The Most Exciting Indie Games to Look Forward to in 2025

With the release of Hollow Knight: Silksong now behind us, it might seem like the year’s biggest indie titles are squarely in the rearview mirror, but that’s far from the truth. Instead, there are still a whole host of excellent-looking indie games to look forward to for the remainder of 2025, many of which have been on players’ radars for two or more years. Of course, there are plenty of other Metroidvania games coming down the pike, which makes it interesting to see how big a splash they’ll make in the wake of Silksong. But the Metroidvania genre is just one that’s well-represented in the slate of upcoming indies, with action roguelikes, strategy games, and even survival horror getting some fresh experiences before the year comes to a close.

• Release Date — September 18, 2025
• Developer — Brownies Inc.
• Publisher — Bandai Namco
• Genre — Action Roguelike
• Platforms — PC

The “Hades-like” subgenre of action roguelikes is one that’s already well-populated, with games like Curse of the Dead Gods, Hell Clock, and more already vying for players’ attention. But Towa and the Guardians of the Sacred Tree is one of the few new attempts at the formula that seems to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with both of Supergiant’s Hades games, largely owing to its jaw-droppingly gorgeous visuals and its unique, mythology-inspired setting and story. Early previews for Towa all sang its praises pretty loudly, and we’ll be able to see for ourselves how it stacks up against Hades and Hades II next week.

• Release Date — September 22, 2025
• Developer — Blargis
• Publisher — Blargis
• Genre — First-person Hack and Slash, Dungeon Crawler
• Platforms — PC

The first-person dungeon-crawler has had a bit of a resurgence in recent years thanks to games like Lunacid and even roguelikes like Mortal Sin, but Bloodthief looks to be something different altogether. Rather than present players with a methodical, tense first-person dungeon crawling experience, Bloodthief emphasizes speed and parkour, blending RPG gameplay with the traversal and movement of a boomer shooter. There’s already a demo available on Steam, and if the full game can fully deliver on more of the taste that demo provides, Bloodthief will be a must-have for any fans of movement shooters like Sprawl or Ultrakill.

• Release Date — Q3 2025
• Developer — Sam C
• Publisher — Oro Interactive
• Genre — Cozy, Simulation
• Platforms — PC

Cozy games only continue to grow in popularity, and the genre is set to get one of its more unique entries at some point this year when Easy Delivery Co. arrives. Part physics-accurate driving simulator, part delivery simulator, and part low-fi cozy game, Easy Delivery Co. immediately feels like it could have been a hidden gem from the PS1 era, thanks to its original gameplay loop and era-appropriate low-poly visuals, and its demo from the most recent Steam Next Fest absolutely nailed the vibe that most cozy game fans are looking for. Expect this one to be one of 2025’s indie sleeper hits.

• Release Date — October 2, 2025
• Developer — Zenovia Interactive
• Publisher — Retroware
• Genre — Action, Shooter
• Platforms — PC

Anyone familiar with Zenovia Interactive’s last game, Steel Assault, should be very excited about the studio’s upcoming new game, Neon Inferno. Neon Inferno is yet another retro-style side-scrolling action platformer, but it places a greater emphasis on combat and shooting than the platforming-heavy Steel Assault. This is another one that already had an incredibly promising public demo, showcasing how strong the core gameplay loop and visuals are. If Neon Inferno can maintain that pace throughout the duration of the experience, it’ll end up being one of the better retro action platformers to release in 2025.

• Release Date — October 23, 2025
• Developer — Digital Sun
• Publisher — 11 bit studios
• Genre — Action Roguelike, Simulation
• Platforms — PC, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S

After what feels like an eternity, Moonlighter 2 is finally set to launch into Early Access on October 23, and it’s already shaping up to be one of the year’s biggest and best indie titles. The original Moonlighter was a major hit that successfully blended the top-down dungeon-crawling combat of a classic Legend of Zelda game with the shop management and simulation aspects of a cozy game, and Moonlighter 2 doubles down on both of those disparate gameplay halves in the best way possible. It says a lot about how excited fans should be about Moonlighter 2 that most players were only left wanting more after the brief Steam Next Fest demo.

• Release Date — October 31, 2025
• Developer — Yacht Club Games
• Publisher — Yacht Club Games
• Genre — Action-Adventure
• Platforms — PC, PS4, PS5, Nintendo Switch, Switch 2, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S

It’s hard to believe that we’ve had to wait a full decade for Yacht Club Games to deliver its first official follow-up to the incredible Shovel Knight, but that long wait finally comes to an end on October 31 when Mina the Hollower arrives. The demo for Mina the Hollower does a great job of illustrating that the game will likely be yet another incredible indie title from Yacht Club, trading Shovel Knight‘s Mega Man and DuckTales inspirations for something that blends The Legend of Zelda and Castlevania.

• Release Date — November 7, 2025
• Developer — Rock Square Thunder
• Publisher — Broken Mirror Games
• Genre — Survival Horror
• Platforms — PC

The survival horror genre seems to be receiving more new entries from indie developers than it has in the past, with a whole slew of exciting-looking games on the horizon. One of them is I Hate This Place, which happens to be one of the few survival horror games with an isometric perspective. The title touts itself as being inspired by 80s horror cinema and comic books, which certainly comes across in its visuals and setting, and there’s even a greater emphasis on the “survival” half of survival horror with a full-blown crafting system and the need to use stealth to avoid encounters.

• Release Date — November 12, 2025
• Developer — Moth Atlas
• Publisher — Midwest Games
• Genre — Action RPG, Soulslike, Metroidvania
• Platforms — PC

Billed as a Western Bloodborne, Tombwater is a title that’s been on a lot of players’ wishlists for quite some time now (thanks to an excellent demo that went live earlier in the year), and it’s finally set to launch in November. Tombwater blends elements of Metroidvanias and classic overhead 2D Zelda, along with the world-resetting checkpoints, corpse runs, and ultra-challenging boss encounters of a Soulslike, and it does so with some effective pixel art visuals. The slice of gameplay presented in the demo provided a glimpse of just a small portion of Tombwater‘s world, which promises to be fairly massive when stacked up against other Metroidvanias.

• Release Date — November 19, 2025
• Developer — Necrosoft Games
• Publisher — Ysbryd Games
• Genre — TRPG
• Platforms — PC, PS4, PS5, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S

After more than 2 years in development, Demonschool was set to launch on September 4, only to delay one more time into November to avoid getting swept up in the Hollow Knight: Silksong launch. It’s a good thing, too, because Demonschool continues to be one of the better-looking indie games set to arrive in 2025; an anime-inspired TRPG with social sim elements that packs in plenty of horror along with its fantastic turn-based tactical combat. Fans of Persona and Final Fantasy Tactics should definitely have this one on their radar.

• Release Date — November 24, 2025
• Developer — btf
• Publisher — btf, ByteRockers’ Games, Parco Games
• Genre — Metroidvania
• Platforms — PC

Just because we finally got Silksong this year doesn’t mean there’s no room for another hand-drawn Metroidvania, and Constance looks like it could end up being one that offers up something very different. While there is combat in Constance, there’s a greater emphasis on platforming and traversal, which fits nicely with the game’s similarities to Celeste in its themes and storytelling. The main weapon is a paintbrush, which seems to also have some interesting uses in terms of both combat and changing the world around you.

• Release Date — TBA 2025
• Developer — Replicant D6
• Publisher — Replicant D6
• Genre — FPS
• Platforms — PC

While there’s no official release date yet, the long-awaited Agent 64 is still targeting a 2025 release date according to its Steam Store page. This Perfect Dark and GoldenEye 007-inspired FPS has been in development for a few years now, and each time more of the game is shown off, it only continues to look like it’ll scratch the nostalgia itch for those classic Nintendo 64 shooters. The single-player mode contains missions with multiple objectives, similar to Rare’s classic FPSes, but the main draw for many is likely Agent 64‘s 4-player split-screen multiplayer mode, which looks like a modern take on an old favorite.

• Release Date — TBA 2025
• Developer — Programancer, Retroware
• Publisher — Retroware
• Genre — Action Platformer
• Platforms — PC

Programancer’s Prison City was one of the best retro action-platformers of the last few years, which made the studio one to watch when it came to any future projects. Its next game is the very Castlevania-coded The Transylvania Adventure of Simon Quest, which, tongue-in-cheek naming aside, looks about as close as we’ve gotten to a new 2D Castlevania game in quite some time. Based on how good Prison City was, Transylvania Adventure could very well outdo the similar Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon games when it comes to delivering some old-school, classic Castlevania gameplay.

• Release Date — TBA 2025
• Developer — Overhype Studios
• Publisher — Hooded Horse
• Genre — Strategy, Turn-Based Tactics
• Platforms — PC

The excellent Battle Brothers is one of the best turn-based roguelikes of the last few years, so of course Overhype Studios’ next game is bound to drum up plenty of excitement. Rather than take another crack at the roguelike genre, Overhype is shifting gears to deliver a more curated turn-based tactics and strategy experience with Menace, which blends elements of an RTS along with combat that would feel right at home in a Firaxis XCOM title. Given how great Battle Brothers‘ tactical combat was, Menace should be one that TRPG fans put on their Wishlist.

• Release Date — TBA 2025
• Developer — Douze Dixièmes
• Publisher — Focus Entertainment
• Genre — Metroidvania
• Platforms — PC, PS4, PS5, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S

One of the more exciting indie Metroidvanias set to arrive in 2025 is MIO: Memories in Orbit, which already has a fantastic public demo on Steam that does a great job of showcasing its core elements. For anyone who enjoys Metroidvanias that emphasize exploration, world-building, and platforming, MIO delivers all three in spades, and its art direction and visuals are second-to-none. Even in a post-Silksong world, there’s plenty of room for a game like MIO, which errs much closer to the excellent Ori titles than a more traditional genre entry.

• Release Date — TBA
• Developer — Voragine Game Studio
• Publisher — Voragine Game Studio
• Genre — Metroidvania
• Platforms — PC

Voragine Game Studio’s Eden’s Guardian is yet another indie Metroidvania that’s been high up on genre fans’ wishlists for quite some time, and its recent Steam Next Demo only served to stoke the flames of anticipation. The closest analogue for Eden’s Guardian is Blasphemous, but its movement and combat are much faster-paced despite maintaining a similar attention to detail in their animations. The Steam Store Page for Eden’s Guardian lists a vague “To Be Announced” under its release date, but the most recent communication from the developer still pointed to a 2025 launch. Whether that’s changed in the wake of Silksong‘s release remains to be seen.