Papers, Please
papersplea.se
Dystopian document thriller in which you play a border inspector in the fictional country of Arstotzka.
diff ~/p/lucas-pope ~/p/maddy-thorson
Lucas Pope vs Maddy Thorson
Products, revenue & stack compared side by side.
MT
Canadian game designer behind Celeste and TowerFall, co-founder of Extremely OK Games
Lucas Pope vs Maddy Thorson at a glance
Both Lucas Pope and Maddy Thorson are bootstrapped. They overlap in Indie Game Makers. Lucas started in 2010 and Maddy in 2004. Lucas Pope has 4 products listed on IndieMakerList vs Maddy Thorson's 5.
Side-by-side comparison
- Based in
- Lucas Pope: Saitama, Japan
- Maddy Thorson: —
- Started
- Lucas Pope: 2010 (16 yrs indie)
- Maddy Thorson: 2004 (22 yrs indie)
- Revenue (self-reported)
- Lucas Pope: Not public
- Maddy Thorson: Not public
- Products listed
- Lucas Pope: 4
- Maddy Thorson: 5
- Product status
- Lucas Pope: 4 active
- Maddy Thorson: 4 active · 1 shut down
- X followers
- Lucas Pope: 100K
- Maddy Thorson: —
- Style
- Lucas Pope: solobootstrapped
- Maddy Thorson: bootstrapped
- Courses & resources
- Lucas Pope: —
- Maddy Thorson: —
Revenue figures are self-reported by each maker and not audited; dates and scope differ. Highlighted categories are shared by both.
Top products
R
Return of the Obra Dinn
obradinn.com
1-bit mystery game where an insurance investigator deduces the fate of every crew member of a lost merchant ship.
Mars After Midnight
play.date
Playdate-exclusive game about running a support group for Martians.
T
The Republia Times
dukope.com
Short free browser game about editing a newspaper under a censoring regime, a precursor to Papers, Please.
Celeste
celestegame.com
Precision platformer about climbing a mountain and dealing with anxiety, made with Noel Berry and the EXOK team.
TowerFall
towerfall-game.com
Local multiplayer archery combat game, first on Ouya and later as TowerFall Ascension.
Celeste Classic
celestegame.com
Original four-day PICO-8 jam game that became the basis for Celeste.
Action exploration game announced by Extremely OK Games, cancelled in 2025.
Tech stack
No tools in common in their publicly listed stacks. See the indie maker tech stack.
No stack shared publicly.
C#XNA/FNAGameMakerPICO-8
How they build
- Build a game around one strong, unusual mechanic and polish it deeply.
- Use distinctive, constrained visual styles to make a small game memorable.
- Share development openly through detailed devlogs.
- Prototype quickly in small jams and grow the ideas that feel great.
- Tight, responsive controls are the foundation of a good platformer.
- Make hard games accessible with assist options instead of lowering the ceiling.
- Personal themes and honesty can make a mechanical game resonate.
Lucas Pope vs Maddy Thorson FAQ
Who makes more money, Lucas Pope or Maddy Thorson?
Neither Lucas Pope nor Maddy Thorson has publicly reported a revenue figure that IndieMakerList tracks, so it's not public.
Who has built more products, Lucas Pope or Maddy Thorson?
Lucas Pope has 4 products listed (including Papers, Please, Return of the Obra Dinn and Mars After Midnight); Maddy Thorson has 5 products listed (including Celeste, TowerFall and Celeste Classic).
What tech stack do Lucas Pope and Maddy Thorson use?
Lucas Pope hasn't shared a stack. Maddy Thorson uses C#, XNA/FNA, GameMaker and PICO-8. They don't list any tools in common.
Where are Lucas Pope and Maddy Thorson based?
Lucas Pope: Saitama, Japan. Maddy Thorson: not listed.
Who has been an indie maker longer, Lucas Pope or Maddy Thorson?
Lucas Pope started in 2010 (16 years indie); Maddy Thorson started in 2004 (22 years indie).
Are Lucas Pope and Maddy Thorson bootstrapped?
Yes, both are listed as bootstrapped founders on IndieMakerList.
Full profiles
Read the full story, timeline and links on Lucas Pope's profile and Maddy Thorson's profile.
Lucas Pope vs Jonathan Blow