Let’s take a slice out of the pie and start with Pizza Tower, easily the biggest and zaniest
indie game to come out this year.
This guy is a meme icon, a legend!
And he’s having the time of his life screaming and running in progressively unhinged levels.
Pizza Tower strikes a perfect balance between fun and difficulty.
It’s a tightly-packed platformer with a huge serving of absurdity.
Forget about the storyline and enjoy the wild ride.
A glance at our sauce-slathered hero tells you this isn’t a game that takes itself
too seriously.
Switching gears…
After being an Epic exclusive for a year, Sifu’s release on Steam and Xbox was a great
addition this year.
And with this is an influx of new players who are ready to take a beating.
Sifu is not a casual game.
You’ll be surprised at how it will test your patience with increasingly challenging
feats.
It’s a game that doesn’t pull any punches, literally.
Next are two seaborne adventures that you’re likely to have heard about.
First is Dredge, a fun and relaxing fishing adventure by day, a Lovecraftian horror at
night.
The mechanics is simple: catch fish, upgrade your boat, and catch some more.
But as you venture farther and risk the dark of nights, the ocean transforms into a haunting
abyss.
Dredge is short; you can finish it in about 10 hours.
Its success demonstrates that you can create a memorable and immersive experience without
a long game.
Proof that sometimes, less can indeed be more.
If you like funny games, there’s another game you might like: Dave the Diver.
It’s one of those games that feels like two games in one.
By day, you’re diving into an ever-changing seascape for fish.
And by night, you take your catch and serve them at a sushi bar you set up with friends.
Plus, a lot more weird minigames in between.
Compared to Pizza Tower, you actually get to know the characters.
For all its silliness, the story, told through its visual novel cutscenes, has a whole lot
of heart.
Now let’s draw our blades for Bleak Sword DX, a refreshing take of the hack-and-slash
and roguelike genres.
It’s cool, has lightning-fast combat, and demented pixel charm like no other.
Bleak Sword might have spent most of its time on Apple Arcade, but this Switch and PC port
does not feel like a mobile game.
It has new story beats, new game modes, and many gameplay and graphical improvements to
its already slick design.
For all you horror junkies out there, Killer Frequency is the bone-chilling game you need.
It’s a slow-burn where you play a DJ jamming out to 80s music, while a killer is out to
get you.
Who said radio is dead?
As silly as it sounds, Killer Frequency’s unique setting in a radio station is what
sets it apart.
The growing tension and that eerie feeling of isolation is sure to send shivers down
your spine.
If this is too dark for you, try out Bramble: The Mountain King for a dose of scenic scares.
Think of it as Little Nightmares, but it takes place in a twisted fairytale with gnomes,
trolls, and nymphs.
Yes, there are fun puzzles for you to solve… and there’s also that lingering dread that
will keep you on edge.
It’s a short game, but packs a punch, and doesn’t overstay its welcome.
Moving on from horror titles, we have Viewfinder, a unique indie game that puts a new spin on
reality.
This game is all about perspectives.
With a polaroid camera at hand, your only way across its many levels is by finding the
right angle.
This fresh concept is made better by puzzles that become more complex as more of the story
is revealed.
Let’s dial back the clock with Desktop Dungeons: Rewind, a remaster of a cult classic.
Remember controlling those pixel heroes ten years ago?
Well, they’re back with a new life breathed into their epic adventures.
Rewind polishes the original gameplay with modern tweaks and a visual overhaul that caters
to today’s players.
There’s really a lot of work put into this game.
And, I say, it’s a must-play for roguelike and strategy fans.
If you like good-looking adventures like Limbo and INSIDE, you should check this out.
Planet of Lana is not just a game, it's an audio-visual experience like no other in this
list.
You play as Lana on a quest to save her sister with the help of a creature named Mui.
I don't want to spoil the story so I'll keep this short.
Even though the puzzles are easy-to-solve, it excels in great visuals, story, and music.
A Space for the Unbound has no shortage of vision and heart.
It tells us an ambitious story that takes us around 90s Indonesia, and even through
the consciousness of its characters.
Where it really shines is in its story.
A kind of coming of age that has so many cute moments while also tackling themes of anxiety
and self-doubt that many of us can sympathize with.
All of it culminates in a beautiful ending that may just stay with you for a long, long
time.
For a trippy puzzle experience, meet HUMANITY.
You play as this Shiba Inu guiding a mob of damned souls toward salvation.
Direct them to turn, jump, climb...whatever it takes.
Now, a lot of them will get crushed, fall off the platform, and perish.
It's like a puzzle for your brain and your conscience.
HUMANITY can be challenging at times but not too frustrating.
It even has a VR mode if you're into that...?
Ever fantasized about ruling a kingdom?
Then try King’s Dilemma: Chronicles, transforming the tabletop experience into an in-depth political
sim.
Control the fate of your realm through difficult decisions that will make your head spin.
With more than 300 headache-inducing scenarios, there’s no way you’d be wearing that crown.
Unless…
…you want to raise a princess.
If a king simulator is too daunting, then maybe being a dad in Volcano Princess is more
your speed.
Raise your daughter to be the best she can be.
The activities, interactions, and the many decisions that you make will shape her future.
Teaching her life’s biggest lessons is as pivotal as maintaining a kingdom.
But if you thrive in politics, why not topple empires with King of the Castle.
We end this list with a party game that will put the last seasons of Game of Thrones to
shame.
Play with 3 to 24 players in a bloody fight for the Monarchy.
Scheme, backstab, and manipulate your way to the top.
Remember though, this game is not responsible for any lost friendships.
But if it’s the politics that you enjoy the most, why not sabotage empires with King
Of The Castle?
We end this list with a party game that feels like a new season of Game of Thrones.
Without the dragons.
Play with 3 to 24 players in a sinister fight for the Monarchy.
It’s fun twisting the realm to your advantage and backstabbing other players as long as
you come out on top.
This bloody scheming may bring the best out of your game night, but it might result in
you losing friends.
Let’s start with Pizza Tower, easily the biggest and the zaniest indie game to come
out this year.
This guy is a meme icon, a legend, and he’s having the time of his life screaming and
running in levels that feel like a fever dream.
Pizza Tower isn’t hard, nor is it too easy.
It’s a tightly packed platformer that enjoys how whimsy it could be.
You don’t have to think too much about its story and how comical our main character is.
It’s just a wild ride.
At first glance, you can already tell it’s not a game that takes itself seriously.
After being an Epic exclusive for a year, Sifu’s release on Steam and Xbox was also
a great addition this year.
Just so we’re clear, Sifu is an indie game and not a AAA release.
Hard to tell which is which nowadays, huh?
And with that, we’re already enjoying its influx of players who are ready to take a
beating.
Sifu is not a casual game.
You might be surprised at how Sifu tests your patience with its increasingly challenging
feats.
It’s a game that doesn’t pull its punches, literally.
For something that feels a bit refreshing for action-packed indies, Bleak Sword DX fits
our standard.
It's cool, it has satisfying fast-paced combat and it’s taking its pixel charm to a maximum.
Bleak Sword may have shared most of its time on Apple Arcade, but with this PC port, it
features new story beats and a handful of dynamic gameplay changes to its slick design.
Killer Frequency is a pretty interesting horror game.
What we loved about this is that it’s not the usual spooky formula where we get jumpscared
every minute or two.
Instead, it’s a slow-burn where we play as a local DJ, jamming to new wave 80s music,
all while a killer is out to get you.
As silly as it sounds, it’s not everyday a horror story takes place in a radio station.
That’s where Killer Frequency shines.
The tension and the feeling of isolation is enough to give the heebie jeebies.
If Killer Frequency is too scary, Bramble: The Mountain King’s lighthearted scares
deserves praise.
Think of it like Little Nightmares, but it takes place in a twisted fairytale land with
Gnomes and Nymphs.
There’s a lot of fun solving its puzzles, and the lingering dread from these Nordic
nightmares is something that keeps us on our toes.
It’s a pretty short game, but the experience is solid and it doesn’t overstay its welcome.
Enough with horror titles, Viewfinder is one of the many unique indie game experiences
that doesn’t involve us bringing a diaper or two.
It’s a game that tests the way we see things.
Perspective is the gameplay, and making our way through its multiple levels is all about
finding the right angle.
It’s a refreshing concept that’s also made better with its emotional narrative.
Desktop Dungeons was a cult classic in its time.
We used to remember controlling these adorable pixel heroes 10 years ago.
They may be tiny, but their adventures were anything but small.
Rewind not only refines most of its gameplay with quality of life upgrades, it also freshens
up its visual design to appease modern gamers.
There’s really a lot of work put into this game, and if you’re interested with the
roguelike and strategy genres, try this game out.
Who doesn’t want to be king?
If you’re familiar with its tabletop version, you’d know that wearing that crown in The
King’s Dilemma is a very big responsibility.
Chronicles transforms the tabletop experience into an in-depth political sim where you control
the state of the realm by making tough choices.
Unlike the tabletop, they’re not holding back on its content.
With over 300 headache-inducing scenarios, there’s no way we’d be wearing that crown
again.
Unless…
…you want to raise a princess.
If a king simulator is too stressful of a job, how about a Dad simulator?
Volcano Princess’ is a wholesome indie game where you raise your daughter to be the very
best version she can be.
Of course, that all depends on your choices.
As she matures over the course of the game, teaching her life’s biggest lessons is as
pivotal as maintaining a kingdom.