Podcast Recap – From Call of Duty to Indie Dev :
In this episode of the IndieGameBusiness® podcast, host Dan Long sits down with Jess Feidt, Owner of Underwater Fire Games and creator of Particle Hearts. Jess shares an unfiltered look at what it truly means to leave AAA game development—specifically a long career working on Call of Duty—and step into the unpredictable, demanding, and deeply personal world of indie game creation.
This conversation explores the realities behind creative freedom, the hidden risks of solo development, the emotional and financial challenges of launching a first indie title, and the lessons Jess learned the hard way. It is a candid, experience-driven discussion that offers invaluable insight for developers considering a similar leap.
Breaking Into the Industry – From Art School to AAA Games :
Jess’s path into the games industry began with a strong artistic foundation. After attending art school, they made a bold decision: load up the family van and drive to California because “that’s where video games are made.” With no computer and very little money, Jess relied on public libraries to apply for jobs—a risky move in hindsight, but one that ultimately paid off.
Their first major break came at Sony, working on pre-rendered cinematics for first-party titles. This early role helped Jess understand large-scale production pipelines and cinematic storytelling, skills that would later influence their indie work. From Sony, Jess moved on to Treyarch, where they would spend more than a decade contributing to some of the most recognizable games in the world.
Life Inside AAA – The Call of Duty Years :
At Treyarch, Jess worked on multiple Call of Duty titles, including extended time on the Zombies mode. Their role as a Lead Destruction Artist involved building and animating environmental destruction—exploding buildings, collapsing structures, animated props, and vehicles. Over time, this expanded into design work and art direction for Zombies modes.
Working on Call of Duty offered undeniable benefits: financial stability, industry prestige, massive production resources, and the experience of shipping games on immovable deadlines. Jess highlights how AAA studios excel at scale, specialization, and efficiency, producing enormous amounts of polished content year after year.
However, that specialization came at a cost.
The Turning Point – Why Leave AAA? :
After more than a decade on the same franchise, Jess reached a creative crossroads. While Call of Duty remained a dream job by many standards, the work became increasingly managerial and narrowly focused. Creative exploration gave way to people management, meetings, and specialization.
Jess describes a growing desire to be a generalist again—to touch every part of the game, from visuals to gameplay to storytelling. They also wanted more control over what stories were told and how they were expressed. Location flexibility played a role too; remaining tied to Los Angeles was no longer appealing.
Ultimately, the move to indie development was about reclaiming creative ownership and curiosity rather than escaping AAA due to burnout or dissatisfaction.
Becoming a Generalist Again – The Indie Mindset Shift :
In AAA development, problems are distributed across departments. In indie development, every problem is your problem.
Jess explains how this shift required a complete mental reset. There were no UI specialists, localization teams, or technical departments to lean on. Every decision—engine choice, art style, feature scope—carried ripple effects across the entire project.
This reality forced a new way of thinking: assessing every feature not just by how cool it was, but by whether it was worth the risk, time, and long-term maintenance. Even seemingly small details—like character pupils—became strategic decisions rather than aesthetic defaults.
The Birth of Particle Hearts – A Long-Held Idea Takes Shape :
The concept behind Particle Hearts traces back to Jess’s time working on particle effects during Call of Duty: World at War. While optimizing effects to fit strict performance budgets, Jess had a thought that stuck for years: What if the entire game budget was just particles?
That idea became the foundation for Particle Hearts. The game’s striking visual identity—worlds built almost entirely from particles—was both an artistic statement and a practical constraint. As a solo developer, Jess needed an art style that avoided the escalating costs of realism, animation complexity, and asset pipelines.
The result was a visually unique experience that didn’t rely on trends or templates, but instead emerged from technical curiosity and creative experimentation.
Visual Identity as Gameplay Foundation :
Rather than separating visuals and mechanics, Particle Hearts was designed so that gameplay and visuals informed each other. Movement, abilities, and exploration were all rooted in particle-based systems, ensuring cohesion between what players saw and how the game felt to play.
Jess emphasizes the importance of nailing moment-to-moment feel early. Just as shooting mechanics define Call of Duty, movement, jumping, and traversal defined Particle Hearts. Each action was reinforced through animation, sound, and particle feedback to ensure players felt rewarded at every step.
Marketing Realities – When a Good Game Doesn’t Find Its Audience :
While Particle Hearts succeeded creatively and critically, it struggled commercially. Jess is transparent about the emotional weight of working on a game for years only to see it fail to gain traction.
Several marketing lessons emerged from this experience:
Influencer marketing can work—but only if the influencer’s audience aligns with the game’s audience. In this case, high-profile coverage did not translate into meaningful conversions.
Giveaways can inflate wishlist numbers without increasing actual sales. Many wishlists came from users interested in prizes, not the game itself.
Marketing has no universal formula. What works for one game may fail for another, and repeating ineffective tactics due to sunk cost can compound losses.
Jess underscores that marketing is not an assembly line—and believing “if you build it, they will come” is one of the most dangerous myths in game development.
Mistakes That Mattered – UI, Localization, and Timing :
Among the biggest underestimated challenges were UI implementation and localization. While publishers handled translation, implementation was entirely on Jess—requiring significant technical work late in development.
Jess also reflects on revealing the game too early. While early exposure helped build a small following, it eliminated opportunities for a major “first reveal” moment at showcases or platform events. In hindsight, delaying the announcement might have enabled stronger press coverage.
Production Lessons from AAA That Still Matter :
Despite the differences, Jess carried valuable AAA lessons into indie development. Chief among them was deadline discipline and a pragmatic approach to cutting features.
At Treyarch, teams used a simple rule: Fix it, hide it, or cut it. That mindset helped Jess avoid perfection paralysis and make tough decisions when time and resources ran thin.
Jess also learned the importance of personal health—recognizing that burnout, poor sleep, and neglecting physical well-being directly impact creative output.
Building the Right Indie Team :
Although Particle Hearts began as a solo project, Jess quickly identified areas that required collaboration. A programmer, a composer, and design support were brought in strategically, each elevating the project beyond what one person could achieve alone.
The game’s soundtrack, in particular, pushed Jess to raise the quality bar across the entire experience—demonstrating how strong collaborators can improve more than just their assigned discipline.
Looking Forward – Confidence, Risk, and the Next Project :
Having shipped a full indie game, Jess approaches their next project with less fear—but not less ambition. With hard-earned experience in localization, UI, porting, and production planning, they feel better equipped to take creative risks.
The next game will be larger, mechanically bolder, and more experimental, including time-based mechanics and deeper systems. While details remain under wraps, Jess makes one thing clear: being nervous is part of the process—and a sign that growth is happening.
Anecdotes and Reflections :
Jess Feidt’s journey from Call of Duty to Particle Hearts is not a fairy tale—it’s a realistic indie success story. Success here is defined not by profit alone, but by creative ownership, growth, and the ability to keep making games.
For developers considering a similar leap, this episode offers clarity without romanticizing the struggle. Indie development is harder, riskier, and lonelier—but also deeply rewarding for those willing to embrace uncertainty and learn from failure.
Jess’s story is a reminder that there is no single path to success in games—only informed decisions, honest reflection, and the courage to try again.
Want more insights like this? :
Join us for our IndieGameBusiness Sessions, taking place on February 18th from 9am – 5pm Eastern or hop into the IndieGameBusiness® Discord to connect with Jess, and other industry pros.
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