Stylish Beat-'em-ups, Platformers And Rpgs, And Other New Indie Games Worth Checking Out

Welcome to our latest roundup of what's going connected successful nan indie crippled space. Some gorgeous caller games arrived this week, and we've sewage immoderate demos and reveals from upcoming projects to return a look at. 

Later this month, Lorelai and nan Laser Eyes studio Simogo is going to observe its 15th day pinch some news and surprises. Perhaps nan developer is porting immoderate of its earlier games to much platforms. I'm hoping that we'll study astir Simogo's adjacent crippled arsenic well.

I'm not holding retired dream for a sequel to Sayonara Wild Hearts, which is my favourite crippled of each clip depending connected nan time you inquire maine (on different days, it's The Legend of Zelda: A Link to nan Past, FYI). However, if Simogo announces a unrecorded performance of music from nan game, I'm going to do my damndest to beryllium there. I'll beryllium tuning successful connected October 28 to study what nan workplace has for me america successful immoderate case.

Speaking of showcases, Entalto Publishing and developer GGTech ran 1 of their ain this week. The Out of Bounds arena shone a spotlight connected a twelve indie games, spanning a breadth of genres. 

Also, a speedy reminder that nan latest Steam Next Fest starts astatine 1PM ET connected Monday, October 13. As always, nan week-long arena will person tons of demos for you to cheque out. It’s ever worthy trying a bunch of them. You ne'er know, you mightiness extremity up being 1 of nan first fewer folks to play nan adjacent Balatro, Manor Lords or Deep Rock Galactic Survivor.

New releases

Absolum is a beat-'em-up from nan folks down Streets of Rage 4. It's nan first original IP from Dotemu, which has recovered occurrence pinch nan likes of nan terrific Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge. It co-developed this crippled pinch Guard Crush Games and Supamonks. The creation and animation from nan second looks perfectly divine.

You tin play Absolum solo aliases pinch a friend. Since it's a roguelite, you'll summation upgrades to bolster your characteristic connected each tally while earning acquisition that goes toward imperishable progression. There are aggregate paths to explore, truthful nan replayability facet seems beardown here. Engadget elder newsman Igor Bonifacic spent immoderate clip pinch Absolum this summertime and was impressed by it. The crippled received beardown reviews this week too.

Absolum is retired now connected Steam, Nintendo Switch, PS4 and PS5. Dotemu besides has different beat-'em-up, Marvel Cosmic Invasion, coming soon.

A fewer reviews I've publication for Bye Sweet Carole (which are reasonably mixed) dinged it for having clunky controls and immoderate different quality-of-life problems, specified arsenic getting softlocked while trying to complete puzzles. I dream Little Sewing Machine tin robust retired those issues since nan position of this crippled is rather something. It looks for illustration an early-'90s animated movie, pinch hand-drawn animations and, seemingly, a soundtrack to match. 

Bye Sweet Carole is a 2D horror-platformer from patient Maximum Entertainment successful which you play arsenic a young woman trying to find her champion friend, who vanished from an orphanage. It's retired now connected PC, PS5, Nintendo Switch and Xbox Series X/S.

Want to spot different caller crippled pinch a unsocial look that makes it guidelines retired from nan crowd? Of people you do. 

Exploration action game Dreams of Another — which landed connected PS5, PS VR2 and Steam this week — sees you creating nan situation successful a dream-like world by shooting astatine it. Director Baiyon (PixelJunk Eden) and nan squad astatine Q-Games utilized constituent unreality rendering exertion to create nan unusual, but captivating visuals. Dunno why they felt nan request to put a comedian successful this crippled though. Clowns are rotten things.

Dreams of Another arrived connected nan aforesaid time that Q-Games' PixelJunk Eden 2 deed PS4, PS5 and Steam (it's coming to Epic Games Store arsenic well). That crippled debuted connected Nintendo Switch successful 2020.

Here's yet different lovely-looking project, and this clip it's a pixel-art crippled from Teenage Astronauts and patient No More Robots. In Little Rocket Lab, you play arsenic aspiring technologist Morgan, who sets retired to build factories pinch nan purpose of achieving her family's dream of making a rocket ship. It’s much build a rocket, girl, than Build A Rocket Boy.

This is simply a blend of a mill builder and life sim, and it looks alternatively charming. Little Rocket Lab has touched down connected Steam and Xbox. It's connected Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass.

On nan taxable of pixel-art games, I couldn't not see 1 that came retired this week from a developer based successful my hometown. Cairn: Mathair’s Curse is simply a turn-based RPG. It's group successful nan early 2000s successful nan Scottish Highlands and it sees a young lad and his mates dealing pinch nan aftermath of a cult casting an ancient curse connected their home. 

Solo developer Ross McRitchie spent 5 years making Cairn: Mathair’s Curse and his partner, Christine, composed nan Celtic soundtrack. It's said to person plentifulness of Scottish humor, which speaks to me. The game, which Steam reviews person likened to EarthBound, is retired connected Steam now.

Upcoming 

I'm looking guardant to checking retired Blackwood, which is slated to deed Steam successful nan 2nd half of 2026. It has a beautiful awesome pitch:

By day, you tally a DVD shop successful 2012 New York. By night, you’re a ruthless assassin. Blackwood is a cinematic third-person shooter pinch grounded melee combat, sadistic takedowns, responsive gunplay and a double life to manage.

The facial animations look a small unsmooth successful nan uncover trailer, but it's alpha footage and there's plentifulness of clip to polish it. I'm hoping nan squad astatine Bangladesh-based AttritoM7 Productions manages to do that, because different this crippled is looking rather nifty pinch its John Wick-style combat.

I do emotion a crippled pinch a awesome name, and I've sewage a mates to show you about. Action RPG Bittersweet Birthday has hand-drawn pixel creation and thing but leader battles erstwhile it comes to combat. 

Bittersweet Birthday — from World Eater Games and patient Dangen Entertainment — is group to onshore connected Steam, GOG, Humble and Itch connected November 11. It's coming to consoles later.

Here’s a pinball-themed precision platformer successful nan mold of games for illustration Baby Steps and Getting Over It. Fittingly, it's called A Pinball Game That Makes You Mad and you tin power it pinch a azygous button.

There’s nary merchandise day arsenic yet for this task from Azimuth Studios. However, a demo is disposable connected Steam now. Like a bully teenage cousin, it's nosy and annoying successful adjacent measure.

Another pre-Next Fest demo I've had a chance to cheque retired is for Don't Stop, Girlypop!, a fast-paced arena shooter pinch an anti-capitalist bent. I've been looking guardant to this 1 since I recovered retired astir it precocious past year. The demo, pinch its Y2K girly-pop aesthetics and Doom Eternal/Ultrakill-style gameplay, does not disappoint. 

I'm gladsome nan squad trimmed nan first connection from nan original sanction — Incolatus: Don't Stop, Girlypop! — since nan shorter type is overmuch punchier and much memorable. Funny Fintan Softworks and patient Kwalee haven't revealed a merchandise day arsenic yet, but I'll beryllium checking my T9 flip telephone impatiently successful nan meantime.