Another Reason Apple sucks and yay Owlchemy

I wrote a few weeks ago about how awesome I thought Boston Indie Developer Owlchemy Labs was for having balls. The same kind of cahones that make Trey Parker and Matt Stone the brilliant, boundary pushing artists they are.

They made a game called Smuggle Truck about illegal immigration. It is a light hearted, cartooney game that brings perspective and absurdity to what is a hot and controversial topic. Despite it's childish nature, I would say this is a monumental step forward for "mature" games because they aren't afraid of "mature" topics.

So why did Apple reject it from the iStore? Because they are afraid and weak.

Yes I think Apple sucks. This is another nail in the coffin. To get approved Owlchemy had to change the name of the game to "Snuggle Truck" ( 3P1C LAWLZ) and make it revolve getting wild animals to a nurturing zoo. You can still get the original Smuggle Truck for PC on their website (going to purchase when I get home today. Out of principle).

I don't blame Owlchemy for giving in at all. They are in a tough business and this is a first release of an Indie studio. Their future probably depends on this game being profitable so yes... they are at the mercy of the Apple store. This that sucks is it will probably take a Playstation style hack to force Apple to not hold the same monopoly on their hardware that Sony does.

Long story short give Owlchemy your money because they represent the next step in bringing video games to the next level of artistic expression. Snuggle Truck may not be the King's Speech, but it is a step in that direction!