12 cool-looking indie games in development right now
Including a dark time travel mystery, a psychedelic comic book platformer, and an Akira-inspired post-apocalyptic hoverbike RPG.
By my calculations, approximately 72,000 new games are released on PC every day, and keeping track of them all is basically an impossible task. But of the dozens that pass before my eyes in any given second, a few stand out enough to catch my attention. These are some of the in-development indie games that I’m looking forward to playing the most.
Winter Hall
Developer Lost Forest | Website
In this gorgeous, atmospheric folk horror game you ‘timeshift’ into the bodies of the dead to change the past. Set across 600 years of dark history, the choices you make will be reflected in the present day.
Transmission
Developer Sea Green Games | Website
This stylish, atmospheric driving game promises a chill synthwave soundtrack and is described by the developer as “Euro Truck Simulator meets Jalopy on a rainy summer night in 1986”, which sounds perfect.
Spinch
Developer Queen Bee games | Website
The dazzling psychedelic art of this retro-flavoured platformer comes courtesy of indie comic artist Jesse Jacobs. The titular Spinch is a “hyper-agile organism” on a quest to rescue its missing offspring.
Seers Isle
Developer Nova-box | Website
This interactive graphic novel tells the story of a group of shaman apprentices exploring a sacred, magical isle. The developer promises dynamic dialogue, high replayability, and choices that matter.
Overcrowd
Developer SquarePlay | Website
This quirky-looking “tactical management sim” is set in the hot, sweaty, crowded tunnels of the London Underground and blends base-building, pausable real-time strategy, and spatial puzzling.
Recompile
Developer Phigames | Website
An atmospheric exploration game with stylish art that combines hacking, platforming, and combat. Developer Phigames promises a story that explores “AI, machine sentience, and the nature of reality.”
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Insomnia: The Ark
Developer Studio Mono | Website
Described by the developer as a “complex story-driven RPG”, Insomnia is set in a noir-flavoured, retro-futuristic space-city, has echoes of Fallout, BioShock, and Mass Effect, and has been in development for eight years.
Undercrewed
Developer Dave and Dex | Website
A co-op game, with more than a hint of FTL, about building, customising, and flying a spaceship with an overstretched crew. Survival depends on choosing the right components and, importantly, teamwork.
Distance
Developer Refract | Website
This novel “racing platformer” features stylish, striking neon-tinged visuals and its unusual, slightly odd mix of jumping, flying, and driving can be enjoyed on both randomised and custom-made tracks.
Desert Child
Developer Oscar Brittain | Website
This super stylish, fast-paced “racing RPG” is set on a ruined, post-apocalyptic Earth “where your only friends are a vintage hoverbike and a packet of instant noodles.” It counts Akira and Redline among its influences.
Etherborn
Developer Altered Matter | Website
This beautiful environmental puzzle-platformer revolves around strange gravity-shifting structures. You play as a being following an ethereal voice in order to “fully understand your own existence.”
Inertial Drift
Developer Michael O'Kane | Website
This Japanese-influenced racing game is inspired by the likes of Ridge Racer and Initial D and has an interesting control system whereby the right analogue stick controls the angle of your car as you drift.
If it’s set in space, Andy will probably write about it. He loves sci-fi, adventure games, taking screenshots, Twin Peaks, weird sims, Alien: Isolation, and anything with a good story.