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Title: Old-school platforming, Metroidvania horror and other new indie games worth checking out Post by: HCK on November 17, 2025, 04:05:04 pm Old-school platforming, Metroidvania horror and other new indie games worth checking out
<p>Welcome to our latest roundup of what's going on in the indie game space. As ever, it's been a busy week of new games arriving and details of upcoming releases emerging. Before we get to some of those though, the nominees for the second annual <a target="_blank" class="link" href="https://www.indiegameawards.gg/" data-i13n="slk:Indie Game Awards;cpos:1;pos:1">Indie Game Awards[/url] were announced this week. </p><p>There's a nice mix of big hitters and smaller, but equally worthy titles among the Game of the Year contenders. Those are:</p><ul><li><p>Absolum - Dotemu, Guard Crush Games and Supamonks</p></li><li><p>and Roger - TearyHand Studio</p></li><li><p>Blue Prince - Dogubomb</p></li><li><p>Citizen Sleeper 2: Starward Vector - Jump Over the Age</p></li><li><p>Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 - Sandfall Interactive</p></li><li><p>Consume Me - Jenny Jiao Hsia, AP Thomson, Jie En Lee, Violet W-P and Ken "coda" Snyder</p></li><li><p>Hades II - Supergiant Games</p></li><li><p>Hollow Knight: Silksong - Team Cherry</p></li><li><p>Keep Driving - YCJY Games</p></li><li><p>Pipistrello and the Cursed Yoyo - Pocket Trap</p></li></ul><p>Consume Me and and Roger are two I've been meaning to check out for a while. I'm also yet to hop into Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, which is arguably the frontrunner here — it's looking like the favorite for top honors at The Game Awards next month as well. </p><p>There are a whole bunch of worthy contenders in other categories, from hits like <a target="_blank" class="link" href="https://www.engadget.com/gaming/the-cozy-management-sim-discounty-arrives-on-august-21-170037206.html" data-i13n="cpos:2;pos:1">Discounty[/url] and the charmingly bittersweet <a target="_blank" class="link" href="https://www.engadget.com/gaming/a-terrific-2d-ninja-gaiden-housefly-bucket-lists-and-other-new-indie-games-worth-checking-out-110005806.html" data-i13n="cpos:3;pos:1">Time Flies[/url], to solo-developed projects like <a target="_blank" class="link" href="https://www.engadget.com/gaming/ports-a-plenty-a-zen-garden-creator-and-other-new-indie-games-worth-checking-out-120000091.html" data-i13n="cpos:4;pos:1">Spilled![/url] and <a target="_blank" class="link" href="https://www.engadget.com/gaming/banned-steam-game-vile-exhumed-is-back-as-a-free-shareware-title-225220847.html" data-i13n="cpos:5;pos:1">Vile: Exhumed[/url]. The supremely addictive <a target="_blank" class="link" href="https://www.engadget.com/gaming/ball-x-pits-deeply-satisfying-grind-keeps-me-coming-back-for-more-171000754.html" data-i13n="cpos:6;pos:1">Ball x Pit[/url] picked up a nod, but it's going against the tremendous <a target="_blank" class="link" href="https://www.engadget.com/gaming/a-brilliant-puzzle-platformer-enter-the-gungeon-on-mobile-and-other-new-indie-games-worth-checking-out-110042847.html" data-i13n="cpos:7;pos:1">Öoo[/url] (and Absolum, Hades II and Silksong) in the gameplay design category. It's neat to see Playdate game <a target="_blank" class="link" href="https://www.engadget.com/gaming/playdate-season-2-review-taria--como-and-black-hole-havoc-210042109.html" data-i13n="cpos:8;pos:1">Taria & Como[/url] earn recognition too. </p><p>The Indie Game Awards ceremony takes place on December 18 at 6:30PM ET. You can watch it on <a target="_blank" class="link" href="https://www.youtube.com/@SixOneIndie" data-i13n="cpos:9;pos:1">YouTube[/url] and <a target="_blank" class="link" href="https://www.twitch.tv/sixoneindie" data-i13n="cpos:10;pos:1">Twitch[/url]. </p><h2 id="f2e116f5-edb4-4b0d-87af-fe2ce6e07f2b">New releases</h2><div><div style="left:0;width:100%;height:0;position:relative;padding-bottom:56.25%;"><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/R5p1fP-nC-Y?rel=0" style="top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;position:absolute;border:0;" allowfullscreen scrolling="no"></iframe></div></div><p>The new release I'm most looking forward to trying when I have a chance is Windswept, a precision platformer that's inspired by similar games from the '90s like Donkey Kong Country. Marbles the duck and Checkers the turtle each have unique movement abilities, and you'll need to swap between the pair to best navigate environments. You'll be trying to help them get back home after a storm whisked them away.</p><p>There are lots of secrets to discover across the 40-plus levels, animal buddies to ride and much more. I grew up with games like this one from WeatherFell and publisher Top Hat Studios, which looks completely up my alley. Windswept is out now on <a target="_blank" class="link" href="https://store.steampowered.com/app/1660960/Windswept/'" data-i13n="cpos:11;pos:1">Steam[/url], <a target="_blank" class="link rapid-with-clickid" href="https://shopping.yahoo.com/rdlw?merchantId=a3926e63-4324-467b-872c-52d2bfe9bd34&siteId=us-engadget&pageId=1p-autolink&contentUuid=04d3e9f1-3fb3-4cc9-afc0-c780224b2cdf&featureId=text-link&merchantName=GOG.com&linkText=GOG&custData=eyJzb3VyY2VOYW1lIjoiV2ViLURlc2t0b3AtVmVyaXpvbiIsImxhbmRpbmdVcmwiOiJodHRwczovL3d3dy5nb2cuY29tL2VuL2dhbWUvd2luZHN3ZXB0IiwiY29udGVudFV1aWQiOiIwNGQzZTlmMS0zZmIzLTRjYzktYWZjMC1jNzgwMjI0YjJjZGYiLCJvcmlnaW5hbFVybCI6Imh0dHBzOi8vd3d3LmdvZy5jb20vZW4vZ2FtZS93aW5kc3dlcHQifQ&signature=AQAAAfQrN-uUphdtDXjzNi0aQPbfyXbK0D5iuSo4JkTHV4Eg&gcReferrer=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.gog.com%2Fen%2Fgame%2Fwindswept" data-i13n="elm:affiliate_link;sellerN:GOG.com;elmt:;cpos:12;pos:1" data-original-link="https://www.gog.com/en/game/windswept">GOG[/url], <a target="_blank" class="link" href="https://u15209703.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=u001.ccgs6cDmqBRpWmPH-2B0gu8-2FmeXSTt1z6eXo68IDEqINZV-2BfHMfa-2F-2BI6xl9GnMUR7htjGE0Qf9EICttH9v0cpUV4W7v1Vy-2BgabeHZ-2FLBzaqPQ-3D3OFA_UCE4dJ2Y3UOdbO0wjXc8y97zAttE4HNfZRZxsWULju-2BHAPLSfS77fFUtTSvcsQhVWziI-2BOknXdVeqPtePPcDCW-2BBtey83orMBHznZp-2FhZjGCiSqYmJ-2BXvtkM0Zxs1SIpjiIbmAl-2BeP4-2F-2B-2FN0LBXcLbB2q1nOK7Fm9-2FUogbddEhqbUBCM4lbEP1yL2kG2a6d0EID330dbSncY-2FVu-2BtfYQEc-2BQ0BylLqQUQlhqtTIMA3FqyWdBQ43FwVn6ckZGbOIZmx-2FN6B1gDPSpWBvMAWGa-2B7o8SBMJaa28PwMuTFqr-2BYnmkN1uv2i7Y4oecY-2BZ2zG-2BR33G9OCwA-2BOE6ofe3nkyUMG0aFoGToZnmoODYG-2BsrEDxmQPR51C2wJ1zASLRuSqUXoThL8K1uQIxmzbVqBpMXdtLs-2FVjyFIKppuIk5J3WsERORXzp9rWYfEaUbFBAsvBo3wtmmNAGKGpvJjPo4v-2FYukBY-2BaSbmWuvWwZqLix9cdDbK-2BZ1mY5KiEBA4YmFUyG-2BN7GlWqWobDdrNkhucUgPA-3D-3D" data-i13n="cpos:13;pos:1">Nintendo Switch[/url], <a target="_blank" class="link" href="https://u15209703.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=u001.ccgs6cDmqBRpWmPH-2B0gu82-2FZaHDPXczNtkXnOrUd1Rb6tqYOyiRY3hWHkAtaltO00IFmvdvcI8JVVMGp2c8qYA-3D-3DxivP_UCE4dJ2Y3UOdbO0wjXc8y97zAttE4HNfZRZxsWULju-2BHAPLSfS77fFUtTSvcsQhVWziI-2BOknXdVeqPtePPcDCW-2BBtey83orMBHznZp-2FhZjGCiSqYmJ-2BXvtkM0Zxs1SIpjiIbmAl-2BeP4-2F-2B-2FN0LBXcLbB2q1nOK7Fm9-2FUogbddEhqbUBCM4lbEP1yL2kG2a6d0EID330dbSncY-2FVu-2BtfYQEc-2BQ0BylLqQUQlhqtTIMA3FqyWdBQ43FwVn6ckZGbOIZmx-2FN6B1gDPSpWBvMAWGa-2B7o8SBMJaa28PwMuTFqr-2BYnmkN1uv2i7Y4oecY-2BZ2zG-2BR33G9OCwA-2BOE6ofe3nkyUMG0aFoGToZnmoODYG-2BsrEDxmQPR51C2wJ1zASLRuSqUPT-2FVnPUMIqRSyOt4q-2BU6wbzqObF9TvMzs7uK7PZ5wITJ8iNtBRsr-2FS7-2BvTe45vuL9PlG1RPG993idUhejJfhIh5nd48VAtmyCch57dPFYlJKKMHa-2BiSu4yukUouXtqlgj7iwunX02HdVD51RrxfRRw-3D-3D" data-i13n="cpos:14;pos:1">PS4, PS5[/url], <a target="_blank" class="link" href="https://u15209703.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=u001.ccgs6cDmqBRpWmPH-2B0gu840gOg2poI6qc7nnA1nivsvIN3WhjQvuaiu-2BPNF5EU0SucUX2EV0in-2Fc-2F4K-2BPKCE-2FP8-2FX0IS4oYb5b1o2sykL1g-3DVjBS_UCE4dJ2Y3UOdbO0wjXc8y97zAttE4HNfZRZxsWULju-2BHAPLSfS77fFUtTSvcsQhVWziI-2BOknXdVeqPtePPcDCW-2BBtey83orMBHznZp-2FhZjGCiSqYmJ-2BXvtkM0Zxs1SIpjiIbmAl-2BeP4-2F-2B-2FN0LBXcLbB2q1nOK7Fm9-2FUogbddEhqbUBCM4lbEP1yL2kG2a6d0EID330dbSncY-2FVu-2BtfYQEc-2BQ0BylLqQUQlhqtTIMA3FqyWdBQ43FwVn6ckZGbOIZmx-2FN6B1gDPSpWBvMAWGa-2B7o8SBMJaa28PwMuTFqr-2BYnmkN1uv2i7Y4oecY-2BZ2zG-2BR33G9OCwA-2BOE6ofe3nkyUMG0aFoGToZnmoODYG-2BsrEDxmQPR51C2wJ1zASLRuSqUhV-2FK9Hyi1meZW0sAXf0e6lMxXMhGwQcgALY3Ax6tjwdpJk5SPVGwapwvO-2F-2Frr4s4uACFo7HmQfzDxi7nF9Yp2NHEjBjuq5rdf3E8AfYt8eSDUoaI5znYFl40LwLkgQBYCeoyLR09YNyy9HxDmZaYOQ-3D-3D" data-i13n="cpos:15;pos:1">Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S[/url] for $20.</p><div><div style="left:0;width:100%;height:0;position:relative;padding-bottom:56.25%;"><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/5J-eE9eXZLw?rel=0" style="top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;position:absolute;border:0;" allowfullscreen scrolling="no"></iframe></div></div><p>The Devolver Digital-published <a target="_blank" class="link" href="https://www.engadget.com/gaming/horror-tinged-sidescroller-possessors-hits-pc-and-ps5-on-november-11-152851427.html" data-i13n="cpos:16;pos:1">Possessor(s)[/url] is something a little different from Hyper Light Drifter studio Heart Machine. This is a horror-inflected Metroidvania and the developers drew inspiration from platform fighters for the combat. Here, high school student Luca forms an alliance with a demon in need of a host following "an interdimensional catastrophe." They team up to stay alive and discover what led to the disaster.</p><p>As with Heart Machine's other games, it looks very pretty, but reviews for Possessor(s) — which is out on <a target="_blank" class="link" href="https://store.playstation.com/en-us/concept/10011670" data-i13n="cpos:17;pos:1">PS5[/url] and <a target="_blank" class="link" href="https://store.steampowered.com/app/2132890/Possessors/" data-i13n="cpos:18;pos:1">PC[/url] — have been fairly mixed so far. Things haven't exactly been going great for Heart Machine overall. The studio last month <a target="_blank" class="link" href="https://www.engadget.com/gaming/hyper-light-breaker-studio-will-end-the-games-development-and-lay-off-staff-162941243.html" data-i13n="cpos:19;pos:1">laid off staff[/url] and ended development of Hyper Light Breaker, which remains in early access. </p><div><div style="left:0;width:100%;height:0;position:relative;padding-bottom:56.25%;"><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/TuGuy9VsDxs?rel=0" style="top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;position:absolute;border:0;" allowfullscreen scrolling="no"></iframe></div></div><p>As with its earlier game Before Your Eyes, Nice Dream says its latest project, Goodnight Universe, is best played with a camera. There's the option to interact with the game using your eye movement and facial expressions. That makes a lot of sense for Goodnight Universe, which casts you in the role of a six-month-old baby with psychic powers. Little Isaac just wants familial love, but a shadowy tech corporation is looking to take custody of him.</p><p>Skybound Games is the publisher of Goodnight Universe, which is available on <a target="_blank" class="link" href="https://www.nintendo.com/us/store/products/goodnight-universe-switch-2/" data-i13n="cpos:20;pos:1">Nintendo Switch 2[/url], <a target="_blank" class="link" href="https://store.playstation.com/en-us/concept/10014923" data-i13n="cpos:21;pos:1">PS5[/url], <a target="_blank" class="link rapid-with-clickid" href="https://shopping.yahoo.com/rdlw?merchantId=5f41950e-8ca3-4481-8466-a22b28b80e32&siteId=us-engadget&pageId=1p-autolink&contentUuid=04d3e9f1-3fb3-4cc9-afc0-c780224b2cdf&featureId=text-link&merchantName=Xbox&linkText=Xbox+Series+X%2FS&custData=eyJzb3VyY2VOYW1lIjoiV2ViLURlc2t0b3AtVmVyaXpvbiIsImxhbmRpbmdVcmwiOiJodHRwczovL3d3dy54Ym94LmNvbS9lbi1DQS9nYW1lcy9zdG9yZS9nb29kbmlnaHQtdW5pdmVyc2UvOU5UMzVGV05CNVBDIiwiY29udGVudFV1aWQiOiIwNGQzZTlmMS0zZmIzLTRjYzktYWZjMC1jNzgwMjI0YjJjZGYiLCJvcmlnaW5hbFVybCI6Imh0dHBzOi8vd3d3Lnhib3guY29tL2VuLUNBL2dhbWVzL3N0b3JlL2dvb2RuaWdodC11bml2ZXJzZS85TlQzNUZXTkI1UEMifQ&signature=AQAAAdL_AK5bh7xxOa55WmGtbQ2JkuEYg4tgK2_MXIY9dOTl&gcReferrer=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.xbox.com%2Fen-CA%2Fgames%2Fstore%2Fgoodnight-universe%2F9NT35FWNB5PC" data-i13n="elm:affiliate_link;sellerN:Xbox;elmt:;cpos:22;pos:1" data-original-link="https://www.xbox.com/en-CA/games/store/goodnight-universe/9NT35FWNB5PC">Xbox Series X/S[/url] and <a target="_blank" class="link" href="https://store.steampowered.com/app/2416100/Goodnight_Universe/" data-i13n="cpos:23;pos:1">Steam[/url] for $20. A Switch version is coming on December 18, and an update that will bring camera support to the Switch 2 edition is on the way.</p><div><div style="left:0;width:100%;height:0;position:relative;padding-bottom:56.25%;"><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/5kTV5pP2R2E?rel=0" style="top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;position:absolute;border:0;" allowfullscreen scrolling="no"></iframe></div></div><p>Bonaparte - A Mechanized Revolution is a turn-based strategy game that affords you the chance to shift the outcome of the French Revolution. An opportunity to revolutionize the revolution, as it were. You can defend, depose or even reform the monarchy. </p><p>As the title suggests, you'll have mechs at your disposal in battle — to that end, this reminds me a bit of the clockpunk soulslike Steelrising, which was also set during the French Revolution. Bonaparte - A Mechanized Revolution, from Studio Imugi and co-publisher 2P Games, left early access on <a target="_blank" class="link" href="https://store.steampowered.com/app/2560340/Bonaparte__A_Mechanized_Revolution/" data-i13n="cpos:24;pos:1">Steam[/url] this week. It costs $20.</p><h2 id="44e06d69-0ee5-4f70-8193-af98eda966fb">Upcoming </h2><div><div style="left:0;width:100%;height:0;position:relative;padding-bottom:56.25%;"><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/1rn0-O6sLhM?rel=0" style="top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;position:absolute;border:0;" allowfullscreen scrolling="no"></iframe></div></div><p>I'm very happy to continue this little run of including a dog game in this roundup every week with something new on the beautifully titled <a target="_blank" class="link" href="https://store.steampowered.com/app/1920290/Barkour/" data-i13n="cpos:25;pos:1">Barkour[/url]. As part of <a target="_blank" class="link" href="https://store.steampowered.com/category/animal" data-i13n="cpos:26;pos:1">Steam Animal Fest[/url] (which runs until Monday and includes a sale on games like Tunic and Hello Kitty Island Adventure), Varsav Game Studios unleashed a new trailer and an updated <a target="_blank" class="link" href="https://store.steampowered.com/app/1920290/Barkour/" data-i13n="cpos:27;pos:1">Steam[/url] demo. </p><p>Here, you play as Agent T.H.U.N.D.E.R., a special agent with gadgets galore and plenty of bite to go with the bark. On missions, you can play the stealthy way, fight your enemies head on or carry out Source: Old-school platforming, Metroidvania horror and other new indie games worth checking out (https://www.engadget.com/gaming/old-school-platforming-metroidvania-horror-and-other-new-indie-games-worth-checking-out-120000751.html?src=rss) |