Best Indie Games on the PC

Indie Games are one of the things the PC & Modern Multi-Platform is genuinely for. The ones worth playing start with Hades, Balatro, Disco Elysium.

The PC and Indie Games

Not a console, and that is the point: no generation boundary, no exclusivity, and a back catalogue that goes back forty years and never stops working.

This is one of its strengths. Strategy, simulation and indies — the three genres that have essentially always lived here — plus mods, which turn several of the games below into different games entirely.

Filtering to indie means you want the answer a small team would give. It is usually the most interesting filter on this site, because small studios take the risks large ones cannot.

The Indie Games Worth Playing

  1. 1. Hades

    Follow the link for hand-written recommendations if you want more like it.

  2. 2. Balatro

    Follow the link for hand-written recommendations if you want more like it.

  3. 3. Disco Elysium

    Follow the link for hand-written recommendations if you want more like it.

  4. 4. Inscryption

    Follow the link for hand-written recommendations if you want more like it.

  5. 5. Hades II

    Follow the link for hand-written recommendations if you want more like it.

  6. 6. Dispatch

    Follow the link for hand-written recommendations if you want more like it.

  7. 7. Blue Prince

    Follow the link for hand-written recommendations if you want more like it.

  8. 8. Firewatch

    Follow the link for hand-written recommendations if you want more like it.

  9. 9. Phoenix Wright Ace Attorney

    Follow the link for hand-written recommendations if you want more like it.

  10. 10. Sea of Stars

    Follow the link for hand-written recommendations if you want more like it.

  11. 11. Slay the Spire

    Follow the link for hand-written recommendations if you want more like it.

  12. 12. RimWorld

    Follow the link for hand-written recommendations if you want more like it.

  13. 13. Siralim Ultimate

    Follow the link for hand-written recommendations if you want more like it.

  14. 14. Rhythm Doctor

    Follow the link for hand-written recommendations if you want more like it.

  15. 15. Broforce

    Follow the link for hand-written recommendations if you want more like it.

  16. 16. Spin Rhythm XD

    Follow the link for hand-written recommendations if you want more like it.

What Makes a Good Indie Game

One strong idea, explored completely, at a price that makes trying it easy. Indies have no production to hide behind, so the design is exposed.

Polish and scale, sometimes. A few of these are rough at the edges, and a big-budget pick will always look better doing the same thing.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the best indie game on the PC?

Hades is the usual first answer, and there are 16 in the library we cover.

Was the PC good at indie games?

Yes — it is one of the things the machine is known for, and there are 16 in the library we cover.

What actually counts as an indie game?

Self-published, or published without a large publisher's money. It says nothing about the size of the game, which is why a forty-hour metroidvania and a two-hour art piece sit under the same label.

Why are indie games often better designed?

Constraint. Without a budget to hide behind, one idea has to carry the whole thing — and a small team can commit to something risky that a large one would sand down.

How is this list put together?

From the games this site covers on the PC & Modern Multi-Platform, matched against hand-mapped gameplay categories rather than a storefront's genre tag. A page only exists where there are at least four, which is why some console and genre combinations have no page at all.

Indie Games on Other Consoles

More From the PC

Or browse the whole PC & Modern Multi-Platform library.