Fantastic titles made by people in their bedrooms.
You must log in or register to comment.
Uh… I swear I wanted to contribute just 2 or 3 games, but as I wrote, I kept remembering one gem after another… oh well… :)
Outer Wilds - So hard to describe, it’s an exploration game, but what you’re exploring is a star system going supernova, in a wooden spaceship no less. And a strange way of (not) time travel is also involved, which could be the root of the whole game loop.
Axiom Verge - A platformer that is such a labor of love that it hits just the perfect mix of approachability, exploration, story development and that “huh?” factor where right until the end you’re not sure what your abilities actually mean - i.e. if you could glitch through walls in the real world, would that imply the real world is a simulation?
Stardew Valley - A somehow utterly satisfying farming simulator in the style of the first Harvest Moon games. Such a nice getaway game - it begins with your avatar quitting their office job and moving to a farm inherited from their grandfather. No taxes, no boss, no stress, just rise with the sun, plant, water, harvest and fix. Change your rhythm with the weather and the seasons, investigate charming little mysteries of a beautiful place.
Broforce - Another platformer, this one a bit more brutal. Far over the top 80s action heroes bring freedom to the world, but whether you play as Robocop, Schwarzenegger, McGyver, Snake Plissken, Ripley or another 50 heroes is almost random and each hero has completely different weapons and skills. Destructible environment and even a large Xenomorph outbreak (how the heck did they get the license or grant?).
Protolife - This one uses such a madly simple recipe for complex gameplay. Seen top-down, you’re a robotic loader than can put down dots. That’s all. But certain arrangements of dots are guns, long range guns, flame throwers, area denial, missile silos, barriers and so on. You’re attacked by insect-like creatures, but instead of building tanks, you have to attack via well-placed guns slowly pushing the swarming enemies back.
Alien Shooter 2 Reloaded - Simple top-down shooter where you’re the lone soldier seeking to contain an alien outbreak. Goes for the time-honed recipe of character stat upgrades (speed, health, accuracy) and purchasing weapons and weapon upgrades. The interesting part is the insane hordes you’re up against and that all the corpses stay. It’s not unusual for entire corridors to turn into flesh hallways of blood and carapaces.
Moons of Madness - I hope this is actually indie, the graphics are near AAA level. It’s 50% walking simulator, 50% cosmic horror, set on Mars. You’re an astronaut doing maintenance on an outpost, but rather than go for the “freaky alien attack” recipe, reality itself seems to be somehow bending. Cthulhu, is that you?
Lumencraft - Top-down game. You begin as a miner in an underground base. Something really bad happened to humanity and now you’re digging underground for metal and for “lumen.” To feed the reactor that keeps humanity alive, you have to meet harvesting goals and dig tunnels, but various enemies attack in waves, so you have to spend part of your resources on fortifications and turrets and avoid opening up too many avenues into your bases.
Carrion - 2D platformer-ish. In a secret place, scientists are holding a horrific, tentacled bioweapon locked away, but it escapes. Twist: you are the tentacled bioweapon, slithering through pipes, circumventing security systems and trying to escape from the lab.
Nuclear Blaze - 2D platformer. You’re a fireman sent to contain a fire the broke out in some kind of installation in a forest. But one building has a shaft that leads deep underground where a high-end containment facility is suffering a failure. Takes place in the “SCP” universe and your only tool is a fire hose. Extremely fun trying to extinguish fires in a way where they won’t spread again.
Mothergunship - This is a first-person shooter where you’re bording and destroying (from the inside out) an army of AI space ships. But instead of a traditional gun, you have gun parts you can stick together. How about a triple rocket launcher with two shotguns in the middle? Or a shield generating laser with a sawblade attache to it, and maybe two shotguns just to be sure? It doesn’t grow old with new weapon parts being introduced right until the very end.
Space Run - 2D base building. You’re a mercenary cargo pilot fending off space pirates. But you don’t do it by controlling a turret, instead, your spaceship is a building surface and you have to build the right kind of engines, turrets, shields and power generators (in mid-flight no less) to be able to shoot down incoming rocks and pirate ships. Extremely well balanced and fun.
Creeper World - 3D real-time strategy. But your enemy is not actually present on the map, you’re just fighting a simulation of liquid, a gooey slime that pours out of several spots. You have to keep shooting, bombarding and containing the splashing, pouring slime until you can neutralize the slime outlets. The story is cool, too. The slime is actually some extinct species “gift” to the universe which dissolves everything into data, transmitted to some eternal storage space at the center of the universe.
man.
i’m not saying you didn’t run into quality posts on reddit, but this is the kind of post i see way more often here and it makes these spaces way more enjoyable.
nice work, definitely going to try a few of these out!
That’s just anecdotal. Be careful as a lot of these answers are often written by bots / ads in disguised.
this is a great post. I do think the outer wilds description is a smidge spoilery. I know, people figure that out pretty quickly but it’s still a neat experience if going in blind
Stardew Valley by a long shot.
Hollow Knight is up there too.
Don’t forget minecraft was originally just one guy. 15ish years ago. In Java.
Now over 600 people work on it.
I recently bought stardew valley and its fun but the farming grind feels kinda forced, no? I feel like I need to pay attention to not loose myself in the game which defeats the purpose.
What is your experience there?
I used to find it kinda stressful until i realised there was no time limit to the game like the usual harvest moons so once I realised that, I never find myself rushing around or overextending my ability to farm to grind more and just focused on what I was enjoying in the game which was a bit of everything.
Can relate. It’s the same for me but I have to constantly remind myself of the fact which is why I cant relax, sadly.
There is sort of a time limit though, you get your “review” at the end of the second year (at which point no new events happen). Also getting things planted in time for when the seasons change etc is kind of time-limiting.
But that’s all detail, it’s great that people can enjoy it without time pressures!
You can also get a new “review” whenever you want after that.
Well that’s probably a good thing for playing casually. I think end of year 2 is the earliest though, so that’s kind of a “soft” deadline.
Really? That sucks I’m sure I’m on year 3 and I’ve had events happen
Were they things that don’t usually happen in years 1 and 2? I guess they could just be stuff that was added since I last played!
I only really played early on, not dabbled with it properly in years but I do remember things happening. It’s not like I could only get things to happen in the first two years in game
I usually put off doing too much farming until I have a decent sprinkler setup.
Outer Wilds and Hollow Knight share the spotlight for greatest games of all time. Both are as close to perfect as it gets.
Bastion gets an honorable mention. Not sure if SuperGiant Games is considered indie anymore, especially now that Hades hit big, but I love their early work.
Bastion was definitely indie when it was made so it counts
Don’t forget about Transistor and Pyre.
Has Super Giant ever made a flop? Just all outstanding games all around.
No other game has had the impact on my way of thinking more than Outer Wilds.
Came here to say Outer Wilds. That game is a masterpiece and I encourage anyone and everyone to try it. Only two things I’ll say are this: The less you know about it going in, the better the experience. The DLC is also worth it.
The less you know about it going in, the better the experience.
This includes the knowledge that it’s good. You should forget that people praise it everywhere because that has a potential of ruining the experience. It did for me, somehow.
It’s one of those I downloaded, played 10 minutes of, and then got distracted by something else. I’ve done a good job avoiding spoilers, I’ll check it out next.
That’s actually very ironic, the game needs about half an hour to get you hooked and yet so many people quit it beforehand. You’ll understand what I mean when you play it
Interestingly enough, I did the same thing. When it launched, I was big into piracy and had a shitty job to pay for games with. Played until I could fly the ship, flew into the sky, then promptly lost control of my ship and didn’t touch it again for at least half a decade. So glad I bought it and played it without spoilers!
Came here super late to ask: how? I played it and after discovering most of the things in game I couldn’t continue without guides (not good with puzzle games). I also don’t get attached to characters that can’t move with a few lines of dialog (no I’m not a psychopath, OneShot’s endings always give me mixed emotions for a few days). I’m not looking to argue I just want an answer
FTL, Rimworld.
I have about 5000 hours just on these two
FTL sucked me in for a few years. I still have yet to get the crystal cruiser
FTL and to a lesser extent their second game Into The Breach.
RNG heavy strategy games with lots of micromanaging.
I loved both FTL and Into The Breach but I think I preferred the latter. What makes you like FTL more? (not arguing, just interested)
Personally one of the aspects I enjoy a lot in FTL is managing my power levels mid-fight (Do I need my oxygen powered right now? I could probably turn it off until the fight is over…) I don’t know if any other game that has you shuffling around power like that.
Oh yeah I forgot about that!
I redownload ITB after this thread and have been playing it. I might bust out FTL next because I apparently forgot how to play it lol
I had a harder time getting good at and staying interested in ITB. I still really enjoy a playthrough every now and then.
With FTL I guess it just feels more replayable and “on edge” to me. There is just something special about ftl runs, be it overpowered, under powered. There are so many ships, weapons, systems, and crew combinations that no run really feels the same.
The same could be said about ITB and their different mech teams but I guess it just doesn’t have the same feel. ITB feels like I’m selling my services to big corporations with saving people as an after note. FTL feels like a suicide mission for the fate of the galaxy and I think that feeling is what really makes me come back to FTL.
FTL is the modern Oregon trail in space. It’s just so good.
Because nobody else has mentioned it yet: Dust: An Elysian Tail.
Made almost entirely by one person, and that honestly makes it all the more impressive.
Dust is great, but it’s deeply flawed.
The art is phenomenal, but the writing is cringeworthy. I loved it as a teenager but I have a hard time taking it seriously now. I wish I never replayed it so I could have kept my nostalgia.
The combat mechanics are fun and feel amazing when played as intended, but they’re massively unbalanced. IIRC with two exceptions (enemies that require a parry to enter a vulnerable state) every single fight can be won flawlessly by spamming Dust Storm even on the highest difficulty.
It’s a remarkable game, all the more so since it was only one dev. I 100%'ed it, and it sits in a place of honor in my collection, but it’s not one I’ll ever return to.
From memory I do remember things getting ludicrously easy if you levelled Fidget right up. And I don’t recall the writing at all. Likely just nonsense to move the plot along while opening up new areas.
But as a one man effort, it’s incredible. Especially the art style, which normally falls into the pixel art or just plain ugly when it comes to the 1-2 man indie games.
Agreed. The art looks straight out of an anime, and Dust’s combat animations are really smooth and satisfying. I think the cutscenes looked really good, too, but it’s been long enough that I don’t remember.
I had a quick look on YouTube and they’re not bad at all. It’s hardly Baldur’s Gate 3, but it doesn’t look out of place next to most of the AA Ubisoft 2D games that had dozens of people working on them.
Spiritfarer. Probably one of the most touching games I’ve ever played. What Remains of Edith Finch. Stardew Valley. Firewatch.
Return of the Obra Dinn. City Game Studio. Until the Last Plane and Full Metal Sergeant (by the same dev).
Factorio. Help I got 4k hours and I still get cravings.
Honorable mentions.
Rimworld, Dyson sphere program, Minecraft (before it became microcrap)
I think we‘re the same person! :D
Jokes aside, I wholeheartedly agree. 500 hrs in factorio but rw and dsp are awesome. Mc used to be. I like mineclone though.
Hit me up if you wanna play something together some time.
Inside, Subnautica
adding Ori
I’m replaying subnautica after a few years since my first playthrough. I thought that it was more of a one-time experience than a replayable game but enough time has passed that my memory is more of a general feeling than remembering specifically where everything is, so it’s been surprisingly engaging. Without even trying, I’m pretty sure the way I’m going through everything is different from my last playthrough, too.
i finished the game without hatching eggs so that’s something I’d do on my next play, i also missed the large strider crab creatures on my first play. going into the spinoff game, I’m taking advantage of all the new tech before progressing the story because i managed to get halfway through the first one without crafting a proper base
Yeah, the one achievement I’m missing is hatching a certain egg so I’ve been collecting eggs this time around. Just got the alien containment, so I guess it’s time to start at that.
I’ve just built my second base. I only had one in my first playthrough, but I built more for sub zero and realized there’s nothing really stopping me from building a ton of them other than how much time I want to spend gathering the resources for it.
I’m considering trying to go to the end without a Cyclops sub since I’ve already got the max depth for the seamoth, though I need to find those deep mushrooms again for the defense shock that would be essential for that. Though now that I think of it, the Cyclops was probably why I didn’t build a second base and the lack of Cyclops was probably why I ended up building more bases in sub zero.
Just finished my first permadeath vegan play through (never caught a single fish, though I admit I ran over a few hundred).
hello, were you also inspired by poor dunce’s vegan Skyrim playthrough?
No, haven’t seen it, but will check it out.
Oh wow, are there any non-fish foods other than the nutrient blocks and those trees on the surface? Can you fabricate the blocks at any point? I can’t remember if the first one has the indoor grow plots for surface plants like sub zero does.
I guess the main question I’m getting at is if you can do this without having to travel to the surface to stuff your face with trees or being very strategic with the nutrient blocks you find?
So, the first 30 minutes go like this. Find the stuff to make and craft the knife, scanner, fins, air tanks, and building tool.
You can eat kelp and make bleach>water w salt and coral to stay alive, though it’s a LOT of kelp.
Then head straight to southern island to scan the multipurpose room, indoor and outdoor grow beds, and grab lantern fruit and marble mellons.
You can then build a base and grow all the food you will ever need. I stock up on a ton of bleach and make water as needed, though the food also restores some hydration.
I usually have this done before the Aurora explodes.
Once you have the cyclops you can plant in there as well. Three lantern fruit trees per base is all the food you will need in the game, and marble melons have a lot of water.
The only thing you miss out on really is the emergency air bladder, as that requires a fish. To make up for it I carry a second air tank when diving deep or exploring wrecks. I also build outdoor grow beds w brain corals in strategic places as emergency air supplies.
Honestly, I started it as a lark, and found it so enjoyable because I never get distracted chasing down and catching fish.
oooh, yes!! i forgot Inside. i loved that game.
juicy atmosphere and environmental storytelling, my favourite >:)
I guess it depends on your definition of indie some, but here are mine:
Guacamelee 1 & Guacamelee 2 - The humor is mixed but the gameplay is just so damn tight
Shovel Knight - Growing up on games like Mega Man and Duck Tales, Shovel Knight feels like it was made specifically for me.
Celeste - One of my favorite gaming experiences. Great story, great gameplay, and hard as fuck. Incredible accessibility options also.
Recettear: An Item Shop - I don’t know anyone else who has played this game but it’s so damn good. I love it.
Stardew Valley - The way ConcernedApe continues to add free content to this game makes this easily one of the best values in gaming, but this game would still be great even if content updates had stopped a long time ago. Have to play on PC though for mods; the default walking speed makes the game unplayable for me.
I also put years into a now-defunct multi-user-dungeon called Arythia, but that’s kind of it’s own whole thing so I don’t think that counts.
edit: I can’t believe I forgot to include Hades, which is literally one of my all-time favorite games.
If you like Recettear then you would like Moonlighter. It’s the same game but made a decade later.
Moonlighter
AND it’s 85% off as part of the spring sale. As a lover of Recettear this was an easy buy for me.
Ooooo good tip, thank you!
Oooh, MUDs! I used to play 1 or two, don’t even remember their name now…
Yeah I played a few, but arythia was my “main” and the only one I still remember the name and details of. But it was also run by a group of kids just slightly older than me out of a local tech school that I knew about via a connection I made in local theatre, so arythia had a much more concrete “real world” feel to me than any of the other completely random MUDs I played.
Dead Cells
Terraria
Hollow Knight
Risk of Rain (both 1 and 2)
Hades
Factorio
Balatro (my newest addiction)
Balatro but not Slay the Spire?
I’m too dumb for StS, Balatro hits that sweet spot in difficulty for me
You say that, but I never made a spreadsheet to optimize my Slay the Spire runs. Balatro is way harder and more random.
Still fun though. I’m 50 hours into Balatro and loving every minute of it. Just made a hand calc spreadsheet last night as I’m pushing into blue stakes and need to optimize every move to keep the numbers going up.
Playing on the gold stake, I think I don’t make it past the first ante like 80% of the time. I might be too greedy or just bad at the game, but in StS I can make a decent run on ascension 20 at a much higher rate.
You should be able to play Flushes, Straights, or Full Houses and win in the first Ante without any buffs. Does the -1 hand size from Gold Stake really hurt that much?
Finding two of those hands with a smaller hand and fewer discards is much harder. I could be miscalculating odds for sure though.
Slay the Spire but no Monster Train?
Slay the Spire is the gold standard for me, at least. I haven’t played Monster Train – it doesn’t look that appealing to me, but I’ve heard good things.
It’s very similar in some ways in the surface, but pretty different in essence. I like both. STS is more hardcore and “strict” and choices matter more, MT is more chill, relying on a single good combo usually, but with very high ceiling for broken fun things. I prefer MT more to unwind.
Since I don’t see anyone mentions it.
Tunic. The shortcuts are so cleverly hidden that allows you to easily break the sequence in your next playthrough. The manual translation felt just like back when I tried to understand japanese game manuals that come with game boy cartridges.
Chain of Echoes. A one man RPG game with a unique combat system that has great quality of life.
I was kinda frustrated by Tunic. Not gonna lie. It’s clearly a masterpiece but you have to play old school and write every single little thing down. Go back and forth for days.
Chains of Echoes is tied with Chrono Trigger for best JRPG of all time and my mind won’t be changed. Now if only anything else could soothe that itch. I love that you absolutely never 'Just click Attack’s over and over to save MaNa.
Tied with Chrono Trigger? That’s some insanely high praise. Why do you say that, exactly? I’ve never played Chained Echoes, so just curious. Chrono Trigger is my favorite game of all time.
Just everything, honestly.
The battle system for starters is constantly asking you to think smart. You’ve a gauge that you have to keep centered to be “in the flow” such that you can’t blindly use the best attack every time. You always start every battle with full health and mana - so you never have to ration between fights. Which adds up that every fight can be difficult. There is no cannon fodder.
You level up as the story progresses so you can’t simply grind to a higher level. There is a level system but it’s more a skill mastery one It respects your time in that you will never need to grind for anything.
The puzzles are difficult enough to be challenging but not so much that you will ever need a strategy guide.
The story is relatable without being convoluted. Each character has realistic goals, and interests. There is no clear “I’m evil because fuck you I’m evil”. There is no clear good guy either, and you will see what I mean if you finish the story.
The world makes sense and has no suspension or disbelief moments. Speaking of it’s a world in which both Dragons and Giant frickin robots are both natural, and they make sense.
I absolutely loathe when a JRPG Battle System demands that I either save everything so that I have MaNa for the boss fight, or makes it so that you should just click ‘Attack’ every time with no reason. I also loathe random battles. This has none - you choose which monsters to fight, and they don’t come right back.
I literally could not put it down for any length of time until I had hit 100% of everything. A tall order for a game that took me almost 100 hours when I’m a full time adult with kids.
Goddamn. I’ll have to try it out. The story is by far the most important part of any JRPG for me, though.
Inscryption
You are in a weird cabin in the middle of the woods playing a card game with your fate on the line. Some of your cards are talking to you and comment on how you play.
Then things get weird.
For those that like Inscryption, honorable mention for Hand of Fate 1 & 2
I’m not any good at deck building games, but my girlfriend is pretty close to platinuming it on PS4 and I have to say, that game just gets weirder and weirder.
Daniel Mullins will be recognized as a true artist in the coming generations.
Literally never have I seen such detailed, years pre-planned and perfectly delivered mind fuckery.
Across ALL of his games.
He’s insane in the best way.
LIke a modern David Lynch with better grasp of aesthetics.
