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Ah, the exciting world of game publishing. It doesn't always get a good rap. Publishers and developers often get confused and thrown into the same bag, and when a publisher does get highlighted, it's usually in a negative light due to a dispute with the developer.
Midwest Games wants to offer a new take on video game publishing though, one that offers far more flexibility for both publisher and developer, and it'll be interesting to see if this new model takes off. They're dubbing the new method as "Shadow Publishing".

Oftentimes, publishers will simply offer developers a "set deal", giving them a suite of services in exchange for a percentage of the game's revenue, or in some cases, for the legal rights to the game franchise itself.
Midwest Games wants to offer a more flexible solution, allowing developers to essentially contract certain work out to Midwest Games. Want them to handle your marketing but leave the deadlines in your hands? They can do that. Or perhaps you want them more involved in your game's development, to give you a bit more structure? They offer that too.
The key here is that the approach is modular, rather than having a publisher come in and take over a project, Midwest Games is allowing developers to pick and choose what support they need (and want to pay for).
The whole "freelance" and contracted worker job market is a rapidly expanding one, so it's surprising that it seems to have taken this long for it to reach the game publisher sphere.
To kickstart their new publishing drive, Midwest Games has hired Elizabeth Howard as their Chief Advisor of Services. She previously served as Vice President of Production at Bungie, and will now lead the publishing team at Midwest Games.

“The games market has evolved. To succeed, games need to hit all facets of publishing throughout the entire development lifecycle, yet many studios lack the resources,” Howard stated. “While flexible models exist for development, that same flexibility has been missing in publishing—until recently. Midwest Games shadow publishing provides a scalable solution that integrates strategy and execution so studios can focus on making great games.”
Do you think this new take on game publishing is a good idea? Let us know in the comments below!
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