I Have Never Seen a Small Team Escape the Producer’s Job by Refusing to Hire One

Production is a fundamental set of activities rather than a specific job title, and small game development teams often suffer by conflating the two. The core thesis is that while very small teams may not require a dedicated producer, they cannot escape the essential work of production—such as managing scope, setting schedules, and making difficult decisions—without incurring significant costs. When these tasks are left unassigned, they are performed poorly or absorbed by the most conscientious team members, leading to burnout and project instability.

The analysis identifies five critical production functions: ordering work, defining scope, managing dates, maintaining a shared project vision, and handling external commitments. Rather than relying on rigid Agile ceremonies, which are often misapplied, teams should focus on clear, documented rules. Specifically, teams should maintain a visible record of tasks, establish clear definitions of "finished" work, assign ownership of deadlines, and implement a formal process for rejecting features. By codifying these rules, teams can depersonalize the act of saying "no" to new ideas, thereby protecting the project's scope and schedule.

The scope of this analysis covers indie game development, with particular focus on teams of four to ten people. Data points include findings from a 2014 study of over 48,500 Kickstarter projects, which revealed that 75% of projects delivered late, with higher funding levels often correlating with increased delays. Furthermore, the industry context notes that over 19,000 games were released on Steam in 2025, with a median gross revenue of approximately $249. Ultimately, the analysis concludes that production is an inevitable cost; teams must choose to pay it through deliberate planning or pay it through the hidden, higher costs of missed deadlines and wasted effort.