19 Indie Games You Should Check Out Immediately
Merry spooks-mas everyone! It’s that time of year again where young and old alike delight in fright! There’s something intoxicating about the leaves slowly dying and the ground turning brown as the nights grow long. The smell of slow decay is in the air, and animals are frantically shoving as much food in their gullets to prepare for (in their minds) the coming apocalypse. Soon, all shall grow still, and white death shall cover the land. For the time being, let’s take ghoulish delight of nature’s fright, and make light of the encroaching night!
Tis’ the season for macabre satisfaction, and many of you are trolling the web for what ghastly game to brave through next. While I’m sure all of you are aware of the major releases like Resident Evil: Revelations 2 or Until Dawn, many an indie title also await patiently for your praise and purchasing dollar. As many of these indie titles receive attention in my reviews, I will instead be focusing on those titles yet to be released, but still worth keeping an eye on. Some of these games are in a playable state, while others are still being developed behind closed doors. But each, dear reader, have cause to give pause and get in your claws..
1) Darkest Dungeon
Have you ever been playing a roguelike and thought, “This is good, but there isn’t nearly enough psychological disorders.” Well, look no further, because Darkest Dungeon is here to address your oddly specific complaint. Without hyperbole, the game is fucking fantastic. I have spent more hours than I care to admit starting new runs and delving into the dark depths the game has to offer. Varied character classes, interesting fights, and tense mechanics make the game absolutely a must have for any horror fan. You will throw your keyboard across the room and swear the game off when a character dies, then get that itch and pick it up again an hour later. It is rare a game comes along that can hook me this much, but Darkest Dungeon’s mix of calculated risk and reward provides almost limitless entertainment. Add in the fact that since my last treatment of the game, they have added 3 new classes, a new zone, and a slew of new items and balance changes, proves that this is a game well worth the investment. Buy it today.
2) Pathologic Classic HD
Have you ever been playing a game, and wondered why there wasn’t more existential Russian metaphoric philosophy? Well then, theoretical soulmate, let me tell you about Pathologic. Pathologic is that amazing game you’ve never played. Even if you have heard of it, chances are you never really got into it. It has a significant amount of indie cred, but unfortunately was nigh unplayable in its original form. The translation was babblefish garbage, making the game essentially stop halfway through when they just stopped trying. Luckily, the game is here again after a successful kickstarter campaign, and better than ever. This doesn’t mean you won’t get confused: characters speak in metaphor, and deciphering what it’s all about takes significant mental gymnastics. It is undeniably dense, but worth the effort. What lies at it’s core is one of the most satisfying, engrossing, and fundamentally terrifying games of the past decade. You do not know true fear until you trade your machine gun and all its bullets for a head of cabbage, just for the privilege of crawling through the horror another day.
3) The Forest
Have you ever been playing Minecraft, and wished it had mutant cannibals? Well, look no further, because The Forest is here! Chances are, you’ve heard of this game. This might very well be the highest profile game on this list. That doesn’t change the fact that it is worth every penny. All of these types of crafting games have a big learning curve, but The Forest is uniquely satisfying in how this all comes together. The monsters are terrifying, and crawling your way towards safety is met with adversity at every turn. It’s not an experience to miss.
4) Subnautica
Have you ever been playing FarSky and wished it didn’t look like Minecraft? Well, Subnautica is here to offer you the terrifying cartoony delights your dark heart desires. The game has an amazing amount of graphical detail, which amazingly doesn’t take away at all from the free-form crafting and environmental gathering. Creatures manage to be colorful and creative, while still maintaining a terrifying monstrous quality. The updates have been at best average, but the proposed features are impressive. As is, it is an incredibly fun game with a lot to explore.
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