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Do we agree? It’s halfway through the year, and a great time to look back at the games we played and loved, as well as the titles we need to get off the backlog before the end of the year sneaks up on us. Helpfully, Metacritic — where you can find The Indie Informer’s reviews — keeps a list of highest-scored games throughout the year. Adjusting for indies-only, it can be a mirror reflecting the gaming zeitgeist.
It’s no surprise that Yacht Club’s long-awaited title shot up the lists to take the top prize in indie games this year, considering its unabashed critical reception.
Take control of Mina, a renowned Hollower hurtled into a desperate mission to rescue a cursed island. Whip foes, burrow through the ground, and explore a pixel-perfect world in Mina the Hollower, a brand new game from the developers who brought you Shovel Knight!
Now, in this case, I am actually a bit shocked. While I completely agree with and Roger’s placement, I still believe in the back of my head it didn’t get widespread love. If you’re wondering why a 2025 game is listed for this year, this is for the Switch release that hit in June.
It was a morning like all others, until she realized her dad wasn’t home. In his place, a stranger who speaks nonsense and insists she “takes her medicine”. Who is he? Where is dad?
When the world is coming to an end, who would you want to speak to one last time? Schrödinger’s Call is a visual novel that lets you experience the pain and salvation of human connection, as if you were turning the pages of a picture book.
Build the ultimate cat army through tactical breeding and send them into deep, challenging turn-based adventures. Draft abilities, collect items, and manipulate genetics across generations in this roguelike tactics game from the creators of The Binding of Isaac and The End is Nigh.
It’s only just been released and still found itself in the winner’s circle — something I suspect Joseph Hooper would approve of given his impressions on the game.
Flip, trick and grind your train in a fast-paced, off-the-rails ride through a colourful Japanese dystopia. Outmatch rival gangs, wreck a shady megacorp, and take back the tracks with nothing but skill, speed, and style.
This absurd adventure was just delightful. I love to see it get its flowers.
Battle a sinister corporation in this story-rich RPG! Survive fast-paced, turn-based battles and conversations where cringe damage can be deadly. Fight the evils of capitalism with your trusty pig sidekick and join the revolution, old man!
Titanium Court really needs to be on your finish-by-year’s-end list.
A surreal strategy game for clowns and criminals.
This year opened with such a bang because of Woolhaven. The expansion was not on my bingo card, and it contains some of the best storytelling within Cult of the Lamb.
Yngya, the forgotten God of the lambs, summons you to restore the flock and reclaim what time has erased. But as you breathe life into what long passed, a creeping Rot awakens, spreading corruption through the sacred mountain the lambs once called home…
A narrative adventure about the momentum and whiplash of young adulthood. Explore the big city through 18-year-old Mara’s eyes. Collect items, nurture ideas, and experience complex relationships while attempting to find your place in the world.
OPUS: Prism Peak is a narrative adventure where you play as a weary photographer stranded in the Dusklands, traveling with a girl who’s lost her memories. Together, you’ll uncover the mysteries of this land through your camera and find your way home.
Beethoven and Dinosaur’s second game brought me to tears by the end, though its place among the top games of the year became a divisive topic in the weeks following its release.
On their last night together, three friends embark on one final adventure. Play through a mixtape of memories, set to the soundtrack of a generation.
Reach a summit never climbed before in this survival-climber from the creators of Furi and Haven. Climb anywhere and plan your route carefully, managing pitons and resources to survive unforgiving Mount Kami. Discover what Aava is willing to sacrifice to achieve the ascent of a lifetime.
Humans are long gone. In a world struck by droughts and toxic waste, will your lumberpunk beavers do any better? A sandbox city-building game featuring ingenious animals, vertical architecture, water physics, and terraforming. Contains high amounts of wood.
Of all the brilliant games this year, I need way more people to jump into Esoteric Ebb. It’s one of the best tabletop translations I’ve ever played.
Esoteric Ebb is a single-player CRPG inspired by the freedom of tabletop adventures. Unravel a political conspiracy with your goblin sidekick. Roll dice in tense encounters. Become a cleric of legends or completely ruin the campaign.
Wax Heads is a cozy-punk narrative sim about working in a struggling record store. Chat to quirky customers with unique tastes, explore a handcrafted record collection, fall in love with bands (and their drama!), or just slack off with your colleagues – whatever gets everyone’s groove back!
Literally out today, the wave of admiration for The Mermaid Mask has been overwhelming. So, I’ll have to find a dimension with more time in it just to play through.
An impossible locked-room murder: Captain Mortuga lies dead beside an ancient cauldron aboard the world’s strangest submarine, crewed by sketchy suspects. A handcrafted point-and-click with sharp humour and tricky puzzles. Dive into the next mystery from the creators of Tangle Tower & Crow Country.
Race across open oceans and uncover a kingdom’s dark secrets. Expressively platform your way across dozens of locales, upgrading your gear and modifying your move-set every step of the way!
This one is another technicality sneaking into 2026 because of a Switch version release.
Enjoy action-packed flashy combat with incredibly satisfying combos and responsive controls! Numerous characters, each with completely unique playstyles and loads of unlockable moves & upgrades! This action roguelike sets the bar for fluid fast-paced action.
If this isn’t art imitating life, I don’t know what is. You can check out my fuller impressions here.
Phonopolis is a story-driven puzzle adventure set in a hand-painted 3D world made of cardboard. Solve a wide variety of playful puzzles and help Felix end the Leader’s oppressive influence in a resonant dystopian city inspired by avant-garde art.
Portal with cats – Become entangled in a quantum puzzle adventure! Mittens gains the incredible power to be in two places at once. Explore twisted test chambers, make mischief and evade capture by a whisker! 🐈🐈⬛
Though the studio behind Zero Parades shares the name with the developer that made Disco Elysium, key team members behind the award-winning title have long left the company, stating the departure was involuntary.
You’re a brilliant but tormented operant on one final desperate assignment. Gather your broken network, untangle a web of lies, and prove yourself on the world stage – or blow it all up again.
Cheers to publisher Hooded Horse. The company is quietly proving to be a powerhouse of great indies.
An alien invasion has fractured humanity into seven ideological factions each with a unique vision for the future. Lead your chosen faction to take control of Earth’s nations, expand across the Solar System, and battle enemy fleets in tactical combat.
There is plenty to enjoy in Moomintroll: Winter’s Warmth. This follow-up title didn’t hold the same delightful exploration as its predecessor; however, it somehow manages to make the art style even more heartpiecing.
From the creators of Snufkin: Melody of Moominvalley comes a heartwarming new adventure inspired by the beloved Moomin stories by Tove Jansson. This time, join Moomintroll himself on a charming but cold winter journey.
Books, mystery, and puzzles. There is a combination I can get behind, especially since inkle is the developer.
A World War II computer. An archive of lost books. A world-changing secret. Narrative deduction meets audio drama, from the creators of Overboard!, Heaven’s Vault and A Highland Song.
MIO deserves to be so much higher up on this list. I can’t see it getting knocked off my personal top ten games list for the year any time soon.
Play as android MIO in this mesmerizing metroidvania where you explore the Vessel, an enormous technological ark overgrown with machines gone rogue. Uncover its secrets, enhance MIO’s abilities, and save the spaceship and its residents from oblivion.
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