YouTuber Jason Yevgeniy Gastrow, better known as Videogamedunkey or simply Dunkey, has announced the launch of his indie publishing company, Bigmode.
Gastrow has been a YouTuber for over a decade, with his channel currently garnering seven million subscribers and billions of views. In the video announcing Bigmode, he explained that his experience as a YouTuber is what gives him a good understanding of the type of games players want, with the publishing label aiming to be as developer-friendly as possible.
"I've been on YouTube for 11 years now and one of the core themes of my channel has always been to slam dunk soulless cash grabs into the garbage can and lift up and praise the truly inspired works of art in this medium," Gastrow said. "For years and years, I have always sought out the very best indie games out there and have tried to do them justice, putting millions of eyes on the games that actually deserve attention."
He added that Bigmode, which he is co-founding with his wife, YouTuber Leah 'Leahbee' Gastrow, will be a "harmonious continuation" of his own channel.
"Me and Leah aren't just the face of this company; we are the company," he continued. "This is our vision and our No.1 priority is to publish some of the very best games out there. In today's indie landscape, buying a game can be like buying a loot crate in Counter-Strike: you don't know what you're going to get but you're probably going to be sad.
"A lot of games out there understand how to emulate the look of your favourite games but don't deliver where it actually counts. Many of the true games out there are being drowned out in a sea of mediocrity. You need someone who can help you be seen."
Gastrow added that he's not looking for creative control via Bigmode, but does want to be involved in development.
"I understand what kind of ideas always work, what ideas never work, what kind of ideas are fresh or need to come back, and what is extremely played out," he added. "I'm hyping myself up a lot in this video but Bigmode will be all about building up the games and the developers. We've put a lot of effort into making the most developer-friendly contracts possible. I think we're going to bring insane value to the table and the bottom line is: help good games succeed and help them continue to succeed into the future."
Developers can already get in touch to submit their games, with Bigmode clarifying that it does not accept "games that use NFTs, crypto, or blockchain."