27 indie games in this list, released 2009–2024, from developers such as Turtle Cream, PokPoong Games, K Bros Games, Broken Rules. 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.
6180 the moon is a short puzzle platformer in which the player guides the Moon on a search for the missing Sun, whose absence has left Earth stuck in endless night. It was made by South Korean developer Turtle Cream together with Miara Sung, and first appeared on Windows in March 2013 through an Indie Royale bundle. The Steam release followed in 2014 on Windows, macOS and Linux, with PokPoong Games also credited on the store page.
Albert & Otto is a 2D puzzle platformer planned as four stand-alone episodes, the first of which is titled The Adventure Begins. Its art style takes cues from Tim Burton's early stop-motion films, and its story is set in Germany just before the Second World War. It was developed and published by the South African studio K Bros Games, with the first episode arriving in October 2015 for Windows and OS X.
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.
Antichamber is a first-person puzzle platformer set in a space that breaks the normal rules of geometry. Corridors can lead somewhere different depending on which way you face, and many puzzles rely on structures that could not exist in ordinary three-dimensional space, with short messages offering hints and life advice. It was created by Australian developer Alexander Bruce, built on Unreal Engine 3, and released for Windows on Steam in January 2013.
Blackhole is a puzzle-platform game from independent Czech company FiolaSoft Studio, built with GameMaker and first released for Windows in February 2015. The developers collaborated with Let's Players and YouTubers when writing the story and shaping its characters. A Complete Edition in 2016 bundled three DLCs, including Testing Lab and Challenge Vault, and was later ported to PlayStation 4 and Xbox One.
Creaks is a puzzle-platformer made and self-published by Czech studio Amanita Design. Progress combines platforming with puzzle solving, and its genre listings also class it as a graphic adventure and an art game with a casual pace. Announced in October 2018, it launched through Apple Arcade in July 2020 and arrived on Windows, Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and Nintendo Switch later that same month.
Gunpoint is a stealth puzzle-platformer made by UK-based indie developer Tom Francis under the Suspicious Developments name, built in GameMaker and released for Windows in June 2013. As freelance spy Richard Conway, players slip into buildings, dodge guards and use gadgets like the Crosslink, which rewires electrical circuits, to bypass security. Along the way Conway tries to clear his name of a murder, and the game later opened the studio's Defenestration Trilogy.
Human Fall Flat is a comedic puzzle platformer whose levels can be tackled again and again in different ways. Critics gave it mixed reviews overall, but the replay value of its puzzles and its funny character animations earned praise. It comes from No Brakes Games, a studio based in Lithuania, was published by Curve, and launched on PC in July 2016. It has since sold over 58 million copies, ranking it among the best-selling games of all time.
I Am Bread casts the player as a slice of bread trying to reach the toaster. Movement relies on abilities like gripping onto surfaces, and levels become puzzles about climbing across rooms while dodging dangers such as knives, pets and dirty floors that spoil the bread. Bossa Studios, based in the United Kingdom, developed and released it in April 2015, and the humorous idea later continued in a follow-up, I Am Fish, in 2021.
Inked: A Tale of Love, a puzzle-platform game from Croatian studio Somnium Games, was first demoed in Zagreb during the 2016 edition of the Reboot Infogamer convention. Its story moves between Nameless Hero, a rogue samurai searching for his beloved Aiko, and the comic book artist Adam. The distinctive look resembles papercraft outlined in ballpoint pen on grid-lined notebook paper, and the game first arrived on Steam in April 2018.
Inmost is a cinematic puzzle platformer that alternates between three playable characters, an old man, a knight, and a young girl, each searching for answers. Their stories are woven together across two different worlds and deal with pain, loss, and the bonds between people. Lithuanian developer Hidden Layer Games created it, Chucklefish published it, and after debuting on Apple Arcade in 2019 it reached Windows and Mac in August 2020.
Limbo is a 2D side-scrolling puzzle-platformer with horror elements from independent Danish studio Playdead, first released on Xbox Live Arcade in 2010. A physics system governs both the world and the unnamed boy looking for his sister, and puzzles follow a trial-and-death approach where failing is part of finding each solution. Its monochrome visuals, film grain and sparse sound earned critical acclaim and several industry awards.
By Dreadlocks Mobile, Silicon Jelly · Czech Republic
Mimpi is a 2013 game from Czech company Silicon Jelly that combines adventure-style puzzles with platforming. Its Steam release in January 2015 lists it under the adventure and casual genres, with Silicon Jelly and Dreadlocks Mobile credited as developers. The game was followed by a sequel, Mimpi Dreams, released in 2015 and built on the same mix of puzzles and platforming.
By Dreadlocks Mobile, Silicon Jelly · Czech Republic
Mimpi Dreams is a 2015 sequel to Mimpi from Czech company Silicon Jelly, credited alongside Dreadlocks Mobile. Like its predecessor, it mixes puzzle adventure with platforming, asking players to handle both across its levels. It arrived on Steam in March 2016 for Windows, macOS and Linux, listed under the adventure genre, and continues the relaxed tone of the original.
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.
Munin is a 2D puzzle platformer starring Munin, a messenger of Odin, as she travels through Yggdrasil to win back her lost powers. Its main trick is rotating chunks of the level, using physics and Norse runes to rearrange platforms and open a path forward. It was made by Gojira, an indie company from Portugal, and published by Daedalic Entertainment in June 2014 for Windows, Mac and Linux.
Neva is a puzzle platformer about Alba, a young woman who journeys with a wolf named Neva through a land being overtaken by darkness, with the adventure unfolding over the course of four seasons. It blends platforming and puzzles with action-adventure elements. Spanish studio Nomada Studio developed it and Devolver Digital published it in October 2024 on PC and consoles, and a prequel expansion, Neva Prologue, followed in February 2026.
Out There Somewhere is a puzzle platformer about a spaceman stranded on an alien world who uses a portal gun to get around obstacles. His aim is to escape the planet while confronting a malevolent force called Grigori. The game was made by Pedro Medeiros and Amora Bettany under the name MiniBoss in Brazil, built with GameMaker, first released in 2012 and brought to Steam in March 2016.
Scrap Garden is a puzzle platformer following Canny, a solitary robot who wakes up in a ruined world where every other machine has stopped working. The player guides him through platforming stages and environmental puzzles while trying to learn what happened to the city and whether anyone else survived. Egidijus Bachur and Alexey Davydov are credited as developers, with Flazm publishing; the team is from Lithuania, and the Steam release arrived in 2016.
Teslagrad is a side-scrolling puzzle platformer built around magnetism and electromagnetic abilities. Players rely on these powers to solve its puzzles while uncovering a plot involving a tyrannical king. It was developed and published by Norwegian studio Rain Games and released in 2013 to generally positive reviews. A sequel, Teslagrad 2, followed a decade later in 2023, continuing the focus on electromagnetism.
A 2D cinematic platformer from Polish studio Puzzling Dream, The Way follows a space explorer who cannot come to terms with his wife's death. After discovering ancient texts about eternal existence on one of his final expeditions, he returns to that site hoping to bring her back. PlayWay published it for Windows in 2016, and its play combines platforming with puzzle solving.
In Unbound: Worlds Apart you guide Soli, a mage who can open portals into alternate realities, each with its own effect such as bending time, reversing gravity or transforming Soli himself. These portals drive the puzzle-platforming as you gather crystals that unlock gates to the dark world. Romanian studio Alien Pixel Studios developed and published it in 2021 after a Kickstarter campaign, and it received generally favorable reviews.
VVVVVV is a puzzle platformer where you cannot jump; instead you flip gravity so Captain Viridian falls up or down. You guide the captain through over 400 rooms to find a crew scattered by a teleporter accident, and the game also supports levels made by players. It was created by Terry Cavanagh from Ireland, first built in Adobe Flash and released in 2010, and a later C++ port helped it reach many more platforms.
Ayo: A Rain Tale is a puzzle platformer about a young girl who crosses the harsh lands of sub-Saharan Africa to fetch water for her family during a drought. Players push boulders, solve puzzles, face enemies and deal with heat and a day-night cycle along the way. The game was made to raise awareness of water scarcity. It is the debut of Inkline, a studio based in Beirut, Lebanon, and launched on PC before coming to mobile.