"Waiting for a publisher was a mistake": The creators of Do No Harm made half a million dollars in a month by releasing the game independently

Do No Harm is a Lovecraftian doctor simulator developed by the indie team Darts Games from Azerbaijan. The studio's co-founder, Novruz Javadov, wrote a detailed post on Reddit discussing the game's success, its development, and the challenges faced.

Do No Harm

Here are the main points from the publication.

Javadov recalls that he and his colleagues founded Darts Games in 2019. They shelved their debut game in 2021 due to a lack of experience, after which they spent three years on outsourcing. In February 2024, Darts Games secured investment from an angel investor, allowing them to return to their own projects—at that time, there were three.
In March 2024, Darts Games decided to focus on creating a single project. Following internal pitching, Do No Harm was chosen.
The prototype of Do No Harm was noticeably different from the released version. Originally, the simulator had a strong emphasis on deduction. Players could determine the correct method of treating a patient by identifying symptoms and simply studying a medical guide. Back then, the Lovecraftian elements were almost entirely absent.
During the summer, Darts Games brought the Do No Harm prototype to Gamesummit Baku. Although the project was generally well-received, it seemed boring to play.
The developers considered two main options for improving the game: increasing the difficulty curve or adding more features. Game development consultant Rami Ismail, who they met at the event, advised against these options. Instead, he suggested changing the core of Do No Harm, allowing gamers to make guesses and take risks rather than solving purely logical puzzles. Darts Games heeded this advice, which paid off—Do No Harm became more engaging, and it featured more humor.
Another piece of advice Darts Games received early on was not to create the game's Steam page themselves but first find a publisher. Over four months, the team approached 50 companies without success. Most responded only when Do No Harm had over 6,000 wishlists and the game entered Steam's "Popular Upcoming" ranking. Javadov believes waiting for a publisher was a mistake unless Darts Games were a well-known studio or had an almost-finished vertical slice of the game.
However, they managed to close a deal with one publisher—Hawthorn Games agreed to publish Do No Harm in China.
In September 2024, Do No Harm’s Steam page went live. In its first week, about 1,500 people added the game to their wishlists.
Realizing they would have to self-publish the game on all markets except China, the developers focused on marketing. In January 2025, they released a trailer that was featured on IGN's YouTube channel, leading to a swift increase in wishlists. By February 24 (the start of the "Games to Be" demo festival), Do No Harm amassed 50,000 wishlists.
Participation in the demo festival was also successful. Notably, Do No Harm ranked among the top 50 popular demos, and Darts Games received valuable feedback to further polish the game. However, there was a looming awareness that it was nearly time to release Do No Harm, as the studio was running out of money and wanted to capitalize on the hype.
On March 6, Darts Games officially released Do No Harm—just an hour after completing the final build (the game then had 105,000 wishlists). The initial results were excellent:

1. First day: $82,000 in gross revenue and 7,500 copies sold;
2. First week: $280,000 in gross revenue and 26,000 copies sold;
3. First month: $480,000 in gross revenue and 44,000 copies sold;

Javadov acknowledged that Do No Harm still needs improvements, so Darts Games is diligently refining any shortcomings. He does not rule out the possibility that the studio might release mobile and console versions of the simulator in the future.

"Waiting for a publisher was a mistake": The creators of Do No Harm made half a million dollars in a month by releasing the game independently

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