Welcome! Itās that most famous of national holidays, Indie Penance Day! The day on which major gaming websites attempt to make up for their AAA coverage by dedicating space to unknown indies. Any gaming site you see not joining in both hates indie developers, and America. Not us though, so read on for a whole bunch of games youāll want to wishlist or buy.
If youāve been with us on one of these splendid journeys before, youāll know that I am not endorsing nor reviewing any of these games, and have not played them unless stated otherwise. If youāre new, you now know that too. These are games sent in when I let loose the clarion call, that look well worth further attention. Starting with…
Poly Vita
Developer: Alejandro Zielinsky
Out: Now
Well, hereās lovely. Existing on the midpoint of Tomb Raider GO and Monument Valley is Poly Vita, a puzzle game where you rearrange the levelās tiles to build your characterās path.
Itās by Alejandro Zielinsky, and is out on iOS and Android already, and in the process of being ported to Steam
Olliefrog Toad Skater
Developer: Mr. Thee
Out: Late 2023
While I do not feel neither frog nor toadkind will take kindly to this conflation, Olliefrog Toad Skater looks like the CUTEST skateboarding game. Cuter even than Skatebird. The emphasis here is to be on improvisation and self-expression, and itās currently in a pretty precarious position with its Kickstarter. Two-thirds there, one week to go.
Tower Escape
Developer: Final Screw Games
Out: Now (Steam 2023)
With a name that sounds like it should already be a genre, Tower Escape is instead a combination of two others. Itās a āreverse tower defense,ā and Snake. Bet you didnāt see that coming. You play as the creatures attempting to get past the defenses, who follow the pattern of your snake from the start of each tower level to the descending stairs.
Itās coming to Steam next year, but you can play it right now, entirely free, in your browser via Itch.io.
The Brew Barons
Developer: Lifetap Studios
Out: Q4 2022
One of my all-time favorite games is the long-unavailable Attack On Pearl Harbor, an arcade plane combat sim that cruelly vanished about a decade back. So when The Brew Barons immediately reminded me of it, I wanted.
This game sounds splendidly bonkers. Itās about brewing and then attempting to deliver booze to pubs, while overthrowing a pirate organization. And having some dogfighting antics in the air. Canāt wait.
Rogue Command
Developer: feneq
Out: TBA
Itās a classic RTS game, but itās also a roguelite deckbuilder. I love the look of the art here, a bit like a slightly more developed Darwinia, with a squillion units on screen at once. Then thereās deck-based attacks, and the ever-looming threat of the whole thing ending in failure, as its rogue-y desire.
Mayhem On A Rainbow
Developer: Lumi Family
Out: 2022
Iām rather taken with the plot here. A VR metaverse gameāHavenāhas developed a virus, causing the NPCs to turn on the players, and the game being shut down by its creators. You remain, trying to find the source of the virus, in a very silly-looking first-person shooter/chopper. Also, you know, itās called Mayhem On A Rainbow
Research Story
Developer: Petal Cat Games
Out: TBA
If youād asked me ten years ago, āSo what do you think will have replaced all these zombie games in a decade?ā my answer wouldnāt have been āFarming.ā Because I am no soothsayer. Research Story fits right into that category, a very cute-looking Harvest Moon-me-do, about identifying plants, growing crops, making friends, and taming animals.
Doomsday Paradise
Developer: Lemonade Flashbang
Out: Late 2022
What are your plans for the apocalypse? If your immediate answer is āParty,ā then I have a game for you. Doomsday Paradise describes itself as a multiplayer RPG, which can be played as you best prefer. You can team up, compete, or remove combat altogether, as you and chums put off saving to the world to have a good time.
So To Speak
Developer: Erik Anderson
Out: 2023
The idea of learning Japanese terrifies me. Firstly, because Iām abysmal at all languages but for the one I happened to be born around, and secondly because I canāt even see a starting point. But look at So To Speak! Itās a game about deciphering Japanese by using context clues, listening to people, and piecing things together like a puzzle. Which has me intrigued.
Spells & Secrets
Developer: Alchemist Interactive / rokaplay
Out: Summer 2022
This looks like the wizarding game Warner has been trying and failing to make for the last decade. A couch co-op spellcasting action-adventure, in which you have to save a wizarding school, here Greifenstein, from an infestation of magical creatures. It looks like if the greatest Sims add-on pack ever came out.
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