A one-man milestone: 100 Steam releases, and the labels that follow
Fix Stories is a dev-authored series. This submission is written by Archor Wright (Archor Games).
Archor Games — GAMES.ARCHOR.COM
Recently, Archor Games published his 100th game on Steam. This puts Archor Wright in a very rare group of developers with 100+ games on Steam — especially for a one-man indie dev. Along the way, he’s also had the opportunity to do a few collabs with other Steam devs and partner with them on a few projects.
OK, let’s talk about the “Elephant in the Room”…
“Asset flipping” vs “kitbashing”…
Archor considers himself more of a “kitbasher” and doesn’t feel that the “asset flipper” label some people have tried to apply to him is really fitting. Let me explain…
For example: a kid goes to the Lego Store and buys two “kits” — Lego Batman and Lego Ironman.
He then merges both kits into a new concept unique to him: the Lego “Batman vs Ironman” set, which includes parts from both original sets, but presents them in a new way that hasn’t been done before. So, he didn’t invent Batman or Ironman or even Legos — but he did create that new unified “kitbash” set all on his own.
The next “Label”: the Steam “MEME” Game King
Archor wasn’t originally sure if he really wanted the “MEME” association that has grown around most of his games. But over time, he has come to accept this moniker and has even woven it into some of his games by placing “Easter Eggs” and pop-culture nods into them.
Also, on occasion, one of his Steam games might mention some of his other Steam games by name in a fourth-wall-breaking way.
He also likes to place random mentions to streamers (both big and small) into some of his games.
The “IRL ARG”…
Over the course of making so many games, Archor has “sprinkled” some real-world clues to an ARG mystery into many of his games. Over the years, many folks have tried to guess the solution, with a few getting really close — but no one has fully solved it yet. (Yet.)
The “INDIE” / “HOBBY” Dev…
Archor is a one-man dev team and mostly just makes games as a hobby for friends and family to enjoy. He really likes that a few of his “spoof” games have made folks laugh all over the world. He also likes to mingle real-life family and friends into his games.
“A Different Kind of Game”…
In late 2023, Archor was working on a game called Crash Test Idiots 2, and he knew he needed a really rocking soundtrack. In the early phases of development, he was using generic royalty-free music as a “placeholder.”
But then, by chance, he crossed paths with Fix Gaming Channel — and a really cool collab was born. Archor had the opportunity to use an entire album in his game: Golden Rats by Go Postal.
This elevated the game to another level and gave it an “AAA” feel that isn’t normally associated with a small indie dev on Steam. It also helped place the game in his Top 10 hits on Steam.
Quick note on ownership and earnings: The developer — Archor Wright — receives 100% of the earnings for both the game and the soundtrack. Using my songs in Crash Test Idiots 2 (MULTIPLAYER) was Archor’s decision, and I don’t earn anything from those sales.
Crash Test Idiots 2 + “Different Kind of Game” (Ronny’s song, Archor’s game)
Video and song: “Different Kind of Game” by Ronny Fiksdahl / Go Postal. Game: Crash Test Idiots 2 (MULTIPLAYER) by Archor Wright / Archor Games.
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“Different Kind of Game” Music Video
If you want the song on its own as a standalone music video, here it is:
More Crash Test Idiots 2 gameplay (ultrawide)
Here are two more gameplay videos tied to the Crash Test Idiots 2 multiplayer universe, captured in ultrawide:
Multiplayer Cowboys Gameplay
Multiplayer Cavemen Gameplay
Where to get the game and the soundtrack
If you want to grab the game on Steam, or pick up the official soundtrack DLC (Crash Test Idiots 2 (MULTIPLAYER) Soundtrack), both are right here:
Crash Test Idiots 2 (MULTIPLAYER) on Steam
Crash Test Idiots 2 (MULTIPLAYER) Soundtrack on Steam
Related Reading
Sign-off
I had fun telling you this short story. Thank you from my family to yours…
Cade
Arch
Debie
Evan
Written by Archor Wright — Fix Gaming Channel.
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