Remember time, when games were plain and simple? In a world where games are striving hard to be photo realistic, independent developers are quietly churning out addictive and, in some cases, path breaking games. Indie Games are referring to Independent Games developed by small team or individuals with any support of game publishing house. These games mostly depend on digital distributions and supports innovation. Indie Games was designed for PCs where they are more prominent; with shareware support these indie games became more popular among gamers or general internet users. But as the user expectation rises for graphics and innovation, indie games become less prominent than other high end gaming sources. Following, we mention the ones you simply have to play.
World of Goo
The game follows curious goo balls that need to be brought near pipes that have appeared across the world thanks to the World of Goo Corporation, which uses the Goo balls to the mysterious ‘Product Z’. The game is fun & addictive and there are plenty of well-thought out puzzles to solve. The Goo balls come in different types with unique abilities and Sign Painter, who is a character which comes up with humorous anecdotes for entertainment, while you play, tops it off.
Angry Birds
Angry birds being the game that took the world by storm, needs no introduction. The story revolves around pissed off birds on one side, and greedy pigs on the other, of a blood rivalry that began with the pigs stealing a few eggs. The game involves using a slingshot to launch birds at protective encampments built by the pigs. Each bird is unique in its abilities – some birds accelerate in mid air, and some blow stuff up. The first 20 levels of the game are available for play on the Chrome web store.
Super Meat Boy
It is a sequel to meat boy and you play as meat boy – a red, skinless. Box shaped dude. You girlfriend, bandage girl, has been kidnapped by Dr. Fetus and you have to grind through 300 levels of madness to get your girlfriend back. Each level features deadly contraptions like huge saw blades zipping to and fro, knives, fire and more. Even without all of that, you splatter blood wherever you land.
Minecraft
Minecraft was developed for only a week prior to being released for alpha testing; it is now in Beta testing with over 3 million copies sold already. There is no end game scenario; all you do is roam around the game world moving cubes of different materials. There are a few rules that govern the placement of the said materials but that’s it. We’ve seen Star Trek ship replicas, the Mona Lisa and even people involved in weird postures.
Limbo
Praised for its unique artwork, the game utilizes only shades of gray and the game play is what the developers like to call ‘trial and death’. We follow a little boy as he makes his way through the jungle and the city, all this while encountering giant spiders that skewer him or the head maggot that zombies him. The puzzles are innovative but deadly, for one wrong step has the potential to decapitate or pulverize you.
Castle Crashers
The story resembles that of Mario with a twist. The game involves 4 knights who are on a quest to retrieve a stolen gem from an evil wizard who has also abducted the king’s daughters. Calling the game a hack and slash would paint the wrong picture but that’s the closest thing we could think of. The knights encounter a variety of creatures they have to do away with, including trolls, giant catfish and aliens. You can complete the entire campaign with your friends on your Xbox 360 or PS3.
O A.D.
When O A.D. started development it was based on the genie engine but its limitations led to the developers bringing out their own Pyrogenesis engine, which promises to be as spectacular as the one from Ensemble. Though in the Alpha stage, it can be downloaded from their website. Open Source since 2009, the game is compatible with Microsoft Windows, Linux, and Mac.
Machinarium
You are Josef, a robot who knows about a plot to blow up the city’s iconic tower. Except for the tutorial, you won’t find any written hints or speech to help you out. Navigation is via point and click with the limitation being that you can only click within your proximity. It’s up to Josef to foil the evil Black Cap Brotherhood’s plan, and reunite with his girlfriend.
Mount & Blade
With no storyline, the RPG follows a sandbox style of play. You are a knight in the land of Calandria and you govern how you wish to progress through the game. You ride through the lands of the five in-game warring factions, encountering different combat situations along the way. Each combat situation revolves around two groups, each with a renown value which the winner stands to gain.
Magicka
In Magicka, you are a mage fighting an evil wizard because, well… he’s evil? Yeah right, like you need added motivation to obliterate forces evil. Never mind, your skills incorporate elements of fire, lightning, arcane etc. there are eight elements in all and you can combine elements to create new spells.
