10 Indie Games That Prove Gaming Isn't Boring

Hey Dad,
In this video, I'll be taking a look at 10 different Indie Games. I'll also talk about why you should be playing more Indie games in general.
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Songs Used:
CHAPTERS
Intro 0:00
Crow Country 1:22
Escape From Lavender Island 6:28
Mullet Madjack 13:51
Animal Well 18:28
Helskate 22:47
Mortal Sin 26:33
Buckshot Roulette 31:35
Knuckle Sandwich 34:14
Lorelei and the Laser Eyes 38:36
Birth 41:47
Final Thoughts 44:08

[@YourFavoriteSon1]

What's the best Indie game you've played recently?

[@AcidWorkz]

Cry of fear for sure

[@AcidWorkz]

and Dave the Diver

[@ChazMcRich1]

Orbo’s Odyssey and Cavern of Dreams are amazing platformers I’ve enjoyed recently.

[@Bosshands]

Check out withering rooms, looks Jank, but its incredible

[@RyanJohnson09]

Chained Echoes was incredible and the whole game made by 1 man with another as composer and it blows my mind 🥲

[@jessejukuri5202]

Graphics-wise Crow Country somehow reminds me of original Final Fantasy VII, while of course having real time 3D graphics instead of pre-rendered. Really interesting art style!

[@Leigh_Bailey]

Totally agree! I understand people reference resident evil because of the genre, but the character models have that same style as FFVII. It looks like they are made of individual shapes that intersect instead of a single model.

[@flipdiesel9652]

I was thinking the exact same thing about FF7

[@saschaberger3212]

A reality bending mask that let's you change the map. Ngl that's an awesome feature that only comes once every decade. Insta buy

[@YourFavoriteSon1]

Such a fantastic game

[@lauraazure6462]

The indie scene has been killing it all year! So many good games out right now

[@swordsleep]

Quickly becoming one of my favourites to watch

[@YourFavoriteSon1]

Glad you're enjoying the content!

[@Ar0474]

I started getting bored with video games around 2011 when I had my Wii and just couldn't find anything that really gripped me anymore. My dad bought me a refurbished PC and I had bought a PC copy of Darksiders which needed Steam to run. When I downloaded Steam I wasn't even interested in playing Darksiders because I was just having fun searching the Steam store page for cheap games. About a year later in 2012 a little gem called Hotline Miami came out and changed the way I viewed video games forever!

[@GlitchedVision]

wanna talk about insane 1 man passion projects? take a quick look at spacebourne 2. It's super jank but constantly being updated. It's honestly what starfield wanted to be.

[@MrWarranty]

As a game design teacher, I'm constantly looking for new indie examples to share with my students. I really appreciated this video; I'd played a few of these, but most of them are new to me and you really sold them without spoiling them. Thanks very much and I'll keep watching!

[@r3tr0_r3dux_2]

Mullet Mad Jack was so peak I grew a mullet while playing the game.

[@AC-hj9tv]

Did you keep it

[@holisticreviews]

It wasn’t his, he just grew it.

[@tacocatagain2500]

I love all video games but indie games are always the ones that just hit different. I’ve been playing Binding of Isaac for like 5 years. Can’t say the same for most games.

[@Netist_]

On a surface level, I absolutely agree. There are a lot of great indie games coming out. Though, it's easy to see some of the AAA rot seeping into the indie space, too. How many more "action-packed rogue-lite deck-builders" are we going to see? And we're constantly seeing a flood of cheap streamerbait, hoping to be the next flavor of the month. There are plenty of good indie games, but man it's hard to find them when they're covered in trash. Anyway, the best indie game I've played in the last few months was easily Void Stranger. It's not for everyone, but... Boy, if it's for you it's for you.

[@YourFavoriteSon1]

I agree, there's always going to be a level of that. Because trends/market dictates what gets made the most. But there's certainly a lot more worthy projects in the indie space than in AAA imo. (Also Void Stranger looks great, I'll check it out)

[@Netist_]

@@YourFavoriteSon1 Agreed. I'll add: that's why I appreciate videos like these. It's nice to see a spotlight put on some good games I might have missed.

[@Synthpopper]

Getting good at Void Strangers is the closest I feel to being on ritalin without taking it

[@Netist_]

@@Synthpopper Then you spend 100 hours getting the true ending and have 15 pages of hand-written notes on graph paper

[@user-ow1bc4sx2r]

That’s sort of the key issue isn’t it? Indie games aren’t on average way better than AAA, but the sheer number of projects means that even if 1/100 is great, the indie space produces a lot of them. It’s also why stuff like nextfest is so good. If you check it out and watch some KZbin vids covering it from people with diverse taste, you can find some real gems

[@AlbertoMonroy-lq2vw]

Pleaseeee keep these videoc coming. I'm always looking for great games with different mechanics and difficulty. I don't play AAA games anymore. Would be really cool to see these videos coming out frequently. Gret work.

[@jurtheorc8117]

Mind if I give a list of what for me are the most interesting non-AAA games to check out?

[@AlbertoMonroy-lq2vw]

@@jurtheorc8117 please... I really appreciate it. 😀

[@jennifer-pm6ql]

If you don’t mind a text heavy game, I recommend Road Warden. It’s my top five favorite game of this year

[@AC-hj9tv]

Nice

[@alicemoghani8355]

Great video! I myself got a whole new set of games to play. Keep up the great work. I’ll definitely be trying out knuckle sandwich!!

[@freemangrist]

Really loved this video would love if it was a regular series, keep up the great work

[@blumiu2426]

You really didn't guess the direction Crow Country was going in?

[@YourFavoriteSon1]

I'm pretty easy to fool to be honest

[@Meta_Mage]

Can I recommend the game "Little Goody Two Shoes" by AstralShift? it's essentially a fairy tale story with a horror twist. Everything in the game aside from the sprites for the characters has been hand painted / crafted and then digitized. The game aims to emulate 90s anime and does so perfectly. It's absolutely a work of art and has an interesting story as well.

[@YourFavoriteSon1]

Looks pretty cool, I'll have to check it out

[@LexusLFA554]

Gotta be honest, from all the AAA games only Jedi Survivor was mind blowing in execution to me. All other games where indie games. And ETS2 has stuck around since its initial launch.

[@ratchthps]

Good stuff and just in time for the steam sale lol. You should do another one like this again sometime.

[@YourFavoriteSon1]

I had like at least 10 other games I wanted to talk about in this video, so I'd definitely like to do it again

[@hyenawithgun]

The indie game I'm the most excited for right now has got to be Blue Prince. It's a puzzle exploration game with roguelike elements that is unlike anything I've ever played. The free demo had me replaying it again and again while obsessively taking notes on every detail I could (something I haven't done since playing classic puzzle games like Fez and The Watcher)

[@aimgel]

amazing recommendations, and well made video cant wait to watch more of you!

[@tomasmurcu]

Youre killing it, man. I started watching with your Mass Effect series and you have fast become my favorite gaming youtuber

[@bideoVames]

I heavily recommend caves of qud, it is kind of like playing a single character in dwarf fortress but in a post apocalyptic sci fi world. It is one of those roguelikes that does not have permanent upgrades and any improvements you get are your game knowledge. It is brutally difficult but also incredibly fun to get better at. Other than that i loved dread delusion and lunacid which are both heavily inspired by old fromsoft games like kingsfield. Your suggestions look dope I'll have to try those whenever i get the time!

[@YourFavoriteSon1]

Been meaning to check out Qud for a while. Maybe for the next video.

[@bideoVames]

@@YourFavoriteSon1 it's very much worth it! It recently got a complete ui overhaul including controller support and it's at its best! I think the 1.0 is launching later this year which will complete the story of the game but to even get there will be very difficult so starting now in order to be able to get to the end when it's out is probably smart!

[@ledumpsterfire6474]

"Like playing a single character in dwarf fortress" So you must have forgotten Adventurer mode is a thing. Still have yet to find another game that allows me to put a wolf in a chokehold and bite its tongue out.

[@bideoVames]

@@ledumpsterfire6474 I know adventure mode is a thing but it's the closest comparison I could come up with. Cud allows you to become a mutant and grow an extra limb every couple of levels which you can then use to quadruple wield axes, it allows you to swap bodies with someone and then kill your old body in a Ginyu type maneuver and so much more! Definitely try it out!

[@Nathan_Coley]

Valheim, V-Rising and played a technical test a few weeks ago for a game coming out on July 2nd The First Descent.

[@ledumpsterfire6474]

Avoid The First Descent. It's a Nexon game, which means when it releases, it's going to be filled to the brim with particularly egregious predatory monetization. They release demos like that with little to no monetization to get people hooked, and then bait and switch that audience when they try to make the move to playing the full release. It's kinda their whole thing.

[@Nathan_Coley]

@@ledumpsterfire6474 I've already finished the pre-load they launched over the weekend. Thank you for the heads-up so I can be on the lookout tomorrow going forward. I have a low tolerance for in your face monetization so if it steps over the line there's a possibility I'll uninstall by the end of the week. My ends of the spectrum when it comes to monetization are Plarium(Raid) being the absolute worst and Warframe being "better end".

[@darkentity1000]

V Rising is great, but I'm too scared to play PVP as the raids are always on the weekends in the evening when I'm at work

[@Nathan_Coley]

@@darkentity1000 Nothing wrong with that, I've also mostly played the PVE only barely dabbling into PvP.

[@cadebob1233]

already beat mullet mad jack, shoutout gmanlives. loved this game

[@fasteddie307]

I've been watching for awhile, great content by the way I'm much enjoying it, but I'm super curious about why "Dad" is addressed in each video. I kind of have a headcanon going with a tragic backstory where either Dad walked out or died early in life and this is a way to try and express that grief through a productive job or Dad said he'd never amount to anything and this is like an FU with each successful and well thought out video.

[@jurtheorc8117]

The channel's called YourFavouriteSon, so i think it's just a joke on the channel's name.

[@Reject101Personal]

Crow Countrys been on my list to play for a while. Just waiting on that spare (HA) income to grab it. But so looking forward to it.

[@YourFavoriteSon1]

It's definitely worth your time. It's one of the few games that has come incredibly close to the horror classics.

[@Reject101Personal]

@@YourFavoriteSon1 I cracked and bought it today! (Still gotta finish another game first thouH)

[@MichaelOcherz]

First time I'd heard of Escape from Lavender Island, immediately on the wishlist.

[@SplashingMANGO]

There’s only really one indie game I want, and it’s for someone to make an indie Splinter Cell. Ubisoft can suck a fart for how much they seem to care about the IP, so I just want some big fans of the franchise to make their own version of a high tech, turn of the century warfare, stealthy spy game

[@PhotosaurusFlex]

I think the real problem is that most people play video games on console and indie games available on console is really nothing compared to what's available on PC. Thoughts?

[@YourFavoriteSon1]

Although it doesn't seem like it, I believe there are actually more people who play games on PC than consoles. Or at least a similar amount.

[@Shift_Salt]

I play on console and I can still find great games I enjoy that are not necessarily big triple a experiences. Yes steam certainly has a HUUUGE catalogue by comparison but there's also TOOOONS of PC steam slop I need to sort through by comparison.

[@LutraLovegood]

My thoughts are, that's an excellent pun of a name.

[@ShaggyToad1]

If anyone has some mecha itch, I can wholeheartedly recommend Gearbits. Real fun if a bit simplistic. Gives off old Armored Core and EDF vibes.

[@sloopadoodle]

you did good guy. I added several to my wish list, some I had ignored. The way you described them had me reconsider my initial, knee jerk reaction. I tend to glance at videos while hovering over the ignore button, I've become the consoomer I always hated. Anyway thanks for the video.

[@jurtheorc8117]

What type of (indie) games do you usually go for, if it's alright to ask? I may be able to give other suggestions as well.

[@mattmatt2949]

Never been this early before, keen for the video

[@YourFavoriteSon1]

Hope you enjoy it!

[@breznev64]

Because I didn’t already have enough games on my steam wishlist…

[@aresgodofwar7401]

Thank you for sharing some more hidden gems son, keep up the good work you are making all of us proud ❤

[@anthonylancer]

Epic Charls clip

[@sup1602]

Wow thanks for the vid, there a are few games here that I might pick up.

[@handleunavailable]

Glad you found all these so i didnt have to dig through the chasm of asset-flips that the Steam indie section can be.

[@arklados3596]

Hi son, you’re my favorite one.

[@YourFavoriteSon1]

thanks

[@Fahmi4869]

I always love indie RPG Maker horror games. They have their own charm at making stories

[@AlbertoMonroy-lq2vw]

I would like to recommend Hyper Demon. The game is a masterpiece and just gets better as your skill grows.

[@versebuchanan512]

Man, I'm too depressed to even play games I KNOW I love anymore. I haven't picked up a controller in over a year, and every time I think about it, it feels like a waste of time.

[@si3ge]

I know this feeling. First of all, take care of yourself bro, you are worth it. 2nd, it might help to try games that are very short and don't require a lot of commitment. One of my favorite games of all time which has a fantastic story is Titanfall2. It's only like 5 hours long. It's also on sale right now for like 6$

[@SimielBlack]

Maybe look at causes other than depression, if you can. If it doesn't have an obvious cause and lasts more than a few weeks, it's unlikely to be depression, hope you feel better soon either way.

[@degenrips]

Felt that. I haven't been able to play videogames for years. I want to return but its like my brain forces me to deflect like the same sides of a magnet.

[@versebuchanan512]

@@SimielBlack I'm using that as a shorthand term, yeah. It's a whole bunch of stuff; it's been a rough few years and I'm just kinda wallowing in a burnout. Not trying to whine, lol, just lack motivation to do anything besides work and like... put KZbin on auto play and re-read old books and sleep anymore. I am a few weeks into taking a break from drinking though, I reckon that'll help!

[@SimielBlack]

@@versebuchanan512 I hope taking a break helps, fingers crossed for you my dude.

[@JakeTravz13]

Bought Mortal Sinn, Helskate, and Mullet Mad Jack after watching this, they all looked super good. I had mortal sin on my wishlist for a while but steam summer sale may as well buy it now.

[@flipdiesel9652]

Lunacid should’ve 100% been on this list. The game was developed by one guy and is one of the best indie games I’ve ever played

[@MarauderXXX]

Second this. LUNACID is great stuff.

[@IsaacCosmic]

You should totally try Timy and Big: Grandpas Leftovers. Super unique, fun and short game

[@Zeark]

Defineitly checking some of these out. Great video!

[@YourFavoriteSon1]

Thanks so much!

[@Mattznick]

i firmly believe the main casual audience will just get so fed up with AAA that they will look to indie games out of desperation. Usually they complain about graphics but they will learn a breaking point that ultra realism will hit a wall soon

[@ulthanesmorkums]

Graphics appeal to humanity's base instinct of desiring beauty. Graphics will always be important.

[@duardoCOB]

​@@ulthanesmorkumsyes, but graphics does not necessarily mean photorealism, which is what we've been seeing diminishing results in for a couple console generations now. There really hasn't been a jump in 3D visual fidelity like that of the PS2 era. Good art direction > graphic fidelity in every way

[@ulthanesmorkums]

@duardoCOB Good art direction is important sure, but graphical fidelity is just nice to look at. Red Dead is a good example. It's just that a lot of photorealistic games blow ass.

[@billmozart7288]

23:38 sick lines? Winners don't use drugs 😂

[@olivergottkehaskamp3369]

I still do nothing in my free time except play video games just fine. Even if I suddenly didn't need a full-time job or sleep, I'd never run out of new, let alone old, stuff to play. 🤷🏻‍♂️

[@YourFavoriteSon1]

True, there's always something to play. My backlog is a mile long.

[@mnoble5406]

I fear Knuckle Sandwich mini game combat could become exhausting after a while, similar to YIIK (even though that game has a whole bunch of other issues)

[@blueriversrapper]

Can u do retrospectives on the newer Yakuza games?

[@Retro_Cafe]

so we have the exact opposite of "10 worst steam games" now 👍 i would love to see this one become a series as well as long as indie games exist, gaming would never die

[@YamiSpyro2011]

These games have something that modern AAA (or if you are Ubisoft AAAA) games dont have Decent story and gameplay, not just fancy graphics

[@reaverofjillsandwiches]

Well I played Them and Us recently, let's play posting on my channel shameless plug I know. I need to play 'Signalis and Tormented Souls, bought them both but hard to find time to play them. So yeah I agree there are some nice indie games out there. I'm h oping we eventually get a decent indie God of War clone since that franchise has gone in a... Different direction.

[@user-xx2ls7zi6b]

I love all my children equally but you are the most helpful son.

[@AvalancheReviews]

Hellskate looks so fucking sick!

[@YourFavoriteSon1]

It's so damn good

[@jurtheorc8117]

The somewhat recently released Rakugaki or RKGK reminds me a bit of it.

[@FeiFongWang]

You can't tell me what you do you're not my real dad... o-or son!

[@3chambergamer]

I've been loving Buckshot Roulette

[@panthertheif7987]

I like indie games and got q steam deck i installed chef battle brigade wdich looks like Delicious and dungeon, but an indie game form . Stil i'm really excited for metaphor refantazio , i loved persona 3 relaod is my favorite . persona 4 and five are second favorites. Keep up the good work i always like learning about small new games and i like backing small team art projects on Kickstarter

[@kal_bec]

Escape From Lavender Island mentioned LETS FUCKING GOOO!

[@AndromedaApokalipsy]

27:57 oh from anime [and manga] Berserk :)

[@milodoiing2280]

Sea of Stars is reallly great indie jrpg.

[@Look-at-the-ghost]

Crow country rules bro. The platinum is super easy

[@elpximso6771]

I mostly only explore indie games now. Big AAA games dont get me hyped and im never looking forward to any of them. And theres always some interesting indie games to find and enjoy

[@jurtheorc8117]

Here's a list of non-triple-A and Indie games that can carry interesting stuff to check out. Personal favourites: No Straight Roads Clash: Artifacts of Chaos (Zeno Clash prequel from 2023) Soulstice (despite what the name may imply, it's NOT a Soulslike. More of a DMC, Bayonetta or Darksiders-type game) Cookie Cutter Others: Blud Harold Halibut The Dishwasher: Vampire Smile Charlie Murder Fight'n Rage Yet to come out: Immortal: And the Death that Follows, My Familiair, Bad Boro, Loco Motive, The Mermaid Mask, whatever Moonhood Studio and Amanita Design are crafting, Near-Mage, Pipistrello and the Cursed Yoyo, Kings of Hell, Genokids, Judero, Gori: Cuddly Carnage, Enenra Demon Core, The Dungeon Experience Resistor Yasuke: A Lost Descendant and that's all I can think of for now.

[@Nigel222]

I dunno. To me a lot of indie games are just rehashes of old games I played in the Snes, PS1 or PS2 gen.

[@ninjagaidenblackman]

Forcing my girlfriend to watch this with me while we eat bro cheers!! Lol

[@rebelliousgrayfox]

Infinite Wealth retrospective when? I'm not quite sold on dropping $70+, despite having played the whole series thanks to *y*ou and another KZbinr

[@Dishamonpow]

Neat.

[@skyace9386]

I only found 2 games good enough to play here. The ratio of trash games to fun/good games goes heavily in the AAA games favor, no matter the fact that people love to parrot:" AAA trash, indie great".

[@Cranberrymaker]

What is the artwork on the thumbnail?

[@Pimpgamer101]

I’m sure all of these are on PC, but which ones have console ports? I know Animal Well does. I feel like you usually bring it up in your videos.

[@chistianwhite6772]

Are you excited for the S.H. 2 remake?

[@solidghus4799]

I bought half the list.

[@onatgz]

dear mr. son, hello. roses are red, violets are blue. some indie games are good. i hope you are too. best regards,

[@yourhorseyepona7309]

How touching😂

[@daveconnor6174]

Street Uni X!

[@mattwcook9127]

I just released my first game earlier this week, and it was all thanks to Indies like these *cough cough* self promotion *cough cough* trailer and link are in my channel

[@YourFavoriteSon1]

Congratulations! that's awesome

[@jurtheorc8117]

Hope your game will get good reception and sales, and that people may provide good feedback!

[@wordswarsandsymphonies]

SFB mention‼️ everybody PLEASE play detective grimoire and tangle tower! it started on new grounds and they’re very very fun mystery games

[@makikuma91]

Mortal Sin looks like THE game for someone on drugs. But don't do drugs, son.

[@YourFavoriteSon1]

no drugs

[@MR-TYLENOLJONES]

Was really hoping turbo kid was on this list. Good list none the less.

[@YourFavoriteSon1]

I still have to check that out, shocked they made a game for that movie almost a decade later.

[@xkoan-yy7lg]

missing peaks of yore

[@HellRider-pl7pn]

Dusk, Prodeus, Signalis, Anno Mutationem, Sea of Stars, Wizard of Legend, Lost in Vivo, Spooky’s Jump Scare Mansion, need I go on? Hell even Honkai Star Rail a Gacha space fantasy RPG has fun interesting ideas and satisfying turn based combat that puts Triple A to shame like WTF is going on? A GACHA GAME! Is better than Triple A games. HUUUH!!!? Oh also old games shouldn’t be ignored, Quake 1 and 2 remastered and the Serious Sam HD collection are awesome.

[@user-ow1bc4sx2r]

I don’t love the footage you chose for animal well, it spoils some of the fun “oh shit” moments from the game Spoiler break The first time you take the disk and see the coyote monster or the first time you go underground to avoid the dog and realize that this dog is not the same as the others

[@YourFavoriteSon1]

Personally, I think there was way larger moments that surprised me. Specifically some of the uses for the toys. So I tried really not to include those. It's honestly a hard game to talk about without giving anything away, but also being convincing enough to persuade people to play it haha

[@martwica.]

Alright games but they dont come close to games like hotline miami, hollow knight, stardew valley, terraria, hades, slay the spire etc...

[@mannyichi]

TWU

[@pobbityboppity1110]

The framing of how AAA sucks and indies are great is strange. Like most indies are also creatively bankrupt (how many games do we need that are SOTN clones or “Mario 3 but worse”). I’m begging for a scrap of nuance and critical thinking here.

[@HellRider-pl7pn]

No one is denying that but the problem is this, the CEOs and developers at these Triple A companies are bathing in cash they have the funds they’re just to lazy to make a good game and if you think I’m wrong then answer me this, why did the developers try to say Baldur’s Gate 3 shouldn’t be the new standard? And why did Ubisoft developers get salty about From Software’s success with Elden Ring? There are a lot of shitty indie games yes, but there are also plenty of good ones too. Its more about the lack of diversity than anything else for me personally if you want Survival Horror, Boomer Shooters, Side Scrollers, Point and Click, Roguelikes, and JRPGs the indie has got you covered. All you will find in the Triple A industry is generic third person action adventure and scripted first person shooters that don’t trust the player to figure things out. That reminds me IGN had to make a video defending Baldur’s Gate 3 basically saying this should absolutely be the standard like IGN of all companies, was defending Larian Studios. If that isn’t a sign of how bad the aaa market has become then I don’t know what is.

[@cidfacetious3722]

You’re absolutely right about the AAA games that’s why after over 25 years of gaming. I’m finally building my first PC that and because Sony has decided to dedicate its existence to DEI and live service two things. I absolutely hate.

[@ledkit]

Indie games are pretty much all I've been playing lately. AAA games no longer interest me, they are just so bland and safe.

[@jurtheorc8117]

Here's a list of non-triple-A and Indie games that can carry interesting stuff to check out. Personal favourites: No Straight Roads Clash: Artifacts of Chaos (Zeno Clash prequel from 2023) Soulstice (despite what the name may imply, it's NOT a Soulslike. More a DMC or Darksiders type game) Cookie Cutter Others: Blud Harold Halibut The Dishwasher: Vampire Smile Charlie Murder Fight'n Rage Yet to come out: Immortal: And the Death that Follows, My Familiair, Bad Boro, Loco Motive, The Mermaid Mask, whatever Moonhood Studio and Amanita Design are crafting, Near-Mage, Pipistrello and the Cursed Yoyo, Kings of Hell, Genokids, Judero, Gori: Cuddly Carnage, Enenra Demon Core, The Dungeon Experience Resistor Yasuke: A Lost Descendant and that's all I can think of for now.

[@ogo2k]

gang shit

[@YourFavoriteSon1]

💯

[@itsmeguys6321]

Indie games? More like Indie DAMES cuz these games GYATT me GOONIN an' EDGIN like your mother. Thank you Son. - Your least favorite dad I got here within the first hour so I felt obligated to leave a comment. Sorry

[@YourFavoriteSon1]

speechless

[@Gehshme]

I don't need to do anything, thank you very much random KZbin Man Internet Guy.

[@YourFavoriteSon1]

fair

[@alexthething]

YOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

[@michaelk.4719]

I never do this, but first

[@MrRoomerz]

Well u beat me :3

[@YourFavoriteSon1]

👑 here's your crown king

[@Saulbreadman]

AAA is trash 99% the time. Indies are the future.

[@YourFavoriteSon1]

That's where most of the experimentation and unique ideas are these days

[@ichigokage]

Indies have been the future for near a decade now. The first big one that comes to my head is Undertale.

[@whatsthehistory4752]

100% agree, one of my recent favorites has been Void Bastards

[@billmozart7288]

That's already been the case with music and film for decades

[@dusty2080]

We've been saying this for years... Biggest issue is that once the Indie games become omnipresent, they get rapidly diluted and we get a flood of mediocrity (we saw this after the late 2000's/early 2010s indie game boom) and the cycle continues

[@user-lt8vu3qm1z]

I hate to bring it up to you but um.. You're not... My favorite son... Sorry..

[@saxonisrael8398]

A lot of indie games are trash. Short, simple, lack of creativity, and without a big budget. The sad thing is, the good ones are lacking content because of the small budget.

[@sinisterdesign]

Sturgeon's Law: 90% of everything is trash. But there are *so many* indie games that the 10% which are good still wildly outnumber the good AAA titles.

[@saxonisrael8398]

@@sinisterdesign I agree with the statistics here. But it's such a slog digging through the indie garbage in the market. It's all the same dumb cal arts art style, or "retro" style. A lot of midwit ideas and crappy video game writing. When you do find a good indie game, it offers little content because of budget restraints. I prefer waiting for meaty AAA games everyone year or so than shallow indie games.

[@NikosiaMateas]

Honestly, I'm not finding indie games to be especially interesting. Like, looking at the list you've got here, there's a common thread - "Look how wacky and different I can be!" But honestly, in my experience with a good 90% of indie games, they're all style and no substance. Not to say AAA is much better - that's mostly lowest-common-denominator trash these days. Where I'm consistently finding the best games is in the AA space, with stuff like Alone In The Dark 2024, The Chant, House of Ashes and Scars Above being among my recent favourite games. So far this year, my GOTY contenders are Still Wakes The Deep, Alone In The Dark and Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden - all AA titles from smaller European publishers. There definitely was an era in the 2010s where indie games were freaking excellent, with stuff like Near Death, Freedom Planet, Albino Lullaby, Valley, all kinds of really interesting stuff that didn't feel cheap or flashy. Then you have something like Shinsekai or Fantasian, which, while not technically indie games, are fantastic indie-scale games from established developers. But by and large, I am finding the indie scene in the 2020s to be exceptionally unappealing and honestly kind of obnoxious, and even when something does pique my interest, I wind up burned with a boring game more often than not.

[@YourFavoriteSon1]

I see what you're saying for the most part, and certainly there are examples of this. But I think games can have substance and also try new things as far as style and aesthetics. I don't think any of the games I've shown are trying to be "wacky" or wacky's sake.

[@NikosiaMateas]

@@YourFavoriteSon1 What I see is an indie scene where developers are desperately trying to be unique to stand out - and fair enough, because visibility is a legitimate problem - but I feel like a lot of games are throwing darts at the wall instead of building upon what works. Look at the Metroidvania genre for instance - there's a lot of "It's a Metroidvania, but" games, or Metroidvanias with zany art styles, but actually playing these games, they almost never meet or exceed the quality of the games they are mimicking. They don't refine and improve the formula, they try and give it a twist, while recycling a lot of the same-old tropes and mechanics.

[@MrGnuh]

my gaming diet consist of 99.999% indie and retro games and a tiny sliver of the modern stuff only if it's not woke, exploitative or half baked and not from a company that made its way onto my ever expanding blacklist. and i'm telling you, i am having an absolute blast ♥

[@powervidsful]

First 30 second and you echo that false only bad aaa games? What are you becoming one of those rage bait youtubers? I The world doesn't need another james sterling

[@lakkakka]

Sure son, go buy your dad all the indie games. And a new gaming rig since this one is getting too old to keep up with games. Thanks son.

[@matthew-dq8vk]

Oh wow another boring gaming essay channel. The only good thing youve put put is the cobra doc. God i remember when gaming essays were unique.

[@LutraLovegood]

When was that, a decade ago?