Thank you for 60,000 wishlists + a big question I need to ask you

Thirteen days ago, I sat in the live audience of Opening Night Live in Germany while I watched the pre-show announcement of my game from my phone. Everything since then has gone better than I could imagine... THANK YOU for believing in this weird game idea and supporting me!

Before the announcement, I actually got a lot of feedback from publishers and playtesters that this game just wasn't gonna work, and that it was a bad idea. I really had no clue if people would resonate with it, so it almost moves me to tears to hear that people like it so far. A lot of beloved content creators have praised the demo already, and even Sam Lake from Remedy said he loves it. It's so insane to work in secret for two years and hear stuff like that. I am extremely fortunate.

There are still a lot of bugs to fix, which is my #1 priority. Any feedback you leave in the forums will be seen by me, and if you have run into a critical bug that crashes/freezes the game, please read this thread and try to send me your save file folder. I'm trying my best to diagnose these critical bugs, and after dozens of hours, I still can't figure it out, so your save folders might be the only clues I get.

Furthermore, I have an important question for you. In a small way, this game belongs to you now, and what you want from it or are expecting from it matters to me as the solo developer.

A bit of context first: I'm pretty much out of money. I kinda abhor publishers in general because of their insanely greedy terms and requirements (even the good publishers). I self-published my previous game, The First Tree, on every platform and I'm very proud of that. However, like I said, I'm out of money, and the game still needs 1+ year of work at least. However, I do have my retirement fund I could liquidate for a penalty fee.

THE QUESTION: Do you think I should make We Harvest Shadows a smaller type of experience? Imagine a longer version of the demo but with a few more items, a vehicle, places to explore, story, etc,... but it will probably feel like a $15 game. I could liquidate my retirement account to pay for this type of finished game.

OR...

Do I actually find a publisher and get help? Do I use a publisher's resources to make the game bigger and better? It would make it truly feel like a $20 experience. Maybe even a small multiplayer mode could be added? (no promises)

I'm at a crossroads, and I honestly don't know what to do. The idea of giving into a publisher now that the idea has been validated kinda makes me sick. No one supported me a year ago when I showed it to them, but you better believe they're crawling back now saying "HEYYYY ya know this is a great idea after all David!! Maybe give me 50% of all royalties forever please? 😁"

HOWEVER... I want this game to be good. Your love for We Harvest Shadows makes me want to make the best thing possible. It's a hard decision.

If you could, please leave a comment on this post and I'll definitely read it. I won't be able to respond to everyone, but I will definitely read it and ponder your feedback.

Before this announcement, I told everyone in a YouTube video that I would leave the industry forever if this game idea didn't work out. I absolutely meant it, because I've been battling deep burnout and depression trying to make this "indie game life" work out... and your excitement and support have been the answer I needed. I'm so excited to finish this story and share it with you all. It's gonna be the best thing I've ever made, and I'm confident that it will be a game that sits in your memories for a long time.

Thank you for reading! I'll keep you posted.

Sincerely,
David