As part of Pocket Gamer Connects London 2017, Sean Megaw, Creative Director & Producer at Kemojo Studios, gave a talk on the keys to surviving as an indie.

He started by saying you should make sure to schedule ahead and plan your costs, since then you can see what the future holds, and as he says, "if you feel like it's going to go bad, it's going to go bad."

As for how to get money together, Megaw warned against borrowing money from banks as they will be tough to negotiate with, and also says that borrowing money from friends leads to "the hardest emotional toll."

He was also concerned about working with publishers, warning that they "never pay on time", and that you should have a runway of at least six months to make sure you actually get the paycheck and don't have to close down before you get paid.

Instead, Megaw suggests looking for work for hire opportunities, as they will "keep the doors open" while you're trying to secure investment.

That said, work for hire work will only keep you funded while you are looking for other work for hire opportunities, so it is worth finding the right balance in order to make sure you can still make your own games.