2025 Indie Game Summit: 5 Must-Play Indie Games of the Year
Every year, countless independent games are released across consoles and PC, but only a handful break through the noise to spark widespread discussion, earn awards across juried events, and stay on players’ radars long after launch. In 2025, the indie game scene delivered an exceptional crop of experiences that resonated with players and critics alike. Narrowing an entire year of outstanding releases down to five essential titles is no easy task, but the games that follow represent a cross-section of compelling storytelling, refined mechanics, artistic innovation, and immersive worldbuilding that mark them as essential experiences for anyone invested in modern game design.
This list does not attempt to capture every notable genre or experiment — there are worthy contenders across action, role-playing, sports, and racing — but it does represent the most impactful and unforgettable independent releases of 2025. Each of these titles helped define the narrative of the year’s gaming landscape and deserves a place on your must-play list.
1. Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 — The Year’s Unforgettable RPG
If you had to choose only one indie game to play in 2025, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 would be a powerful contender. Developed by Sandfall Interactive, this game might not have reinvented the larger RPG template, but it accomplished nearly everything it set out to do with extraordinary precision. The characters, the scenario, the narrative structure, the animation, the visual design, the soundtrack, and the underlying gameplay systems all received meticulous attention that elevates the whole above its individual parts.
Clair Obscur draws inspiration from both classic and modern Japanese role-playing games, but rather than simply replicating familiar tropes, it infuses them with a narrative depth and emotional resonance that many larger studios strive for but seldom achieve. The script interweaves political intrigue, personal reckoning, and lore-rich worldbuilding, and every major plot beat feels purposeful and earned.
Reviewers from prominent outlets like Wccftech praised the game’s scope and execution. As Francesco De Meo noted in his review, the title entered the market looking like a solid if conservative RPG, but it evolved into an unforgettable journey of emotional impact and narrative sophistication. “Its story moves with a rare deliberation,” he wrote, “and its characters linger in the player’s mind long after the credits roll.” For players seeking a role-playing experience that combines traditional mechanics with a fresh sense of narrative ambition, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 sits squarely at the top of 2025’s offerings.
2. Hades II — Refining a Beloved Formula
If Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is the year’s narrative crown jewel, then Hades II is unquestionably its mechanical powerhouse. Following the extraordinary success of its predecessor, which many players and critics regarded as one of the best games of the previous decade, Hades II faced the daunting challenge of living up to enormous expectations. Remarkably, it did not simply meet those expectations — it exceeded them.
At its core, Hades II expands upon the groundwork laid by the original with deeper progression systems, more refined combat, and a cast of characters whose depth rivals the strongest examples of narrative design in action games. The combat remains fast, responsive, and exhilarating, but new systems give players increased control over builds and strategic variety in every run. Unlike many sequels that merely iterate, Hades II transforms.
With the introduction of Melinoë, a compelling new protagonist whose magic and narrative context broaden the emotional palette of the game, Hades II becomes not only a mechanical evolution but also a thematic one. Reviewers emphasized that the title retains the core identity of its predecessor — the relentless energy, the quick pace, the satisfying risk–reward loop — while deepening the world and its mechanics in ways that feel genuinely transformative.
As one critic put it, Hades II illustrates how a sequel can honor everything that made the original great while pushing that foundation to new heights, both in terms of play and emotional engagement. For fans of action games and narrative-rich roguelikes, the experience is less a sequel and more a reimagined celebration of what the genre can become.
3. Eternal Strands — A New Studio’s Promising Debut
2025 also witnessed the arrival of Eternal Strands, the first major work from Yellow Brick Games, a studio founded by Mike Laidlaw, former director of BioWare’s acclaimed Dragon Age series. Stationed in Québec with a team comprised of Canadian developers, Yellow Brick aimed to craft an adventure that could be described as “a wondrous journey” — and on many levels, they succeeded.
From early previews and developer interviews to the final release, Eternal Strands generated buzz for its rich mechanics and vibrant aesthetic. While it draws inspiration from some of the most beloved mechanics of the past decade, it resists becoming a mere pastiche. Instead, the game synthesizes familiar elements into a cohesive and engaging whole that challenges players’ perceptions of what an action adventure can be.
Critics singled out the game’s physics and combat systems for particular praise, noting that once players master the mechanics, they unlock a level of flow and dynamism that makes exploration and combat feel both intelligent and rewarding. Although some critics pointed to a relatively straightforward narrative and a bit of repetition in the late game, the consensus remained that Eternal Strands represents an impressive debut from a fresh and ambitious team. For players who appreciate nuanced action and world exploration, it stands among 2025’s most captivating independent releases.
4. Hollow Knight: Silksong — A Long-Awaited Triumph
Even the most dedicated indie game fans cannot talk about 2025 without mentioning Hollow Knight: Silksong. Seven years in development, originally announced as a content expansion, this title evolved into a full sequel that drew attention from the moment it was first teased. The anticipation was so intense that other developers reportedly delayed their own launches to avoid clashing with Silksong’s release window.
When it finally arrived, Silksong did not disappoint. It reached over five million players quickly — a testament not only to its legacy but to the confidence players placed in Team Cherry’s ability to deliver on years of hype. True to its heritage, Silksong remains a meticulously crafted action platformer, refined at every turn.
What sets Silksong apart is the depth and precision of its design. Whether players have already invested dozens of hours into exploration or are engaging with it for the first time, the world reveals secrets that reward curiosity and persistence. Skillful navigation, clever enemy patterns, and environmental storytelling coalesce into one of the most immersive indie experiences of the year.
While some players experience dozens of hours without encountering the same challenge twice, others appreciate the way the game balances mastery and discovery. It is not merely a sequel — it is a celebration of everything that made the original Hollow Knight an indie benchmark, and it stands tall among 2025’s most memorable games, both indie and mainstream.
5. ROUTINE — The Year’s Premier Sci-Fi Horror Adventure
Closing out the top five is ROUTINE, another long-gestating project that finally arrived in 2025. Developed by Lunar Software and published with the support of Raw Fury, ROUTINE spent more than a decade in development and reemerged not as a commercial afterthought, but as one of the year’s most unforgettable horror experiences.
ROUTINE diverges from the other games on this list in tone and genre, anchoring itself in atmospheric tension and psychological dread rather than narrative grandeur or frenetic combat. Its story unfolds in a retro-futuristic setting that evokes classic science fiction while steeping players in an eerie, survival-oriented gameplay loop.
Analysts note that its slow pacing is deliberate, designed to keep players uneasy and attentive to every creak and echo. The game’s craftsmanship — from its environmental design to its audio landscape — is engineered to sustain tension over long stretches, rewarding players who embrace its mood and pace rather than rushing through.
Many reviewers drew parallels between ROUTINE’s immersive fear and the timeless quality of other genre classics. Some described it as the most compelling sci-fi horror title since Alien: Isolation — a comparison that speaks to its ability to unsettle players without resorting to cheap scares. Whether tackled in single long sessions or piecemeal over weeks, ROUTINE leaves a lasting impression.
Honorable Mentions: Worthy Experiences Beyond the Top Five
Distilling an entire year of excellent independent games into five picks necessarily means there are additional titles worthy of recognition. Below are some noteworthy independent games from 2025 that, while not in the top five, are still highly recommended and deserve attention from players seeking breadth and variety in their gaming experiences:
- 1000xResist
- Baby Steps
- Blue Prince
- Despelote
- Skin Deep
- The Seance of Blake Manor
- Skate Story
- Morsels
- The Midnight Walk
- PEAK
- Dispatch
- Shotgun Cop Man
- Wanderstop
- Deltarune
- Sword of the Sea
- Citizen Sleeper 2: Starward Vector
- Keep Driving
- Ball x Pit
- Revenge of the Savage Planet
Final Thoughts: Why These Games Matter
The five titles above — Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, Hades II, Eternal Strands, Hollow Knight: Silksong, and ROUTINE — each demonstrate different facets of what independent game development can achieve. Some excel in narrative depth and emotional resonance, others in mechanical refinement and genre innovation, and still others in atmosphere and tone. Together, they paint a picture of a vibrant, ambitious indie scene in 2025 that rivals even the most well-resourced mainstream productions.
For players who have been absorbed by AAA blockbusters, these games offer a refreshing counterpoint: creative risk, distinct artistic voices, and experiences that are often deeply personal or thematically daring. Whether you play one of these games or all of them, exploring the diversity of indie design in 2025 is a rewarding journey in its own right.
