12 Indie Game Trends for 2025

From the rise of the co-op to the death of genres, here’s what to look forward to in the new year

Andrew Johnston
5 min readJan 3, 2025
Photo by Element5 Digital on Unsplash

It’s no secret that the video game market is in a very uncertain place right now, and that’s just as true for small developers as it is for those at the top of AAA mountain. Between publisher failures, out-of-left-field fads and the sundering of the media, it’s hard to tell what’s going to come next.

Which isn’t to say that there’s nothing we can assume about the next 12 months. Making predictions is a sucker’s game, which is why most of the trends we’re going to look at are pretty safe bets. There will almost certainly be some real head turners as well, but we can discuss those after they’ve caught us by surprise.

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1. Bite-Sized Games

While games with extreme replay value have long been popular, there’s a recent trend toward short, self-contained games that can be finished in a few hours. Up until now, these have been conventional point-and-click adventure games, though brief action games and even RPGs have been showing up here and there. It’s likely that these short games will remain relatively niche, though the ease and low cost of development will make them highly appealing to newer developers.

2. Growing Production Values

Larger, better funded indies — those referred to as “triple-I” or “A+” games — are the ones getting most of the attention and making most of the money. With more people trying to catch the consumer’s eye, production values are going to matter even more in the future. Unfortunately, the decline of publishers and the starvation of venture capital in the video game space mean that this money is also going to be harder to get until someone finds a new source.

3. Minimalistic Graphics

Even as some indies push toward big budgets with the goal of featuring A-tier graphics, other developers have gone a different direction with games built around text supplemented with simple graphics. It’s hard to imagine games like this becoming big hits, but the tiny budgets needed to make them means that they really don’t need to be. With an increasing interest in adventure games and narrative titles, it’s at least possible that these visually spare games could carve out a niche of their own.

4. Adventurous Storytelling

A growing interest in linear single player games also means that narrative-driven titles are making a comeback. Expect to see more of a focus on storytelling, even in games that aren’t normally driven by their plots. Meanwhile, those games that are mainly plot-driven are likely to see an expansion in the themes and character types on display. Those more conventional video game plots may soon give way to stories that are more experimental and even risky.

5. Co-op Gameplay

Cooperative games made a big splash in 2024, and there are already signs that more developers are trying to enter this fast-growing space. While few small developers have the resources to make competitive multiplayer work, co-op is a more realistic option that works with a range of game types and all but guarantees higher sales. Starting in 2025, if a game can feasibly feature co-op, it probably will.

6. Competitive-Friendly Gameplay

Subculture niches such as speedrunning have been a real boon for small developers, as being singled out for any form of competition guarantees a rush of sales. As such, expect to see more games designed with these niches in mind. On the surface level, this may mean features like integrated timers, leaderboards and replay ghosts, but it also means mechanical and level design that favors specific types of challenges.

7. Perpetual Early Access

True live service games are far beyond the typical indie developer, but more and more have been embracing a scaled-back service philosophy based on a continuous drip of updates. With more games coming out in Early Access and games often staying in that state for longer periods, expect to see more games with extensive post-release support and content. It’s good business sense in the modern market and it’s achievable even by the tiniest of teams.

8. Setpiece-Driven Games

With shortform video becoming more important for game discovery, the way that games are designed will have to shift. Capturing someone’s attention in a few seconds takes a lot, and for developers that means working in set pieces that are so beautiful, bizarre or shocking that the viewer simply has to learn more. Going forward, expect to see more games built around big moments with the hopes that one of them becomes the moment that everyone talks about.

9. Expansion of the Cozy Style

After years of discussion about its role and future, it has become clear that the cozy aesthetic and design principle is here to stay. While this style has been associated with more casual gameplay, we’re already seeing a greater range of game types with cozy sensibilities. In the next few years, expect to see cozies in every genre, subgenre and style you can think of as this new wave of developers continues to experiment.

10. Mechanics Swapping

A long-time trend among small developers is mixing and matching genres in odd, unpredictable ways. As this has happened, the lines dividing those genres have become increasingly fuzzy. In the future, we may find ourselves discussing these games less in terms of fixed, traditional genres and more in terms of their aesthetic, mechanical and design elements. The result will be more experimental titles as well as games unearthing forgotten ideas and blending them with more modern sensibilities.

11. Simulation Elements

Immersive simulations were an odd and narrow niche until recently, when they took off in a big way. A sign of that success has been the increasing presence of im-sim mechanics in other types of games, a trend that shows no signs of slowing down. Whether in the form of real-time tracked stats, enhanced NPC interactions or ultra-high detailed level design, expect to see more attempts to draw the player into the game world.

12. Professionalization of Small Teams

A greater proportion of indie games are being developed by experienced teams, with an increasing number of groups releasing their second, third or fourth game. This suggests an ongoing trend towards professionalism among smaller developers. As most developers don’t break out with their first game, this may mean more quality games coming down the pike. It could also translate into material success for those developers, though that one might be a bit of a pipe dream.

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Andrew Johnston
Andrew Johnston

Written by Andrew Johnston

Writer of fiction, documentarian, currently stranded in Asia. Learn more at www.findthefabulist.com.

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