Continuing our list of much loved indie games, here’s more critically acclaimed video games from independent studios.
Bastion
Bastion was created by Supergiant Games in 2011. It’s an action role playing game. The animation is bright and colourful, and the story told by narration. You play the role of The Kid. This hero is mute, and he lives in a world that’s fallen to pieces in an event termed “The Calamity.” We don’t know what exactly happened in this doomsday event but your mission is to revive a sanctuary, called the Bastion. You must battle your way through each location and collect various weapons.
Defcon
This real time strategy game was based on the 1983 film WarGames. It was created by Introversion Software and released in 2006. Basically you are deep in an underground bunker. You have a map of the world, and nuclear weapons at your disposal. Your goal is to destroy as much of the enemies population whilst keeping the number of casualties in your own population down to a minimum. When we say casualties – a typical game will result in the death of millions of civilians, also known as “megadeaths”.
The game can be played as single player, but it’s more fun as a group. It even includes “office player mode” by playing with up to 5 colleagues. There are even cool little features so you can hide your screen if you’re in the office and a discreet icon will tell you if a major even happens like a nuclear weapon is headed for your territory.
The Stanley Parable
Released in 2011, The Stanley Parable was designed by Davey Wreden and William Pugh. It is a walkthrough game. You control a silent character from the first person perspective. The story is narrated and the player can choose to disobey the narrator. The actions you take will impact the story telling. Stanley works in an office building and his job is to monitor a computer screen. When the screen goes blank, he decides to go and explore the rest of the building. There are 6 potential endings. The game was critically well received and was remade too. Within a year it had sold one million copies. Since most reviewers don’t want to spoil the game, they simply encourage others to play for themselves to find out why it is so good!
Stardew Valley
This is a truly delightful game. The story goes, you inherit an old farm plot from your grandfather. You must grow crops and raise livestock. You need to keep feeding your animals if you want to keep them happy and content. Visit Pelican Town and befriend the locals, you can even date some of them and start a family. A big part of the appeal of this game is down to the relationships you can have with the characters in the game. There are also monsters and treasures hidden deep within the mysterious caves if you prefer a slightly darker adventure. Stardew Valley is now accesible on steam, xbox, ps4, Humble Store, Gog com, Nintendo Switch and on ios and android mobile devices.