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Starting an Indie Studio, Getting a Publisher, and Shipping the RPG Indie Hit Fretless: The Wrath of Riffson with Jeff Linville, Ritual Studios

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Manage episode 517519084 series 2477672
Content provided by KJJE Enterprises, LLC and The HP Video Game Podcast Network - John JP Podlasek. All podcast content including episodes, graphics, and podcast descriptions are uploaded and provided directly by KJJE Enterprises, LLC and The HP Video Game Podcast Network - John JP Podlasek or their podcast platform partner. If you believe someone is using your copyrighted work without your permission, you can follow the process outlined here https://podcastplayer.com/legal.

In this episode, Jeff Linville — co-founder of Ritual Studios — returns to Game Dev Advice to talk about the journey behind his band-inspired RPG Fretless: The Wrath of Riffson. From starting a studio with college friends to launching worldwide with French publisher Playdigious, Jeff shares the hard-won lessons of taking the leap into full-time indie development. We go into depth on what it really takes to form a studio, ship a first game, and survive the chaos between passion and business reality. Topics We Cover -Founding Ritual Studios after meeting at Columbia College Chicago -How Fretless mixes music, RPG, and deck-building mechanics into one ambitious indie game -The moment they quit their jobs to “really do it” and chase a publishing deal -Lessons learned about funding, taxes, lawyers, and running a real company -Building a standout pitch deck and landing a deal with Playdigious in France -Managing bugs, Steam feedback, and localization into seven languages -Outsourcing art and engineering — and why it’s harder than it sounds -Choosing FMOD over Wwise for advanced Unity audio integration -Why getting your game playable early is key -How Cardio Ex shaped Jeff’s music-driven sound design -Thoughts on AI tools in audio, from noise cleanup to creative limits -Favorite soundtracks: Hyper Light Drifter and Guild Wars 1 -Current go-to games: Pillars of Eternity and Lord of the Rings Online -Reflections on Mortal Kombat, Midway Games, andplayer nostalgia -Advice for anyone dreaming of going indie: “Be ready for it — it’s a business.” 🎥 Making-Of Documentary 📺 Making a Musical Indie Game from Scratch (making of Fretless): 30-minute behind-the-scenes doc following Ritual Studios from PAX East to launch day: https://youtu.be/3USobO6qRHE?si=aEhUEI0dwQbMqki2 🎮 Play / Follow -Fretless -The Wrath of Riffson (Steam): https://store.steampowered.com/app/2429050/Fretless__The_Wrath_of_Riffson/ -Ritual Studios (Bluesky): https://bsky.app/profile/ritualstudios.bsky.social -Ritual Studios (Instagram): https://www.instagram.com/ritualgamestudios/?hl=en -Fretless Original Soundtrack (Spotify): https://open.spotify.com/album/1VXVxtFzJOUYJypudcF9DN? -Jeff Linville @Dovetail (Linktr.ee): https://linktr.ee/dovetailmusic -Rob Scallon (YouTube): https://www.youtube.com/RobScallon -Playdigious (Bluesky): https://bsky.app/profile/playdigious.bsky.social Bio: Jeff Linville is Co-Founder of Ritual Studios, a Chicago-based indie studio that successfully published their critically acclaimed first game, Fretless: The Wrath of Riffson in July of 2025. Jeff has been in the game industry professionally for over 8 years as a Sound Designer, Composer, Game Designer, and Producer working on various titles, including Fretless, Cardio Ex, and more. 🕹️ Game Dev Advice Whether you’re a student, aspiring game developer, or industry veteran, you’ll find practical takeaways and entertaining stories from inside the world of game development. 🎮 Want to learn how to build your own career in games? Start here: 👉 Subscribe for more Game Dev Advice: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCvkY8LxjGyOPqlQKuRlObhg 👉 Listen on Spotify & Apple Podcasts: https://open.spotify.com/show/5NChfUVhFxV9NCoUVp4uD0 & https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/game-dev-advice-the-game-developers-podcast/id1450096263 👉 Patreon: career coaching through Gain Wisdom: https://www.patreon.com/gamedevadvice 👉 Game Dev Advice hotline: (224) 484-7733 👉 Email: [email protected] 👉 Website: www.gamedevadvice.com

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76 episodes

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iconShare
 
Manage episode 517519084 series 2477672
Content provided by KJJE Enterprises, LLC and The HP Video Game Podcast Network - John JP Podlasek. All podcast content including episodes, graphics, and podcast descriptions are uploaded and provided directly by KJJE Enterprises, LLC and The HP Video Game Podcast Network - John JP Podlasek or their podcast platform partner. If you believe someone is using your copyrighted work without your permission, you can follow the process outlined here https://podcastplayer.com/legal.

In this episode, Jeff Linville — co-founder of Ritual Studios — returns to Game Dev Advice to talk about the journey behind his band-inspired RPG Fretless: The Wrath of Riffson. From starting a studio with college friends to launching worldwide with French publisher Playdigious, Jeff shares the hard-won lessons of taking the leap into full-time indie development. We go into depth on what it really takes to form a studio, ship a first game, and survive the chaos between passion and business reality. Topics We Cover -Founding Ritual Studios after meeting at Columbia College Chicago -How Fretless mixes music, RPG, and deck-building mechanics into one ambitious indie game -The moment they quit their jobs to “really do it” and chase a publishing deal -Lessons learned about funding, taxes, lawyers, and running a real company -Building a standout pitch deck and landing a deal with Playdigious in France -Managing bugs, Steam feedback, and localization into seven languages -Outsourcing art and engineering — and why it’s harder than it sounds -Choosing FMOD over Wwise for advanced Unity audio integration -Why getting your game playable early is key -How Cardio Ex shaped Jeff’s music-driven sound design -Thoughts on AI tools in audio, from noise cleanup to creative limits -Favorite soundtracks: Hyper Light Drifter and Guild Wars 1 -Current go-to games: Pillars of Eternity and Lord of the Rings Online -Reflections on Mortal Kombat, Midway Games, andplayer nostalgia -Advice for anyone dreaming of going indie: “Be ready for it — it’s a business.” 🎥 Making-Of Documentary 📺 Making a Musical Indie Game from Scratch (making of Fretless): 30-minute behind-the-scenes doc following Ritual Studios from PAX East to launch day: https://youtu.be/3USobO6qRHE?si=aEhUEI0dwQbMqki2 🎮 Play / Follow -Fretless -The Wrath of Riffson (Steam): https://store.steampowered.com/app/2429050/Fretless__The_Wrath_of_Riffson/ -Ritual Studios (Bluesky): https://bsky.app/profile/ritualstudios.bsky.social -Ritual Studios (Instagram): https://www.instagram.com/ritualgamestudios/?hl=en -Fretless Original Soundtrack (Spotify): https://open.spotify.com/album/1VXVxtFzJOUYJypudcF9DN? -Jeff Linville @Dovetail (Linktr.ee): https://linktr.ee/dovetailmusic -Rob Scallon (YouTube): https://www.youtube.com/RobScallon -Playdigious (Bluesky): https://bsky.app/profile/playdigious.bsky.social Bio: Jeff Linville is Co-Founder of Ritual Studios, a Chicago-based indie studio that successfully published their critically acclaimed first game, Fretless: The Wrath of Riffson in July of 2025. Jeff has been in the game industry professionally for over 8 years as a Sound Designer, Composer, Game Designer, and Producer working on various titles, including Fretless, Cardio Ex, and more. 🕹️ Game Dev Advice Whether you’re a student, aspiring game developer, or industry veteran, you’ll find practical takeaways and entertaining stories from inside the world of game development. 🎮 Want to learn how to build your own career in games? Start here: 👉 Subscribe for more Game Dev Advice: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCvkY8LxjGyOPqlQKuRlObhg 👉 Listen on Spotify & Apple Podcasts: https://open.spotify.com/show/5NChfUVhFxV9NCoUVp4uD0 & https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/game-dev-advice-the-game-developers-podcast/id1450096263 👉 Patreon: career coaching through Gain Wisdom: https://www.patreon.com/gamedevadvice 👉 Game Dev Advice hotline: (224) 484-7733 👉 Email: [email protected] 👉 Website: www.gamedevadvice.com

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