And wow is a testament to what many people can create with dedication and inspiration, and it probably will be a far better play experience with more people and less hassle than love.

So what if its done by one person? That's just a curiosity. One person can make an entire broadway play. So what if smaller companies can design mmo's? I'm not playing it because it only took 50 people to make, I'm playing it because the experience is good.

Indie-cred has nothing to do with that at all. In my experience, the more you focus on the indie aspect, the more its just a cover to excuse a poor or unpolished experience. If a game is good it can stand alone on its own merits, but most "indie" games are going to struggle in the same way DFO struggles, by simply not having enough manpower or resources to realize the vision of the developers and react to the demands of the playerbase.

Indie is more about the pose. there's nothing wrong with games having a small developer team or being made by a few people: the history of gaming is that the big dev teams are an aberration. But independent is just a meaningless label to people who enjoy games, or even film. It adds a lot of bunk subtext. It's not like a good game becomes any more because its independent, or a sucky game sucks less.

If love is a good idea, seek a publisher! Get it out to as many people as possible! So you can expand and maintain it easily and you have time to work on other projects. Screw indie-ness, if your experience is good it doesn't matter.