Tag: Indie
News Bonfire Peaks Has A New Demo And A Release Date
Yeaaaah, this box is on fire
Good news for fans of fiendish puzzlers: Bonfire Peaks, made by Corey Martin and Alan Hazelden's boutique company, Draknek & Friends, is almost here! With a brand-new release date of the 30th of September, you'll be able to play this box-burning brain-twister before the leaves start to turn. Which is perfect,...
News Step Aside, Nintendogs: It's Time To Punch Cats In Fisti-Fluffs
Everybody was kitten fightiiing
"Fast-paced physics-based cat tussling fun" — is that the pitch for upcoming game Fisti-Fluffs, or is that what happens when we try to give our darling Mittens a bath? The answer is both, but this article is about the former. Fisti-Fluffs is, as you can hopefully tell by the title, a multiplayer competitive...
News Kokopa's Atlas Is About Gardening And Exploring With A Tiny Bird Friend
Tweet about it
Tiny birds are having a moment, aren't they? There's the Spiritfarer tiny owl update, and Haven Park's tiny bird, Flint, and last year's A Short Hike... and now, Kokopa's Atlas, a game about exploring, farming, and building a life as Kokopa, a cat-person-astronaut-expl
News Stealthy Escape Game 'Sir, You Are Being Hunted' Stalks Onto Switch Next Year
Sir, You Are Being Ported
Kickstarter-funded procedural open-world survival-horror stealth video game Sir, You Are Being Hunted is bringing its ten thousand genre prefixes to the Nintendo Switch. But wait — Sir, You Are Being Improved, too, with a restored multiplayer, a new patch, and a full remaster, known as "Sir, You Are Being Hunted:...
Round Up All The Switch News From The Indie Houses Direct
New DLC, new games, and more!
The Indie Houses Direct just finished airing, bringing together seven different indie publishers (Akupara Games, Fellow Traveller, Neon Doctrine, Raw Fury, Those Awesome Guys, Toge Productions, and Whitethorn Games) to share their bounty of game news over the course of an hour. "When indie games succeed, video games...
News Spiritfarer Collector's Edition And Vinyl Soundtrack Up For Pre-Orders, Coming 2022
Oooh, pretty box
Following on from the news that Spiritfarer is getting a colossal new update, Thunder Lotus has also announced that their colossal Collector's Edition and regular-sized vinyl soundtrack are available to pre-order from iam8bit. The Collector's Edition includes: Digital download card for the Spiritfarer soundtrack by composer Max...
TINY OWL
Spiritfarer came out a year ago, which means that hopefully everyone who's played it has stocked up on tears again after sobbing them all out over Alice the Hedgehog's story. Get ready to cry again, though, as the second of ThunderLotus' character updates is here, and this one is a teeny tiny owl are you kidding me Ahem. The Spiritfarer...
News Massive Garden Story Patch Comes To Switch, Plus A New Home Screen Icon
Oh, that's so much better
People have very, very strong feelings about the icons that appear on the Nintendo Switch dashboard. Most icons are surprisingly busy, with titles displayed prominently, and it turns out that's exactly what people want — and yet, every now and again, a game will release with the kind of icon you'd expect for a phone game:...
News Steampunk City Builder 'Airborne Kingdom' Is Swooping Onto Switch This November
Like clockwork
We love it when someone innovates on a well-trodden trend with new and exciting ideas. Airborne Kingdom, you see, is not just your average city builder. It's not even just your average steampunk city builder. Airborne Kingdom — as you can, er, probably guess from the name — is a city builder in the sky. Your city will be a...
News Metal-Detecting Adventure 'The Magnificent Trufflepigs' Snuffles Onto Switch Next Week
Can you dig it?
Back when it was announced, we described The Magnificent Trufflepigs as "Firewatch, but it's set in the English countryside, and instead of being about fires and watching, it's about metals and detecting." We stand by that — it's a first-person narrative adventure that's partly about romance, partly about discovering secrets...
Soapbox Life Is Strange On Nintendo Switch Signals Better LGBTQ+ Rep To Come
Visual novels and narrative adventures are leading the way
Note. Spoiler warning! Plot details from Life is Strange and its prequel, Before the Storm, are discussed in this article. There's a lot to be disappointed about in the way the games industry has historically handled LGBTQ+ representation, and believe me, I'm dismayed by it, too. It was...
News Alveole Is A Minimalist Puzzle Game About Running, Coming This September
Born to run
Alveole, a short, experimental puzzler coming to Switch on September 1st, has only one mechanic: running. As the faceless outline of a person, you'll be locked in an "imaginary cage", according to the developers, and you must "understand how to use this opportunity when the whole world around consists of hints." The game was originally...
News Garden Story Gets 1.0.4 Patch, Coming To Switch Soon
Garden patch
Garden Story, an adorable RPG with a protagonist who is a grape, was surprise-released during the Nintendo Indie World showcase last week, and has since been winning over the hearts of everyone (including us, though we're still working on the review!). It does have a few minor issues that players have been experiencing, but the patches...
News Grow Yourself A Cute Garden In 'The Garden Path', A Wholesome Game Coming To Switch
Inspired by Moomins!
Solo UK-based developer (and illustrator!) Louis Durrant, AKA carrotcake, launched the Kickstarter for The Garden Path on July 21st, and hit their 100% goal earlier this week. Now, with less than two days left on the campaign, it's all about hitting those stretch goals — and the first one was achieved today. After meeting the...
News 'Not Tonight 2' Sets Its Post-Brexit Satirical Sights On The US
"Our most political game yet"
Back in 2020, a game called Not Tonight: Take Back Control Edition launched on the Nintendo Switch — on the exact date that the UK left the European Union, in fact. ("Brexit", as it's more commonly known). The game was a satirical take on British politics set in a post-Brexit alternate universe; you play a bouncer...
Round Up All The Games From Nintendo's Indie World Showcase - August 2021
Every single game from the show!
It's a great time to be a lover of indie games, as Nintendo's latest Indie World showcase was packed with absolute bangers. 19 games in total were shown off in the latest presentation, and the general consensus is pretty good; overall, a fantastic showing for Nintendo. But if you missed it, or you can't remember...
News Floppy Punch-'Em-Up 'Gang Beasts' Goes Gangbusters On Switch This Winter
Jelly melee
Everyone loves a goofy party game. Everyone loves janky physics. Finally, the two have been combined in Gang Beasts — although "finally" is a bit dramatic, since the game's been out since 2014. Gang Beasts is a beat 'em up, in which you're trying to throw your friends into lava, meat grinders, and various other deadly obstacles; or...
News Make Your Own Wine The Proper Way In 'Hundred Days', Coming This Winter
Do it for the vine
If you're tired of having to choose between boring supermarket wine and your home-brewed prison toilet wine, then perhaps it's time to take a vineleaf out of Hundred Days' book and buy your own dang vineyard. In this winemaking simulation game, you'll have to learn the intricate ins and outricate outs of running your very own...
News You Are A Bear And A Lumberjack In LumbearJack, Out Next Year
Bears are wholesome, right?
Sometimes we wonder if people make cute games by rolling two dice: the first is which animal you play as, and the second is your job. A kiwi postman. A bird skateboarder. A cat farmer. A frog tax collector. Okay, that last one i
News Slime Rancher: Plortable Edition Brings Goopy Good Times To Switch, And It's Out Now
Time to slime
There are some games that are just weirdly natural fits for the Nintendo Switch, and Slime Rancher has always been one of them. Except, until today, it wasn't even on there! Crazy. Luckily, developers Monomi Park have finally righted this wrong with the launch of Slime Rancher: Plortable Edition on Switch. And no, we didn't misspell...
News FAR: Changing Tides Now Sails Onto Switch Early Next Year
Good things come to those who wait
FAR: Changing Tides, the sequel to the rather lovely FAR: Lone Sails, was first unveiled and shown off during E3 week earlier this summer (with the footage above). It was featured again in today's Nintendo Indie World broadcast, with an updated release window of early 2022. A little wait should be worth it though...
News Space Base-Building Astroneer Is Finally Coming To Switch
Astroneerer than ever
Astroneer is a lot like that Matt Damon movie, The Martian, except instead of Matt Damon, it's you, and instead of potatoes, it's... building a base, exploring the alien wilds, and uncovering long-lost extraterrestrial secrets. It's not really a lot like The Martian, then. Except for being set in space. You'll play as a tiny,...
News Loop Hero Is A Timeloop Game, Looping Its Way To Switch Later This Year
Loop de loop
Pixel art, timeloops, and the ability to make the screen look like a CRT monitor: these are all excellent reasons to enjoy things, and Loop Hero has all three. Set in a world where everything has been forgotten, and almost all is lost, players will be cursed to walk around a procedurally-generated loop, which fills with monsters as the...
News Necrobarista: Final Pour, A "Story About Coffee And Death", Launches On Switch Today
An anime-style visual novel
One of the many delightful indie games to be featured in today's Nintendo Indie World Showcase was Necrobarista - Final Pour -, an anime-style visual novel from Route 59 and Coconut Island Games. Described as "a story about coffee and death," this one has players following a group of characters as they navigate a fantasy...
News Wholesome Farm 'N' Fight Game 'Garden Story' Was Just Surprise-Launched On Switch
Grape expectations
We've been keeping one eye peeled for Garden Story for quite some time now, and suddenly, just like that, our wait is finally over. The adorable fruit-themed RPG just got a surprise drop on the Switch eShop, where it will be a timed console exclusive. As the newly-appointed Guardian of the Grove, tiny grape hero Concord is tasked...
News Eastward Arrives Soon As A Timed Console Exclusive For Switch
Travel across a 'wonderfully weird world'
Nintendo brought us a rather brilliant Indie World today, and reserved its 'one more thing' moment for Eastward, which is developed by Pixpil and published by Chucklefish. We wrote about this one quite recently, and it turns out we don't have long to wait for the game's release - it lands on Switch as a...
News Bomb Rush Cyberfunk Is Bringing Its Jet Set Radio Vibes To Switch In 2022
Cyberfunky
Previously revealed to be coming to "all relevant" platforms, Team Reptile's Bomb Rush Cyberfunk has now been confirmed for a Nintendo Switch release and it's lined up for sometime in 2022 as a 'timed console exclusive'. With the release window announced as part of
News Dating Sim 'Boyfriend Dungeon' Gets Down And Dirty On Switch Later Today
"Careful, don't tickle my hilt"
During today’s Nintendo Indie World Showcase, Kitfox Games announced that its dungeon-dating hybrid Boyfriend Dungeon will be launching on Nintendo Switch today. The game arrives on the eShop for the price $19.99 USD, letting you fend off dangerous monsters and take your weapons on romantic dates. Yes, you read...
News Metal Slug Tactics Is Blasting Onto Switch Next Year
Controlled carnage
Metal Slug Tactics was unveiled during the E3 festivities this year, but the latest Indie World from Nintendo confirmed the news many of us - well, this writer in any case - was waiting to hear. It's coming to Nintendo Switch next year. In case you missed it, this is a Dotemu-published new take on the iconic IP (developed by...
News Tetris Effect: Connected Is Dropping Onto Nintendo Switch Soon
The real deal
The history of Tetris will forever be entwined with Nintendo history, with the IP reaching stunning heights of popularity alongside the Game Boy, in particular. While we've had the exclusive Tetris 99 on Nintendo Switch, however, until now we've missed out on the most memorable evolution of the series in recent years. That was...
News Shovel Knight: Pocket Dungeon Update Reveals New Winter Release Window
And a new trailer!
As part of today's Nintendo Indie World Showcase, we were treated to a welcome new look at Shovel Knight: Pocket Dungeon. A falling block-style puzzler with a dungeon-crawling twist, Pocket Dungeon was first announced for Switch back in February 2020. At the time, it was expected to launch last autumn, but now – after
News TOEM Brings Charming Hand-Drawn Photo Adventure To Switch This Fall
Wholesome
Fans of cosy exploration and Pokémon Snap-style photography, rejoice! TOEM, from Something We Made, is coming to Nintendo Switch later this year. Complete with cute, charming, hand-drawn visuals and a laid back feel that'll give our list of best wholesome games on Switch a run for their money, TOEM has you solving puzzles and helping...
News Axiom Verge 2 Launches On Nintendo Switch Today
On the Verge
Originally scheduled for release back in the the spring, today's Nintendo Indie World Showcase announced that Axiom Verge 2 will be shadow-dropping on Switch eShop today. Surprise! Yes, Thomas Happ's sequel to one of the premier indie Metroidvanias of the last decade is available today on Switch eShop for $19.99 / €1
News Play A Witch In The Woods In Wytchwood, A Crafting Adventure Game Coming This Autumn
How much wood would a Wytchwood witch
Fairytales, witches, crafting and potions — we were on board with Wytchwood from the get-go, and if you're a fan of all things cottagecore and cosy, you'll be spellbound too. The game begins when a witch with a cauldron on her head finds out that she made a pact with a suspicious goat, and somehow can't...
News Creepy-Cute Japanese Horror Adventure 'Last Light' Coming To Switch
Set in an abandoned hospital
Last Light is certainly an intriguing horror game, but it's a little hard to decipher. With just a 30-second trailer and a Steam page that's largely been translated from the Japanese website, we know that the game is set in an abandoned hospital, and the main character — Lumi — will have to avoid the darkness in...
News Indie Publishers Team Up To Run Their Own Direct Showcase
Everyone gets a Direct!
Nintendo really hit on something big with its Directs, a showcase intended to bypass the usual way of announcing games at big conferences like E3, and now everyone wants a slice of that pie. Following in Nintendo's successful footsteps, we've seen multiple studios and groups do it themselves, from the Wholesome Direct and the...
News Spiritfarer Physical Edition Is Out Today
A cosy management game about death and boats
Spiritfarer is one of those games that you can't help but call "wholesome". It's all about ferrying the dead to their final resting place, but only after completing various tasks and fetch quests that help them fulfil their last requests. Sometimes, it's something as simple as tasting a particular food...
Does not include water or wine
Where The Water Tastes Like Wine is a narrative adventure that's partly about trekking across America, partly about the rich tradition of oral storytelling, and partly about what it means to live in a place that calls itself a melting pot in an era where many people aren't even invited to get in the pot. Developer...
News COVID Delays Doki Doki Literature Club Physical Release
"Unforeseen delays with manufacturing and shipping"
Although Doki Doki Literature Club Plus! has been out digitally on Switch since the end of June, people who are waiting on the physical edition to play the game are going to have to wait just a little longer to woo the ladies of the literature club. Publisher Serenity Forge posted a statement...
News Charming Farming Sim Littlewood Gets Physical Version Next Week
Hoe's about that
If you've ever wondered what life is like after the evil villain has been vanquished, Littlewood has the answers: a lot of farming, town building, and romancing the dark lord who has lost all his memories and is very sorry about all the evil stuff he did. It's Stardew Valley with more responsibility; Harvest Moon for people who are...
News Check Out This New Gameplay From Eastward, A Post-Apocalyptic Pixel Art Zelda-Like
Hit a big moth with a frying pan
IGN just published a juicy half-hour long video of gameplay for Eastward, the post-apocalyptic pixel art action-adventure RPG. It's giving us a little bit retro Zelda, a smidgen of Secret of Mana, and a dash of The Last of Us; it also has cooking minigames, environmental puzzles, and frying pan combat. But most of...
News Unbound: Worlds Apart Is Out Now, Bringing Hand-Drawn Puzzle-Platforming To A Switch Near You
Freed from its chains
After five years of work, the gloriously colourful metroidvania Unbound: Worlds Apart is finally finished, and on the Nintendo Switch. You'll play as Soli (the little red mage) who teleports into a strange and savage new place, with the power to open portals which change the very nature of the world by altering gravity, time,...
News Cosmic Express Is A Constellation Of Train Puzzles Rocketing To Switch
Far out
DO NOT BE FOOLED BY THE CUTENESS OF COSMIC EXPRESS. This space-themed-train-themed puzzle game about transporting aliens is HARD. Much like being on a real train, you will probably get very stressed and cry. Or is that just us? Cosmic Express — previously known as 'Train Braining' — was conceptualised and prototyped on an actual...
News A Good Snowman Is Hard To Build, But You Can Try Anyway Later This Year
Do you want to build a snowmaaaaaan
Yes, yes, we know. The title is incredibly confusing. We can't help it! The name of this wonderful little puzzle game — "A Good Snowman Is Hard To Build" — is really hard to fit in a news headline. But it is indeed coming to Switch later this year, and here's why you should be terribly excited. A Good...
News Ghibli-esque RPG Baldo: The Guardian Owls Finally Gets Launch Release Date
It'll be a hoot
What do you get when you mix Zelda, Studio Ghibli, and Ni No Kuni? You get the best summer holiday of your life, of course, but you also get Baldo: The Guardian Owls, which we've been patiently waiting for since 2019. Now we have just a month to wait, as the developers have announced a release date of August 27th, complete with a...
News Sokobond Dev Set To Publish Voxel Puzzle Game 'Bonfire Peaks' On Switch
We didn't start the fire (but we did contribute to it)
Voxels! It's what's good for ya. They're basically 3D pixels, sort of; big chunky blocks like what Minecraft is made of, as well as Bonfire Peaks, a game about setting fire to your belongings. Wait, setting fire to your belongings? Yuuup. In Bonfire Peaks, you're climbing a mysterious island...
News Devilishly Tricky Puzzle Game 'Sokobond' Is Sliding Onto Switch This Autumn
Chemistrial and error
A long time ago, in 1982, a game called Sokoban was released for the NEC PC-8801. It was a simple puzzle game about pushing boxes in a warehouse in order to get them into certain locations; it ended up gripping the imagination of so many puzzle designers that it became its own genre of puzzles. 30 years later in 2012, two game...
News Cutie Puzzle Game 'A Monster's Expedition' Is Coming To Switch With New DLC
Log jam
Everyone loves puzzles, especially when they're globally renowned, prize-winning puzzles — which is exactly what A Monster's Expedition is. Developed by puzzle wizards Draknek & Friends (Cosmic Express, A Good Snowman Is Hard To Build, Sokobond) and including music from Eli Rainsberry (Wilmot's Warehouse) and writing from Pip Wa
News Button City Brings 'Hope-Punk' And Friendship To Switch This Summer
Harmony and melodies
Button City has anthropomorphic foxes, pandas, rabbits, raccoons and cats living in harmony in a peaceful little community, and if that has your interest piqued, then you'll be excited to hear that you don't have long to wait to play it on the Nintendo Switch. Here's some more potentially exciting words to do with the game:...
News Oh, Bird: Check Out Crowsworn, A Bloodborne-y Metroidvania That's A Hit On Kickstarter
Caw
Enough games have taken their cues from From Software's Dark Souls and Bloodborne games that "Souls-like" is beginning to become its own genre, but we can't say that we mind — especially when the games look this good. Crowsworn is unabashedly Bloodborne-y in its presentation, with cathedrals and Victorian lampposts up the wazoo, plus the main...
