Indie recommendations Hub

[Yousef Yousef]

 

[RustySK]

Since it's my current obsession:
I can't recommend UFO 50 enough - it's a collection of 50 NES-style games of various genres where each individual title at the very least has *something* interesting and/or original going on.

From a traditional Beat 'em Up to a Pocky & Rocky-style shmup, to a 4X game, to a sokoban puzzler, to a golf metroidvania... thing, the list goes on.

Not all of them land perfectly and quite a few of them are hard as nails, but there are genuinely so many gems in here, it's crazy. If you're at all into oldschool console gaming, definitely check this one out.
(Just... do yourself a favour and skip Barbuta if you do)

I had never heard of Ruffy and the Riverside before, I'll check that one out asap! The visual style has me thinking of Goblet Grotto of all things.

 

[LastValsion]

Post any of your indie game recommendations regardless of platform. Feel free to post why you like them and any other relevant information.

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I will start off with some of my recommendations:

Elin - A game made the original creator of Elona, which is Noa. Elin is considered to be a prequel of Elona lore-wise. Elin is currently in early access and has frequent updates and bug fixes along with workshop support. The game has the traditional roguelike flair (with options to change it), crafting, survival elements, and base building/management

Game Link: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2135150/Elin/

ASTLIBRA Revision - A 2D action RPG that could be considered Metroidvania-like in its design. Gameplay features learning abilities from weapons/armor, skill upgrading, summoning, stat grinding, and plenty of large enemy boss fights with an interesting postgame. Movement and attacking feel very smooth, with them being affected by weight, as you can get slowed down depending on what you are using or wearing

Game Link: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1718570/ASTLIBRA_Revision/

Quasimorph - Far into the future, space is now privatized, with corporations actively seizing control of the solar system and trying to extend their reach further beyond its boundaries. As Magnum PMC, you alone decide who to work for and what benefits will help you the most as you manage your ship and craft items along the way. Quasimorph is a mix of turn-based roguelike RPG with extraction as its twist. Dying on a mission can make you lose everything you took on the mission, while living and extracting allows you to keep everything you looted

Game Link: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2059170/Quasimorph/

 

[DanVzare]

Here's the list of lesser known indie games I've enjoyed the most. They'd all easily make it into my top 50 favorite games of all time.


Lakeview Cabin Collection - A side scrolling adventure game parodying all of the popular slashers from the 80s. In each "movie" you have four characters you can freely switch between, and you have to figure out how to defeat the monster.
Game Link

Duck Game - Imagine Worms crossed with Smash Bros. A fast action multiplayer platformer-shooter thing.
Game Link

Crime Reaper - A cross between a zebra puzzle with sudoku, with a murder mystery coat of paint.
Game Link

Contraption Maker - Basically a new version of The Incredible Machine. Design Rube Goldberg like contraptions to solve puzzles.
Game Link

 

[Elwiwi]

Stardew valley

 

[Super Funky Piece]

CrossCode
fantastic action RPG and one of my favourite games in recent years. takes place in a fictional MMO with the protagonist unable to fully speak (a few words become possible) and begins investigating parts of the game tied to her scattered memories. has quite some twists and turns at it goes with a very unique and captivating shift in the premise by the end. combat can take some getting used to but offers a wide range of builds as you progress, constantly iterating on your basic moves with new elemental powers. the dungeon puzzle design intertwined with the element abilities is some of the best i've ever played.

 

[Veedoofthedum]

I know this starts to become mainstream but...

ULTRAKILL is what I would recommend if you like doom like first person shooters. Great game mechanics, lots of secrets and AWESOME soundtracks. Game is no means easy, but most who have said they are not great on retro fps games have played fairly well so no need to be scared Oh yeah there's also a timer for levels and devil may cry style "style" meter Retro graphics are also fun

 

[bjork]

Eastshade - imagine Oblivion, but there's no Oblivion gates. There's also no combat. Also everyone is an animal person. Also instead of uniting a kingdom or whatever, your objective is to paint landscapes from locations your dead mother wished you would go and see some time. It's really relaxing and doesn't overstay its welcome.

Taiji - 2D with a bird's eye perspective, "island full of puzzles" game that's an homage to The Witness. If you liked that, you'll probably like this too.

Super Amazing Wagon Adventure - Oregon Trail but crazy. It's fun and funny. Anything more would spoil the fun

Moonring - I can't tell you much about it because I haven't played much myself, but it's an older style RPG and I have to admit that the look and the use of colors is what made me pick it up. But I have high hopes for it.

:THE LONGING: - a game where your king tells you he is going to sleep, and to wake him up in 400 days, which play out in real time. So you can quit out and come back in 400 days and see the ending, or slowly walk around and figure out the world's puzzles. It's an interesting concept for sure.

Islands of the Caliph - first person RPG that, again, the visual look is what got me to check it out. Only played a couple hours so far but it seems solid, but perhaps not the deepest thing ever.

Galacticon - arcade style game about rescuing stranded people from planets, visually it's kind of like if Joust and Defender had a baby, kinda? It's really fun and gets tough in a hurry, but it's great.

Broken Reality - it's a walking simulator that's full of vaporwave stuff and I *love* it

Directly Drink Milk From Cow - it is made by probably one guy and it is most definitely broken in a lot of ways, but it's a game about working at a cow farm. Or, if you're me, doing anything besides the actual objectives. I can't say it's "good" in any way, but I have fun every time I fire it up.

 

[Cu-Neo]

"Demon Turf" a really good 3D platformer

It is available on everything (PC, Switch Xbox and Playstation)

 

[TheWanderer]

Wandering sword
pure cinema

 

[NotGodlike]

Team Ladybug made some great indie games, there's:
1: Touhou Luna Nights
2: Drainus
3: Blade Chimera
They've been on fire recently with Blade Chimera, I like how they mix metroidvania elements with some old-school arcade action on them while making it feel modernised

 

[Stare best girl]

Alien Hominid(I need play the other Behemoth games someday)

it's avaliable on Gamecube, PS2, OG Xbox, GBA, Xbox 360, Switch, PC, Xbox One/Series and PS4/PS5

 

[TerquitelDes]

Dust: an Elysian Tale is one of my favorites, i love the characters, and the world. Is a metroidvania with a really interesting story.
Game Link

Super House of Dead Ninjas, pure arcade style, simple but really fun.
Game Link

Hover, basically is jet set radio online, i love it.
Game Link

 

[_oBSOLEte_]

Why advertise for Steam pages of your favourite indie devs, when that fat Gabe from the store gets a 30% cut?

 

[Deleted member 13897]

All playable on PC, many ported elsewhere.

 

[J0_]

Pseudoregalia is a fantastic n64-styled 3d platformer with a hint of metroidvania. The movement just feels right. I also want to shoutout Lunacid, a fantastic little King's Field-esque first person dungeon crawler

 

[beefbowl]

Save 35% on SANABI on Steam

SANABI is an exhilarating stylish dystopian action-platformer. Play as a legendary retired veteran and use your signature prosthetic arm to jump over cliffs and skyscrapers, zip through bullets and traps and defeat powerful enemies.

store.steampowered.com

Katana Zero's grappling hook-based cousin.

 

[DAME NINGEN]

Exit Fate - Suikoden clone
SoulScape/Mothlight/Orogenesis trilogy - rpg maker games that I'm kind of particularly fond of, especially Mothlight with its soundtrack and main character being my favorite in the series
LISA trilogy - this one's probably known to everyone here
Atom RPG / Trudograd - Fallout but in the old country
Underrail - exploration based loading screen simulator
VA-11 Hall-A - cyberpunk alcoholism enabling symulator
Purrfect Apawcalypse series - silly adventures of fur covered creatures
Blue Omen Operation (DEMO) - dead in the water Mario RPG-esque game drawn by someone who liked PlagueofGripes, probably
Caves of Qud - soothing spreadsheet simulator
Bloodborne PSX - pretty much exactly as it says
Nightmare (formerly Bloodborne) Kart - legally distinct Bloodborne fan game, with lore friendly gokart analogues
Space Wreck - short and sweet cosmonaut rpg
Fallout Resurrection / Nevada / Sonora / Yesterday / Olympus 2207 - Fallout 2 full conversion mods, some more legally distinct than others, all good
Bleak Faith: Forsaken - a game that's just Dark Souls as seen by Tsutomu Nihei (do not mistake with Tower Dungeon, a manga that's just Dark Souls as seen by Tsutomu Nihei)
Dolls Nest (DEMO) - a game that's just Dark Souls as seen by Tsutomu Nihei, this time with Armored Core customization and anime robo loli abominations
Chained Echoes - Chrono Trigger-esque rpg but with mecha and without time travel
Mecha Knights Nightmare - Armored Core meets MuvLuv meets EDF, on a shoestring budget
Brigador - top down cyberpunk (mostly) mecha shooter
Hammer (Walker) (DEMO) - Armored Core-ish proof of concept thing, no idea if it's going anywhere
Vulture -Unlimited Frontier- 0 体験版 (DEMO) - Armored Core-ish proof of concept thing, this one seems to be going somewhere
OMEGA PHENEX COMMENCED PROJECT SIX - Armored Core-ish kind of thing, this one seems to definitely be going somewhere
Kriegsfront Tactics - Prologue (so a DEMO) - Front Mission 6 that should've been

 

[Bakuma1997]

Astral Party: People claims is Mario Party with bazongas, but i recall playing a lot a DS game called Dokapon Kingdom that befits more what it is, basically you play a RPG in a board game with turns and cards, came for the fanservice, ended hooked to gameplay

Omega Strikers: Shonen Soccer, if you feel like playing Inazuma Eleven without playing them, this is for you

Shovel Knight: A Mainstream one, but if people talks about it a lot, it had to do something good, play the Treasure Trove version, having all the DLC in a confortable package

Infernax: A Metroidvania that has more in common with challenging plataforming rather than on exploration and pattern learning (I felt it as more linear than most metroidvanias)

Lonely Wolf Treat Series: Anything Nomnomnami is a rec, but seriously, she has talent into making wholesome stories, this time we deal with a story about carnivore and herbivore discrimination, yet it never goes too far

OFF and Home: two RPG maker liminal RPG's with a uniquely minimalistic overworld, the first one is one that you play more for the story since gameplay is lacking (I literally never grinded at all) but Home, its fangame, give a fansequel that could be a real one with some touch ups

Spark The electric Jester: A nice Sonic-esque plataformer, unique setting and memorable protagonist

Bug Fables: Dissapointed of Paper Mario's Decline? me too, fortunately there is a cute little game about bugs that fills the void, if you liked Hollow Knight, this one is for you, sadly is kinda...buggy *rimshot*

And finally: Pizza Tower, a great Wario game where you will fell like a bullet, nice 90's style animation and a great soundtrack to boot, recently it recieved a Co-op update, so if you want to bring a friend to the Piizza Tower to be driven as mad as Peppino, there is no excuse

 

[Raidou Kuzunoha]

Before you depart.

Short visual novel, initially recommended to me by a friend. It left me with a deep, genuine sorrow, and kind of altered my way I deal with grief. You know that sort of sadness that feels like a gaping black hope collapsed your entire rib-cage? That's what I felt, and you know what? I am glad I did.

It's best go in as blind as possible. It's a very quick read, but the story and message will stay with you for a long time.

 

[Deleted member 13897]

Bug Fables: Dissapointed of Paper Mario's Decline? me too, fortunately there is a cute little game about bugs that fills the void, if you liked Hollow Knight, this one is for you, sadly is kinda...buggy *rimshot*

Thank you I had nearly forgotten Bug Fables! Oh that’s such a good one

 

[Blamhammer]

Saw one of my siblings play Chained Echoes, and it looked pretty good.
They recommended it, I will need to free up some time to check it out.

Chained Echoes

Chained Echoes is a story-driven JRPG where a group of heroes travel around the vast co

www.gog.com

 

[CardcaptorEd2019]

Team Ladybug made some great indie games, there's:
1: Touhou Luna Nights
2: Drainus
3: Blade Chimera
They've been on fire recently with Blade Chimera, I like how they mix metroidvania elements with some old-school arcade action on them while making it feel modernised

They also did Shin Megami Tensei Synchronicity Prologue

 

[Jeanfranc]

Blue Revolver Double Action, the dev knows what makes a shmup good, it's my goty 2024

 

[Ikagura Ikagura]

Blue Revolver Double Action, the dev knows what makes a shmup good, it's my goty 2024

I also like the art style.


The only I got in mind so far is Lunistice: an action/collectathon platformer that is short but cheap.