This was less of an interview and more of a chance to sit down and get to know the people behind GarageGames, so I'm just going to post my impressions here, rather than a summary of the interview.

We met with Jeff Tunnell, Rick Overman, and Tim Gift, who are the founders and top bananas at GarageGames. Our conversation focused on the role GarageGames intends to play in helping independent game developers. Basically, in addition to providing publishing opportunities, they want to help independents get off their feet in any way possible, including a place on their site for serious people to get together and form teams. They are also working on technology and tools to provide to aspiring indie developers.

Of particular interest is the V12 engine, used in Tribes 2. The week before the GDC, they announced that they would be making it available at the price of $100 to whomever wants it. The catch? You have to agree that GarageGames will publish the game, splitting 50% of the profits with them. Considering that traditional publishers generally only offer 15-30% to the developer, this seems to me to be an incredible deal for a first rate engine.

If you are an independent developer or considering becoming one, I strongly encourage that you check out what GarageGames has to offer. Jeff, Tim, and Rick are exactly the kind of people I would want to have on my side.