What follows is a list of the fifteen best indie games that launched this year – but these games are so great that most of them could well find themselves on a list of the 15 best games of the year, period, and no one would bat an eye.

NOTE: The nominees and winner were decided by an internal vote held among the entire GamingBolt staff.

THE NOMINEES

Spelunky 2

No other game has perhaps done as much to popularize the roguelike as the original Spelunky did. While the game was already well received upon its original release on the Xbox 360, it was the subsequent redo on Vita (and then on other systems) that made it the universally beloved game that it is today. The original Spelunky is one of the most acclaimed games of all time, with its purity of design and skill based mechanics making it a mainstay in many people’s gaming libraries on a near constant basis. Spelunky 2 had a lot to live up to, and by and large it delivers. It’s an excellent game that polishes an already perfect formula even further, delivering a compelling roguelike that once again ranks as among the best the genre has to offer. If there is one criticism that is to be leveled at the game, it’s that it’s not as revolutionary as the original game was – but few games are, and holding it to that standard feels almost unfair.

Levelhead

Another great example of the vast range of genres that indie developers and games now cover, Levelhead lets you create, share, and play your own platformers, in the tradition of games such as Super Mario Maker and LittleBigPlanet. It’s remarkably intuitive, hilariously well contextualized, and even the platforming mechanics work well. With great sharing features and cross platform play functionality, this is also a game where you’re guaranteed to find a community, whether you fall on the creator or the player side of the equation. Levelhead is a remarkably full featured game, and is yet another example of the stunning ambition indie games so often display now.

Amnesia Rebirth

Frictional Games’ original Amnesia was a big bang moment for horror games, with its unique blend of psychological horror and non combat scenarios almost instantly leaving an indelible mark on the genre, influencing all games to follow. With SOMA, Frictional proved they’re no one trick pony, but it was their return to the Amnesia world that drew all eyes on them once again. After all, they promised it would be their most ambitious game to date. And boy, did they deliver. Amping up the psychological horror even further, and making the storytelling an interactive part of the experience that is intractable from the gameplay, this non-linear sojourn into gradual insanity may lack the instant milestone status its celebrated predecessor achieved, but manages to be a heck of a game regardless.

Streets of Rage 4

Sega’s Streets of Rage series is arguably the single greatest achievement of the brawler genre, particularly Streets of Rage 2. Suffice it to say, there was skepticism when Streets of Rage 4 was announced, and that it had some mighty big shoes to fill. It is incredible, then, that it actually manages to meet those lofty expectations, and then some. We’ve received so many great brawlers in the last few years, in 2020 alone, in fact, and yet Streets of Rage 4 easily outclasses them all. Hopefully its success prompts Sega to look at producing a higher budget sequel, and bringing the talented indie team at Dotemu, Lizardcube, and Guard Crush Games on board as well. They’re too good at what they do to let them slip away.

Fall Guys

There are many ways to describe Fall Guys, the delightful blend of Mario Party style shenanigans and a classic TV game show format, concocted in a battle royale mix – but the best one is “absolute mayhem.” Mediatonic struck gold with Fall Guys when it launched earlier this year, and that’s because the game is just so gloriously, ridiculously, absurdly fun. Putting its contestants through a series of increasingly ridiculous (and frankly outlandish) gauntlets, Fall Guys is that rare game that was at the right place at the right time, and managed to capture lightning in a bottle. It’s so good that it transcends its genre, and manages to just be a hell of a good time regardless. The true mark of a great multiplayer game is that you manage to enjoy yourself, regardless of whether or not you win – and if that’s the metric by which one is to be judged, then Fall Guys stands as among the best multiplayer games we have received in a very long time.

Spiritfarer

Management sim games are a concept almost as old as video games themselves, and even indie games have managed to put out some truly unforgettable ones, with Game Dev Tycoon standing out as one that truly broke out into the mainstream in the last few years. And yet, in spite of the prevalence of the genre, Spiritfarer stands out. A large part of that is because its core conceit is so unusual – you’re not managing a city or a restaurant or a hospital or anything like that, you’re managing the transportation of the deceased to the afterlife. That already sets it apart from other similar games, but Spiritfarer goes above and beyond – it tackles some heady existential topics with grace and tact, but manages to be an optimistic outlook nonetheless. And it’s not just about the setting or plot, either – the core gameplay is remarkably addictive, with the central loop likely to keep players engaged into the early hours of the morning before they realize that they let all that time slip away. Like the best sim games, Spiritfarer can be lethal if consumed unmoderated – and that’s really the highest compliment we can give it.

Risk of Rain 2

Some of the best work in fiction has followed people stranded in space – games themselves have seen seminal entries such as Metroid and Alien Isolation, based on the same central conceit. Risk of Rain 2 manages to rank among the best that this concept has to offer. Survival and roguelike indie games are dime-a-dozen, so it’s to Risk of Rain 2’s credit that it manages to stand out so much regardless. There isn’t much that Risk of Rain 2 really does that’s different from other games in the genre (other than a surprisingly well handled transition to 3D), and it still suffers from some of the jank that plagues all early access titles. That, in fact, speaks more than anything else to just high quality the game is, that in spite of all of these potential shortcomings, it still manages to stand out as much as it does, as well as it does.

Ori and the Will of the Wisps

The original Ori is already arguably one of the best games ever made – at the very least, it ranks as one of the genre greats for Metroidvanias. And yet, Ori and the Will of the Wisps, the long awaited sequel, manages to outdo it so thoroughly in every regard, that it’s not controversial to say that Blind Forest has been made obsolete and redundant by its own sequel. A masterwork of tight, breathtaking design, Will of the Wisps expands upon the original game’s strengths, works to address its shortcomings, and also takes liberal inspiration from some of the other genre greats that have come in the years since the original title’s launch, such as Hollow Knight. That Ori and the Will of the Wisps can legitimately lay claim to being one of the best games of, not just this year, but this generation, when there have been so many great games in this period, should tell you everything you need to know about just how great it really is. Honestly, we can’t wait to see where Moon Studios goes next.

If Found

In the last few years, we have seen increasingly accomplished examples of games that are not loud or explosive, as so many are wont to be, but contemplative and introspective. If Found is cut from that latter cloth, presenting itself as an adventure game following a young girl who must delve into her past to try and solve a mystery intractably tied to an impending world ending cataclysm. Gorgeous art, resonant writing, and some stirring sound design make this game a painful, haunting, but ultimately rich and evocative experience that truly stands out as a remarkable example of what games can accomplish, and how much they can be true works of art.

Florence

It should come as no surprise to anyone that the minds behind Monument Valley were able to deliver an incredible game such as Florence, but this game still stands out due to just how remarkably well it blends storytelling and gameplay, all while tackling some universally identifiable themes. Florence, the eponymous protagonist, is disaffected at the age of 25, with no idea of where her life is going – all until she meets a young man, who shows her a new way to look at the world. Following a charming and sweet story of young love, Florence is a staggering achievement of true storytelling delivered via interactivity, and is hopefully a portent of how storytelling in videogames will evolve and develop in the coming years.

The Pathless

Open world games are a very tricky genre – even massive teams of AAA developers struggle with getting them right. And yet, The Pathless, an unassuming open world action adventure game delivered from the same small team that gave us ABZU, manages to deliver one of the most stirring and remarkable open world games in recent memory. Much like some of the other best open world games, The Pathless eschews genre tropes such as maps, markers, and icons, instead relying on the player’s natural curiosity and drive to explore to lead them through its beautiful and desolate world. By keeping the emphasis solely on exploration and collection, The Pathless keeps the emphasis squarely on the one thing it manages transcendentally well – evoking as sense of wonder and wanderlust in the player, and slowly leading them through its beautiful world.

Haven

RPGs are usually high stakes games. You’re saving the world, taking on evil powers, dismantling crime rings, battling down existential threats, or trying to be the very best there ever was. Haven is so refreshing in being a role playing game that’s just about… life. You’re following the story of two people stranded on an alien planet, but you objective in the game is simply to build a life for yourself. You set out into the world not to beat back some threatening invading force, but simply to find things to better your life. Haven is that rare game that puts the emphasis on the smaller moments in life, and its distinct flavor, coupled with its well done mechanics, make it one of the more unique games we have received in a while.

Art of Rally

Racing games are typically the purview of high end developers delivering top of the line graphics and thrilling speed or grounded realism, but Art of Rally manages to show us that indie developers are as capable of giving us a top notch racing experience as anyone else. Its stark art style can be off-putting at first, but ends up working to the game’s favor, while its top down perspective lets it play differently than other racers, while also being far easier to get into than its contemporaries. If you’re a fan of racing games, then you definitely need to grab yourself Art of Rally and give it a go as soon as you can.

Littlewood

Stardew Valley meets… something. That’s how you’d describe Littlewood. The Dark Wizard has been defeated, and the world is at peace, but the personal cost was great, and you remember very little. Now is the time for you to rebuild not just the world, but also your life. Taking the best from games like A Link to the Past, Animal Crossing, and the aforementioned Stardew Valley, Littlewood is calm, meditative, and surprisingly unique, given how much it shares with so many other games. Right now, it’s flown a bit under the radar, but here’s hoping that the plaudits it has received, as well as its impending console launch, will help it catch the eye of many others in the future.

Hades

You knew this was coming. You knew this would be on this list. Few games, indie or otherwise, have managed to capture the zeitgeist like Supergiant’s latest effort did when it launched on PC and Nintendo Switch earlier this year after a long Early Access gestation period. Hades joins the rarefied company of games such as Stardew Valley, Undertale, Hollow Knight, and Celeste in becoming an indie title that transcends those indie origins and becomes a mainstream hit regardless. And all that hype is backed up by an incredible game – Hades is a remarkable roguelike, a roguelike for those that don’t like roguelikes (it achieves this by minimizing the frustrations typically associated with the genre), while delivering enough depth and nuance to placate even hardcore genre fans. It’s extremely strongly designed and well balanced, and a tour de force of video game storytelling, with some fantastic writing and voice acting making the narrative a surprisingly compelling raison d’etre to keep playing, again and again and again, even after you’ve died so many times. A masterpiece of game design and storytelling, Hades is arguably the most important roguelike since the original Spelunky, and well and truly one of the all time great games.

THE WINNER

Ori and the Will of the Wisps

Moon Studios have perfected the Metroidvania with Ori and the Will of the Wisps, a game so incredible that it received the vaunted GamingBolt 10 when it launched earlier this year. The biggest problems with the game upon launch – its technical performance – have long since been ironed out, leaving nothing but a triumph of game design for players to experience, with little to no friction along the way. Stirring music, gorgeous art, tight controls, and literally mind bending level and world design all come together to make Ori and the Will of the Wisps a true standout game – and GamingBolt’s indie game of the year 2020, a title that it truly deserves. Here’s hoping Moon Studios manages to scale even higher heights with their next game.

2014 was a year of broken promises and games, in short it was disappointing as far as games go. Major releases like Assassins Creed Unity, Watch Dogs, and others were broken at launch and to an extent failed to deliver on the hype. But there is hope, as the new year dawns, so does new games that hold a lot of promise draw nearer.

Games like The Witcher 3, Batman Arkham Knight, Metal Gear Solid 5: The Phantom Pain, as  well as tons of indie games all have a lot riding on them, and we are hopeful that will deliver everything that we expected and more. With that said here are our most anticipated games of 2015.

For more exciting features and lists, please click here. Stay tuned to GamingBolt for more news and updates.

Note:List is in random order

Monstrum

Monstrum reminds me a lot of FEAR, only without the guns, and you’ll have to admit that when you look at the trailer, you will find that the developers did a great job with the ambiance, the sound and the lighting. Monstrum, takes place on a ship, where keep in mind you will get lost quite frequently, because it is so huge. Add to that the sense of heightened scares and thrills, this game will keep you on your toes for days to come.

Microsoft kickstarted the indie game movement on consoles with their Xbox Live Arcade back on the Xbox 360, but in recent years, they have increasingly lost ground to both Sony and Nintendo, as their more restrictive policies have driven independent game developers away. However, they have been trying their best to regain indie developer support in the last few months, exemplified best by their ID@Xbox program.

Speaking to OXM, ID@Xbox program director Chris Charla said that ‘transparency and openness’ are vital to winning the trust of indie game developers, and that ‘Twitter is the greatest thing ever for indie game developers.’

“I’m really happy to be under the hard light of Twitter, even though it can be painful sometimes,” Charla reflected.

ID@Xbox seems to have been a success for Microsoft so far, with the first release under the program already having been made, and dozens more in the works, including many that Microsoft highlighted at E3 this year.

Sony released a hell of a handheld when they released PlayStation Vita, and then they promptly left it to die. Not only have they been ignoring it (think about the marketing Vita or its games get, or how much focus the Vita gets at Sony’s E3 conferences, as an example), they also actively seem to be sabotaging it (multiple Sony in house teams have come out and openly said they will not develop for the Vita, such as Naughty Dog).

Apparently, Sony has more or less given up on the handheld, and they have resigned themselves to it being whatever indie and third party developers make of it. Speaking to Polygon, Sony’s Yoshida confirmed as much.

“When we launched PSP titles, a big talking point was PS2-quality games in your hands,” Yoshida said. “It was an amazing experience to play PS2-quality like Twisted Metal on your portable device. But as time went on and the PS3 launched and people started to see next-gen games, that PS2 quality was not enough. People’s expectations for the quality just moved on.

“So when we launched the Vita with Uncharted, it was amazing; PS3-like quality in your palm, but as time moved on, you are seeing PS4 quality and people’s expectations for the graphic fidelity has gone up.”

“It’s very fortunate that the indie boom happened and they are providing lots of great content to Vita,” he said. ” Gameplay, game mechanic wise, people want to spend 10 minutes, 15 minutes getting in and out. On Vita, it’s great with suspended functionality, so these indie games really great for that from a game design standpoint.

“Instead of watching big stories or cinematics, you can spend hours on Vita. So, I think that’s actually the biggest star to help provide great content to Vita going forward. And we continue to make games cross-platform games, especially on digital side.”

Of course, this doesn’t explain two things that Yoshida’s explanation neatly sidesteps- if people’s expectations are ‘console quality graphics,’ then how does Yoshida explain the success of Nintendo’s 3DS, and the games on it? Bear in mind graphics on the 3DS are Gamecube/Wii level, or a full two generations behind. Also, if Sony believes that Vita’s failure is down to increased expectations of graphical quality, why is it hedging its bets on indie games, that often look like NES and SNES games? That’s some inconsistent messaging right there.

At the very least, Yoshida said Sony will still support the Vita with first party software. I would say, yes, that’s correct,” he said, when asked a question about that.

What might have been a great handheld, and the first to give Nintendo’s unending reign over the handheld market a run for its money has been reduced to this, and it is rather sad to see, really.

Sony and PlayStation have managed to establish themselves as the de facto ecosystem and platform for indie games this generation- that’s the reason we see the announcement of a new major indie game coming to a PlayStation platform almost every day now. Adam Boyce, the head of PlayStation Developer Relations, talked to Gamespot about how PlayStation was able to accomplish this turnaround in terms of indie perception in such a short period of time.

“I think the important thing for us is all about the accountability and the relationship we have with developers,” Boyes told GameSpot. “And it’s so important that you have to be transparent and honest and forthcoming with what you’re planning and how you interact.”

“Nowadays, if anyone has a bad experience, they’re going to tell everyone and then word is going to get out,” he continued. “We see the conversations that are happening [on Twitter and social media platforms] so it helps guide and mold our internal thinkings,” Boyes said.

Clearly, Boyce and co. are on to something- developers have migrated and responded to Sony’s outreach en masse, while Xbox is left with second pickings. Even Nintendo seems to have stepped its game up with Wii U indie game relations- a far cry from their restrictive, antagonistic policies last generation.

Double Fine Studios, the folks who got us games such as Psychonauts and Broken Age, have started a new initiative where they will help publish titles for indie games, so that indie games don’t have to deal with actual publishers and their corporate structure and demands, and can essentially ‘stay indie,’ reports Game Informer.

“Lots of indies have approached us and asked if we could help them out with publishing, so we knew there was value in what we have to offer,” Double Fine chief operating officer Justin Bailey said. “They all had a unique request and that’s where we started to see there was a real need for the knowledge we’ve gained over the last 14 years on how to prototype, fund, develop, and publish our own games.

“We noticed that there wasn’t a publisher offering these service in a flexible format that’s customized to what indies need without also creating a certain codependence.

“The current focus is just on making the titles we publish successful and something that both the developer and Double Fine can be proud of,” Bailey continued. “The alternative we want to offer – a way for indies to stay indie.”

Of course, this discussion came about in reference to Double Fine’s recent assistance with the release of Escape goat 2. Speaking specifically of that game, Bailey said, “For Escape Goat 2, we’re primary providing promotional assistance and distribution. Our goal is to help indies build their own community and empower them with the knowledge and tools they need to succeed on their own.”

Sounds like Double Fine is helping indies out here pretty good. Let’s just hope they don’t become the corporate machinery they are trying to circumvent.

Speaking to MCV, Charla stated that, “There has certainly been system sellers that have been indie games – Minecraft is a system seller. Independent developers are hugely important for the entire industry ecosystem. I am massively excited by titles such as Titanfall and Halo. But I am equally excited when I see games like Papers Please, or Gone Home. Games can be hugely diverse. When you turn on your Xbox One, you see the broadest, most diverse spectrum of entertainment.”

When asked if it was Sony’s indie efforts that had Microsoft rethinking its whole approach (remember: earlier, indie devs couldn’t self publish games on Xbox Live, and had to rely on either Microsoft or a third party publisher), Charla stated that, “The origins of this goes all the way back to Xbox One’s architecture. We’ve been planning this for a long time. You can see where this started with 360’s indie titles. We haven’t even released a system yet, so I’d say it’s not a late announcement, it’s quite a timely one.”

Will it be enough to combat the PS4’s indie efforts which range from Hotline Miami 2 to The Witness? We’ll find out when the Xbox One launches on November 22nd with ID@Xbox beginning in 2014.

Microsoft really has changed its stance on indie games and indie game publishing for the upcoming Xbox One- after a generation of antagonizing indie developers with their restrictive policies on the Xbox 360, and then similarly restricting indie game development on the Xbox One, Microsoft went ahead and announced full self publishing for indie game developers on the Xbox One, as well as free developer kits- great measures, that should bring some support back to the platform.

Now, CVG reports, their policies on indie game pricing will also be similar to Sony’s. Essentially, while indie game developers are allowed to set wholesale prices on their products on both these platforms, Sony or Microsoft decide the final prices the games sell at- very different from the App Store, Steam, Google Play, or even Nintendo’s eShop.

“Microsoft’s store uses a retail model, so we set the final price of the game while developers set the wholesale price,” Microsoft executive Chris Charla said.

“When a self-published game is sold, developers get either their wholesale price back, or a standard industry percentage of the retail price, whichever is higher.”

It sounds like a developer friendly practice, although indie games might be understandably annoyed at not getting full control over their product.

Nintendo has made concerted efforts to reach out to indie game developers- that it consciously spurned in the Wii era- with the 3DS and Wii U, and it has begun to show, with the Wii U getting some rather good indie game support. Nintendo itself seems to be trumpeting all that indie game support, especially in the absence of any other good news for the troubled home console right now.

“Historically, Nintendo has seemed kind of hard to approach, kind of like there’s a closed system where if a developer already knows somebody at Nintendo or has some kind of ‘in’ they’re in, but otherwise there’s no way to interface with the company,” Nintendo of America business development manager Dan Adelman said while speaking to Joystiq.

“I think we’re putting a lot of effort into changing that and making ourselves more accessible, so I really want to make sure that people realise that it’s actually pretty easy now – and we’re trying to make it easier – to work with us and release games on our systems.”

Speaking about the new revised policies for indie games on Wii U- a far cry from the draconian policies enacted by Nintendo in the Wii era- Adelman said: “Our primary consideration is an ability to make a game. You don’t have to have a record of published titles, or have to have worked at a large company in the past. If you’re actively working on a game, that should be sufficient.”

Hopefully, the gamble on indie games pays off and keeps the Wii U afloat while Nintendo works on some of its in house larger games.

Yes, you read that right. No, there was not a mistake. The headline says Xbox 360, not Xbox One.

Microsoft’s eight year old console will finally be getting self publishing for indie games, something that rivals Sony and Nintendo have had for years now, on the Xbox Live Marketplace. This initiative, which is similar to the one on Xbox One, is an attempt to win over indie developers, after a generations’ worth of practices that alienated and antagonized them.

Now, Polygon reports that according to indie developer FarSight Studios, self publishing is also coming to Microsoft’s aging machine.

“Microsoft has just announced that indie developers (like FarSight) can now self-publish on Xbox Live Arcade instead of being required to find publishers for their games,” the developer said in their monthly newsletter. “This means we can bring The Pinball Arcade back to the 360 ourselves, and also opens the door to an Xbox One version of The Pinball Arcade in the future!”

Microsoft for their part have maintained a no comment policy, and asked us to wait for Gamescom for further announcements.