External Discovery
58 indie games in this list, released 2015, from developers such as tobyfox, Funatics Software, BlackMill 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.
By tobyfox · United States
Undertale is a role-playing game about a child who tumbles into the Underground, a hidden realm of monsters sealed beneath the surface. Battles play out as small bullet-hell dodging sequences, and players can talk their way to sparing foes rather than killing them, choices that reshape story and characters. Toby Fox, an American developer, made almost all of it himself, including script and music, and it launched in 2015 using GameMaker.
By Funatics Software · Germany
Valhalla Hills is a city-building strategy game in which you guide a tribe of Vikings as they build up and sustain a settlement. Each map ends with the goal of reaching a portal at the top of a mountain that leads to Valhalla. Funatics Software, a studio in Germany, developed it in Unreal Engine 4, and Daedalic Entertainment published it in 2015. Two expansions, Sand of the Damned and Fire Mountains, later added new locations and enemies.
By BlackMill Games · Netherlands
Verdun is an online first-person shooter built around squads and set in the First World War and inspired by the 1916 battle of the same name. Teams fight over trench lines in attack and defence rounds, using period weapons, uniforms and maps modelled on real Western Front battlefields. Built in Unity by independent studios M2H and the Netherlands-based BlackMill Games, it left Steam Early Access in April 2015 and later reached consoles.
By Haemimont Games · Bulgaria
Victor Vran is an isometric action role-playing game where player skill matters as much as gear and builds, with dodging, jumping and ability use at the center of combat. Its world blends gothic fantasy and fairy-tale elements, with room for both magic and science. Bulgarian indie developer Haemimont Games released it in July 2015, with EuroVideo Medien publishing it on Steam; later ports reached consoles.
By RuneStorm · South Africa
Viscera Cleanup Detail is a science fiction simulation that hands players the grim job of mopping up after disasters such as repelled alien invasions and zombie outbreaks. The work is all about clearing away the bloody mess left behind once the fighting is over. It was developed and published by RuneStorm, an indie studio based in South Africa, using Unreal Engine 3, and it entered Steam Early Access in April 2014 before fully releasing in October 2015.
By AtomicTorch Studio · Singapore
VoidExpanse is a science-fiction space game from AtomicTorch Studio, a developer based in Singapore, released in 2015 for Windows, Mac and Linux. Players pilot a ship through a large universe, mining asteroids, trading, taking on missions and upgrading both their vessel and their character. Fast combat against hostile aliens and mercenaries is part of the loop, and the game draws on RPG, simulation and strategy elements.
By GRIN · Belgium
Released for Windows in March 2015, Woolfe: The Red Hood Diaries plays as a 2D side-scroller with hack-and-slash combat, built on Unreal Engine 3. It was made by GriN Gamestudio, an independent developer from Belgium partly funded through Kickstarter. The studio shut down later in 2015 after weak sales, which ended work on a planned second volume, and Rebellion Developments then acquired the property and took on delivering the backer rewards.
By Maysalward(MRD) · Jordan
Leo Escape is an endless swimmer and a sequel to Maysalward's earlier game PuffOut. The fish Leo flees a gang of dangerous sea creatures, dodging obstacles for as long as possible while collecting coins and diamonds to buy upgrades and power-ups. It is developed by Maysalward, a studio founded in Amman in 2003 and one of the pioneers of mobile game development in Jordan.
By Studio Pixel · Japan
Kero Blaster is a side-scrolling action platformer by Daisuke Amaya, better known as Pixel, and his first major release since Cave Story. You play a frog working for a company whose teleporters keep breaking down, blasting your way through levels to fix the problem. It is compact, precise and charming, a clear showcase of one developer's craft.
By Dinosaur Polo Club · New Zealand
Mini Metro is a puzzle strategy game from the New Zealand indie team Dinosaur Polo Club about designing a subway map for a growing city. You draw lines between stations and keep adjusting them as new stops appear and passengers pile up. Its clean look borrows from real transit maps, and its sound is generated by your network.