Big news from behind the protection spells and drunken haze. We joined the Indie Game Alliance! This organization gives us more community and support than we could have on our own. We're excited to join their ranks and collaborate with other small studios across the globe.

IGA offers us many tools to get more games into the world. They do retail distribution, online promotion, and offer discounts on services ranging from manufacturing to legal advice. Their freelancer and publisher network lets game developers of different disciplines contract work or help publish ideas from tiny studios. Finally, IGA has a lot of convention and store connections, letting us have a presence beyond the Pacific Northwest.

Best of all, gaming fans can join for free. IGA's Minion program gives games, both prototype and retail versions, to volunteers in exchange for demoing the games at stores or conventions. These volunteers also earn points to get free games and have opportunities to attend gaming conventions for free as IGA officials.

If you want to help out CPG, join IGA and offer to playtest and demo games. They'll hook you up. We'll hook you up too. Everyone will give you stuff if you go to a store or con and play Catalyst or Drink! Hooray!