The story of Net Yaroze, Sony's first indie push

[Administrator]

Most independent developers would likely be horrified if implicated in a console war. In the last year or so it's become clear they might have no choice; independent games could prove vital to who triumphs in the next-gen race.
So far it's Sony that has shown itself to recognise this by making significant gestures to win the affections of the indie community. The PlayStation 4 promises self-publishing, and indie games featured more prominently at Sony's E3 conference than ever before. Meanwhile the Vita has steamed ahead, largely relying on hot indie releases to rescue its reputation. It would seem that Sony is very serious indeed about indies.
It's not exactly a concern that's new to Sony, either. Over 15 years ago the seeds were sown by a strange and brilliant enterprise on the original PlayStation with Net Yaroze. The offbeat, rough-around-the-edges and weirdly compelling games that resulted represented the first time Sony fostered a community of emerging talent and helped launch a generation of game development careers.
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