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There's a certain irony to asking this question on a site where people volunteer their time to help fellow gamedevs without compensation. ;)

It's okay to value a thing and find it fulfilling even if you don't get paid for it.

If I wanted to maximize my income, there are many fields I'd be better-advised to work in than game development. ;)

Instead, for me at least, I do it for the love of the challenge of gamedev itself, and for the love of play.

Seeing folks enjoy a game I've worked on is a huge win for me, even when there's not a penny attached to it:

By sharing this game freely, it's gotten more people playing & enjoying & sharing it than I expect it would have even at a miniscule price, which for me (since I have a full-time game development job to support my livelihood separate from these hobby games) is a worthwhile trade.

Of course, there are also capitalistic reasons to share stuff freely too:

testing the waters to see if there's interest in the concept & gather feedback for a future commercial version

offering a "free sample" as marketing for such a commercial version or expansion

building a visible portfolio & reputation to demonstrate your skills to potential employers

fostering & entertaining an audience of followers that you can leverage to access future opportunities

...but my point is that these aren't the only things that can make it satisfying and worthwhile.

Sharing content for free might not enrich my bank account, but I believe/hope, in some small way, it enriches the world.