Two-year Channeversary Bonus Video - Top 10 Underrated Indie Games

[@PixelaDay]

What are your most underrated indie games?

[@amamoyoi6504]

For now, definitely Death Trash!

[@Medytacjusz]

There's a lot, but first thing that comes to mind right now - Horace

[@christopherhamilton8331]

Since you've already made a video on ECHO, I'm going to say Rain World.

[@Rickrolled5997]

Miasmata

[@ninjaflashlight]

Monolith, for sure. A great top down shooter that helped fill the void that Enter the Gungeon left for me. It does have a nice piece of DLC, but that is not at all required to have a fun time. It regularly goes down below $5 on Steam sales too, so I recommend people giving it a shot.

[@Medytacjusz]

Ah, these kinds of videos fill me with bitter-sweet emotions. On the one hand, the love I have for the medium swells, on the other - the existential dread creeps in, of not having enough lifespan available to experience it all. Fortunately, I already know some of these so the FOMO doesn't hit as hard, at least I'm keeping up with the medium second-hand, thanks to content like this. May the mercurial gods of KZbin be kind to your channel.

[@PixelaDay]

With such excellent engagement as comments from yours truly, I'm sure they will! Also yes, the existential dread - I know it well.

[@Teodzero]

Rain World. I see it pop up in discussions occasionally, so it's not completely obscure, but it's far, far from the mass appeal of popular indies. It's a gorgeous platformer with some very interesting mechanics and a unique feel.

[@PixelaDay]

I’m playing this right now! I don’t want to reveal too much about my future video plans, but…you might want to stick around on the channel 😊

[@subprogram32]

@@PixelaDay Oh heccccck I look very forward to that one! :3

[@DesignFrameCaseStudies]

Rain World is one of the best indie games I've played for sure, with the caveat of you have to go in knowing or quickly discover how to approach the game, otherwise the death mechanic may lock you out of progression and become sort of frustrating. But on the other hand, they're clearly trying to make surviving and dying truly terrifying. I got partway through the dark spider area and said NOPE lol

[@SparksV]

My list would be: Pyre (a choose your own adventure with a great cast, soundtrack and art that proposes interesting decisions affecting both story and gameplay) NOT A HERO (2D side shooter with absurd humour and relatively small levels to keep the gameplay bite-sized but leaves you wanting more) Gunpoint (well written hacking puzzle-game with a dry sense of humour) Heat Signature (a top down space cowboy simulator/rougelite) Thomas Was Alone (a wholesome chill narrative puzzle game narrated by Danny Wallace) Solitaire Conspiracy (a very stylized version of solitaire with power ups and an FMV campaign) Invisible Inc (a spy-themed XCOM-like with a short campaign but with a lot of variables and customizability to encourage more playthroughs like a roguelite, one of those games that lets you risk it for more reward and in the process create cool stories from gameplay) Wide Ocean Big Jacket (very short quirky story-focused game) Signs of the Sojourner (an interesting game about communication and conversations, using card game mechanics) Aviary Attorney (I'll just leave the tagline: "Potentially the hottest bird lawyering game to come out of 1840s France!") Bonus: Pony Island / The Hex / Inscryption. If you like games that surprise you, don't research these just play them.

[@Tinfoilpain]

This is the best comment. This message brought to you by the dollar.

[@PixelaDay]

We have similar tastes! Some of these are on my regular “recommend to mates” list. I had NOT heard of aviary attorney and I may not be able to restrain myself from getting it. P.S. would you believe Pony Island was the runner up for the list? I hope the success of Inscryption will get more to play it.

[@rngwrldngnr]

16:30 Stories Untold was also a free game on Epic once or twice, so if you're the kind of person who routinely picks those up, you may already own it.

[@Jozeevis]

Woah I wasn't expecting to hear about Frozen Synapse in Current Year! Really loved that game and still listen to the soundtrack outside of it quite regularly, it's really great!

[@PixelaDay]

Me too! What a soundtrack!

[@Medytacjusz]

Just finished 'If on a Winter's Night, Four Travellers'. What a ride. Really liked it. I adore these short gaming experiences that can fit into one evening like a movie. They don't get enough love because people expect games to have 50 hours at least as a rule.

[@PixelaDay]

Yay, glad you liked it 🥰

[@KonTraxb]

Frozen Synapse is easily one of my all time favorite games. Nice to see it get some love for once.

[@PixelaDay]

It’s just solidly good. It’ll never age

[@KonTraxb]

@@PixelaDay There is nothing more stressful and fulfilling than clicking that commit button not knowing what strategy the opponent will apply

[@thedrellum]

Seconding your recs of Dungeon of the Endless and Stories Untold. And I've added If On a Winter's Night.

[@DesignFrameCaseStudies]

Hey this is fantastic, thanks for showing these games. They're definitely not the usual ones I see all the time so I appreciate that! The idea from Hidden in Plain Sight where you don't know where you are and don't want to give yourself away reminds me of the super underrated Invisigun. I bet you'd like that one, although I imagine it requires ideally the full 4-player squad. I unfortunately haven't played much of it so if you need an extra as a fellow game analysis content creator I'd be happy to join. I randomly played Unavowed when I briefly had the xbox game pass on PC and was pleasantly surprised, so I'm very glad to see I have some catching up to do when it comes to pixel adventures or point-and-clicks. Also quite intrigued in Dungeon of the Endless and Duskers. Consider me sold!

[@PixelaDay]

Ooh yes I spent an evening playing Invisigun with some mates. I’d actually forgotten what it was called. That is a super fun game!!

[@Cannotbetamed1]

Great suggestions! I also think Steamworld Heist is the best of the bunch and I love most of these dark and spooky adventure games. I’ll need to check out Four Travellers, haven’t played that one. Another great story heavy point and click (though not tooo dark) I’d recommend is The Lion’s Song.

[@PixelaDay]

Ooh looks good! It goes on the list

[@artr0x93]

frozen synapse is still one of my all time favorite games, it's a real shape the core concept hasn't been developed further since then

[@PixelaDay]

Bring on the synapse-likes

[@KajiCarson]

Although 'Dear Esther' is notorious as one of the first great innovative walking simulators, so-called, I still feel it doesn't get enough love. Captivating story, rich themes, & an incredibly evocative, beautiful voiceover throughout, almost as charismatic as yours. So many indies, so little time!

[@PixelaDay]

Well you know I won’t argue with this

[@kanalkucker14]

Great video! You pushed me over the edge to buy duskers 😊

[@annajanowska7602]

I'm late to the party, but I'd recommend Kathy Rain as a dark pixel art game with some horror elements and mature themes. It's one of my favorites. No Case Should Remain Unsolved also fits the bill - it's a story about investigating the disappearance of a child with some interesting gameplay mechanics. The last one on my recommendation list is TEST TEST TEST, a puzzle game about time loops and the horrors of the existence of an office worker (it's free on Steam, yay!). Oh, and I loved your list, I'm going to check out some of the games!

[@ElConquistadork]

Stories Untold is still one of my favorite games of all time.

[@franzluggin398]

Have you heard of Druidstone: Secret of the Menhir Forest? It's an indie turn-based strategy game that turns into somewhat of a puzzle game on hard difficulty since the levels are all really tightly designed and the game will keep you rather busy/on your toes the entire way through! There were quite a few missions where literally everyone on my team was injured, multiple of them just one hit away from getting downed and I managed to snatch the last objective with my last action on my turn! One thing I really liked about the game was that your level-up choices were just about the only permanent changes to your characters, you could give them abilities and equipment that fit the mission at hand, and you could even stack all your gems (that unlock abilities) on one single character, so lots of choices for customization! And next mission, it could be totally different.

[@PixelaDay]

Ah this is the game whose promo poster I keep misreading as “Druidscone”. Anyway, I didn’t know anything about it, will have to check it out!

[@Madoc_EU]

NORCO is a pretty good pixel art adventure with a dark theme. A bit like cyberpunk (but not quite cyberpunk) with Film Noir mixed in. Very slow and pensive, almost meditative. I liked the rhythm. A short game too. Which is mostly a plus in my view; I'm not calculating game hours per currency unit. Not a fan of that. For me, the experience is important, and how long-lasting the impression is that it leaves on me. NORCO is for sure pretty unique feeling-wise. Almost reminds me of those obscure surrealistic games of the long-gone past, like Captain Blood or Kult. But NORCO just feels like it; it's not actually confusing. I always knew what I was supposed to be doing. So if you're into this sort of stuff, it should definitely be worth a try.

[@AssasinZorro]

Hidden in plain sight reminds me of "thief town" a lot. Thief town has smartphone controls in addition to customizable controls both on keyboard and gamepad

[@jm8080ful]

you're actually in my top 5 underrated youtubers

[@AntLeonardi01]

Stories untold is an absolute must play. Trust me.

[@lostmarble540]

I'm wishlisting a bunch of these. I'd heard of some of these games but I hadn't gotten around to checking them out and forgot about them over time, but with this recommendation I have renewed interest. Also, a few games on here I'd never heard of that seem cool, like Fatum Betula.

[@leftovernoise]

Phoenotopia: Awakening is THE most underrated game I e ever played. Imagine Zelda 2 if it was actually fuckin amazing. The combat is very deliberate, the story is amazing and it has some of the best puzzles I've solved in a game. I had to break out pen and paper which I haven't had to do in decades for a game.

[@PixelaDay]

Oof it’s gorgeous too! Will check it out!

[@gilgamesh310]

Some of those games seem quite intriguing. Fatum Betula probably interests me the most. Unavowed is a good adventure game I played made by the same studio that made Gemini Rue.

[@ShifterChaos]

Seriously great coverage as always, glad to see Steam World Heist get the love it so rightly deserves, and really exited to learn about Gemini Rue, my hidden gem take away from this video. Here is to another year of wonderful #content, thank you for all your hard work

[@Umbra_Witcher]

there are a lot of games on here i actually haven't heard of. i am only a console gamer, but once in awhile will play steam games that my laptop can handle, so i'm going to try out the first one on here 'if on a winter's night, four travelers,' bc that one sounds right up my alley. might try a few of the others i haven't too.

[@jakethadley]

This is a great list, certainly picking some of these up for the christmas period! Also a recommendation of my own: if you like Frozen Synapse, check out Flotilla (or Flotilla 2 for VR) by Blendo Games. Same concept, but in 3-dimension spaceship combat - with a chill soundtrack, and space cats.

[@PixelaDay]

I hadn’t heard of this one! It goeth on the wishlist.

[@bimyouna]

In terms of "pixel art games with grim themes," my own Steam list has the Lone Survivor, Home, The Shivah, and Sword & Sworcery [sic]. If you're looking for something completely off the beaten path, I recommend Cultist Simulator! It uses a unique (as far as I can tell) card-based system to, well, do the thing it's called.

[@PixelaDay]

Ah I've had Cultist Simulator on my list for a while! I'll bump it up!

[@bimyouna]

@@PixelaDay If you haven't got it waiting on backlog yet, it's currently 70% off at Humble Bundle!

[@kaiyaweird-pegeensc3679]

I'm so glad you included the Last Door! I adore that game.

[@pimscrypt]

It's been a whole year since you made the Q&A video?? Holy crap does time go fast nowadays! Happy second channeversary Kat! I raise my glas for at the very least 20 more of these!

[@PixelaDay]

Yay thanks Pim ☺️ You know I feel the same about the Crypt!

[@richardduba9151]

One of the most impactful games I played is The Void. From the makers of Pathologic, this one can really invoke stuff you might not expect from a videogame. Upon starting I thought that this might just be some artsy, pretentious stuff and perhaps it purposefully allows you to underestimate it. It's a survival game. At first I naively took everything as is, not even thinking too much about what I saw or heard - mostly because I also treated it as a game, just some means of simple entertainment, not expecting anything special. Yeah-yeah it's dark and grim, we are in the realm of shadows, I get it... Just focused on sustaining myself, but soon as I learned more and more, it eventually dawned to me that there's a lot more going on here. See, when we watch a movie or play a game, we are in the comfortable position to either start completely clueless or already fed with a certain agenda. Either way, we take in everything as is. If we are confused, our craving of information makes us trustful to whatever we experience because we want things to make sense. And when we are given a role in a certain situation, we see everything through that viewpoint. And most media gives you a definite explanation - where here, something like that can only be a puzzle piece that might not even belong to any other component. I know this sounds all hazy and there are stuff I wish I could write in order to be precise here but it would only spoil the experience. This game addresses the player much more personally and maturely to the point that I felt that I better step up and reevaluate my approach here. That revelation made me excited, but also very happy and grateful as it was so refreshing to see a game that accomplishes something it's not even supposed to, something I thought I could only get from certain truly exceptional books maybe. And does this in very subtle, selfless way, allowing the thoughts to be formed within you instead of just blatantly telling you straight what's going on by some narrative. If you decide to try it, stop researching it and get in blind, even I said way waaaay too much. It's pure genious. Just make sure to press on even if you don't find it fun as past a certain point you simply won't care.

[@zacharyfine6197]

Dungeon of the Endless is one of those games that makes my friends and I really, really anxious for an entire playthrough. Don't get me wrong, it's great. But it's also really punishing. On opening a door, it seems as though each dark room independently decides whether enemies will spawn there, so you can have a peaceful time despite a ton of dark rooms for 5+ turns and then out of nowhere every single one is pouring out enemies. It's true that at some point it's just greed that is ending our runs, but come on -- the game is practically begging to be min-maxed at the early stages. I don't think the game is terribly well-balanced, either, which is why I'm so excited for the sequel despite loving the original. Time for another run...

[@propaul1369]

Im late af but for dark pixel art games I would recommend "An Outcry" (tho I only played the demo a few years back I really liked it [also part of the haunted ps1 community, cant remember if MaVent or Demo Disk])

[@geggiiis]

How did I miss this video! A bunch of these I've known about or even owned (yikes!) for years but still haven't played yet so you've bumped them up my list! Fatum Betula is new to me though so that's going on the pile. And I also love games like Hidden In Plain Sight such as Unspottable and Spy Party. But wow! Frozen Synapse, Dungeon of the Endless and SteamWorld Heist. They're among my all-time favourites (and I agree that Dungeon and Heist are the best of their respective series) so it's great to see them listed here. Frozen Synapse 2 was better in a lot of ways but was buggy and deserved longer in development. Unfortunately one of the main developers went on to other things so it never got the extra time it needed and remains in stasis as a tantalising but wobbly experience. Frozen Cortex took a futuristic robo sports spin on the same mechanics and I really dug that. The American footy/rugby-like sport focuses the play so it's perhaps even more dense with those tough decisions as you try to read your opponent and optimise counters and interceptions. Here's a bunch of games I don't think get enough attention so maybe they're underrated? The Longing, Commune Corvidae, Going Under, Cryptark, Sang-Froid: Tales of Werewolves, Primordia, Saturnalia and I'll round it out with some Bad North. Oh! While I've not played Duskers yet, Blendo Games' Quadrilateral Cowboy was fantastic. I'm not a programmer either but the heists made me feel like a badass hacker. I loved the story too. And speaking of Duskers, I remember playing something a bit similar called Deadnauts which also had you staring at an interface controlling remote humans scavenging space derelicts. It wasn't great but it was super evocative so... I think I should play Duskers :) Thanks for the video!

[@PixelaDay]

I also think you should play Duskers! Thanks so much for these recommendations - I hadn't heard of most of of them

[@borealmarinda4337]

My favourite indie game, and a game in general, is Forest's Secret by Bynine. It's a cute, beautiful, relaxing, and funny adventure game about exploring a forest and making friends with the inhabitants, helping them in some way. It's simple and easy, but at the same time full of little things to collect and stories to experience. The endearing characters alone would make it a must play. But that's not all it is. It's also a slowly unraveling story, dark undertones you know from the very beginning. It's not grim; it strikes a perfect balance of sincerely charming but serious and complex. And in the end, it still doesn't become some grandiose twist; it is all about community and friendship, the power of the two and dilemmas it can create. It's just despite its small scale and abundance of wholesome, it manages to create a full world and tell amazing, emotionally resonant story that you might not see coming at first. How I would sell it: it's Undertale without the edge. I keep screenshots from the game to remind me of the wonderful messages in the game. To remind me of the good in the world when my outlooks are low, of friendship when I feel lonely, and of warmth when everything feels too cold. It brought me so much joy and tears, it's hard to think about it without getting emotional. It's a must play for me.

[@PixelaDay]

Either you or someone else recommended this one to me a while ago. It's sitting on my to-play list :)

[@borealmarinda4337]

@@PixelaDay It was probably me; I take every opportunity to talk about it.

[@vagabundorkchaosmagick-use2898]

When you mentioned you like "pixel art games witch grim themes," I started to write this comment. I wrote "Pixel art games with grim themes, and point-and-click to boot? My favorites are The Last Door 1 and 2." Then before I posted it, I decided to finish the video. You then mentioned precisely The Last Door 1 and 2, and you made my day, because these games gave me a lot of happiness and when someone talks about them, I feel happy again. :D Lovecratf, and to some extent Poe, describe things that cannot be properly described, therfore there are not many good lovecraftian/weird movies. These games do a great work because they ise low res pixel art, which conveys the unnamable horror (as horror) better than state-of-the-art graphics. And, yes! The music! Carlos Viola is such a talent, his music deserves to be used on more games. It was a good decision the game used real music instead of chiptunes.

[@Table53]

Dungeon of the Endless has a sort of spiritual successor coming out at some point and I can't wait. Dungeon is such a good game

[@PixelaDay]

I literally squealed when I saw that announcement

[@gm5542]

Give Wildermyth a try! You are gonna love it if you enjoy a lighter type of XCOM

[@achronos178]

This channel is a gem Thank you for these recommendations.

[@John-uh1pb]

Yay! Games recs :)

[@John-uh1pb]

I loved the aesthetic of Duskers, but the gameplay didn't quite land for me. It's still a fun time though & the command interface is a great tension building mechanic.

[@Soundole]

Would you consider making more of these lists in the future? I really enjoyed this video, and found a few games that I definitely want to make time for!

[@PixelaDay]

I’ll probably keep doing them as end of year bonus vids! (I also share my thoughts on various games I’ve been playing in my blog for $3 a month Patrons). What sort of lists would you like to see in the future?

[@Soundole]

@@PixelaDay Honestly, any kind of 'indie games you might not have heard of' sort of thing does a tremendous service to both devs and the wider community! Alternatively, grouping these lists by genre or some other stylistic feature might be useful. But I think you're doing a great job charting out what you want your channel to be - stay the course and trust your instincts :)

[@DavetheTurnip]

Congratulations on 2 years. Here’s to many more. If you liked Gemini Rue you should try some other offerings by Wadjet Eye Studios. Specifically the Blackwell series and Unawoved :)

[@RFieth]

Stories Untold is the only one I'm already familiar with, thanks to Errant Signal's video on it a couple of years ago. Even if our tastes seem to be quite different, there's definitely a couple of games I'm inclined to check out!

[@GabrielGarcia-qr5wm]

Your Channel is a gem

[@PixelaDay]

❤️❤️❤️

[@subprogram32]

Well, when you say 'beautiful pixel art games with dark themes', I *instantly* think of Unavowed, which is basically a supernatural thriller-kinda story where every storyline can end in multiple different ways, *and* that feeds back to the very end of the game too? Deffo check that one out if you haven't already. :D

[@DesignFrameCaseStudies]

I played that one on a whim and was super pleasantly surprised. Great story and it never felt convoluted.

[@5n8ke]

If you want a pixel art game with a dark theme would definitely recommend Lisa the painful :)

[@EggheadsGuide]

Starting video. Okay no remember you have 70+ games on your steam wishlist you do not need more. *Sees title of first game*... Damn it.

[@tylerlund167]

One of my favorite puzzle games is an indie called The Gardens Between, and I have never heard a soul ever talk about it

[@TCrag]

If you liked Duskers then try Scavenger SV-4.

[@PixelaDay]

Thank you so much for the recommend!

[@TCrag]

@@PixelaDay anytime, thanks for the excellent videos. Another gem that represents all of the design principles that you seem to hold dear, is Thief 2 The Metal Age. I have a guide I can send you to help set up the community mod for the best experience on modern systems. Let me know or drop a message on my channel if you are interested in knowing more. Here is a video by StratEdgy which sums the design principles up pretty well: kzbin.info/www/bejne/oX24nmChZtGchdU

[@subprogram32]

This video has piqued my interest in two of the games in particular - Fatum Betula and The Last Door. However, I do have to ask: do either of them make use of jumpscares? The worry of such things happening is usually what holds me back from games such as these.

[@PixelaDay]

Fatum Betula absolutely not, it's actually a pretty chill game. I recall The Last Door maybe having one or two jumpy moments in the whole thing.

[@subprogram32]

@@PixelaDay Awesome, good to know specifics! FB is actually the one I already own but never got round to playing, so that's especially good news for that one! ^w^

[@Rugerfred]

Some really underrated indie game you may like: - Cargo Commander - Vagante - Teardown - VA-11 HALL-A - Drifting Lands

[@ignasiusiu]

return of the obra dinn! 👻

[@PixelaDay]

Amazing game, not underrated enough for this list :)

[@jadefae]

Wishlist just got a bit fatter :)

[@csidesummit]

Steamworld Heist and Frozen Synapse. Wasn't a big fan of the latter, though.