This indie game is taking Steam by storm despite asking you to do almost nothing

Independent developer Jordan Morris has achieved remarkable success with his game Rusty’s Retirement, released in April 2024, which has sold approximately 550,000 copies in a short period of time. This success has had a considerable impact on the trend of games with similar mechanics on the Steam platform, where titles like My Little Life and Ropuka’s Idle Island have begun to proliferate, inspired by Morris’s game style.

A game where management and waiting are important

Rusty’s Retirement has not only captured the attention of players but has also rekindled interest in a subgenre within idle games. Morris was inspired by classics like Hollow Knight and Stardew Valley to create a unique experience that combines exploration and management in a gameplay environment that unfolds at the bottom of the screen. This innovative approach, which features a compressed world similar to Microcivilization, has resonated with the gaming community, transforming the perception of what an idle game can be.

The development of Rusty’s Retirement took approximately six months, a surprisingly short time compared to the two and a half years required for his previous game, Haiku. Initially, Morris had planned to release the title as a free game, but the overwhelming response on social media led him to reconsider his approach and opt for a paid model. “I saw that the response exceeded everything I had imagined; I decided to spend more time making it a good game,” he added.

With this success, Morris has become a benchmark in the industry, which also suggests that players might see more imitators of Rusty’s Retirement in the future. Although his game was not the first in the idle genre, it is certainly paving the way for the future of this style of games. Morris hopes to continue exploring new ideas and will share more about his projects in the coming days.

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