Independent games are often perceived as inferior products by their peers in the industry but the truth is that some of the most innovative games being made are in this space. Big publishers like EA, VU Games, Microsoft, Sony, etcetera have begun tapping into the casual gaming sector but independent developers building more complex and hardcore games can't seem to get any kind of access.

On the flipside, many indie developers don't want to "sell out" and join what they perceive as the evil empires of the gaming world. Still others don't want to notoriety or fame that comes with having a successful game on a mainstream platform. But is bringing your game to a wider audience really selling out? Companies like The Behemoth don't think so; Alien Hominid is a pretty successful title on Xbox Live Arcade by most accounts, and the dudes who founded newgrounds.com certainly haven't changed one bit.

Not to say that Indies have no options beyond playing with the big boys. There are traditional publishers that may want the traditional publishing rights to a decent title as well as plenty of online distribution services like GarageGames, GameTap, TotalGaming Network, Gamer's Gate, Steam, Matrix Games, Shrapnel Games, Battlefront.com and many others that are doing their best to cash in on this market.

Some companies are trying to make inroads (some of the aforementioned groups have been doing it for years) but on the other side of the isle independent developers are not utilizing the tools available to get into the more lucrative markets. Take for example XNA. Sure there a number of independent developers using this platform to create games for both Xbox Live Arcade and Windows, but there are plenty of others that are missing the boat. Sure not every title is suited for XBLA consumption (a game of the scope of Dominions 3, for example, wouldn't work there), but what about games like MDickie.com's Wrestling Encore, Moonpod's Mr. Robot or even TinyHeroes' Land of Legend? It would be completely and utterly awesome obviously to see more games like this available on Xbox Live Arcade.

Perhaps what is needed is for Microsoft to further promote these tools and speed up the approval process on their end. Perhaps they also need to talk to developers of other engines to make the porting process a bit easier - they have done this already with GaragaeGames' 2D and 3D engines.

Obviously I don't have any of the answers and perhaps I am being a tad bit impatient, but I sure would like to see something more robust from the indie community on Xbox Live Arcade and many other up-and-coming platforms.

In this week's Sixty Seconds With.. segment at least two games are showcased that would work great on any of the new consoles and on GameTap. But neither side of this equation seems interested. Go figure.

In this week's edition of "Sixty Seconds With" segment I take a look back at some older projects and reveal some real gems that you may have missed. But for those looking for something new, I have a big surprise waiting for you from the maker of Egoboo at the very end...

Little Fighter 2

Little Fighter 2 is by no means a new game but it sure is a great game that has managed to hold up with the test of time. This fighting game really has it all: charm, animated violence that doesn't offend, tons of powerful moves, an interesting cast of characters and even multiplayer. If you like River City Ransom's style, then you simply must play this game.

FreeCol

FreeCol is a pretty slick open source project that recreates Colonization for Windows, Mac and Linux. While the game is still heavily in development, it is shaping up nicely and is very playable. The game also supports multiplayer, though finding an opponent can be a pretty difficult task. All in all it is one of numerous open sourced project that does justice to the wonderful game it is based on. If you would like to take a trip down memory lane with some slightly better graphics, then this one is worth checking out.

Runesword II

While Runesword II may be three years old now, there's a renewed interest in this CRPG from CrossCut Games because it is now open sourced. RPG fans can now download the game for free along with the source code and tinker with it to their heart's delight. This game feels like a roguelike but it's a fairly deep role-playing game experience that manages to hold its own. It's a grand diversion while we wait for CrossCut to finish Dungeon Delvers .