Each year Nintendo highlights the best selling indie games on the Nintendo Switch. Here’s a peek at this year’s hottest games from indie developers.
It feels as though 2021 has gone by like a flash in the pan, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t plenty of great games to celebrate. In case you got all caught up in the hype of Pokemon Diamond and Pearl or some of the other big releases, check out these indie games. Nintendo says they were the best selling indie games on the platform in 2021 – and each is definitely worth checking out.
15. Cyber Shadow
The world has been taken over by the evil Dr. Progen and his merciless synthetic army. A desperate plea for help sets Shadow, the sole survivor of his clan, on one last mission to uncover what started the path to perpetual ruin. Your robotic companion, L-Gion, is your only guide through the ruins of Mekacity.
How far will Shadow go to protect his clan and the one he loves? Is there more to their bond than meets the eye? Only you can unlock the secrets to your clan’s ancient powers. Hurry before you run out of time! The road to redemption awaits in Cyber Shadow, the quintessential Ninja Action game.
14. Unpacking
Unpacking is a zen game about the familiar experience of pulling possessions out of boxes and fitting them into a new home. Part block-fitting puzzle, part home decoration, you are invited to create a satisfying living space while learning clues about the life you’re unpacking. Over the course of eight house moves, you are given a chance to experience a sense of intimacy with a character you never see and a story you’re never told.
13. Tetris Effect: Connected
Music, backgrounds, sounds, special effects—everything, down to the Tetris pieces themselves, pulse, dance, shimmer, and explode in perfect sync with how you’re playing, making any of the game’s 30+ stages and 10+ modes something you’ll want to experience over and over again.
12. Stick Fight the Game
Stick Fight the Game is a physics-based couch co-op fighter for two to four people. It’s very reminiscent of those old stick fight flash memes that existed in the early 2000s. There are over 100 levels to master and hundreds of weapons to collect, so this is a great one to pull up for anyone who wants to challenge their friends.
11. Curse of the Dead Gods
Your greed will lead you to death, but that is not an escape. Rise to fight again. Delve deeper again. Defy the malignant deities that linger in this place. Battle through hordes of enemies in dark, cavernous passages filled with traps and secrets of all sorts – fire-spewing statues, explosives, hidden spikes, and worse.
Curse of the Dead Gods takes equal inspiration from Hades and Rogue Legacy and combines the influences into something unique. It’s worth checking out if you’ve spent hours with Hades and want something else in the same vein.
10. Ender Lilies
Ender Lilies is a 2D Souls-like game that draws inspiration from the hardcore gameplay of those series. Fans of Salt & Sanctuary, Blasphemous, and other 2D platformers will feel right at home solving the mystery of what happened to the empty kingdom in Ender Lilies.
9. Doki Doki Literature Club
Welcome to a terrifying world of poetry and romance! Write poems for your crush and erase any mistakes along the way to ensure your perfect ending. Now’s your chance to discover why Doki Doki Literature Club is one of the most beloved psychological horror games of the decade!
8. Spelunky 2
Spelunky 2’s world is even denser than the one in the original game, offering more areas, characters, traps, and items, as well as new ways to interact with them (and for them to interact with each other). The world has expanded in other ways, too, with branching paths and multi-layered levels adding a third dimension to the classic 2d platforming gameplay.
7. Road 96
Road 96 is about a risky road trip to the border, where you’ll meet incredible characters, and discover their intertwined stories and secrets in an ever-evolving adventure. But every mile opens up a choice to make. Your decisions will change your adventure, change the people you meet, maybe even change the world.
6. Subnautica + Subnautica: Below Zero
Alterra left in a hurry after a mysterious incident. Abandoned research stations dot the region. What happened to the scientists who lived and worked here? Logs, items, and databanks scattered among the debris paint a new picture of the incident. With limited resources, you must improvise to survive on your own in the world of Subnautica and Subnautica: Below Zero.
5. Littlewood
Manage a town that has been left to its own devices after a hero has saved the world. Anyone looking for a relaxing management sim will find it with Littlewood. Customize the town and master crafts to help your villagers improve their lives after evil has been vanquished.
4. Islanders Console Edition
Islanders is another relaxing simulation game about helping your colonists thrive on a lonely island. Build new buildings and shape their home how you see fit. Explore these procedurally generated Islands from lush green grasslands to dry deserts and snowy mountainscapes and expand your settlements from sprawling villages to vast cities.
3. Slime Rancher Portable Edition
Slime Rancher is the tale of Beatrix LeBeau, a plucky, young rancher who sets out for a life a thousand light years away from Earth on the ‘Far, Far Range’ where she tries her hand at making a living wrangling slimes. The Switch version includes the Secret Style Pack DLC.
2. Eastward
Escape the tyrannical clutches of a subterranean society and join Eastward’s unlikely duo on an exciting adventure to the land above! Discover beautiful yet bizarre settlements and make new friends as you travel across the world by rail.
Combine John and Sam’s skills to solve dungeon puzzles, take down unusual enemies, and survive the deadly miasma. Can you uncover the truth behind Sam’s mystic powers and bring back harmony to Eastward’s ravaged lands?
1. Axiom Verge 2
The long awaited sequel to Axiom Verge, Axiom Verge 2 expands on the universe with completely new characters, abilities, and gameplay.
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