I have watched the Game Awards 2021 (or the ads fest) like many other players would like to call it, and to be completely honest, these shows are never about games, or the people who make them. They don’t convey the feelings or explain the reasons of success behind each video game, nor do they portray why should I be hyped for any upcoming announced titles, especially the ones with bigger budgets and heavier promotions. unlike Indie Games.
I like everything about Indie games and how they are promoted. I can count on one hand the indie games that has never failed to meet the expectations they set for the players, and at the same time they care about showing everything to the buyers from the first moment they are announced. One glance at any Indie games trailer and I feel like I can make a 100% informed opinion about where should I spend my money.
Show Don’t Tell
For example, here’s a look at one of my most anticipated games of 2022, Sea of Stars. The game doesn’t shy away from it’s original inspiration source: Chrono Trigger, and the creators even got Yasunori Mitsuda the legendary composer to add his harmonious symphony to this beautiful creation. The thing is, one trailer gave me everything I really want to know about how the next -probably- 20 hours I am going to spend with this game will look like.
The trailer shows you the overworld map, inside dungeons and towns and the parallels in lighting, colors and camera angels, Walking at different paces, fishing minigames, the battle system and the boss fight animations, attack animations and skill usage, upgrade systems, camping, and of course a glimpse of the soundtrack you will be hearing. Even I don’t miss the art style or the turn based systems, at least I know what I can look forward to.
Don’t Be Something Else
Every game nowadays, especially the AAA ones want to be the next “Elden Ring” or the next “Pubg”, but Indie Games aren’t trying to be anything but themselves. A game like After Love EP has a very distinct art style, and at the same time combines elements like dating sim, rhythm and narrative adventures into one pack, It feels sad that these kinds of unique experiences often gets overshadowed in favor of the bigger, yet underachieving ones.
The game Aliisha: The Oblivion of Twin Goddesses also grabbed my interested because it introduces a complete experience centered around the use of Joy-Cons and Motion controls, something which Nintendo might have even forgotten about and deals with it as an extra peripheral control scheme. Not just that, but everything else like the music and the endings are designed with twice the depth to give you the viewpoint of each sister heroine. This is exactly, and unarguably, what gaming needs to be right now.
Literary Value
A point of ongoing discussions between Philosophers of every age, is gaming for children or not? I don’t think so, and probably never will, because games can be a very powerful medium for introducing players to heavy themes and making accurate representations of people and cultures, such as Gerda: A Flame in Winter, a game inspired by a true story, and occurs in a very distinct Danish atmosphere during WW2. Realistic shooter games could learn a thing or two instead of removing story modes all together.
Behind the Frame: The Finest Scenery is also announced just recently to becoming to PS4 and Switch Consoles. This game is one of the most accurate representations that Indie games are a never endless river of art and creativity, and should be taken seriously for what they are and more. The same can be said for Omori, which is easily summed up as a self help story book that is bound to uplift your spirit no matter how down you are.
If you ever find yourself tired of the mainstream, try to get out of the comfort zone, and check many other games from developers around the world, each with their own cultural background and messages that you can’t find anywhere else, just like Cris tales and its Colombian influence, or Trek to Yomi, which might cure that Ghost of Tsushima itch that we know you have had for a long time after finishing that masterpiece.