The year ahead is shaping up to be absolutely massive for gaming, not just because of the smorgasbord of high-profile releases coming (which we’ve got a separate list for right here) but also the sheer volume of fantastic-looking indie games set to launch in 2023.
Following our countdown of some of the best indie video games of 2022, we wanted to take the time to highlight some future titles that should absolutely be on your radar from a variety of studios, genres and platforms. This is obviously by no means an exhaustive list – if I didn’t cap myself at 23 games I could literally be here forever – but it hopefully represents a wide enough spread of experiences that you’ll find at least one new game to stick on your radar.
Storyteller
Platforms: Switch, PC
Release Date: March 23rd
Developer: Daniel Benmergui
Experience some of history’s greatest stories like never before. Storyteller is an award-winning reactive puzzle game that lets you build the story. Storyteller’s charming animations and comic-panel design allows for a unique puzzle mechanic. Use your wits to retell iconic tales — or experiment and find something new.
Way to the Woods
Platforms: Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, PC
Release Date: TBA March
Developer: onepixel.dog
A Deer and Fawn must embark on a journey through an abandoned world of the unknown to get home. A third person adventure game solo developed by Anthony Tan, featuring music from Aivi & Surasshu, composers for the show Steven Universe. Unravel the mystery of Cat Town, evade a hounding pack of wolves, and find your light to explore a world filled with the relics of the old gods: humanity.
Terra Nil
Platforms: PC
Release Date: TBA 2023
Developer: Free Lives
Terra Nil is a reverse city builder about ecosystem reconstruction. Turn a barren wasteland into an ecological paradise complete with different flora and fauna. Then clean up, leaving the environment pristine. Subverting the builder genre, Terra Nil is about the restoration of a ravaged environment.
Dead Cells: Return to Castlevania
Platforms: PS4, Xbox One, Switch, PC
Release Date: TBA 2023
Developer: Motion Twin, Evil Empire
Battle through the ancient corridors of Dracula’s Castle in this upcoming expansion to the acclaimed fast-paced action roguelite Dead Cells. Team up with Richter Belmont & Alucard and wield iconic Castlevania weapons against hordes of monsters to reach the throne room of the Dark Lord himself…
Tchia
Platforms: PS5, PS4, PC
Release Date: TBA 2023
Developer: Awaceb
A Tropical Open-World adventure. Climb, glide, swim, and sail your boat around a beautiful archipelago in this physics-driven sandbox. Use Tchia’s Soul Jumping ability to take control of any animal or object you can find, and Jam on your fully playable Ukulele. A game inspired by New Caledonia.
Mail Time
Platforms: PS5, PS4, Switch, PC
Release Date: TBA April
Developer: Kela van der Deijl
Mail Time is a relaxing, cottagecore adventure set in a peaceful forest, far, far away. It’s your first day on the job as a newly minted Mail Scout. Equipped with a mushroom hat, a pack full of letters, and unbridled enthusiasm, it’s time to deliver letters and packages across the Grumblewood Grove.
WrestleQuest
Platforms: PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, Switch, PC
Release Date: TBA May
Developer: Mega Cat Studios
Pro wrestling and RPG fantasy collide in the ultimate pixel powered adventure. “Macho Man” Randy Savage and tons of other icons offer guidance as you powerbomb your way to glory beyond the ring. This hero’s journey ain’t just an epic quest, it’s WRESTLEQUEST!
Dordogne
Platforms: PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, Switch, PC
Release Date: TBA 2023
Developer: UMANIMATION
Dordogne is a narrative adventure game in which you play as Mimi, a 32-year-old woman visiting the house of her recently deceased grandmother. As a souvenir of the childhood summers Mimi spent with her in Dordogne, her grandmother left her letters and puzzles to solve, to remind her to make the most out of life.
The Last Case of Benedict Fox
Platforms: Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, PC
Release Date: TBA 2023
Developer: Plot Twist
Descend into a limbo of decaying memories as Benedict Fox, a self-proclaimed detective bound to his demon companion. Use that bond to explore the minds of the recently deceased in search for clues as you uncover the mysteries of an old mansion where a couple was murdered and their child has gone missing.
Treat yourself to a dark intrigue full of secret organizations, forbidden rituals, and cold-blooded crimes in a hand-crafted adventure brought to life through a fascinating Burton-esque art style.
Coffee Talk Episode 2: Hibiscus & Butterfly
Platforms: PS4, Xbox One, Switch, PC
Release Date: TBA 2023
Developer: Toge Productions
In a time where people are isolated from each other, Coffee Talk is a place where we can reconnect over a cup of warm drink.
It’s time to revisit your favourite late-night coffee shop and reconnect with your fantasy friends over a warm drink or two. You are a barista, and your customers aren’t always humans, listen to their stories and influence their hearts with a warm cup of coffee or two.
Sea of Stars
Platforms: PS5, PS4, Switch, PC
Release Date: TBA 2023
Developer: Sabotage Studios
Sea of Stars is a turn-based RPG inspired by the classics. It tells the story of two Children of the Solstice who combine the powers of the sun and moon to perform Eclipse Magic, the only force capable of fending off the monstrous creations of the evil alchemist known as The Fleshmancer.
The Garden Path
Platforms: Switch, PC
Release Date: TBA 2023
Developer: carrotcake
The Garden Path explores the quiet moments of a life well lived, where your garden will grow to reflect both the passing of time and your own design. Time here runs in concert with the real world, and the passing of seasons heralds new encounters and a new story to weave.
Above all, The Garden Path is a life sim that celebrates the tranquil and the pensive, a tucked-away place to shape and grow as you like.
Planet of Lana
Platforms: Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, PC
Release Date: TBA 2023
Developer: Wishfully
Venba
Platforms: PS4, Xbox One, Switch, PC
Release Date: TBA 2023
Developer: Visai Games
Play as an Indian mother, Venba, who immigrates to Canada with her family in the 1980s. Players will cook various dishes and decipher long lost family recipes. Through branching conversations, explore a story about family, love, and loss.
Goodbye Volcano High
Platforms: PS5, PS4, PC
Release Date: TBA 2023
Developer: KO_OP
Goodbye Volcano High is a cinematic narrative adventure about love, change, and the end of an era. Guide Fang through their final year of high school as they try to make things right before time is up.
Replaced
Platforms: Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, PC
Release Date: TBA 2023
Developer: Sad Cat Studios
REPLACED is a cinematic retro-futuristic action-thriller set in a dystopian alternative version the of the 80s’ USA. You are R.E.A.C.H. – an AI trapped in mortal human body against its will. Explore the world, push your body’s limits in intense combat and learn what it’s like to be a living being.
Anger Foot
Platforms: PC
Release Date: TBA 2023
Developer: Free Lives
Anger Foot is a lightning fast hard bass blast of kicking doors and kicking ass. Crash through the caffeine-fuelled fever dream of Shit City, putting the boot to a menacing menagerie of merciless gangsters.
Unleash the world’s deadliest feet on a colourful cast of anthropomorphic enemies. Clearing out slums, sewers, and skyscrapers as you grab new weapons, unlock new sneakers, and upgrade your powers in absurd and wonderful ways. Kick and shoot your way to the exit as you leave behind a smouldering trail of shattered doors, broken bones, and crumpled energy drinks.
The Plucky Squire
Platforms: PS5, Xbox Series X|S, Switch, PC
Release Date: TBA 2023
Developer: All Possible Futures
The Plucky Squire follows the magical adventures of Jot and his friends – storybook characters who discover a three-dimensional world outside the pages of their book. When the malevolent Humgrump realizes he’s the villain of the book – destined to lose his battle against the forces of good for all eternity – he kicks the heroic Jot out of its pages and changes the story forever.
Jump between 2D and 3D worlds in this charming action adventure – solving puzzles, boxing badgers, flying with a jetpack, and enjoying many more delightful and surprising mini challenges as you become the hero of a living storybook.
Dredge
Platforms: PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, Switch, PC
Release Date: TBA 2023
Developer: Black Salt Games
Captain your fishing trawler to explore a collection of remote isles, and their surrounding depths, to see what lies below. Sell your catch to the locals and complete quests to learn more about each area’s troubled past. Outfit your boat with better equipment to trawl deep-sea trenches and navigate to far-off lands, but keep an eye on the time. You might not like what finds you in the dark…
Cookie Cutter
Platforms: PC
Release Date: TBA 2023
Developer: Subcult Joint Ltd
Love turns to rage and chainsaws in Cookie Cutter, a techno-pop-punk 2D hand-drawn Metroidvania set to the backdrop of a bleak and beautiful dying world. Become Cherry, a rage-driven android on a quest to rescue her beloved creator, Doctor Shinji Fallon, from the clutches of a deranged mastermind.
Thirsty Suitors
Platforms: PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, Switch, PC
Release Date: TBA 2023
Developer: Outerloop Games
Thirsty Suitors is a stylish, story-driven adventure that unfolds through turn-based battles, skateboarding, and cooking. Help Jala confront her mistakes, make up with her exes, reconcile cultural differences, and become the person she was meant to be. Easy, right?
Skate Story
Platforms: PC
Release Date: TBA 2023
Developer: Sam Eng
You are a demon in the Underworld, made out of glass and pain. The Devil has given you a skateboard with a simple deal: Skate to the Moon and swallow it — and you shall be freed.
Ollie, kickflip, and grind your way through the ash and smoke of the Underworld as you take on a seemingly impossible quest. Skate fast to destroy demons and save other tortured souls on your journey from fragile beginner to hardened skater.
The Last Worker
Platforms: PS5, Xbox Series X|S, Switch, PC
Release Date: TBA 2023
Developer: Oiffy, Wolf & Wood Interactive Ltd
The Last Worker is a first-person narrative adventure centered around our struggle in an increasingly automated world. Combining a hand-crafted art style with uniquely immersive gameplay mechanics in an epic setting, The Last Worker delivers an emotional, thought-provoking, and comedic story packaged with rich characters performed by an all-star cast.
