Indie games are more common now than ever before. Some would even argue that they dominated E3 2021 where many big publishers failed to wow fans aside from a few cases. There might have been too many indie games to keep track of which is both a good thing and a bad one. Focusing on indie games of the past, which are the pillars of the industry? Which games truly are indie in that they were made by one person primarily?
Were these dreams of theirs successful or did they end in failure? Setting forth on a venture such as game creation can be time consuming and nerve racking but for these ten developers, it would seem like the dream became a reality for the better. It should be noted that some of these developers did receive help with music, as one example, and with publishing but for all intents and purposes most of these games were helmed by one mind.
10 Axiom Verge
Axiom Verge was developed by Thomas Happ. This is one of the games that helped define the Metroidvania renaissance that the indie crowd is currently in. It looked good, played good, and even had an interesting story.
After many long years of ports since Axiom Verge's 2015 launch, Happ is finally putting out another game and it’s a sequel: Axiom Verge 2.
9 Braid
Braid was developed by Jonathan Blow. At first this seemed like a simple puzzle platformer that allowed players to rewind time. It wasn’t the first of its kind but it was still a unique concept.
Once players got to the end there was a big revelation that helped elevate its status. Right now Blow is helping with a remastered version of Braid but prior to that project he also put out another critically acclaimed game, The Witness.
8 Cave Story
Cave Story was developed by Daisuke Amaya. This was the game that pretty much kicked off the indie scene. It was one that proved how good a game could be from a developer who genuinely loved video games.
This was all the way back in 2004, before digital platforms for consoles existed. Since then Amaya has put out a plethora of titles, like Kero Blaster, that haven’t quite reached the heights of Cave Story but are still good.
7 Dust: An Elysian Tale
Dust: An Elysian Tale was developed by Dean Dodrill. This game is an action heavy Metroidvania with sick combos and beautiful hand drawn art.
Despite the cute aesthetics and inviting animal characters, the story gets pretty dark. It’s been ported a few times and since then Dodrill helped out out the parody stealth game, Never Stop Sneakin'.
6 Iconoclasts
Iconoclasts was developed by Joakim Sandberg. Unlike other entries, this game is actually the latest release from Sandberg. He developed other games prior to this including a fan demo for a very familiar looking Nintendo franchise called Legend of Princess.
Iconoclasts always seemed like his dream project though as it went through many revisions over years and years of development. Thankfully that hard work paid off into a well received action platformer.
5 Minecraft
Minecraft was originally developed by Markus Persson. What is there to say about Minecraft? It is absolutely huge and has taken over the world for over a decade now. It’s often referred to as the new equivalent to LEGO which is funny considering Minecraft has LEGO kits now.
Will Microsoft ever make a sequel, or spinoff for the series? Who knows, but Persson, or Notch as he likes to be called, is no longer involved and Minecraft has long since been a collaborative project, despite it's one man developer roots.
4 Retro City Rampage
Retro City Rampage was developed by Brian Provinciano. This project started all the way back in 2002 when he was tinkering with NES emulation. Eventually this retro parody of a familiar looking open-world sandbox game blossomed into a bigger project.
Since Retro City Rampage was released Provinciano also put out a spiritual successor called Shakedown Hawaii which was more like a 16-Bit game.
3 Stardew Valley
Stardew Valley was developed by Eric Barone. Minecraft could be thanked for helping push this game along as both are similar. This is more like a 2D version of the simulator experience but one that has grown exponentially over time.
It has more of a purpose than sandbox titles like Minecraft with more combat and thankfully more weapons to use in turn. That’s just one example. Barone and the team that he has been able to build since launch, thanks to the game's success, has helped make Stardew Valley bigger and bigger with each new update.
2 Tetris
Tetris was developed by Alexey Pajitnov. It’s hard to believe but this giant puzzle franchise that has at least a dozen titles under its belt was started by one guy in Russia.
Pajitnov made Tetris in 1984 as a computer program which was big hit but it didn’t really blow up until it got to Nintendo’s systems. Even though he hasn’t worked on Tetris entry in the series since then, Pajitnov continued to make games with Marbly on iOS in 2013 being the latest.
1 Undertale
Undertale was developed by Toby Fox. RPGs are a dime a dozen and yet Fox managed to create an experience like no other. Sure, he borrowed from a lot of classic RPGs from the 16-bit era, but he still made Undertale its own thing which sparked a phenomenon in fan support. Right now Fox is working on what seems like a spiritual successor, if not an actual sequel for the series, called Deltarune.