We spoke about some of the best indie games from 2022 recently, and there were a lot of great games featured on that list. This time let’s focus on the future and not the past and talk about some of the indie games that are coming out in 2023. We already talked about big AAA games coming out in 2023, but indie games can’t be left out, and they deserve their own list, don’t they?
Indie games are important for the industry and provide some of the most unique experiences you’ll come across. Interesting and gorgeous worlds, innovative gameplay, cute, quirky, or gritty characters with tales that can be gut-punching or very simple or straightforward. That’s what indie games deliver, a memorable and refreshing experience. There are tons of indie games coming out next year that have already been announced, and I am sure there are a lot more that haven’t been announced yet and that will see surprise releases as the year goes on. So, let’s take a look at some of our personal favorites that we can’t wait to get our hands on. These are some of the indie games coming out in 2023.
Hollow Knight: Silksong
Team Cherry took the world by storm in 2017 with their incredible game “Hollow Knight,” a Metroidvania set in a dark and gorgeous world with challenging combat, boss battles, and exploration that was very rewarding. Not long after that, they announced a sequel of sorts for this game and called it “Hollow Knight: Silksong.” There was tremendous hype surrounding this game, as the first one was absolute perfection in what it did, and people were eager to get their hands on the next one.
After quite some time passed, with next to no new details dropping about the game in the 2022 Xbox and Bethesda Games Showcase, they dropped a new trailer for the game. We’ll be playing Hornet here, the princess of Hallownest, as she finds herself in a new and unknown land. The game will feature faster and more acrobatic combat, crazier boss battles, and tons of secrets to find via exploring the environments. If Microsoft’s “everything you see will come out in the next 12 months” statement is to be believed, then “Hollow Knight: Silksong” will finally arrive sometime in the first six months of 2023 on Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, PlayStation 5 and 4, Nintendo Switch, and PC and will also be included day one with Xbox Game Pass.
Cocoon
Jeppe Carlsen, the lead designer for “Limbo” and “Inside,” announced his new project at the 2022 Xbox and Bethesda Games Showcase titled “Cocoon.” It’s a sci-fi puzzle adventure game with a unique aesthetics and takes on gameplay that is being developed by Geometric Games.
The game features worlds where you solve puzzles, but each world is a layer built on top of another, and these worlds exist within orbs that you can carry on your back. Look, it’s incredibly complex, unique and hard to describe, and it doesn’t help that there are barely any details out there for this game. Watch the trailer, and you’ll understand it more, as it is more of a see-it-to-believe-it kind of experience. “Cocoon,” as I stated, is incredibly unique and is going to give us something to remember and wrap our heads around it when it comes out sometime in the first six months of 2023 for the Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, and PC, and will also be included with Xbox Game Pass at launch. It’s incredible what developers can do these days, and this game just looks mechanically brilliant, phenomenal, and visually gorgeous.
The Last Case Of Benedict Fox
Developer Plot Twist is coming up with their game “The Last Case of Benedict Fox,” an HP Lovecraft-inspired Metroidvania taking place in his signature style of the cosmic-horror thematic world. The game will put you in the shoes of one Benedict Fox, a detective with a demon companion lurking over his shoulder, using his demonic powers to get to the bottom of a mystery about a couple’s murder in a decrepit mansion.
The gameplay is straightforward Metroidvania flair with combat where you’ll be fighting demons, using abilities to traverse the environment and find all of its secrets while collecting clues to get to the bottom of this mystery. In a weird way, this game looks like a much darker version of the “Ori” games, and I am all the more for it. The art style is gorgeous, and the gameplay and the setting just looks stunning. I can’t wait to get my hands on this game when it comes out sometime in the first six months of 2023 For the Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, and PC, and will also be included on day one with Xbox Game Pass.
Bounty Star: The Morose Tale Of Graveyard Clem
“Bounty Star: The Morose Tale Of Graveyard Clem,” developed by Dinogod, is a third-person mech action game that features elements of the base building while telling a post-apocalyptic Western tale. This is a mish-mash of tons of genres, and I love it. I mean, where else have you heard of a post-apocalyptic Western game with mechs?
There will be tons of customization options available as you kit your mech for offensive or defensive play, and the visuals here look very cute and colorful with a charming and eye-catching art style at play. The shooting part also looks very well, so it’ll be interesting to see how this game turns out when it launches sometime in 2023 for the PlayStation 5, and 4, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, and PC and will also be included day one with Xbox Game Pass.
Flock
Developed by Hollow Ponds, “Flock” is an adorable discovery game where you are a shepherd and are tasked to fly alongside a flock of weird and cute creatures to grow your flock and make your sheep woollier.
It’s weird, isn’t it? The creatures here are also equally weird as the premise, but it all looks so unique, beautiful, colorful, and adorable that I can’t help but want to learn more about this game and play it. The game focuses on the joy of flight and discovery, and befriending these weird creatures and flying with them is all part of the process. The game will also feature co-op play, so it’s only a matter of time before we learn more about it and get to play it. “Flock” comes out sometime in 2023 for the PlayStation 5 and 4, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, and PC, and will also be included on Day One with Xbox Game Pass.
Ereban: Shadow Legacy
Next up, we have “Ereban: Shadow Legacy,” which is being developed by Baby Robot Games and is more of an AAA game than an indie game. You’ll be playing as Ayana in this game, the last remaining member of a long and forgotten race in a lifeless city filled with robots who want you dead. The game is a stealth platformer with a unique gameplay element attached to it.
Ayana can become one with the shadows and use them to travel distances while remaining hidden from everyone. Use shadows to your advantage to sneak away from your foes or kill them—the choice is yours. This game looks cool on its own, but it has my interest because, weirdly, it reminds me of “Dishonored,” and I like that a lot. The game also has very pleasing visuals and melds sci-fi with mysticism perfectly, if you ask me. It comes out sometime in the first six months of 2023 for the Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One S, and PC and will also be included on Day One with Xbox Game Pass.
Planet Of Lana
Developed by Wishfully, “Planet of Lana” may be one of the best-looking games I have ever seen. A narrative-driven puzzle platformer, “Planet of Lana” takes place on an off-Earth planet where man, nature, and beast exist in peace, and now that harmony has been disrupted thanks to an alien invasion.
The story will take you across the planet and its drop-dead gorgeous sights, where everything looks like it’s been painted by hand. Seriously, this game is stunning, and its creativity in terms of its visuals is one of the reasons indie games deserve the love they get. The story is also not about the invasion but the planet itself, and this looks as gripping and awesome as it can be. “Planet of Lana” comes out sometime in the spring of 2023 for Xbox Series X|S and PC and will also be included on day one with Xbox Game Pass.
REPLACED
I know I’ve been talking about all these games like I can’t wait to play them, and truthfully, I can’t. I love indie games, and each one mentioned so far is on my list, but no game here has me as excited as “Replaced.” Developed by Sad Cat Studios, “Replaced” is a 2.5D action platformer where you play as an AI named Reach, trapped in a human body against his will.
The game is set in an alternate 1980s retro-future setting in Phoenix City, a place ruled by corruption and greed. You’ll be exploring the city while taking part in visceral combat that looks brilliant. The story and setting and everything else sounds cool, but do you know what the coolest part of this game is? It’s the art style! It combines pixel graphics with realistic lighting, and my God, it looks stunning. Everything about this game, from its visuals to its arts, to its story, setting, and combat, just looks perfect, and I want this game in my hands right now! “Replaced” will come out sometime in 2023 for the Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, and PC, and will also be included on Day One with Xbox Game Pass.
Ravenlock
Ever heard of CocoChumber? These are the guys behind fun indie games like “The Planet of the Eyes,” “Riverbond,” and more recently, the brilliant “Echo Generation,” a Stranger Things-inspired voxel art turn-based adventure. If you haven’t, then you need to play that game. “Ravenlock” is their next adventure and the third voxel art game they are making.
The game looks much larger in scale and looks like an RPG of sorts set in a fantasy world with dangerous and unique-looking creatures and real-time combat. The art style is stunning, but that should go without saying, and the setting and combat for this one truly looks amazing. “Ravenlock” comes out sometime in the first six months of 2023 for Xbox One, Xbox One S, and PC and will also be included on Day One with Xbox Game Pass.
Party Animals
I’ll keep this one short and sweet. Developed by Recreate Games, “Party Animals” is a physics-based brawler much akin to “Gang Beasts.” You play as adorable furry animals beating the crap out of each other in cool-looking and deadly arenas. This game simply looks awesome and is fun to play with friends. It is coming out in early 2023 for Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, and PC and will also be included with Xbox Game Pass.
After Us
Pricollo Studio announced their game “After Us” during The Game Awards 2022, a platformer where you play as Gaia, the spirit of life in a world without humans, wanting to give them a second chance. The game looks gorgeous, and the setting is very interesting. There aren’t many details to go around for this one, but it’s worth keeping an eye on when it comes out sometime in spring 2023 for the PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC.
Way To The Woods
“Way To The Woods” is a third-person adventure game created by Anthony Tan where you play as two deer brothers and take control of the elder one. The game puts them in a mysterious world devoid of humans and full of weird creatures and tasks them to find their way back home to the woods.
It looks like exploration, some action, and puzzle-solving are what we’ll be doing here for the most part, and that light will play a big role in this game. It looks interesting, and I love games that I can play as animals or games that are about animals, so this is definitely on my list. We’ll find out more about it when it comes out sometime in 2023 for Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, and PC, and is also included with Xbox Game Pass.
Dead Static Drive
Finally, we have “Dead Static Drive.” Now, this game was announced all the way back in 2016, and it still isn’t out. While there’s no release date attached to it, I added it here so it can get more attention, and I really hope it comes out in 2023.
“Dead Static Drive” is an isometric open-world survival game full of monsters that you must escape and reach home to your parents. It takes heavy inspiration from early “GTA” games, so much so that the developers affectionately call this one “Grand Theft Cthulhu.” It’s a really cool-looking game with a unique art style and interesting gameplay that was announced for the Xbox One back in the day. I hope it comes out in 2023, more than likely on Xbox Series X|S as well, and maybe it will be a Game Pass addition. We’ll have to hope, wait, and see.
There are a ton more indie games that have been announced, but these are a few that we wanted to cover. An interesting bunch, isn’t it? What are some of the indie games you are looking forward to? Other than “Dead Static Drive,” it’s more than likely that all of these will definitely be released next year, so we have a lot to look forward to that we’ll be playing in the near future. If you don’t play indie games, then please do; this is where you will see the real passion and talent from across the industry. See you on the next one!
See more: Last-Gen Games That Play Best On Current-Gen, Part 2
