itch.io
itch.io is a sprawling website that allows creators of video games to offer them directly to an audience, often for free or pay-what-you-want. In a way, itch.io is basically Bandcamp for games. This might not sound particularly radical, but it is potentially revolutionary because since the early 80s and days of hand copied floppy discs, game distribution has been increasingly consolidated. Even with the rise of “indie” games, the number of hubs to connect players to new games has gotten ever more restrictive. Most places to find video games now have elaborate gatekeeping restrictions and extensive costs (such as Steam’s Greenlight, which is de facto ruled by a cadre of hardcore fan-partisans; or Apple’s App Store, with its rigid censorship of content.) Because of its creator-centered freedom and ease of use for buyers, itch.io has become one of the primary hubs for alt games, art games, non games, diy games and other weird multimedia experiments (expect plenty of video art, digital zines, and such) that push past the edges how video games are traditionally conceived, defined, and marketed.
Link: https://itch.io
Note: One of Video Games for the Arts’ first video guides will show you how to use itch.io!