- Small teams and no publishers means cheap
- Because the games are cheap, they can afford to take risks in design
- Because the games have no publishers, they HAVE to take risks and be original otherwise they get no coverage and die
- The low budgets mean they rely on gameplay more than graphics
- The low budgets also cause them to harken back to days of yore and retro gaming, but with modern lessons in design
So yeah, I love indie games, but there are so many out there, and get so little coverage, how do you know what ones to play? Here is a short list of great, free games I've found recently that I really love, as well as a brief description by me.
Nitronic Rush
What happens when a team of student developers make a Tron style racing game for their final project? They spend the summer making the game even better, and release it for free as Nitronic Rush. This game REALLY needs a controller to handle well (and has native 360 support), but it's so good you should try it anyways. Single player only, it feels like someone took 2d platformer, and made you race through it in a car. You jump, spin, fly, and wall ride through the levels in a time trial, and can compete against your own or online ghost cars to do it. It looks and feels amazing. As a coder, I get wet looking at what they've put together.
Pax Britannica
This one is more a cute little experiment in game design. A 4 player (local only) strategy game played entirely with one button? How the hell does that work? The longer you press your button, the more resources you use, and when you release it, you make either a fighter, bomber, frigate, or upgrade your resource creation speed. The ships fight each other on their own, trying to destroy your enemies' main ships. Cute, simple, fun, and maybe 10 minutes of your time per game.
Stealh Bastard
"Like Super Meat Boy and Metal Gear Solid had a baby out of wed lock" I read somewhere, and that's the most apt description I've seen. Stealth gameplay is hard to make work in a 2d platformer(I'm looking at you Art of Theft), but Stealth Bastard makes it work. Hide in the shadows from robots and cameras, and try and escape the level as fast as you can.
Viriax
Play as a virus trying to infect an organ, surviving by stealing bloodcells and killing nanobots designed to stop you from reaching the top. Every jump takes blood, and you can only damage enemies by piledriving them from above. Fast and challenging gameplay couple with simple controls and great music make for a great game that feels like you could have played it in an arcade alongside pac-man.
Gang Garrison
Like TF2 but feel hats and alternate weapons have ruined the game? Sad because your shitty ass laptop can't run Valve's great team-based shooter? Try Gang Garrison. Online multiplayer, simplified versions of the classes (no hats or different weapons), and many, many maps. Also mods. Just, so fun.
Team Fortress Arcade
Speaking of TF2 demakes, do you like classic 4 player side scrolling beatem-ups, a la Golden Axe or Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (or more modern Castle Crashers)? Now imagine one of them, only you and three friends play locally, and each of you can be one of the 9 classes from TF2.