While you could argue that 2021 was a lackluster year for big-budget triple-A games, it's hard to deny that it was a fine year for the independent gaming scene. There was a wide array of unique indie games that launched this year. Some of them featured amazing art styles, some had original gameplay mechanics, and some were just plain weird.
There were a lot of worthy contenders, but we've selected the best indie games that blew us away in 2021.
Updated September 19th, 2022 by Geoffrey Martin: Indie games continue to be a juggernaut in the gaming medium, with more and more releasing each and every month. There is an indie game experience to scratch almost every type of gaming itch. 2021 featured a slew of top-tier indie games, most of which cost a fraction of what buying a AAA game costs. From their creativity to their artistry, indie games can often provide unique experiences. While the likes of shovelware still runs rampant on many digital storefronts, there are just as many incredible games that deserve your time and attention. This list continues to be fleshed out with excellent indie titles from 2021.
13 The Big Con
Easily one of the most artistically pleasing indie games from 2021, The Big Con shines through with its 90s-era aesthetic and tones while providing a lighthearted yet poignant adventure game. Stepping into the shoes of a teenage con artist, you will guide our quirky protagonist across many American locations, making friends, and swindling others out of their cash.
While the premise might sound offputting, The Big Con manages to find the sweet spot between thoughtful and comical storytelling and engaging gameplay scenarios. Our protagonist simply wants to save her family's video store from going under. She will go to great lengths to find ways to make money, even if the costs are high. If you are looking for some good laughs and some adventure game sensibilities then look no further than The Big Con.
12 Garden Story
Have you ever wanted to play as a sentient grape in a world filled with fruit and frogs? If you strangely answered yes to that uber-specific question then Garden Story might just be a game to add to your indie game library. In Garden Story you take on the role of a lovable grape adventurer who must do everything in their power to put an end to the Rot that consumes the Grove and its surrounding regions.
Garden Story carefully blends action-adventure gameplay with light RPG elements to produce an experience that doesn't really play out like any other game. During your exploration through the Grove, you will befriend many inhabitants, solve their problems, and help rebuild the world around them that has been tainted by the Rot. The game's charming and lovingly created art style will draw you in, but its engaging story and diverse gameplay will keep you hooked for the long haul.
11 Sable
The long-delayed, cel-shaded adventure finally came out this year and it was certainly worth the wait. Sable's art style alone would make it worth playing as its cartoony aesthetic combined with its interesting character designs is a feast for the eyes.
But then it also has jetbikes, and any game with jetbikes is always going to be a good time. Add in its introspective narrative and a soothing soundtrack by dream-pop artist Japanese Breakfast, and you have a fantastic game for those who want a chill, relaxing adventure.
10 Exo One
It's kind of hard to describe the kind of game that Exo One is. You control a ball that is also a spaceship that travels to alien planets and glides, bounces, and races across their bizarre landscapes. On top of that is a mysterious story that slowly unravels over the course of your travels. While this concept sounds too simplistic to work, somehow it manages to be absolutely captivating.
The feeling of momentum and acceleration as you race towards the end of each planet is exhilarating. Yet, despite the ludicrous speeds that you'll reach, it winds up feeling like a calm, zen-like experience. It's tough to think of any other title that does what Exo One does, which is pretty amazing considering that it was mostly developed by a one-man studio.
9 Silicon Dreams
If you like Blade Runner or any game that makes you question your own existence — looking at you SOMA — then you have to check out Silicon Dreams. You play as an android that works for a massive android-producing mega-corporation as an interrogator who tries to figure out whether their fellow synthetic humanoids have become deviant (which means they've developed free will and are going against their programming.) You'll ask them deeply personal questions to see their emotional responses and determine if they're fit to continue operating. In some cases, you may even have to torture them to get the information you need.
It's sort of a detective game where you can choose to be a loyal robo-sleuth or try to take down your evil corporate masters. This is all bolstered by some great writing and dialogue that help make Silicon Dreams one of the best sci-fi games of 2021.
8 Kena: Bridge Of Spirits
From a glance, you'd think that Kena: Bridge Of Spirits was a project developed by a triple-A studio. The animations look like something out of a modern Disney or Dreamworks CGI film and its Zelda-esque gameplay reminds us a little of another well-animated Zelda-like from the past, Beyond Good & Evil.
Something that looks and plays this well would seem to have a huge budget behind it, yet Kena was created by Ember Lab, another small team led by two brothers. It's astounding that a game like this is an independent production
7 The Artful Escape
Full of fantastic music, trippy art, and a coming-of-age story about a young rock musician trying to stay true to who they are, The Artful Escape turned out to be one of 2021's most pleasant surprises.
This cosmic adventure spans across the whole galaxy, which is funny since the central conflict is about putting on a good show at a music festival in Colorado. This is one to check out if you're into 2D side-scrollers, wild colors, and guitar solos.
6 Chicory: A Colorful Tale
Speaking of wild colors, Chicory: A Colorful Tale more than lives up to its name. It's a game all about artistry and expression, which is seen through its gameplay that uses a magic paintbrush to fully color a black and white world. But while you can simply go around repainting the world, this mechanic is additionally used to solve puzzles, reach new areas in the world Metroidvania-style, and is even used in boss fights.
Chicory also features a narrative that touches on depression, creative burnout, and other mental health issues that many artists and creators can be afflicted by. It's a touching, beautiful title that truly deserves recognition.
5 Death's Door
Every year it seems like there's a phenomenally fun indie game that strongly invokes the spirit of The Legend Of Zelda or Dark Souls, and this year that game is Death's Door. You control a small crow who is also a grim reaper who takes the souls of giant bosses and brings them back to the reaping company that they work for.
In typical video game fashion, a job goes horribly wrong and you're forced to trek across some spooky levels to set things straight. It just recently launched on the Nintendo Switch, which is perfect if you've been searching for an action-packed isometric title with a gothic art style and a heaping helping of boss fights to play on the go.
4 Inscryption
If you're unfamiliar with the previous works of Daniel Mullins, then Inscryption is going to seem pretty damn weird. Heck, that'll probably be the case even if you are familiar with his games. Mullins tells stories that can only be done in the medium of video games.
They play with your expectations and break the fourth wall in truly bizarre ways. Inscryption is another mind-bending experience that appears to be just a spooky deck-builder, but takes many twists and turns that we won't spoil so you can see them yourself.
3 Little Nightmares 2
In terms of art design, few games released this year came close to being as hauntingly gorgeous as Little Nightmares 2. This sequel (or prequel?) to 2017's Little Nightmares shows off a world more disturbing than anything Tarsier Studios has done before.
You wouldn't think that a game that looks like a claymation movie about helping children cross a giant city would be one of the most terrifying things that came out in 2021, but trust us, that school level is bound to give you nightmares that are anything but little.
2 The Forgotten City
What started out as an ambitious Skyrim mod managed to become one of the most critically acclaimed games released this year. The Forgotten City is an outstanding narrative game that takes place in an ancient Roman city where if one citizen commits a single sin, then the rest of the population are turned into golden statues as punishment. As you've flung back here through a portal in time, you have to figure out exactly what's going on while also trying to get find a way back home. You do this by asking NPCs questions and then experimenting with the world until you accidentally destroy it leading to a time loop. Then you repeat this process until you solve the mystery.
What makes The Forgotten City truly shine is its hours upon hours of voice-acting combined with an extensive script featuring tons of dialogue. It's essentially a detective game and a playable choose your own adventure novel with multiple endings. Not bad for a mod.
1 Loop Hero
Many people go to the independent gaming scene to find titles that attempt things that triple-A studios are either afraid to try or could never think up. Loop Hero is one such title. It's such an original concept that trying to describe is an especially difficult task. It's a game that has you fight monsters in turn-based RPG combat while you walk along a single loop of land, which is all that's left after some sort of cataclysm that has destroyed the world. Oh, and you don't really walk along the loop yourself. Your character fights and moves independently while you equip better gear on them and place cards that reform the world around. You also gather resources to help build up a home base that you can upgrade as you go along, although if you die while out on the loop you lose everything. So it's kind of a mix between a rogue-like, an idle game, a strategy game, and a deck-builder with base-building, crafting, and RPG elements (we told you it was hard to describe.)
Seriously, we can't think of any other game to even compare Loop Hero to. Check it out so you can experience one of the most unique indie games we've ever played.