9 indie games in this list, released 2009–2024, from developers such as Broken Rules, ClockStone, Microbird Games. Pick one to read our editorial note and jump to its store page.
These are editorial pages. The developers and publishers are not affiliated with The Gaming Nest unless explicitly stated.
And Yet It Moves is a puzzle platformer in which you can rotate the entire game world at will, turning walls into floors to steer your character through dangerous environments. Its levels are designed around that single idea and presented in a paper-collage visual style. Developed by the independent Austrian studio Broken Rules, it began in 2007 as a student project in computer science at the Vienna University of Technology and was released in April 2009.
Avencast: Rise of the Mage is a Windows action RPG that borrows heavily from brawlers. Spells are cast by chaining quick movement inputs with mouse clicks, though shortcuts can also be assigned, and recurring boss battles punctuate the journey. Riddles add a touch of classic adventure design. Austrian developer ClockStone packed in more than 50 spells and around 150 unique items, and the Steam release dates from 2010.
Dungeons of Hinterberg is an action role-playing game set in Hinterberg, a fictional town in the Austrian Alps. It combines combat-focused dungeon crawling with social simulation, so time spent exploring dungeons sits alongside life in the village. The game was developed by the Austrian studio Microbird Games, published by Curve Games, and launched in July 2024 on Windows and Xbox Series X/S.
Gibbon: Beyond the Trees is a 2D adventure game with hand-drawn art that follows a lost gibbon on a risky journey through unknown lands in search of home. Its story draws on real ecological issues and was shaped in collaboration with local people and experts from Southeast Asia. It was developed and published by Broken Rules, a studio from Austria, launching first on Apple Arcade in 2022 and reaching Windows in May of that year.
By Stuffed Wombat, Silkersoft, Lukke, Rollin'Barrel · Austria
Mosa Lina is a 2D physics puzzle platformer that bills itself as a hostile take on the immersive sim. Each puzzle is open-ended, and players must improvise using a random selection of special tools and items to find a way through. It was created by Stuffed Wombat from Austria with contributors Silkersoft, Lukke and Rollin'Barrel, launched on PC in 2023, and later came to macOS and Nintendo Switch.
Old Man's Journey is a gentle adventure game with puzzle elements that follows an old man who sets off on a trip after a letter brings him news. As he travels, semi-still flashback scenes gradually reveal the life he lived before. It was developed and published by Broken Rules, a studio from Austria, and released in 2017 for Windows, macOS and mobile devices, later reaching consoles.
Roto Force is a twin-stick shooter, the kind of action game where one control moves your character and another aims your fire. It was developed by Accidently Awesome, a studio from Austria, and published by PID Games and East2West Games. The game was released in 2023 for both mobile devices and personal computers, including Windows, macOS and Linux.
The Lion's Song tells, across four point-and-click episodes, the stories of artists and thinkers in early twentieth-century Vienna, each wrestling with creativity, ambition and what society expects of them. Decisions in one chapter link the four stories together and can change details that appear later. Austrian studio Mi'pu'mi Games grew it out of a Ludum Dare jam entry by designer Stefan Srb, and it took the indie game prize at the Deutscher Entwicklerpreis in 2016.
Weaving Tides is a puzzle adventure game with action elements, listed under action and adventure genres on Steam. It was developed and self-published by Follow the Feathers, an independent developer from Austria. The game launched on May 27, 2021 for Windows and macOS, and was also released on Nintendo Switch on the same day.