Linden Lab acquires indie game distributor Desura

Second Life developer Linden Lab has announced its purchase of indie game digital distribution service Desura.

The acquisition represents Linden Lab’s second major pickup in 2013, joining the studio’s recent purchase of upcoming iPad game Blocksworld.

The PC/Mac/Linux shop and client is known for offering indie devs a lower barrier for entry versus Steam, as well as its inclusion of mods for both AAA and independent titles. The site also regularly offers game keys for its client as part of big name bundle promotions such as Humble Bundle and Indie Royale.

"Desura’s talented team, thriving business, and impressive technology are a great fit for Linden Lab," Linden Lab’s CEO Rod Humble said.

"Our aim is to invest and support the Desura team in making it the most open and developer-friendly platform in the world."

Desura founder Scott Reismanis chimed in on the matter in the comments section of a repost on Desura’s sister site IndieDB – explaining that entities tied to Desura, such as the aforementioned site, will remain independent and continue to be community run.

ModDB / IndieDB / SlideDB remain independent as they always have,” Reismanis said. We live for the community and games we represent… big plans hopefully not too far away!”