Another week means another influx of indie games to check out. Navigating the big releases is easy enough, we all have a good idea of what we do and don’t like after all. However, doing so with indie games is a little bit harder, mostly because you might not have heard of them in the first place.
This week features a nice mix of games ranging from a re-release of a two-decade old game, to a long-awaited sequel, and even a brand-new survival game set across multiple mysterious islands. There are plenty of other indie games out there, of course, but these three all stand out as being well-worth paying attention to.
Moon
Moon is technically a re-release, but it’s also the first time the game is available in the West, given that the original came out in 1997 exclusively in Japan on the PlayStation. The premise of the game is simple: you play a boy who gets transported into the world of an RPG that he’s playing.
It’s not your standard RPG. though. Rather than playing the protagonist, you wander around after the real hero, helping to calm the souls of defeated enemies. The thing that really makes Moon stand out is that it’s an RPG that is something of a parody of RPGs.
Despite having some of the same absurdity you’d expect from an older RPG, the whole thing is twisted slightly to give it a truly unique feel. It’s still got dragons and princesses, but in this world, the dragon swallowed the moonlight instead of just breathing fire, and the NPCs have a far more fleshed-out existence.
Given that it came out in the same year as Final Fantasy VII, you can understand just how relevant the play on a traditional formula was. If that hasn’t sold you on the idea, then maybe you’d like to know that Toby Fox, the creator of Undertale, has said that Moon was one of the inspirations for his game.
Moon arrives August 27 on the Nintendo Switch.
Wasteland 3
While Wasteland 2 launched to a somewhat mixed reception, the general excitement around Wasteland 3 is much higher. That could just be due to rose-tinted glasses worn by fans of the series, but it does look as though the latest Wasteland instalment could be something quite special.
You take control of a squad of Desert Rangers within a world that was once ravaged by nuclear weapons. Needless to say, things aren’t exactly great, and you’re going to have to fight pretty hard just to stay alive. You then get approached by someone who may or may not be incredibly dodgy, and your real quest begins from then on.
Wasteland 3 is absolutely massive, with several dozen hours worth of gameplay within it. Not only that, but you can actually play through the story in co-op too. You and one other player get to control your own squad, and it allows you to make separate decisions and potentially even get each other killed off. It’s a little chaotic, but sometimes that’s a lot of fun.
Wasteland 3 launches August 28 for PC, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One.
Windbound
Finally, we have Windbound, a survival game set in a beautiful and mysterious archipelago. You take control of a woman called Kara, who has been separated from the rest of her tribe during a sea-crossing. Armed with only your wits and a strange necklace, you have to try and not only make your way back to the rest of your people but also survive everything this world has to throw at you.
At first glance, you’d be forgiven for thinking that Windbound is related to The Legend Of Zelda: Breath Of The Wild. It’s a stunning game, one that even manages to harness some of the lazy wandering that made Breath Of The Wild so appealing. It’s a strange game, one that is relaxing just as often as it’s terrifying, but it’s a lot of fun.
You get to craft new items as you go, and even create and upgrade a boat as well. On top of that, the story has you not only trying to get home but also discovering the long lost history of your own ancestors. It’s an excellent little game and one that may well be just what you’re looking for if you want to escape to the outside world.
Windbound arrives August 28 for PC (on both Steam and Epic Games Store), PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch and Xbox One.