PAX West is nearly upon us, and that means there will be a new gang of indie titles gracing the PAX Indie Megabooth!  Since I love all things indie, I wanted to commemorate this exciting time of the year with a post gushing about the games that I am most eagerly anticipating.  Originally, I thought about just listing off every single game coming to the Megabooth, but this post would be longer than the collective works of J.K Rowling, so I’m going to narrow it down to a list of fifteen ranked by personal interest.

One note before starting is that there’s both an Indie Megabooth and Minibooth at PAX, and this list includes just titles from the Megabooth.  I will be doing a separate list for the PAX Indie Minibooth, so look for that soon.  Without any further ado, here are my most anticipated indie games making an appearance at the PAX Indie Megabooth this year!

 

15.  Risk of Rain 2

I’m putting this game first because we know almost nothing about it at this point.  Risk of Rain 2 comes from Hopoo Games, the creators of the original Risk of Rain, a roguelike 2D platformer.  I haven’t played a ton of the original Risk of Rain, but I did really like what I’ve done so far.  The jump to 3D should be interesting, though it remains to be seen if the same addictive feeling can be brought to the 3D plane.  Overall, I’ll be keeping an eye on this game for when it releases, though no official window is announced yet.

 

14.  Sinner:  Sacrifice for Redemption

This intensely ambitious-looking title is Sinner:  Sacrifice for Redemption and comes from DARK STAR and Another Indie.  The game is drawing comparisons to Dark Souls, and I would normally pass on a game with those connections because I am a baby that can’t handle the difficulty, but I find the central gameplay mechanic to be interesting.  This game is a series of boss battles, and every time players face a new boss, they must choose a stat to level down, making the fights harder as the character gets weaker.  I’m definitely ready to give this game a try when it comes out, though it appears a new release window has not yet been announced.

 

13.  Bloodroots

Blood Roots comes from Paper Cult, and is a fast-paced action brawler that reminds me of Hotline Miami.  The game is western-themed and looks gorgeous, even as blood splatters everywhere while people are murdered left and right.  The aspect that I find most intriguing about this game is the variety of weapons used.  In the trailer, the protagonist is rolling barrels onto enemies and hitting them with wagon wheels, and every action in this game is done in a very smooth manner.  When this game launches in 2019, it will be on my radar.

 

12.  Get in the Car, Loser!

Get in the Car, Loser! comes from Love Conquers All Games, who has previously worked on visual novel titles such as Ladykiller in a Bind.  I’m particularly interested in this game because the developers behind it are known to offer up as much diversity as possible in the characters represented on screen, and this game is no exception.  While this will be my first game by this studio, this RPG and visual novel hybrid looks way too entertaining to pass up.  This game is set to come out later this year, and I’m more than ready to go on a road trip to save the world.

 

11.  WHAT THE GOLF?

I don’t normally do sports games, but WHAT THE GOLF? from Triband seems to be doing a golf game for those who don’t actually want to play a golf game.  The world is colorful, and the actual gameplay looks to be the wackiest game I’ve seen since Katamari.  There’s some levels available to give a try on their website, so I can have some quality time with this game ahead of its release, which is still unknown.

10.  Stone Story RPG

The reason that Stone Story RPG from Martian Rex and standardcombo won me over is that it has a fantastic song in the trailer.  It’s really catchy, and if the whole game sounds like that, then I am on board for the music alone.  Apart from that, however, the game has a neat ASCII art style and looks like it will be a fun RPG adventure when it releases in early 2019.

 

9.  Element:  Space

I love tactical RPGs, and Element:  Space from Sixth Vowel and Inca Games looks to be bringing a lot of what I love.  The game has a turn-based battle system that appears to be similar to the Shadowrun or X-Com games, and it also promises to be a narrative-focused game with multiple endings.  It’s been a while since I’ve experienced a really strong narrative in a game, so hopefully this game fill that gap that when it launches at the end of this year.

 

8.  Astrologaster

Astrologaster is from Nyamyam and is set in Shakespearean London.  There’s not a lot known about this game yet, and it doesn’t even have a trailer at the moment, but it appears to have visual novel elements and is focused in around a small group of characters that are patients of Doctor Simon Forman.  Simon is a person who actually existed at this time, and the game claims to be based on a true story.  As someone who studied literature from this time period extensively in college, I am very excited to hear more about this game ahead of its release in early 2019.

 

7.  Industries of Titan

I, admittedly, have trouble getting into city-building games.  The learning curves are always so high that I get lost.  That said, Industries of Titan by Brace Yourself Games, the creators of Crypt of the Necrodancer, looks like a city-builder that I would be willing to brave the extensive tutorials for.  I’m fascinated by the mix of city-building with real-time combat and how that will play out when the game launches in 2019.

 

6.  Disco Elysium

I am a complete sucker for lengthy RPGs that have a heavy emphasis on story, so Disco Elysium from ZA/UM and Humble Bundle sounds fantastic.  This game mixes together the typical crime-solving of mystery titles (such as interrogations) with the customization from old-school isometric RPG titles.  It looks utterly unique, and while there’s no official release window yet, I hope it comes out soon.

 

5.  Boyfriend Dungeon

Boyfriend Dungeon comes from Kitfox Games and is a cross between a dungeon-delver and dating simulator where the potential romance options are the personified versions of the weapons used while traversing dungeons.  I have my eye on this game because I’m tracking some Kickstarter projects to release, so I was excited to see that it is getting some attention at PAX.  The art style is really eye-catching, and the character designs are varied and interesting enough that I’m certain I can find someone I want to woo.  When it releases in 2019, I will be picking this up on day one.

 

4.  Fugl

Sometimes, all I want to do when I play video games is relax.  Games like Fugl from Team Fugl and Kotori studios are exactly what I reach for after a stressful day.  The game’s premise is to fly around a beautiful world as a bird, and the almost meditative relaxation that this game is going for is reminiscent of games like Abzu or Journey.  This game is currently out on early access from Steam, and I’ll be picking it up soon.

 

3.  PHOGS!

Does anyone remember the game Noby Noby Boy, where the character was effectively a ball of silly putty that had to be stretched out as far as possible?  That’s what PHOGS! from Coatsink reminds me of, except with a two headed dog.  Apparently, each half of the dog controls with a different analog stick, which is a fun control scheme that I would love to see more games adapt.  It’s coming in 2019 and certain to bring a smile to my face when I start playing in its colorful world.

 

2.  The Gardens Between

I mentioned The Gardens Between from The Voxel Agents in my list of Nintendo Switch indies coming out soon, and I am still completely psyched for this game.  The time manipulation puzzle mechanics look like they will be fun, and it appears that the story of two friends going on a journey together will likely make me cry, and I’m okay with this.  This game is launching on September 20, so I don’t have to wait long at all for my next puzzle fix.

 

1.  The World Next Door

I also covered The World Next Door from Rose City Games and VIZ Media in my Nintendo Switch Indies preview, and I’m still really excited for this mix of Persona-style dialogue and puzzle battles.  The gameplay looks addicting, the character designs are really intriguing, and I really want to know more about the story.  All of the elements are there to make a stellar game, and that’s why this game has skyrocketed to become one of my most anticipated games for 2019.

 

With that, this list is complete.  I will not be at PAX West, unfortunately, so I won’t be able to try these games out for myself.  Still, I’ll be following the news from the event for any cool new gameplay features revealed.  Let me know if you have a chance to play any of these games or have any you’re excited for in the comments below!

Note:  This post is imported from a prior blog, HannieBee Games.