As a game design teacher, I'm constantly looking for new indie examples to share with my students. I really appreciated this video; I'd played a few of these, but most of them are new to me and you really sold them without spoiling them. Thanks very much and I'll keep watching!
Reading that makes my day. I've heard from multiple sources that the academic game development world is very biased towards tripple A games and has a concerning disregard for indie titles, so it's good to have people like you in it who have a genuine apppreciation for all kinds of games.
Graphics-wise Crow Country somehow reminds me of original Final Fantasy VII, while of course having real time 3D graphics instead of pre-rendered. Really interesting art style!
Totally agree! I understand people reference resident evil because of the genre, but the character models have that same style as FFVII. It looks like they are made of individual shapes that intersect instead of a single model.
I started getting bored with video games around 2011 when I had my Wii and just couldn't find anything that really gripped me anymore. My dad bought me a refurbished PC and I had bought a PC copy of Darksiders which needed Steam to run. When I downloaded Steam I wasn't even interested in playing Darksiders because I was just having fun searching the Steam store page for cheap games. About a year later in 2012 a little gem called Hotline Miami came out and changed the way I viewed video games forever!
My brother, we've walked almost the same path. I also broke out of videogame boredom thanks to Hotline Miami, and here I am now as an indie game enthusiast. Greetings from Italy ❤
I love all video games but indie games are always the ones that just hit different. I’ve been playing Binding of Isaac for like 5 years. Can’t say the same for most games.
wanna talk about insane 1 man passion projects? take a quick look at spacebourne 2. It's super jank but constantly being updated. It's honestly what starfield wanted to be.
On a surface level, I absolutely agree. There are a lot of great indie games coming out. Though, it's easy to see some of the AAA rot seeping into the indie space, too. How many more "action-packed rogue-lite deck-builders" are we going to see? And we're constantly seeing a flood of cheap streamerbait, hoping to be the next flavor of the month. There are plenty of good indie games, but man it's hard to find them when they're covered in trash. Anyway, the best indie game I've played in the last few months was easily Void Stranger. It's not for everyone, but... Boy, if it's for you it's for you.
I agree, there's always going to be a level of that. Because trends/market dictates what gets made the most. But there's certainly a lot more worthy projects in the indie space than in AAA imo. (Also Void Stranger looks great, I'll check it out)
@@YourFavoriteSon1 Agreed. I'll add: that's why I appreciate videos like these. It's nice to see a spotlight put on some good games I might have missed.
That’s sort of the key issue isn’t it? Indie games aren’t on average way better than AAA, but the sheer number of projects means that even if 1/100 is great, the indie space produces a lot of them. It’s also why stuff like nextfest is so good. If you check it out and watch some RU-vid vids covering it from people with diverse taste, you can find some real gems
You've sold me on Mullet Madjack and Helskate. Can't wait to find the time to play them. Also love that you're giving these game devs the love and attention they deserve. I feel like you did an amazing job of advertising their passion projects
you did good guy. I added several to my wish list, some I had ignored. The way you described them had me reconsider my initial, knee jerk reaction. I tend to glance at videos while hovering over the ignore button, I've become the consoomer I always hated. Anyway thanks for the video.
AA and indie games are the backbone of the gaming industry. I play a lot of games and about 75% of all games i play are AA/indies. Everybody that says ''gaming is dead'' or ''there are no games'' never played or even searched for a good indie game.
If you want the fast paced action of mullet madjack but don't have twenty bucks to spare, try post void for only 2-3 bucks. It's like a way more insane version of mullet madjack, the game has epileptic seizure warnings for a reason, the game is absolutely absurd and the mechanics are very similar.
Pleaseeee keep these videoc coming. I'm always looking for great games with different mechanics and difficulty. I don't play AAA games anymore. Would be really cool to see these videos coming out frequently. Gret work.
Can I recommend the game "Little Goody Two Shoes" by AstralShift? it's essentially a fairy tale story with a horror twist. Everything in the game aside from the sprites for the characters has been hand painted / crafted and then digitized. The game aims to emulate 90s anime and does so perfectly. It's absolutely a work of art and has an interesting story as well.
Gotta be honest, from all the AAA games only Jedi Survivor was mind blowing in execution to me. All other games where indie games. And ETS2 has stuck around since its initial launch.
Avoid The First Descent. It's a Nexon game, which means when it releases, it's going to be filled to the brim with particularly egregious predatory monetization. They release demos like that with little to no monetization to get people hooked, and then bait and switch that audience when they try to make the move to playing the full release. It's kinda their whole thing.
@@ledumpsterfire6474 I've already finished the pre-load they launched over the weekend. Thank you for the heads-up so I can be on the lookout tomorrow going forward. I have a low tolerance for in your face monetization so if it steps over the line there's a possibility I'll uninstall by the end of the week. My ends of the spectrum when it comes to monetization are Plarium(Raid) being the absolute worst and Warframe being "better end".
I've been watching for awhile, great content by the way I'm much enjoying it, but I'm super curious about why "Dad" is addressed in each video. I kind of have a headcanon going with a tragic backstory where either Dad walked out or died early in life and this is a way to try and express that grief through a productive job or Dad said he'd never amount to anything and this is like an FU with each successful and well thought out video.
That's some bleak headcanon! I've taken it as light-hearted, as I know a fair few people who say it as a joke with their own or very close friend's parents... one of my friends jokingly calls himself "the favourite son" because he only has sisters, and another friend's family calls all three of their son's "the favourite" as a joking term of endearment.
The indie game I'm the most excited for right now has got to be Blue Prince. It's a puzzle exploration game with roguelike elements that is unlike anything I've ever played. The free demo had me replaying it again and again while obsessively taking notes on every detail I could (something I haven't done since playing classic puzzle games like Fez and The Watcher)
I heavily recommend caves of qud, it is kind of like playing a single character in dwarf fortress but in a post apocalyptic sci fi world. It is one of those roguelikes that does not have permanent upgrades and any improvements you get are your game knowledge. It is brutally difficult but also incredibly fun to get better at. Other than that i loved dread delusion and lunacid which are both heavily inspired by old fromsoft games like kingsfield. Your suggestions look dope I'll have to try those whenever i get the time!
@@YourFavoriteSon1 it's very much worth it! It recently got a complete ui overhaul including controller support and it's at its best! I think the 1.0 is launching later this year which will complete the story of the game but to even get there will be very difficult so starting now in order to be able to get to the end when it's out is probably smart!
"Like playing a single character in dwarf fortress" So you must have forgotten Adventurer mode is a thing. Still have yet to find another game that allows me to put a wolf in a chokehold and bite its tongue out.
@@ledumpsterfire6474 I know adventure mode is a thing but it's the closest comparison I could come up with. Cud allows you to become a mutant and grow an extra limb every couple of levels which you can then use to quadruple wield axes, it allows you to swap bodies with someone and then kill your old body in a Ginyu type maneuver and so much more! Definitely try it out!
I think the real problem is that most people play video games on console and indie games available on console is really nothing compared to what's available on PC. Thoughts?
I play on console and I can still find great games I enjoy that are not necessarily big triple a experiences. Yes steam certainly has a HUUUGE catalogue by comparison but there's also TOOOONS of PC steam slop I need to sort through by comparison.
Problem is indies dont always go to console and even rarer go physical. I want physical of everything, which is why I still havent played baldurs gate 3
Hey, have you heard of BABBDI? As soon as you mentioned Excape From Lavender Island, I checked if this one actually was from the same developer, because its style strongly reminded me of it and I was almost baffled that it isn't.
There’s only really one indie game I want, and it’s for someone to make an indie Splinter Cell. Ubisoft can suck a fart for how much they seem to care about the IP, so I just want some big fans of the franchise to make their own version of a high tech, turn of the century warfare, stealthy spy game
Play Nine Sols, it's a masterpiece Metroidvania possibly at Hollow Knight's level. My other indie recommendation that's much older and way more obscure is Jimmy and the Pulsating Mass, an Earthbound-style RPG by one guy with amazing music, story, characters, and a plot twist that's (almost certainly intentionally) obvious but somehow no less impactful. Be warned though, both games are dark and depressing... especially JATPM.
Bought Mortal Sinn, Helskate, and Mullet Mad Jack after watching this, they all looked super good. I had mortal sin on my wishlist for a while but steam summer sale may as well buy it now.
Man, I'm too depressed to even play games I KNOW I love anymore. I haven't picked up a controller in over a year, and every time I think about it, it feels like a waste of time.
I know this feeling. First of all, take care of yourself bro, you are worth it. 2nd, it might help to try games that are very short and don't require a lot of commitment. One of my favorite games of all time which has a fantastic story is Titanfall2. It's only like 5 hours long. It's also on sale right now for like 6$
Maybe look at causes other than depression, if you can. If it doesn't have an obvious cause and lasts more than a few weeks, it's unlikely to be depression, hope you feel better soon either way.
Felt that. I haven't been able to play videogames for years. I want to return but its like my brain forces me to deflect like the same sides of a magnet.
@@SimielBlack I'm using that as a shorthand term, yeah. It's a whole bunch of stuff; it's been a rough few years and I'm just kinda wallowing in a burnout. Not trying to whine, lol, just lack motivation to do anything besides work and like... put RU-vid on auto play and re-read old books and sleep anymore. I am a few weeks into taking a break from drinking though, I reckon that'll help!
Well I played Them and Us recently, let's play posting on my channel shameless plug I know. I need to play 'Signalis and Tormented Souls, bought them both but hard to find time to play them. So yeah I agree there are some nice indie games out there. I'm h oping we eventually get a decent indie God of War clone since that franchise has gone in a... Different direction.
so we have the exact opposite of "10 worst steam games" now 👍 i would love to see this one become a series as well as long as indie games exist, gaming would never die
I fear Knuckle Sandwich mini game combat could become exhausting after a while, similar to YIIK (even though that game has a whole bunch of other issues)
i firmly believe the main casual audience will just get so fed up with AAA that they will look to indie games out of desperation. Usually they complain about graphics but they will learn a breaking point that ultra realism will hit a wall soon
@@ulthanesmorkumsyes, but graphics does not necessarily mean photorealism, which is what we've been seeing diminishing results in for a couple console generations now. There really hasn't been a jump in 3D visual fidelity like that of the PS2 era. Good art direction > graphic fidelity in every way
@duardoCOB Good art direction is important sure, but graphical fidelity is just nice to look at. Red Dead is a good example. It's just that a lot of photorealistic games blow ass.
All those things listed at the start are things I don't like about the AAA space, true - but my real problem is the business model of live service / micro-transactions / nickel-diming DLC, where each game isn't a finished product but instead a money funnel. Takes the joy right out of it, even if the game is good - which it rarely is.
I still do nothing in my free time except play video games just fine. Even if I suddenly didn't need a full-time job or sleep, I'd never run out of new, let alone old, stuff to play. 🤷🏻♂️
I think my biggest complaint with Knuckle Sandwich is that the story is all over the place. It never seems to have a focus on which of its narrative threads it wants to tug on. The combat is really fun and unique, but it let me down in that department. Eastward had similar flaws, and they both left me wanting more.
I mostly only explore indie games now. Big AAA games dont get me hyped and im never looking forward to any of them. And theres always some interesting indie games to find and enjoy
Here's a list of non-triple-A and Indie games that can carry interesting stuff to check out. Personal favourites: No Straight Roads Clash: Artifacts of Chaos (Zeno Clash prequel from 2023) Soulstice (despite what the name may imply, it's NOT a Soulslike. More of a DMC, Bayonetta or Darksiders-type game) Cookie Cutter Others: Blud Harold Halibut The Dishwasher: Vampire Smile Charlie Murder Fight'n Rage Yet to come out: Immortal: And the Death that Follows, My Familiair, Bad Boro, Loco Motive, The Mermaid Mask, whatever Moonhood Studio and Amanita Design are crafting, Near-Mage, Pipistrello and the Cursed Yoyo, Kings of Hell, Genokids, Judero, Gori: Cuddly Carnage, Enenra Demon Core, The Dungeon Experience Resistor Yasuke: A Lost Descendant and that's all I can think of for now.
I’ve been playing Tunic recently and if you like the top-down 2D Zelda games you will love this game! The graphics are adorable, it’s got some solid puzzles and really fun combat with some challenging bosses, the whole game is just 🤌
The framing of how AAA sucks and indies are great is strange. Like most indies are also creatively bankrupt (how many games do we need that are SOTN clones or “Mario 3 but worse”). I’m begging for a scrap of nuance and critical thinking here.
No one is denying that but the problem is this, the CEOs and developers at these Triple A companies are bathing in cash they have the funds they’re just to lazy to make a good game and if you think I’m wrong then answer me this, why did the developers try to say Baldur’s Gate 3 shouldn’t be the new standard? And why did Ubisoft developers get salty about From Software’s success with Elden Ring? There are a lot of shitty indie games yes, but there are also plenty of good ones too. Its more about the lack of diversity than anything else for me personally if you want Survival Horror, Boomer Shooters, Side Scrollers, Point and Click, Roguelikes, and JRPGs the indie has got you covered. All you will find in the Triple A industry is generic third person action adventure and scripted first person shooters that don’t trust the player to figure things out. That reminds me IGN had to make a video defending Baldur’s Gate 3 basically saying this should absolutely be the standard like IGN of all companies, was defending Larian Studios. If that isn’t a sign of how bad the aaa market has become then I don’t know what is.
38:08 Imo the worst is a mmorpg. Maybe it sounds a bit like I'm being pedantic, but making something that requires servers and constant feeding on top of an rpg is just... apparently some devs have made that sort of thing their first project and I don't think it's ever gone well. 😅
