Indie Games September Wrap-Up

Cyrus_Zuo writes "Game Tunnel has up a September overview of Indie games, making this the fourth in a series of wrap-ups that cover all of the indie games that come out each month. This month has two 'professional indie' releases that were released in September, Wik & the Fable of Souls from Reflexive Entertainment (Star Trek Away Team) and Outpost Kaloki from Ninja Bee (a subdivision of Wahoo Studios)."

A Good Thing (TM)

[voice of unreason]

I've been reading these wrap-ups for awhile now, and IMHO, they're really great for the indie scene. What indies need is online magazines like Game Tunnel that give honest, tough reviews that showcase what's out there. Publicity means money. Money means more indie development. And more indie development means more alternatives to the shovelware of the week you get at the local game store. Obviously, there's a lot of poor quality indie and shareware games. However, what strikes me on reading these kinds of reviews is just how many good titles there are today. You're seeing things like Gish and Crimsonland that you'd never see on a store shelf. At a time when the big development houses are largely producing shovelware, it seems like the indie gaming scene is becoming stronger and stronger.

Re:A Good Thing (TM)

[Robmonster]

I wonder how well something like Gish would actually do if it were on the shelves in high-street shops. It is undeniably a good game (along with their Bridge Construction Set games), but I don't feel that they would appeal to a particularly wide audience.

Personally I enjoy the games greatly, mainly due to their portrayal of real world physics. That appeals to my geekness as it probably does to a large proportion of slashdot readers. However, I'm not sure how that would translate to the wider demographic of

Not much to be excited about so far this year

[bear pimp]

I generally follow the shareware games industry, because in the past I've found some incredible games. This year has not been too exciting though. The above mentioned Wik looks ok though (Bit like Bionic Commandos?)

I think Gametunnel's Game Of The Year [gametunnel.com] article has a more interesting round up though (and you can avoid sections you aren't interested in like 'puzzle' and 'arkanoid'!!)

Be warned though, it has awful layout - to find the winners, you have to scroll to the bottom, and you have to look thought ten pages of runners up for the overall game of the year! -Awful!!
Here's the winner links:

Action Game of the Year [gametunnel.com](Alien Shooter)
Adventure Game of the Year [gametunnel.com](Starscape)
Arkanoid Game of the Year [gametunnel.com](Break Ball 2: Gold)
Puzzle Game of the Year [gametunnel.com](Dungeon Scroll)
Strategy, Sports, RPG, SIM Game of the Year [gametunnel.com](Samurai)
Best Graphics of the Year [gametunnel.com](3D Airstrike: Operation W.A.T.)
Best Sound of the Year [gametunnel.com](Dr. Blob's Organism)
Most Original Conspet of the Year [gametunnel.com](Train Tracking)
Best Non-Networked Muliplayer Game of the Year [gametunnel.com](Mage Bros.)
Best Networked Muliplayer Game of the Year [gametunnel.com](Orbz)
Independent Game of the Year [gametunnel.com](Starscape)