
"Indie" today primarily refers to budget size more than any relationship to a publisher. Many indie games get assistance from small publishers who provide independent studios with marketing, logistic, and funding support. A smaller-scoped game like Unravel (Sony), Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown (Ubisoft), or Animal Well (Sony) feels a lot more like an indie game than Star Citizen, Baldur's Gate 3, or Cyberpunk 2077 with their >$100 million budgets. When people use "indie" as a descriptor, they are usually talking about the game's budget.
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