Rising video game hardware prices are difficult enough to stomach, but splurgy AAA game launches are enough to make anyone’s billfold blush. As many gamers work to keep hobby-related buys within budget, increasingly accessible digital game storefronts like Steam allow frugal PC players worldwide to explore the hundreds (sometimes thousands) of new games that land on the platform every day.
Comb through yellow-washed gen-AI key art and big-budget remakes carefully enough, and you’ll find new-to-you projects from independent studios around the world. These underdog indie projects, often helmed by smaller, devoted creatives and driven by a cohesive artistic vision, operate under comparatively little corporate oversight, allowing developers to put passion over profit.
Because smaller teams often lack the funds to launch costly ad campaigns, the games’ distribution journeys differ from those of their AAA counterparts. Indie games lean on viral clip content, positive reviews from publications, Steam wishlist additions, word-of-mouth, and social media impressions to generate buzz. And hey — a little visibility boost from indie game lists like this one doesn’t hurt, either!
Ready to add a few games to your own Steam wishlist? Cut out the middleman, bypass digital storefront slop, and shoot straight to indie bangers. Here are some of our most-anticipated indie games launching this month:
FEED IT
GENRE: Psychological horror
RELEASE DATE: Monday, August 17
In FEED IT, a “first-person, PSX-style horror game” from developer Games On A Chair and Scale the Depths publisher Pretty Soon, players must meet the demands of a gluttonous pig-monster. Explore the monster’s dingy, labyrinthine house and pay attention to details, because every single choice you make in this pigsty matters. Download FEED IT now and do as you’re told…or else.
Entropy
GENRE: Dark fantasy CRPG
RELEASE DATE: Tuesday, August 18
In this gritty, dystopian role-playing game from publisher DreadXP and indie dev Lovely Hellplace, players must defeat the dreadful demons that’ve come to wreak havoc on the village of Draenog. Retro low-poly aesthetics, turn-based combat, and party customization hearken back to classic RPGs from the early 2000s. Entropy hits Steam Early Access on Tuesday, August 18.
VOIDFACE
GENRE: Bullet hell
RELEASE DATE: Tuesday, August 18
VOIDFACE, the challenging bullet-hell arena shooter from developer Frog Hat Labs and publisher Mad Mushroom, puts serious emphasis on “challenging.” Don’t be too entranced by the game’s eye-popping illustrations, because enemy onslaughts are absolutely relentless. Master offense and defense to stay afloat in VOIDFACE when it launches on Steam on Tuesday, August 18.
Néro & Sci Integral Edition
GENRE: Puzzle platformer
RELEASE DATE: Tuesday, August 18
Néro & Sci ∫ Integral Edition is a thinky puzzle-platformer that calls on players’ math skills to make it through. Traverse the unique world of Héméide, a vast and geometric universe comprising complex symbols, numbers, and shapes, and utilize your problem-solving skills to compute and clear each of the game’s nearly 40 stages. Tackle the titillating title independently or invite a fellow math buff if you’d prefer some company. Néro & Sci Integral Edition comes to Steam on August 18.
Mexican Ninja
GENRE: Roguelite beat ’em up
RELEASE DATE: Thursday, August 20
In Mexican Ninja, players must make it past gnarly Narcos and Yakuza who’ve fused their abilities to form doubly dangerous Narkuzas. Traverse a vibrant, 2.5D Tokyo, combine capabilities to form combos, master your own character build, and unleash outrageous Mexican Jutsus. Roguelike beat ’em up Mexican Ninja releases on Thursday, August 20.
Grim Trials
GENRE: Roguelike dungeon-crawler
RELEASE DATE: Thursday, August 20
Grim Trials is a heavy metal roguelite that follows player character Avelin as she navigates her own untimely death. Now recruited as one of Death’s Reapers, Avelin must make it out of the unforgiving Underworld to reunite with her earthly love, who’s still alive and above ground. Craft and customize equipment, defeat impure souls, and face demons of your own in Grim Trials when it comes to Steam on Thursday, August 20.
Slayblade
GENRE: Physics roguelite
RELEASE DATE: Thursday, August 20
Dominate opponents with your powerful battle-tops in Slayblade, a tantalizing and competitive roguelike from the maker of the Akupara-published Kardboard Kings. Make powerful combos, develop your tops with dozens of parts, and ultimately master your cool, Y2K-inspired city in Slayblade, coming to Steam this Thursday, August 20.
Cozy Marbles
GENRE: Construction/Sandbox
RELEASE DATE: Thursday, August 20
Developer Pixel Pea and publisher Mythwright’s Cozy Marbles is a low-key sandbox game that features — you guessed it — marbles! Channel your inner child and let your imagination run wild while you construct your own complex marble courses. Once you’ve finished crafting, let your marbles loose and watch ’em cruise to the sounds of the game’s lo-fi OST. Download Cozy Marbles when it rolls onto Steam this Thursday.
Ultrapool
GENRE: Billiards roguelite
RELEASE DATE: Monday, August 24
Do you need another roguelite to get hooked on? Well, thankfully, Ultrapool doesn’t require the dim and dingy dive bar you’d normally find a pool table in. Up the ante by playing pool with some powerful new balls, each bringing its own zany ability to master. Dominate opponents with well-crafted builds, wild trick shots, and pinpoint precision. Those pockets don’t stand a chance! Survive for as long as you can in Ultrapool, launching next Monday, August 24.
Sucker for Love: Crush Landing
GENRE: Horror; Romance
RELEASE DATE: Monday, August 31
Sucker for Love: Crush Landing, the third entry in the Sucker for Love series, leans heavily on Lovecraftian horror. After a tantalizing, shapeshifting comet named Hheily collides with your apartment and pleads for sustenance, you quickly find yourself among cosmic horrors beyond humanity’s comprehension. Like a moth to a flame, can you withstand hot comet Hheily’s powerful pull? Sucker for Love: Crush Landing flies onto Steam on Monday, August 31.
Quick note: developers say Sucker for Love includes “adult themes and some amounts of comically disturbing body horror,” but confirm “the game does not feature any explicit content.”
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