Hi everyone,
I'm coming from a scientific research background and have been working solo on a small game project over the past few months, mostly for fun, learning, and experimenting with systems and modeling.
Later on, I came across a small studio that had publicly announced a game with a remarkably similar theme and structure. It really caught me off guard, it’s a niche idea I had never seen in that form before. I only had access to their pitch and visual materials, so I couldn’t really compare the internal mechanics.
Out of reflexes from academia, where overlapping work can cause real issues, I reached out to them. I pointed out the amazing coincidence, wished them well, and told them I wouldn't release or commercialize anything, just to avoid any misunderstanding or stress. This is just a personal side project for me, I'm not a professional after all.
But now I'm wondering : did I overreact ? And if I did, is it fair to still reflect on it openly ?
In research, “being too close” to another project, even unintentionally, can be very badly perceived, or simply lead to being totally ignored and invisible. But I’ve since noticed that many indie games share very similar themes or ideas and still coexist.
So I’m genuinely curious to have some experienced devs' opinion:
– How common is it for different developers to end up building similar games?
– Do people usually stop when that happens, or keep going anyway?
– What’s considered respectful in this kind of situation?
Since I said I’d step back, I guess it's a little bit too late to go backwards... I'm a bit sad and disappointed, because I really wanted to share these ideas and see if anyone could enjoy them. I’m hoping to better understand what’s usual and healthy in this creative space. It was just a small personal project, but I really cared about it.
Thanks in advance for your insights!