Game Infinite's Top Indie Games of 2018
2018 gave us some truly amazing games, and too many games are worthy of your time. For this reason, I chose to put my favorite indie titles on a separate list. They deserve some extra spotlight and we got some true indie gems this year. Indie Devs are free to join Gi's internal content creator community GiFriends, and I help share snippets, artwork, and news of their games. For this reason their amazing games are exempt from this list. Amazing GiFriends titles like Treasure Stack and Summoners Fate are worth you time, but this list will look at other titles. Keep in mind these are only the indie titles I have personally played, so if a favorite of yours is missing, comment on this article or the social media post, your favorite games.
6. Spectrum Retreat
Final Score: 7/10 (Reviewed on Xbox One X)
Do quiet vacant hotels creep you out like nothing else? Well then you are going to hate Spectrum Retreat, because this game is essentially a creepy hotel simulator with a generous mix of portal. Half the game is exploring a eerie hotel that is filled with no guests, just you and the faceless robots. They move and stare at you with their empty souls. The other half of the game finds you exploring a maze of challenging light based puzzles that will find you scratching your head alot.
5. Hyper Universe
Final Score: 7/10 (Reviewed on Xbox One X)
The Free to Play MOBA genre is inarguably very over saturated. It makes it hard to stand out in the genre as they all tend to share looks, feels, and gameplay. Arriving on consoles that don't usually get them, can add some freshness to them, like Arena of Valor on Nintendo Switch. So Hyper Universe getting some spotlight on Xbox One alone is worthy of attention as there are not many traditional mobas anywhere but PC or Mobile. However, what earns Hyper Universe its spot on this list is its unique gameplay. I never would have thought that a sidescrolling 2D perspective would mesh with a MOBA. Tradtitionally MOBA's like this are isometric and have a 3D battle arena, so playing an arena in 2D was just interesting to say the least. It has nostalgia of old school 2D platformers but with the twist of the modern multiplayer online age. I really found myself loving the game, and my only regret is not getting more time to play it more. The characters are fun, and I found the unusual gameplay approachable. The art style and graphics are modern, yet somehow nostaglic of a simiplar game and era. Also, at the low low price of FREE I can't but suggest its worth to your hardrive space.
4. Fe
Final Score: 7/10 (Reviewed on Nintendo Switch)
Fe is a beautiful game, and one of the more unique art styles of the year. You follow a small forest creature in a an unusaly purple environment. You start the game with little instruction and you can explore the world freely. One of the more interesting facets of the game is the ability to communicate with the forest animals via a musiclike in game controls, that have an added benefit on Switch Joy-Cons. The story is learned through exploration of the story, and you find that the forest is being envaded by large robotic creatures. The game is definitely worth your time if you are looking for a beautiful adventure.
3. Warface
Final Score: 7/10 (Reviewed on PS4 Pro)
Warface is a fun and crazy first person shooter that manages to rise above in an overly saturated market. The indie military shooter is filled with many many games that vary widely in quality. Not only is it a saturated market, but they have to compete directly against the biggest names in gaming like Battlefield or Call of Duty. Rarely do these indie military shooters make it off PC, and Warface is one of the few to reach a wide audience. Not only is beoming more widespread, but it launched on Xbox One and PS4, free to play. The game supports many more modes than you would expect from a free to play title. It features battle royale, co-op, pvp, pve, and more. It certainly has gameplay options. It is not without its flaws, it certainly not as polished as a AAA shooter most console players are used to getting. However, it certainly has old school charm, and a huge fun factor. The store front is also pretty well built out, with a nice focus on cosmetics, but without being in your face pay to win.
2. Semblance
Final Score: 8/10 (Reviewed on Nintendo Switch)
2D Platformers are a dime a dozen. It is as saturated a genre in Indie Games as the Zombie Genre is for AAA. A little 2D character has to walk, jump, or run from left to right in an effort to reach some destination. It really takes something special to make them unique and memorable. With Semblance, that is accomplished. From the moment I saw the announcement I knew I wanted to play it. Not only does the game have a fun and unique art style, but it has an unusal gameplay mechanic. The player must morph and move the environment in order to navigate. For example, sometimes in order to reach a ledge that is too high, the player must nagivate a small blob character underneath the ledge, and jump, the bump the ledge up higher. The game offers challenging puzzles, as the path forward is not always very clear. I would find myself jumping and morphing and "smushing" the environment in efforts to reach my objective. The game is just really fun, when you want a beautiful but challenging puzzle.
1. Donut County
Final Score: 9/10 (Reviewed on PS4 Pro)
Donut County shares something with Detroit Become Human in the total Game Awards Snub category. This game wasn't even nominated for Best Indie Game, and in my opinion deserves the top spot. This undoubtedly to me is my favorite Indie game of the year, and would have certainly found a place on my top 10 over all list if I hadn't divided the lists. The game has a unique and fun art style, and a comical intriguing story. A raccoon discovers that his donut delivery service creates real holes in the world of his town, that drops items to the bottom a large undergroumd cavern. Ridiculous? Yes. Hilarious and Fun? Absolutely. Level after level you maneuver a hole around the ground and swallow up items on the map. This is more than just a simple destruction system, but the items you swallow matter and there are real puzzles to swallow. Sometimes swallowing a fire, will emit smoke from the hole and rise a balloon, or ejecting an item with hit something up top. The puzzles were not too challenging, but they were fun and intriguing. The story follows the racoon and the other town folk discussing the aftermath below the surface in a big cave filled with the destroyed town. As you progress you learn more about the town, and the game keeps you wanting to progress one level further. You have to sit back and enjoy the whimsical nature of the art and story; it is not to be taken seriously. This game is also available on mobile for a quick pass time. It was the most fun I have had in the Indie category all year, and is definitely worth a download.
Conclusion, many amazing indie games released this year, and are worth some attention admist all the mega releases of Red Dead or Smash. Stay tuned for the Most Anticipated Games of 2019 right here on gameinfinite.net/news.
