This is my own personal opinion, but as I am currently also working on a commercial project, I will say that I actually enjoy working on free projects more.
Why? Because we're not limited by budget or deadlines. Though we did set a deadline for the end of 2013 because the game was about ready to release by then
.
I also got to just have some fun with coming up with extra art for HQ, and it ended up in the game. That won't likely happen as much with commercial projects as art tends to be paid on a per-piece basis.
Now for me, money isn't everything. I make money in my real life job, and doing art for games is something I do as a hobby to keep me busy when I'm not working. Also, I don't really tend to buy games myself, and when I do feel like playing games, I rely on games people have bought for me, or free games. Or I watch Let's Plays. So, given I don't really spend money on games, I'm also happy to make games for free.
The other thing is, if we sold HQ from the get go, less people would play it.
Also, I don't want to lose that enjoyment I get out of making art. If I worked only on commercial games, it might end up being a chore, and I'd probably end up feeling burnt out. The act of creating in itself is incredibly rewarding.
That said, we would like to get the game on to distributors' sites, such as GOG or Steam or Desura so that more people can find our games. Ideally, it'll be free, but that might not be possible.
There is a GOG wishlist by the way, in case you have an account and would like to throw us a vote
:
http://www.gog.com/wishlist/games/heroines_quest_the_herald_of_ragnarok