Yesterday’s Nintendo Indie World presentation was an awesome ode to Switch gaming. There were newly announced Switch ports such as Hades, Grindstone, Hypnospace Outlaw, Subnautica and more. That will be available later in the coming months. But what we want are indie games we can play right now. The showcase came a couple of surprise launches, including Spiritfarer one of the Top 10 games, we saw at Pax East this year. Here’s everything that you can download today from Nintendo Indie World.
Spiritfarer by Thunder Lotus
Spiritfarer is a cosy management sim about dying. First unveiled at the during E3 2019, Spiritfarer takes you on a spiritual adventure on death and the afterlife. Taking inspiration from the Greek myth of Charon, you’ll play as Stella, “ferrymaster to the deceased.” Stella is tasked with building a giant ship, befriending animal spirits of the deceased, and navigating across the seas to guide them to the afterlife. The game is part shipbuilder, part 2D platformer, part crafting game and part life simulation. As dreadful as the premise may sound, the game is actually overflowing with charm and serenity.
Takeshi and Hiroshi by Oink Games
Takeshi and Hiroshi is an RPG about two brothers. Takeshi is a teenage game designer building a game that his sickly brother Hiroshi can play. Players need to keep Hiroshi engrossed while balancing difficulty and ensuring that baby brother can still win. “It is Takeshi’s goal to make Hiroshi really enjoy his game, let him meet big challenges, but preferably to prevent him from losing,” developer Oink Games says. “He has to choose which monsters shall appear when and struggles more and more as the challenge for him as a game creator becomes increasingly difficult.”
Manifold Garden by William Chyr Studio
Puzzle games don’t get much trippier than Manifold Garden, a first-person adventure through refracted time and space. It’s a game about bending the laws of physics, so of course, it’s gonna get weird. With striking visuals, soothing music, and mind-bending puzzles. The game has players navigating an MC Escher-style landscape, trying to understand a world made entirely of impossible architecture.
Evergate by Stone Lantern Games
Evergate is a 2D puzzle-platformer about Ki, a young soul travelling through the memories of two kindred spirits. Guide Ki, on her journey through the Afterlife. Wield your Soulflame to boost to new heights, soar through the skies, and overcome dangers. Encounter Ki’s past memories across lifetimes to decipher the connection with her Kindred Spirit. Levels are built around the Soulflame, which Ki can use to activate crystals with different effects. It looks like you’ll encounter a huge variety of crystals in your trip through the afterlife, to say nothing of Evergate’s supernatural hazards.
A Short Hike by ADAMGRYU
A Short Hike is one of our best games you may have missed in 2019 but shouldn’t have. So now you don’t have to. A Short Hike is a freewheeling adventure game about a bird on a journey to a mountain’s summit. How you get there is up to you. Take the direct route and you’ll miss the point of this fun little game. But take your time, meet other people along the path and do little tasks and you’ll have a much better time. Stop to fish, smell the flowers or talk to other cute little animals and discover some secrets. A Short Hike is a delight.
Raji: An Ancient Epic by Nodding Heads Games
Raji: An Ancient Epic is an action-adventure game set in ancient India. A third-person action game, Raji is “a young girl chosen by the gods [who] will stand against the demonic invasion into the human realm.” Seeking to avenge their defeat in the last great war from a thousand years ago, the demons have challenged the gods who humiliated them and have invaded the human realm, threatening them with extinction. Raji has taken it upon herself to find her brother and put an end to this reckless war. However, this can only happen if she manages to break down the might and stratagem devised by the great lord of demons, Mahabalasura.
