There should be a way to give directly to the developers
I realize that, after all this time, I have never payed for my all-time favorite games I grew up playing (Fallout 3 & Skyrim). I can pay for it, but I really do not want to pay the money to the Bethesda’s marketing team, CEO, and whoever bullshit middle man who wants a cut of that. I want to give directly to the team that made the damn game, the artists, the sound designers, the voice actors, the programmers. If there was a way to do that, i’d be more happily inclined to spend my money on a decade year old game.
This is what buying from coop developers is like. You know that everyone involved has agreed that everyone else is essential to the creation of the game and that everyone receives a cut in one way or another.
I know the Dead Cells guys, Motion Twin, are set up as a coop. Not sure about any other major team, and they've been pretty open about it only being feasible because they are a small studio.
If there was a way to do that, i’d be more happily inclined to spend my money on a decade year old game.
True. And this falls squarely on their responsibility. If they set up a Patreon or Kofi something, for example, and make it known, then we can support them directly.
Or they could just publish the information required to do a cash mail / wire transfer. But I don't know how the fees would work for that with small donations.
I also had a similar thought: a piracy software that enables users to download any content and encourages them to donate to creators using cryptocurrency voluntarily. This program would automatically distribute payments to verified creators who have provided a unique cryptocurrency address. This ensures that creators receive their rightful compensation for their work.
At present, I only pay for content created by individual creators who receive funding through platforms like OpenCollective, Patreon, or similar services. I don't even donate to Lemmy because there are multiple developers, but only one person in charge of receiving and distributing donations. I don't want to waste time and effort making sure the funds are distributed between everyone involved. I'd instead prefer open-source software that simplifies the process and ensures that everyone receives their fair share.