For only a two to three-hour experience, Afterdream serves as a strong exemplar of horror, balancing a haunting atmosphere with a heart-wrenching narrative in an equally unique world.
A gorgeous comic book aesthetic and unique premise helps to alleviate Deep Sky Derelicts’ rudimentary and uneven card-based RPG tactics.
Despite a plethora of decently challenging and fast-paced levels, Lost Orbit: Terminal Velocity's lack of level and gameplay variety stop it from being the next arcade classic.
A speedrunner's delight masked as a Metroidvania that does little to differentiate itself from the titans of its genre.
No Code's sophomore title nails the organic intricacies of feeling like an artificial intelligence system while also telling a compelling and ambitious science fiction narrative.
Hell Is Other Demons goes the distance in its refined and frantically paced gameplay that captures the nostalgia of 8-bit arcade shooters.
Katana ZERO is pixelated samurai bliss, delivering one of the most impressively polished narrative and gameplay experiences of the year.
Make no mistake: while it certainly doesn't redefine the genre, Feudal Alloy is an incredibly strong second title from Attu Games. It abides by genre conventions with a style that is all its own, nearly flawless gameplay, and an injection of strategy sorely missing from most Metroidvanias.
Desert Child is an ambitious cyberpunk racer that feels more like a preview of what could be a truly terrific game, hampered by short length and lack of gameplay variety.
Infliction succeeds where a majority of horror games fail by providing genuine scares through its hair-raising environments and terrifying spirits that stalk the player.
Achtung! Cthulhu Tactics is a barebones turn-based strategy title that is light on strategy or compelling reasons to slog through waves of uninspired Lovecraftian horrors.
Despite Captain Spirit's length, its ability to draw the player in and form an emotional bond with its characters is outstanding and follows the example set by Life is Strange.
The Piano fails to execute meaningfully on any of its promising concepts, which are further marred by finicky controls and antiquated game design.
FAR: Lone Sails manages to be memorable in a way that a lot of indie games fail to be. What it lacks in length and varied gameplay, it makes up for with its spellbinding presentation.
Despite a relatively standard roguelike dungeon crawler framework, Hellmut's mutation swapping madness gives this twin-stick shooter a breath of originality and satisfying destruction that separates it from the competition.