Unless you have been in their shoes, you cannot possibly know what success or challenges they have met or are now dealing with or will in the future.
I have a small business and many people believe that I must be very wealthy but, in reality - we don't live any different than they do. Many of them have better health plans, retirement, vacations and other benefits than I do. I have to sacrifice much of my family and personal time to make sure my customers are happy or I don't get paid. I struggle to pay the bills every month like so many of them. I do it because I love my job and the independence that comes from owning my own business. From a purely financial standpoint, I would be judged a complete idiot by most people. It really is a slap in the face when people assume that I must be wealthy and maybe even greedy. They really have no clue at all what it really is about. Just because a business can survive does not mean it is thriving. In this economy, many are just surviving - and barely at that.
Consider how small the Race Sim market is and how hard it has to be to survive as a small business today - ridiculously bad odds by any investment standard. The fact that Kunos or any small studio even attempt to produce a product (such as a true race SIM) that would be determined to be a non-starter by any publisher seeking to make a profit, should be a clue as to the determination and passion required here.
The pessimistic will always say it is Greed that drives businesses to do it this or that way. They must have their million-dollar cars, yachts, lavish vacations, etc. In some cases, yes but, in most - it is simply people trying to make a living doing something they are passionate about and trying to find some sense of purpose and meaning in their lives. It is so easy for observers to judge and criticize the doers yet, they do so having never even attempted to walk in the doer's shoes. Is it greed, survival, or passion that drives these new business models?
If it was easy - everyone would be doing it. It's not easy, anyone that owns a business can tell you that. It takes blood, sweat and tears to make these things happen and when you see businesses making these kind of choices, think about what goes into making it all work. I have a certain amount of respect for anyone that is enough of a doer to make a business that can even survive today - let alone thrive. If Steam allows Kunos to do that - then so be it. We get what may very well be our Dream-Sim and they may actually turn a profit. Then again, they may be financially better off working at Wal-Mart greeting customers.
In the end, it is a gamble for any business but, at least they try and don't just complain about the big bad monsters that are ruining the world. Yes, there are some bad people in this world but, most of us are not so different from one another. We know that we must provide a service in order to make a honest living. For those that can do that and are lucky enough to fulfill a passion at the same time - more power to them. If they do it well, they deserve to be rewarded. If they suck at it, they will ultimately fail. If you can do it better - do it.
Doing takes effort. Complaining is easy - anyone can do that. To sit in judgement should be an earned position. How many here can say that they have run a business, let alone a Racing Sim development business in this economy?
Sorry for the long post but, reading it is optional.
![Luca [OT]](/data/avatars/s/3235/3235113.jpg?1697196734){kind=avatar}
