Cliff Notes – The best indie games for every genre, from platformer to RPG
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Diverse Offerings: Indie games like Neon White and Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 showcase innovative gameplay and storytelling, often surpassing triple-A titles in creativity and engagement.
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Affordability and Accessibility: Many indie titles are available at lower prices, making unique gaming experiences accessible to a wider audience, as seen with games like Outer Wilds and Hades.
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Genre Excellence: Each genre features standout titles, such as Sifu in action and Disco Elysium in narrative, highlighting the breadth of talent and creativity within the indie gaming community.
The best indie games for every genre, from platformer to RPG – Reader’s Feature
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 may well be the best game of the year (Kepler Interactive)
A reader makes a list of what he considers to be the ultimate indie video games, from classics such as Limbo and Celeste to newer titles like Blue Prince.
The spiralling budgets and time required to create triple-A titles has resulted in an industry that has become less risk averse and increasingly reliant on underhanded tactics, like loot boxes and microtransactions to turn a profit.
Fortunately, indie games have taken up the mantle when it comes to providing new and interesting experiences, and they’re often available at a fraction of the price.
So, here is my ultimate guide to the best indie games in each genre.
Platformer
Notable games: Celeste, Inside, Limbo, Pizza Tower, Super Meat Boy
Winner: Neon White
Expert, exclusive gaming analysis
Some strong contenders here, but Neon White’s unique mix of shooting and speed-running combined with its incredible level design ensures that it just pips the opposition.
Action
Notable games: Cuphead, Katana Zero, Superhot, Super Time Force, Vampire Survivors
Winner: Sifu
Sifu can be a punishingly difficult game at times, but thanks to the incredibly satisfying combat mechanics and the unique system in which your character ages with each death, it’s worth investing the time in this sublime action title.
Adventure
Notable Games: Brothers: A Tale Of Two Sons, Death’s Door, Dredge, Journey, Tunic
Winner: Outer Wilds
Outer Wilds offers almost no guidance on what you’re supposed to do and instead lets players head off in any direction they choose to in order to piece together the mysteries of this universe, it’s an experience I’ll never forget.
Role-playing game
Notable Games: Divinity: Original Sin, Sea Of Stars, Undertale, West Of Loathing, Wildermyth
Winner: Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
Clair Obscur would rightly have been lauded even if it had come from a big studio, but the fact that such a small team created a role-playing game with gameplay, visuals and audio as good as this is quite frankly staggering.
Metroidvania
Notable Games: Animal Well, Hollow Knight, Gucamelee, The Messenger, Salt & Sanctuary
Winner: Ori And The Blind Forest
There is often some debate as to whether this is truly an indie game, but there can be no real argument about the game’s quality. The controls are superbly tight, and when you add the beautiful graphics and lovely musical score you have one of the best metroidvanias money can buy.
Roguelike
Notable Games: Cult Of The Lamb, Dead Cells, Loop Hero, Hades 2, The Binding Of Isaac
Winner: Hades
In what is arguably the most crowded genre in the indie game space, Hades’ excellent combat, endless variety of weapon/upgrade combinations, and cleverly orchestrated narrative ensure it remains top of the pile.
Puzzle
Notable Games: Braid; Papers, Please; Pony Island; Return Of The Obra Dinn; The Case Of The Golden Idol
Winner: Blue Prince
There has been no shortage of interesting puzzle game from indie developers, but for my money Blue Prince takes the crown thanks to its more open-ended gameplay and the endless secrets waiting to be discovered.
Strategy
Notable Game: Frostpunk, FTL, Stacklands, Tactical Breach Wizards, The Banner Saga
Winner: Into The Breach
With most missions lasting a maximum of just five turns, Into The Breach ensures that every move you make is absolutely vital and ultimately manages to distil the genre down to its purest form.
Deck Builder
Notable Games: Balatro, Inscryption, Monster Train, Monster Train 2, Shogun Showdown
Winner: Slay The Spire
For pure addictiveness, Balatro can’t really be beaten, but Slay The Spire just offers a little more variety and depth and for my money remains the best deck builder available.
Narrative
Notable Games: Citizen Sleeper, Road 96, The Stanley Parable, What Remains Of Edith Finch, Kentucky Route Zero
Winner: Disco Elysium
The success of narrative led games depends almost entirely on having a well written script and interesting characters, and Disco Elysium absolutely nails both. The fact that events can play out very differently depending on player choices also gives it a level of replayabilty that games in this genre rarely have.
Crafting/Survival
Notable Games: Don’t Starve, Stardew Valley, Terraria, This War Of Mine, Year Walk
Winner: Subnautica
Another very crowded genre in the indie space, especially on PC, but Subnautica stands at the top of the pile thanks to it more scripted storyline and incredibly detailed game world.
By reader drlowdon
Subnautica is a classic double-A indie game (Unknown Worlds Entertainment)
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