2024 Indie Game of the Year
40 more absolute winners
2024 was going to be a big year for the indies — or, at the very least, it was bound to be a slow year for everything else. The A-tier was all but dead this year, leaving a vacuum ready to be filled by scrappy upstarts with something to prove.
From my perspective, it was a stellar year to be a reviewer. It’s not just that there were some fantastic, innovative titles — it was the variety. The roughly 16,000 games that came out ran the gamut from classic genres to strange hybrids to experimental titles that push the boundaries of what a video game can be. Lucky me, I had a chance to see a wide cross-section of those games.
So what was good this year? RPGs had yet another great run, with some fantastic JRPGs proving that this ages-old style still has plenty of life left. Puzzle games made an unexpected comeback. There were loads of interesting titles in the fast-developing cozy style. And there were some stellar examples of narrative design, with games focused all on the writing.
It was such a good year, in fact, that I was able to stretch this thing to a top 40. Yes, there were that many winners in 2024, with more that just barely missed the cut. I’m sure that you’ll find something interesting among all of these games.
40. Zoria: Age of Shattering
CRPGs have been a tough genre as of late, but Zoria took up the challenge with a slate of novel mechanics, adding survival and simulation elements to the traditional style. It’s not a huge step away from the basic formula, but it’s a real blueprint for future developers to follow.
39. Flowstone Saga
Combining RPG and puzzle elements in interesting ways, Flowstone Saga is far more than a simple Tetris-like. The combo and skill systems are easy to master and offer a range of different approaches. A great choice for anyone looking for something different in the fast-growing RPG space.
38. MonCon
The social anxiety-themed RPG MonCon definitely takes an interesting approach to its framing, but there’s more here than just a quirky presentation. The rhythm-based gameplay and nonstandard weakness system uniquely reward players for paying close attention to the narrative and environment, bring story and gameplay closer together.
37. Fantastic Fist
In a year of physics-based games that were mostly frustrating, Fantastic Fist brings physics to platforming in a way that’s very satisfying. The keyboard-and-mouse layout is easy to use, and there are plenty of interesting mechanics to keep the game fresh throughout.
36. Harvest Hunt
Horror usually isn’t my thing, but Harvest Hunt’s slow, strategic, dread-inducing approach to the style made it stand out. The game puts the player in a desperate struggle to gather resources while avoiding a ravenous creature, striking a good balance where the player feels outmatched but never helpless.
35. SCHiM
Coupling stark visuals with innovative gameplay, SCHiM uses every element at its disposal to tell a story without words. The simple puzzles and unusual movement mechanics make for low-stress gameplay that nicely complements the slice-of-life storytelling that goes on behind the scenes in each area.
34. ODDADA
There aren’t a lot of games as purely charming as ODDADA. A music creation tool that uses unusual visual and kinetic tools to generate sounds, it’s a fantastically relaxing way to fritter away a half-hour. With a practiced hand, one could even create something to be really proud of.
33. Arzette: The Jewel of Faramore
Arzette is the CDi throwback game that nobody knew that they wanted — but this is no mere graphical gimmick. Besides the aesthetics, Arzette also does a great job of capturing the feel of its notorious forebears while still making the whole experience not just playable, but fun.
32. Taka Taka
Simple enough that it can be played with just a few buttons but with ever more complex gameplay, Taka Taka takes a fresh approach to rhythm games. It’s challenging enough to hook in genre veterans, but also well-balanced enough to be fun for anyone.
31. Rusty’s Retirement
There are plenty of idle games out there, but Rusty’s Retirement one-ups them with its unique multitask-friendly interface. With a gameplay field that only occupies part of the screen, this is the only game on this list that one could potentially play while also playing another game at the same time.
30. All Quiet in the Trenches
It’s rare to see a war game that focuses on the moments in between the battles, but this is what makes the narrative of All Quiet in the Trenches so interesting. Between the gritty aesthetic and the constant demand to make difficult choices, it’s a game that really puts the player in the commander’s shoes.
29. Iron Meat
While it’s definitely the bio-horror aesthetic that makes Iron Meat stand out, let’s not overlook the tight, varied gameplay and level design. There are a lot of Contra-like games out there, but none of them capture the feel of the original games as much as this one, making this a must-have for old school fans.
28. Isles of Sea and Sky
2024 was a solid year for old-school puzzle games, and Isles of Sea and Sky in particular does a great job of blending old and new. With puzzles that are challenging but fair and sensible and a non-linear design that makes most puzzles optional, it offers a retro experience without retro frustration.
27. Slider
On a similar note, Slider brings the aesthetics of a puzzle-adventure game with some bold new ideas. Slider puzzles aren’t new to video games, but this is the first time that a slider-type interface is used to control the map, a system that’s both intuitive and flexible.
26. NanoApostle
Parry-based gameplay is all the rage these days, with NanoApostle being the first game appearing on this list to do it and do it well. It’s a brutal boss rush with some complex, varied multi-stage boss fights that also feature some wonderfully interesting designs and animation.
25. Europa
Few games capture the simple joy of flight with as much style as Europa. There’s plenty to discover in the game’s Ghibli-inspired world and the controls are easy to master. It’s bound to be a delight even for those outside of the usual cozy audience.
24. Cricket: Jae’s Really Peculiar Game
Combining surreal humor and hand-drawn animation with a genuinely touching story, Jae’s Really Peculiar Game is a great take on the JRPG subgenre. While the story is the main draw, it’s also pleasing to play, with a simple but novel timing- and momentum-based combat system.
23. Death of a Wish
The strange, scratchy art style in Death of a Wish is a fantastic complement to its dark yet hopeful story. It’s not an experience for novices, but anyone with a talent for dodges and parries will find an expansive, challenging game with robust customization options and plenty of variety.
22. Arco
It’s been a rough few years for TRPGs, but there have been plenty of bright spots here, and Arco is definitely one of them. The combined real-time/turn-based combat system gives Arco a distinctive feel that no other game really brings to the table. The setting also adds to the experience, with the enchanted take on colonial-era North America offering a lot of interesting events and side stories to go along with the revenge-driven central plot. It’s a great twist on a struggling subgenre, and I hope to see more like it in the future.
21. The Thaumaturge
So-called triple-I games haven’t exactly set the world on fire, but it’s great to see the occasional success like the Thaumaturge. The urban fantasy version of interwar Poland is a thoroughly unexplored setting, with a story that weaves between family drama, imperial politics and the mysteries of the underworld — all laid out with a tremendous amount of detail. And while combat is subordinate to the investigation, the combat system is simple, intuitive and flexible. Overall, it’s an interesting approach to CRPGs and worth a closer look for anyone in search of something different.
20. Roots of Yggdrasil
Nonviolent strategy games have become an interesting niche, demonstrated here with Roots of Yggdrasil, a hybrid game featuring elements from deckbuilding, city building, roguelike and puzzle games. Once the player gets over the initial learning curve, there’s a lot of flexibility in how the game is played, and it’s satisfying to watch the settlements grow in each area. Add in an evolving storyline and replay value with optional side quests and upgrade paths, and you have a game that has plenty to offer to the typical strategy fan.
19. Anomaly Agent
It’s always nice to see a conventional 2D platformer break out and do well, and Anomaly Agent nails the genre with a blend of mechanics. The game’s surreal, time-bending story and aesthetic is a strong initial draw, but it’s the combat — a combo-based system with a wide range of melee, ranged and area-effect attacks — that makes the whole package feel nice. Overall, it’s a must-try for fans of platformer combat and surrealism in general.
18. The Universim
The 2020s have seen the long-awaited return of the god game, with the Universim being one of the better designed and ambitious takes on the classic PC genre. The Universim punches well above its weight in terms of production values, with detailed, living worlds and societies and some fantastic weather effects. Meanwhile, the gameplay excels with easy-to-understand infrastructure and lots of options for automation, while still including the destructive, hands-on effects associated with god games. Even in a market full of citybuilders, this is still one you shouldn’t overlook.
17. Nine Sols
I have a soft spot for games with Chinese aesthetics and themes, and Nine Sols offers that and a lot more. The parry-based gameplay is tight and fluid, with lots of difficult bosses to test out one’s skills. However, it’s the Daoism-influenced visual design that really sets Nine Sols apart. The stylized yet high-detail graphics are enthralling enough to make the game worth playing just to find out what strange, pseudo-mystical wonders are lying around the next corner.
16. Guayota
Puzzle-based adventure games can be tricky to design, as one needs to have novel mechanics that are still simple enough that the player can quickly grasp them. Guayota’s two-layered levels — with each area playable in action-adventure or pure puzzle variants — certainly fits the bill. Each area has its own distinctive mechanics that tie nicely into the theming, and the story is robust enough keep one pushing through all of the challenges. Overall, it’s a great modern take on a classic gaming style.
15. WHAT THE CAR?
I’m not much of a fan of physics-focused games, but What the Car really nails a sweet spot between being funny and being fun. The game’s whimsical presentation is an instant draw, which each of its many levels being a little gag in itself. Beyond the humor, the levels feature a wide variety of mechanics as well as a range of difficulties, allowing the player to choose either an easygoing experience or something that demands more precision. All in all, it’s just a joy to play, great for both short and long sessions.
14. Decline’s Drops
The short explanation of Decline’s Drops is that it’s the design of Yoshi’s Island with the mechanics of Guacamelee, but this undersells it. It’s a surprisingly large game with lots of nooks and crannies for completionists to explore, while featuring the old-school platforming and puzzles that nostalgists want. The topper is the soundtrack, a mellow, moody set of tunes that perfectly complement the hand-drawn aesthetic. Fans of any kind of platformer are going to find something to like in Decline’s Drops.
13. Turbo Kid
At this point, it takes a lot for a Metroidvania to stand out for me, and with Turbo Kid that standout element is simple: It has a gigantic world with a bicycle that’s perfect for exploring it. Turbo Kid features everything else you’d want in a game like this — lots of secrets, character customization, varied side quests and big, elaborate boss fights — but it is the act of exploring a large, constantly changing world that puts this one a cut above the many other similar games that launched this year.
12. Dawnmaker
The puzzles in Roots of Yggdrasil are certainly interesting, but the winner for nonviolent strategy has to go to Dawnmaker for its deceptively simple yet truly deep deckbuilder and positioning mechanics. Dawnmaker fits well into the “easy to learn, hard to master” school, offering many paths to finish each level and each run while varying the gameplay enough that the player can’t count on a singular strategy every time. Whether you’re a newbie to strategy or deckbuilders or a veteran looking for something different, Dawnmaker is likely to suit your tastes.
11. Ereban: Shadow Legacy
There aren’t a lot of indie games that tackle stealth, and it’s worth celebrating when one does it as well as Ereban. The design really clicks, offering huge areas full of secrets, traps and possible paths along with character powers that grant many ways to approach any problem. The movement might be the most impressive aspect — the way the protagonist leaps between shadows and surfaces is extremely fluid and highly satisfying once the player has mastered the controls. It’s a game that weds style and substance in a way that games rarely do.
10. CorpoNation: The Sorting Process
2024 was a banner year for narrative games, especially those employing satire. CorpoNation pokes fun at a lot of business practices and cliches, but it’s also a rare game that works in jabs at the gaming industry without coming across as preachy or self-important. For that reason alone it deserves this spot, but CorpoNation brings even more to the table.
While the ever-evolving story is the reason you’ll want to play CorpoNation, the story is strongly supported by the central gameplay loop — a simple sorting minigame where the rules are constantly changing and getting more complex. There are definite shades of Papers, Please here, but try to appreciate CorpoNation for its own merits. It’s a game that’s easy to pick up and has a lot going on under the surface of its insular corporate world.
9. Shogun Showdown
Any good strategy game is built around a simple, central concept, and for Shogun Showdown it’s all about managing time. Whether it’s queueing up an attack or even just turning around, everything takes time — for the player and the enemies. Combine that with a linear, one-dimensional combat field that offers few avenues to evade attacks, and you have a game that requires some really careful planning.
It’s a testament to how well it’s all designed that this is never frustrating. Setting up attack combos, tricking enemies into hitting each other, and slipping through a challenging fight without a scratch are all extremely satisfying. And while the most impressive plays demand a lot of foresight, the mechanics are overall much more forgiving than those in most roguelikes. It all adds up to a game that satisfies in run after run.
8. Heading Out
There really aren’t enough games that capture the American mystique of the road. Heading Out does a stellar job there, recreating the essential strangeness of a cross-country trip. It’s an odd bird itself — a driving game that isn’t a racing game, but focused more on the narrative of the highway.
Narrative games are all about detail, and it’s in this aspect that very little else came close to Heading Out. The game’s stylized, super high-contrast aesthetic is absolutely gorgeous, with a ton of fine detail on the cars and everything else you might whip past at 80 miles an hour. It’s the characters that really catch the imagination, though — whether that’s the radio personalities who chronicle the protagonist’s journey in a typically over-the-top fashion or the mystical figures that pop in during random events. Meeting people in Heading Out never gets old, and that’s what make it a winner.
7. Dream Tactics
TRPG design is often about finding a balance between mechanical elements that are familiar and easy to understand and novel mechanics that make them more interesting than the rest. This is where Dream Tactics really wins the day, being a familiar game that has a lot more depth than its simple, cartoony presentation might suggest.
Dream Tactics does a lot of things right, particularly in the design and variety of its combat and in finding a challenge level that’s perfectly suited for TRPG veterans without ever feeling punitive. However, it’s the incredibly robust character customization system that earns it a spot this high up on the list. With the ability to move skills between characters and a massive range of equipment that can significantly change how characters play, this is a game that offers an infinite number of approaches and is well-designed enough to make them viable. It’s everything a fan of the subgenre would want.
6. Fallen Aces
By now, you’re either in love with boomer shooters or you’re totally sick of them, but I hope that those of you in the latter group didn’t reject Fallen Aces out of hand. Yes, this game captures the feel of Duke Nukem 3D and its kin better than any game I’ve ever seen, but that’s just there to entice the old-school crowd. Move past that, and you’ve got an FPS that has the flexible problem solving of Deux Ex, the visceral up-close combat of Condemned, and secret-packed level design the likes of which we haven’t seen in ages.
The cherry on top is the pulp comic aesthetic and storytelling. While Fallen Aces isn’t the first game to go with a vintage comic look, I can’t think of any other games that came anywhere close to recreating that four-color newsprint glory. It’s a game that manages to be gritty and gorgeous at the same time, and that’s no mean feat.
5. 1000xRESIST
Even more so than other types of games, narrative-driven titles need to make a strong first impression. There needs to be something about the game that’s so beautiful, or bizarre, or intriguing that the player longs to be immersed in the world and the story. That’s pretty much what I felt when I saw the first trailer for 1000xRESIST, and the final product didn’t disappoint at all.
Science fiction settings are a staple in video games, but there aren’t many that try to tackle the kind of narrative here — one that’s surreal and emotional and driven by forces beyond easy understanding. It’s a story that lends itself to some unforgettable imagery as well as time-bending mechanics that leave the player with enough control to realize how little control they have. There just weren’t any other games this year with stories anything like this, which makes 1000xRESIST an absolute must for anyone in search of something unique.
4. Berserk Boy
I’m a big fan of old-school platformers, even when the market isn’t going their way. They’re easy to understand but with room for greatly varied design and mechanics, they eat up exactly as much of your free time as you want, and they are — dare I say it? — fun. Berserk Boy is a fun game and a fantastic platformer overall, but I feel like it’s also greater than the sum of its parts.
The game does everything well. It’s got a gorgeous aesthetic that’s a lot more detailed than your typical neo-retro game, it has fast gameplay with tight controls, well-designed levels with loads of secrets and alternate paths, varied skill sets that are all viable in combat, and a challenge level that really hits the bull’s eye. However, what makes Berserk Boy a winner is how all of these elements work together — the blending of modern and classic elements to create something that’s just terribly satisfying to play.
Last year, I had a game called Gravity Circuit in my top ten for many of the same reasons. They are similar games with similar mechanics, but Berserk Boy is an evolutionary step beyond, and if you had any affection for Gravity Circuit, this one is definitely for you. It’s a must-try for platformer fans, retro game enthusiasts, or just anyone who’d like something compact and fun that can break through the slog of modern games.
3. Wild Bastards
There’s a certain magic to taking something that was good to begin with and improving it across the board without giving anything up. The 2019 game Void Bastards was a funny, refreshing take on both roguelike games and first-person shooters that fell a little bit short in that it was fairly repetitive with runs that stretched on for too long. Wild Bastards, the follow-up, captures everything that was charming about Void Bastards and makes it tighter, more varied, more ambitious and more enjoyable overall.
The giant cast is a big part of the charm here. On a mechanical level, it’s already a daunting task to have thirteen playable characters with unique weapons, active skills, and upgrades and have those characters be remotely balanced. Giving them distinctive personalities and designs is really taking it to another level, putting Wild Bastards a step beyond not just its precursor, but many other roguelike games.
This nicely complements the gunplay, which is a fantastic mix of conventional FPS mechanics and the more tactical gameplay of Void Bastards. Showdowns are quick, intense and even suspenseful fights against varied enemies that offer a few avenues for combat. A player with good mechanical aptitude might go for quick shootouts up close, while someone with a more tactical mindset can isolate enemies and dispatch them stealthily or take up a position of superiority and pick them off one by one.
Ultimately, Wild Bastards is a tense, colorful game that’s split up into nice little missions that let players go for exactly as long as they want and play however they want.
2. Eiyuden Chronicle: Hundred Heroes
I missed most of the era of PlayStation RPGs — those massively ambitious, wildly innovative games that featured anything and everything that the developers thought might impress the player. The indie JRPG renaissance has produced some stellar games but nothing with that same scope, at least until now. Eiyuden Chronicle is a look back at a time when role-playing games were made without limits.
Taking about Eiyuden Chronicle means, first and foremost, discussing how colossal it is. The game has a fairly elaborate plot, but one could easily play it for dozens of hours without taking notice. There’s just so much wandering to do, so much to discover, and so many different side quests and tasks. You might take a short detour to pick up a new party member and end up spending five hours on trading, town building, fishing, racing and about a half-dozen other things. Little is mandatory, so a completionist can explore for days on end while someone else can head straight to the end of the plot.
It’s not just the amount of content at play, but the mad abandon with which it’s implemented. In an age where video games are increasingly formulaic and predictable, it’s rare to see a title embrace an ethos of “add it if it’s cool.” Eiyuden Chronicle can go from serious wartime drama to the heights of silliness, from RPG tropes played straight to borderline satire. It’s not the most coherent approach, but honestly — who cares? In a period where games are joyless, here’s one that does everything to be amazing — and absolutely nails it.
1. The Plucky Squire
When I pick games for the top of a GOTY list, I’m looking for a few things. Fundamentals matter, of course — I want to see good design and controls. I also give a lot of weight to games that are genuinely innovative, the ones that take risks with their mechanics, aesthetics and narratives that A-tier companies aren’t willing to take. But there’s always going to be an X-factor, that little unique aspect that makes a game stand out over similar titles. This year, it was the storybook aesthetic of The Plucky Squire, a game that outcharms everything else.
Sure, it’s a fantastic game overall. It has plenty of variety in the gameplay without compromising its core mechanics. It features innovative puzzles that always make logical sense. The graphics, music and sound effects are all excellent. It’s a big love letter to video games past and present, one that’s accessible enough that anyone can get into it.
But those aren’t the reasons I picked The Plucky Squire for the number one slot. This game jumped out at me when I first saw it because it stands in such sharp contrast to where the industry is now. At a time when video games can be bleak, unpleasant experiences that exist only to make money, here we have a celebration. The visual design, the story, the way different techniques are used — it all results in a game that cuts through the grim reality of modern games.
Put simply, The Plucky Squire is the indie game of the year because it is everything that A-tier games aren’t: Colorful, joyful, innovative, classic, and — yes — fun.
