cheat Code, and much more.