Don’t sleep on these hidden gems.
Nintendo is offering some huge eShop discounts until the end of 2021, including sales on the platform’s best indie games.
Switch Stance includes both games in the OlliOlli skateboarding series. Their simple aesthetic hides a deep, challenging skateboard sim with inventive levels and a fun multiplayer mode.
In Carto, you rearrange tiles on a map to change the shape of the world it represents. It’s a short, sweet adventure with plenty of charming characters and lots of heart.
Make no mistake: Despite its cute appearance, Doki Doki Literature Club is an intense psychological horror game wearing a dating sim’s clothes. The Plus edition adds content warnings and side stories that add more depth to its female characters.
7. Islanders
Maybe the cold weather has you wishing for a change of scenery. Islanders is a simplistic but satisfying city builder that lets you construct tiny, colorful settlements from a hand of cards.
The name says it all. A Short Hike is a surprisingly affecting game about a quick hike up a mountain, filled with excellent music and striking sights along the way.
There have been lots of great deckbuilding games lately, but Griftlands still stands out. With three unique playable characters and separate decks for combat and conversation, it emphasizes story and wildly divergent playstyles.
One of the best narrative adventure games ever made, Kentucky Route Zero is a haunting journey through a dreamlike vision of America. Its five acts, originally released over seven years, are collected in the TV Edition.
3. Toem
In Toem, you start on a journey to just take a few good photos and end up helping a cast of quirky characters with your photography skills along the way. It’s cute, short, and charming — perfect for a long winter weekend.
Ashen is a Soulslike game at its core, with tough, stamina-based combat and a story told in whispers. It sets itself apart with a focus on community building and a clever co-op system that can bring other players to your aid at any time.
While 2021 had plenty of great games, 2020’s best roguelike hasn’t lost any luster. In Hades, you fight through lost souls to escape the underworld while playing as the son of the titular Greek god.