I genuinely cannot overstate how much I love this kind of content. It's so enjoyable to hear such in-depth explanations of game titles in a way that provides just enough context to get me interested without spoiling too much of what the game is like.
0:50 Unsighted 2:45 Citizen Sleeper 4:25 Yooka-Layle and the Impossible Lair 6:30 Lil gator game 7:30 Cassete Beasts 9:35 The Case of the Golden Idol 10:30 The Swapper 11:45 Nobody Saves the World
I haven't really been playing video games much for the last couple of years, but after hearing you talk about Tunic a few months ago I dove into it and it was some of the most fun I've had with a game in years. Excited to check some of these out 😎
I hope these indie vids become a channel staple. One I think you might appreciate is Lacuna. It's a sci-fi noir detective game that also flew completely under the radar but is impressive for how small the studio is.
@@D1ndo I'd be curious to hear your thoughts on it a bit more. I'm currently making a video on it and while I agree with it having missed potential, I'd still say it's good despite that.
@@kaldini I tried linking my steam review, but that probably triggers some protection, so, here's my copy: This being an adventure game and all it is dissappointing that every dialogue in this game is so stiff and unoriginal. Basically every discussion goes like this: - MC: Tell me X - NPC: No I don't want to. - MC: Come on, please tell me. - NPC: OK, here's X. The game features an absurd amount of boring running around (holding your controller stick to the right or left) through environments that offer zero interaction, feeling like a chore most of the time. Combine all of this with the fact that the game does a lot of handholding, so you are almost forced to pick the right choices, and you'll get a very bland experience overall.
Citizen Sleeper is honestly such a good game. It absolutely sucks you into the world and the music just amplifies that you're just trying to live out in space.
Its whole system also lends itself really well to pretty much any rpg. It really makes the time you spend feel valuable rather than a resource you have an infinite amount of.
I played the whole thing (almost) through in one sitting. Xbox glitched or something and the file never saved. I still haven’t booted it up again because I know it won’t feel the same as experiencing all the choices for the first time again
@@Josuh never said it was complicated. It has nothing to do with its quality. Also, the fact that it's skippable also don't play in games favour when you're supposed to manage your most vital resource based on story, since charactera don't exist vacuum. Not that it would've helped if they did, they're pretty one dimensional.
I was sufficiently surprised to see The Swapper on this list. It came out 10 years ago, and I have played through it several times for the sci-fi story and vibe. It was very nice to see it included here :)
Just adding vocal support for Cassete Beasts. Hugely underrated game with a bit of British humour and fun mechanics. Also really enjoyed Nobody Saves the World, for the reasons Raz mentioned. Want to play Citizen Sleeper too, it's on my list!
For some reason, "Curse of the Golden Idol" reminds me of a game i used to play when i was much younger, a educational game called "Word Blaster" set in a hotel with a monster party going on. You go from room to room playing various word/letter based minigames and you get a clue for each one you complete. You then have discriptions of a characrer and fill in the gaps with the words that best fit to cross out suspect icons and finally click the right character from a lineup.
I played The Swapper years ago and to me it's a masterpiece. The puzzles are brilliant, the claymation art is super atmospheric, and the story about what conciousness means reminds me of classic sci-fi. It's great!
Played Citizen Sleeper, and I never thought I would actually be so engaged in a game that's just reading and dice rolls. And to think, Nobody Saves the World isn't known by many? What a crime b/c it's done by the peeps who made Guacamelee!
I'm one minute into the video where you introduce Unsighted. I can definitely say that this is one of my ALL-TIME favorite video-game. It's not a hidden gem, it's a hidden masterpiece.
You have no idea the excitement i felt when i stacked a bunch of boxes and skipped an entire area by accident, just the fact that you're able to do that blew my mind entirely
Citizen Sleeper is so good! I’m not much of a reader, especially not in games, but man this game is so well written that I couldn’t help getting drawn in to the stories and characters.
00:49 - Unsighted 02:42 - Citizen Sleeper 04:26 - Yooka-Laylee and the Impossible Lair 06:26 - Lil Gator Game 07:34 - Cassette Beasts 09:32 - The Case of the Golden Idol 10:31 - The Swapper 11:41 - Nobody Saves the World
I've played 5 of these. I might be a bit obsessed with the indie scene. Unsighted, cassette beasts, and citizen sleeper are all what i'd consider must plays.
Any other indie games you'd recommend? I'm personally a big fan of No Straight Roads, Clash: Artifacts of Chaos and Soulstice. Interested in the upcoming Genokids as well.
Have you tried The Forgotten City? It’s the standalone version of the incredibly popular skyrim mod, also called “The Forgotten City.” It deals with time loop mechanics in a unique and interesting way.
I absolutely love Unsighted! It's one of my favorite metroidvanias of all time with compelling characters and the tightest isometric gameplay I've ever seen. The game encourages exploration and experimentation of its various mechanics, the amount of times the game has surprised me with its hidden movement and combat tech is baffling, some things that seem surface level at first often times has layers upon layers of hidden movement/combat tech. The game even awards and encourages you to use these boundary breaking techs to your advantage, going so far as to give you achievements for obtaining a lategame item during the tutorial and beating fights that you weren't supposed to!
So glad you mentioned Lil Gator Game! I'd commented about it on a previous video where you included some clips of it but didn't touch on it in the video itself. I love that game it was such a great experience. Really captured that hard sense of growing up but also about reconnecting with that inner child.
Very important to note that YL & the Impossible Lair has a massive sale on right now, so now's the time to check it out if the video interested you! This video also got me to wishlist Cassette Beasts, and everything else is pretty much on my to-be-played (or already played) list already I think! 😊
Man, from The first 2 games in this video I really feel like you would love pathologic 2. It has the same kind of Time mechanics and is also criminally underrated
I just watched the trailer on steam and it looks amazing. However, is it satanic or demonic at all? I typically try to avoid games, movies, and shows like this
Citizen Sleeper feels like a huge game to me, it was everywhere and its wild to me that it came up as being underappreciated or played. But if this gets more people to play it thats great.
Citizien Sleeper is so good. After finishing one story line, I felt so moved, like I felt so connected to the character, I just happy let the game sit as it is, to one day return for the other stories. What I like most, is despite the bleak setting, is is actually quite warmhearted.
The fact that usually these kind of content don't interest me but the fact that I think I'm going to buy at least 3 or 4 out of the games you discussed in this video says it all about the quality of your content, great work
I thought The Swapper was super cool! I played a few years ago and I loved how they told a cool story like that inside of a puzzle game. I remember just being frustrated by some of the puzzles and not being able to figure them out (maybe I was just stupid though)
I know that this vid already has a bunch if recommendations under it, but one that I personally haven't seen enough people talking about is The Messenger by Sabotage Studio. It's inspired by Ninja Gaiden has some of the best 2D platforming I've ever experienced. And the twist at around halfway through is soooooo good, the memory of it still gives me shivers. It's best played entirely blind, not even looking at the trailers or anything. Lots of humor too. 10/10
I've been playing cassette beasts pretty non-stop for the past few days. I've been looking for a good pokemon clone for a while and this is the first one that I've really enjoyed.
I loved the idea of the time limit in unsighted. While i had it on, it really affected how i felt towards the characters. It made them feel real. I turned it off though, because I'm not good in a time crunch. It made me too stressed in a not fun way. I haven't finished the game yet though, i might start over and keep the setting on, committing to the story setting and stakes. Think of it more as a nuzlock, intentionally enduring the emotional pain of permadeaths as a feature that makes consequences feel real, rather than a punishment for being bad at videogames. If that makes sense.
Yeah, I think that players hate feeling like they are losing something EVEN when losing that thing or having the threat of losing it can be a powerful motivator that makes a game special.
@@razbuten It's also tricky for players like me, who really enjoy games but are slower than average at accomplishing them, so the expected completion just doesn't work in a way that will let me move forward.
@@theyxajI was fearing the same when i first played it, but you can copy save files or exit to the menu screen and reload to spawn near the last terminal you accessed, just to be able to experiment more loosely and save time, not saying you have to, but for me it made things more manageable and enjoyable overall without having to disable the timer
If you liked Citizen Sleeper, you'd probably really like Roadwarden as well. It looks more and more like we're experiencing some new wave of text-heavy, tabletop-like indie RPGs (all of them partially living in the shadow of Disco Elysium, ofc) - and damn, I'm so here for it.
Gosh, I can't stress enough how much I love Unsighted and how happy I was by seeing it featured here. Hopefully it gets more love now with your 750k subscribers buying it :)
You should definitely check Anomaly Agent out. A 2d platformer with really smooth combat, much like katana zero. Literally the one indie game that I'm most curious about. I think it has really huge potential.
I loved the gameplay of UNSIGHTED, and most of my favorite games have a time constraint mechanic, but I found myself not making connection with the characters since I knew they would die soon, and focused on keeping useful character alive longer. All of the games in this video I've either played or they've been high on my priority list, so excellent taste Raz.
THANK YOU for mentioning Citizen Sleeper. It's so sleeped on and I wish I knew more people who've played it. One of my favorite cyberpunk indie games ever.
So glad I watched this video, I immediately bought The Case of the Golden Idol because I love Obra Dinn and it seems very much in that same vein. Thanks for making this video :D
I really appreciate that these don't all come from this year. There are older games on the list which lends legitimacy to the idea that games stay good even though they're not new. A lot of youtubers fall into the mindset of only covering new stuff.
i stumbled onto citizen sleeper and had it downloaded for 6 months before i finally decided to play it. it's come out as one of my favorite games of all time. hearing that not many people have actually played it themselves is saddening. anyone who hasn't had the chance should definitely go through it at least once because the characters are so well written and they really feel like actual people you need to help and take care of. also you can feed a stray cat and i think thats cool.
I think it speaks to either my interests leading me to follow indie games more, indie games becoming more visible, or just the fact that there are only so many indie games, but this video includes the MOST indie games I've heard of out of any of the videos in this series. The swapper doesn't count though, I got that in a humble bundle on my Wii U back in the day
I would also recommend Nobody Saves the World to you guys. To be honest I went into it with somewhat low expectations and wasn't entirely sure if I would like it. But very quickly after getting into it I really started enjoying it. The game is a lot of fun and really blew me away with its quality.
as someone suffering from project moon brainrot, im obligated to recommend checking out lobotomy corporation, library of ruina and possibly limbus company (but that ones a gacha game which, while a generous one, can understandably put people off from it.). Lobcorp is a sorta scp management game where things can go wrong super fast from a single mistake, ruina is a card battler, and limbus is a simplified gacha version of ruina. all of them being closely connected within the same universe with some of my favorite storytelling/worldbuilding ive seen in games. also banger music.
I've played two of these. I played The Swapper a few years ago, and I agree it's a top-tier puzzle game. Meanwhile, I'm most of the way through Cassette Beasts right now, and I'm thoroughly enjoying it. Interesting character, interesting setting, interesting combat, and great monster design
Three of my favorite indie games not mentioned in either of your Indie game videos are Broforce, Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet. and Bastion. I've replayed those three many times and enjoy them every time I do.
another criminally underated game (but understandably so) "I was a teenage exocolonist" is a horrible name for an amazing journey. i wont explain the premise, as you can just read that on steam. but shortly explained, it is a "life sim, visual novel, card game" with almost infinite replayability i fell it's made fora very specific type of people, but if you are one of those people, it will be hard for you to stop thinking about it once you start playing :D (also the art and music gives weirdly big minecraft vibes)
For indie games, Library of Ruina is undeniably my favorite. Addicting combat with lots of depth, great music, and god tier written characters and story. It’s quite a good game.
First time I played Citizen Sleeper I had zero expectations. Was expecting I’d probably turn it off after an hour but 6 hours later I was shocked at not only how much time time I had played but how much I enjoyed that time I spent.
Gonna take this opportunity to rep Wandersong. It's a game where you sing as the primary mechanic, and they use that in so many different ways to help you get around the world. And the world is the best part, because every character is deep and enjoyable, even the ones that only get a few lines as background NPCs. Also, there is a button that lets you dance at any time, even during conversations.
Oh mate, _The Swapper_ is a true work of art. The first time I played it and got to the Rec Room level I just sat there for half an hour listening to the music. Can't recommend it enough!
Last winter, I told a dear friend I had feelings for her, and she told me she didn't feel the same. I was devastated. I felt stupid, rejected, and unloved. Citizen Sleeper and its marvelous writing & atmosphere helped me begin to see the light and heal. I give my full reccomendation
@@restfulairstream9612 I hope so, but I'm learning to enjoy life in the moment and be grateful for everything I have instead of hyper-focusing on what I don't :)
@@saintallisonThank you for sharing this. I'm going through something similar at the moment so it's nice to see someone making it through the struggle.
Oh yeah, generally you have enough meteor dust to spare to keep most NPC's alive and yourself, but there's a point where you don't have that privilege anymore so you're more motivated to finish in time to save everyone, it's definitely an immersive experience on your first playthrough
me and my wife played through Case of the Golden Idol recently and we both loved it. absolutely great game, reminded me a lot of Obra Dinn (then you immediately said it was like that as I wrote this lol)
I LOVE CITIZEN SLEEPER. for people who are interested, I highly recommend leveling up your intuit skill for the dice reroll, as it allows you to reroll your low die after you've already used your good ones. before you start the DLC definitely stock up on all materials and get the engineering skill that allows condition to be repaired with scrap, you can farm it in the wasteland above the greenway (get at least 20 before starting the first DLC episode, it can be hard to juggle everything that comes with that while not at full dice). finally, never end your cycles with unused die, the low rolls can be used to get data from yatagan/havenage ports (this also becomes easier upon leveling intuit).
I just appreciate that Raz didn't presume to know my life and the games that I have played as so many other videos do. Also heck yeah for Cassette Beasts and its ABSOLUTELY COSMIC soundtrack!
I adore BOTH of the Yooka Laylee games. They're both fantastic to me and it warmed my heart that Yooka Laylee got to be my sons first 3D platformer. He might not be able to play Banjo and Kazooe anymore, but he still got that experience and it makes me so happy. Also if you want another hidden gem recommendation. Lost Words: Beyond the Page is a fantastic game that I think deserves a lot more love. The game suffers from the fact that it released initially on Stadia (oof), but it's such a good game and I can't recommend it enough. Weaving Tides is another cool INCREDIBLY hidden gem. It was so hidden that it had been out for a while when I played, yet it had NO achievement guides. For the first time in years I actually had to figure out how to get something because there was no guide to rely on to find stuff. There have since been guides made, but man was that a cool experience.
Citizen Sleeper - same. I started in the evening and finished around 5am! No game has ever had me so hooked. I did feel that the gameplay loop was very cleverly crafted. "Just one more go". But the dice roll the right numbers to keep you hooked. I don't think the RNG was particularly random. But that suits me 👍👍
I hadn't heard about Citizen Sleeper until this video but I'm watching this video because my chronic illness is bad and I'm pretty much stuck in bed. Your description of the game perfectly encapsulates the feeling of living with chronic illness. It brought a tear to my eye. Sounds like I'll have to check it out.
I played through FAR: Lone Sails recently and I am so surprised no one has talked about it. Its super simple, maybe like 30 minutes long but I loved it. Its a moody, steampunk game about driving a little car/ship thingy. Its almost Spiritfarer esque but more puzzle focused than mini game/resource gathering. Its super cute and I recommend people get it on sale if they need a short game for a rainy day.
One relatively unknown game I really like is Hayai. It's like a mix of a hack and slash samurai game and a too down strategy game. Your character is ambushed by more and more enemies, and you have a bar that fills up over time. Once that bar is filled up, you can stop time and basically draw a path for your character to take, instantly destroying all enemies and projectile in their path. Eventually, as more and more enemies attack, it becomes almost like a puzzle trying to figure out the best route. And it's only $1.5, so there's basically no risk in playing it.
Very happy to see The Swapper getting some love 10 years after its original release. I have been championing it for years in the Vita community. It's so good that it lives rent free in my head.
I watched Vinny play Lil Gator Game, and as someone with an older sister who I am now physically apart from and don't have as much time to talk with, the game really made me cry. I bought the game for my sister for her birthday and I hope it makes her cry too.
"Trigaea is an epic 272,000-word piece of interactive fiction. It's a combination of a sci-fi novel and an RPG adventure game, where you are in control of the story. " I found it fun
It’s sad. After all this time, Raz still doesn’t know the personal lives of all of his viewers.
This comment literally made me unsub
@@painkiller256256same forreal
How is he supposed to exploit our para social relationship for money if he doesn't even know where I live? 😢
Gonna start messaging him every single game I play or have played so he at least knows mine, gonna get reaallll parasocial about it too.
"750,000 subscribers you didn't know existed!"
I genuinely cannot overstate how much I love this kind of content. It's so enjoyable to hear such in-depth explanations of game titles in a way that provides just enough context to get me interested without spoiling too much of what the game is like.
it really makes me want to buy most of these games!
These videos are special 💎
0:50 Unsighted
2:45 Citizen Sleeper
4:25 Yooka-Layle and the Impossible Lair
6:30 Lil gator game
7:30 Cassete Beasts
9:35 The Case of the Golden Idol
10:30 The Swapper
11:45 Nobody Saves the World
Thanks
Thanks you, i don't understand why videomaker don't make it
I knew most of the ones last time but surprisingly the only one I recognize this time is Nobody Saves the World.
@@dragonhunter2343have you heard of the original Yooka Laylee?
@@LePetitMondedePurexoYTwatch time
Definitely in my top 10 of cozy game video essay channels with a guy who’s avatar has a paper bag on its head, maybe even top 5
gonna crack top 3 soon i swear
Got any tips for other cool channels maybe?
Who are your other favourites?
I haven't really been playing video games much for the last couple of years, but after hearing you talk about Tunic a few months ago I dove into it and it was some of the most fun I've had with a game in years. Excited to check some of these out 😎
Yo Scott! Huge fan, glad you're getting back into some fun titles.
Tunic is the Zelda hardcore mod the game is just so cool !
I also got into Tunic because of Raz, one of the best decisions I've ever made!
Tunic is definitely my game of the year 😄
scott… my boy… glad to see you here gangalang
I hope these indie vids become a channel staple.
One I think you might appreciate is Lacuna. It's a sci-fi noir detective game that also flew completely under the radar but is impressive for how small the studio is.
I’d like to do them once a year or so, but obviously am limited by how many games I can play lol
@@razbuten real life also has a time mechanic so you should love that
Lacuna is one of the biggest gaming disappointments, smh. Just a horrible game with lots of wasted potential.
@@D1ndo I'd be curious to hear your thoughts on it a bit more. I'm currently making a video on it and while I agree with it having missed potential, I'd still say it's good despite that.
@@kaldini I tried linking my steam review, but that probably triggers some protection, so, here's my copy:
This being an adventure game and all it is dissappointing that every dialogue in this game is so stiff and unoriginal. Basically every discussion goes like this:
- MC: Tell me X
- NPC: No I don't want to.
- MC: Come on, please tell me.
- NPC: OK, here's X.
The game features an absurd amount of boring running around (holding your controller stick to the right or left) through environments that offer zero interaction, feeling like a chore most of the time.
Combine all of this with the fact that the game does a lot of handholding, so you are almost forced to pick the right choices, and you'll get a very bland experience overall.
Citizen Sleeper is honestly such a good game. It absolutely sucks you into the world and the music just amplifies that you're just trying to live out in space.
I just grabbed it on sale on Switch!
i LOVE CITIZEN SLEEPER. i played it last year and have never gotten over it
Its whole system also lends itself really well to pretty much any rpg. It really makes the time you spend feel valuable rather than a resource you have an infinite amount of.
I consistently listen to the sound track because of how good it is.
I played the whole thing (almost) through in one sitting. Xbox glitched or something and the file never saved. I still haven’t booted it up again because I know it won’t feel the same as experiencing all the choices for the first time again
Unsighted is a gem and I hope Studio Pixel Punk makes more games like it.
Only for pure gameplay tho. Unfortunately it partly relies on story and characters which are awful.
@@V972respectfully disagree
I had some amazing fun with my friends over the years in Pixel Junk Shooter 2 😊
@@V972My guys most of that story is skippable, it's also very easy to digest, not saying you should skip it but you're criticizing nothing there
@@Josuh never said it was complicated.
It has nothing to do with its quality.
Also, the fact that it's skippable also don't play in games favour when you're supposed to manage your most vital resource based on story, since charactera don't exist vacuum. Not that it would've helped if they did, they're pretty one dimensional.
I was sufficiently surprised to see The Swapper on this list. It came out 10 years ago, and I have played through it several times for the sci-fi story and vibe. It was very nice to see it included here :)
I could never play unsighted I’d break down under the pressure of choosing who lives and who dies💀
It's so amazing to see you, a giant UA-camr talk about Cassette Beasts. It truly is an incredible hidden gem and honestly my game of the year
Lil Gator Game is a Masterpiece
everyone needs to play Unsighted as soon as possible
CASSETTE BEASTS MENTION!!!!! I love that game so much, was wonderful to hear u talk abt it and hope it leads to more people playing it
The Case of the Golden Idol is masterful and unique. Absolutely love that game.
Just adding vocal support for Cassete Beasts. Hugely underrated game with a bit of British humour and fun mechanics. Also really enjoyed Nobody Saves the World, for the reasons Raz mentioned. Want to play Citizen Sleeper too, it's on my list!
For some reason, "Curse of the Golden Idol" reminds me of a game i used to play when i was much younger, a educational game called "Word Blaster" set in a hotel with a monster party going on.
You go from room to room playing various word/letter based minigames and you get a clue for each one you complete.
You then have discriptions of a characrer and fill in the gaps with the words that best fit to cross out suspect icons and finally click the right character from a lineup.
I played The Swapper years ago and to me it's a masterpiece. The puzzles are brilliant, the claymation art is super atmospheric, and the story about what conciousness means reminds me of classic sci-fi. It's great!
As a brasilian, see that the fist game you talk about is a game made in my country give me so much happyness
Played Citizen Sleeper, and I never thought I would actually be so engaged in a game that's just reading and dice rolls. And to think, Nobody Saves the World isn't known by many? What a crime b/c it's done by the peeps who made Guacamelee!
seriously need to try most of these, they look so well made
I played Swapper ages ago and it's awesome game, the setting, the story, the puzzles.. Loved it
I'm one minute into the video where you introduce Unsighted. I can definitely say that this is one of my ALL-TIME favorite video-game. It's not a hidden gem, it's a hidden masterpiece.
You have no idea the excitement i felt when i stacked a bunch of boxes and skipped an entire area by accident, just the fact that you're able to do that blew my mind entirely
Citizen Sleeper is so good! I’m not much of a reader, especially not in games, but man this game is so well written that I couldn’t help getting drawn in to the stories and characters.
00:49 - Unsighted
02:42 - Citizen Sleeper
04:26 - Yooka-Laylee and the Impossible Lair
06:26 - Lil Gator Game
07:34 - Cassette Beasts
09:32 - The Case of the Golden Idol
10:31 - The Swapper
11:41 - Nobody Saves the World
I've played 5 of these.
I might be a bit obsessed with the indie scene.
Unsighted, cassette beasts, and citizen sleeper are all what i'd consider must plays.
Have you played a Project Moon game, by chance?
Any other indie games you'd recommend? I'm personally a big fan of No Straight Roads, Clash: Artifacts of Chaos and Soulstice. Interested in the upcoming Genokids as well.
Have you tried The Forgotten City? It’s the standalone version of the incredibly popular skyrim mod, also called “The Forgotten City.” It deals with time loop mechanics in a unique and interesting way.
I absolutely love Unsighted! It's one of my favorite metroidvanias of all time with compelling characters and the tightest isometric gameplay I've ever seen. The game encourages exploration and experimentation of its various mechanics, the amount of times the game has surprised me with its hidden movement and combat tech is baffling, some things that seem surface level at first often times has layers upon layers of hidden movement/combat tech. The game even awards and encourages you to use these boundary breaking techs to your advantage, going so far as to give you achievements for obtaining a lategame item during the tutorial and beating fights that you weren't supposed to!
So glad you mentioned Lil Gator Game! I'd commented about it on a previous video where you included some clips of it but didn't touch on it in the video itself. I love that game it was such a great experience. Really captured that hard sense of growing up but also about reconnecting with that inner child.
Very important to note that YL & the Impossible Lair has a massive sale on right now, so now's the time to check it out if the video interested you! This video also got me to wishlist Cassette Beasts, and everything else is pretty much on my to-be-played (or already played) list already I think! 😊
Unsighted, Cassette Beasts, and THE SWAPPER? Hell yeah, man, spread those recommendations! They’re some of my favorite games!
Man, from The first 2 games in this video I really feel like you would love pathologic 2. It has the same kind of Time mechanics and is also criminally underrated
agreed, pathologic 2 is awsome
I’ve watched H. BomberGuy’s video about Pathologic honestly no less than 30 times
I just watched the trailer on steam and it looks amazing. However, is it satanic or demonic at all? I typically try to avoid games, movies, and shows like this
@@Nazgul265 nope, you good.
He's already tried pathologic 2. He talked about it in his frustration as a feature video. He didn't dig it
Citizen Sleeper feels like a huge game to me, it was everywhere and its wild to me that it came up as being underappreciated or played. But if this gets more people to play it thats great.
Citizien Sleeper is so good. After finishing one story line, I felt so moved, like I felt so connected to the character, I just happy let the game sit as it is, to one day return for the other stories. What I like most, is despite the bleak setting, is is actually quite warmhearted.
Talk about weird coincidences: I JUST finished watching the first video, refreshed UA-cam and saw this was posted 22 mins ago. Sheesh.
The fact that usually these kind of content don't interest me but the fact that I think I'm going to buy at least 3 or 4 out of the games you discussed in this video says it all about the quality of your content, great work
I absolutely loved the Case of the Golden Idol. Was pleasantly surprised to enjoy the plot as well as the puzzles
the character design, alone, makes me want to play unsighted. it's gorgeous
I thought The Swapper was super cool! I played a few years ago and I loved how they told a cool story like that inside of a puzzle game. I remember just being frustrated by some of the puzzles and not being able to figure them out (maybe I was just stupid though)
I know that this vid already has a bunch if recommendations under it, but one that I personally haven't seen enough people talking about is The Messenger by Sabotage Studio. It's inspired by Ninja Gaiden has some of the best 2D platforming I've ever experienced. And the twist at around halfway through is soooooo good, the memory of it still gives me shivers. It's best played entirely blind, not even looking at the trailers or anything. Lots of humor too. 10/10
I've been playing cassette beasts pretty non-stop for the past few days. I've been looking for a good pokemon clone for a while and this is the first one that I've really enjoyed.
I loved the idea of the time limit in unsighted. While i had it on, it really affected how i felt towards the characters. It made them feel real.
I turned it off though, because I'm not good in a time crunch. It made me too stressed in a not fun way.
I haven't finished the game yet though, i might start over and keep the setting on, committing to the story setting and stakes. Think of it more as a nuzlock, intentionally enduring the emotional pain of permadeaths as a feature that makes consequences feel real, rather than a punishment for being bad at videogames. If that makes sense.
Yeah, I think that players hate feeling like they are losing something EVEN when losing that thing or having the threat of losing it can be a powerful motivator that makes a game special.
@@razbuten It's also tricky for players like me, who really enjoy games but are slower than average at accomplishing them, so the expected completion just doesn't work in a way that will let me move forward.
This is the main thing for me too - I am naturally a slow player, so I have avoided Unsighted for the most part as a result.
@@theyxajI was fearing the same when i first played it, but you can copy save files or exit to the menu screen and reload to spawn near the last terminal you accessed, just to be able to experiment more loosely and save time, not saying you have to, but for me it made things more manageable and enjoyable overall without having to disable the timer
If you liked Citizen Sleeper, you'd probably really like Roadwarden as well.
It looks more and more like we're experiencing some new wave of text-heavy, tabletop-like indie RPGs (all of them partially living in the shadow of Disco Elysium, ofc) - and damn, I'm so here for it.
Citizen sleeper is great
Its like a disco elysium but more character focused than story somewhat which i like
Gosh, I can't stress enough how much I love Unsighted and how happy I was by seeing it featured here. Hopefully it gets more love now with your 750k subscribers buying it :)
You should definitely check Anomaly Agent out. A 2d platformer with really smooth combat, much like katana zero. Literally the one indie game that I'm most curious about. I think it has really huge potential.
Lookin so good. Is it yours or just a follower?
Wish it was mine, but no I'm just a follower.
Lem & Mina's storyline in Citizen Sleeper is one of the best storylines I've experienced in all of gaming... that ending is just tears!
Another great indie game many missed out on: Going Under by Aggro Crab Studios. One of my favorite games of all time.
I loved the gameplay of UNSIGHTED, and most of my favorite games have a time constraint mechanic, but I found myself not making connection with the characters since I knew they would die soon, and focused on keeping useful character alive longer.
All of the games in this video I've either played or they've been high on my priority list, so excellent taste Raz.
THANK YOU for mentioning Citizen Sleeper. It's so sleeped on and I wish I knew more people who've played it. One of my favorite cyberpunk indie games ever.
So glad I watched this video, I immediately bought The Case of the Golden Idol because I love Obra Dinn and it seems very much in that same vein. Thanks for making this video :D
I really appreciate that these don't all come from this year. There are older games on the list which lends legitimacy to the idea that games stay good even though they're not new. A lot of youtubers fall into the mindset of only covering new stuff.
Cassette Beasts is such a good game. I loved the complexity of the battle system and how much it made me think, and the music is just sooooo good.
I already knew about most of those games. I guess my wishlist won't grow too much because of this video.
aight I owe you one then. check out prodigal if you like 2d zelda games (especially ones on the gameboy)
The Swapper is a favorite of mine, pretty unique art style due to being made of real-world clay.
i stumbled onto citizen sleeper and had it downloaded for 6 months before i finally decided to play it. it's come out as one of my favorite games of all time. hearing that not many people have actually played it themselves is saddening. anyone who hasn't had the chance should definitely go through it at least once because the characters are so well written and they really feel like actual people you need to help and take care of. also you can feed a stray cat and i think thats cool.
I think it speaks to either my interests leading me to follow indie games more, indie games becoming more visible, or just the fact that there are only so many indie games, but this video includes the MOST indie games I've heard of out of any of the videos in this series.
The swapper doesn't count though, I got that in a humble bundle on my Wii U back in the day
I would also recommend Nobody Saves the World to you guys. To be honest I went into it with somewhat low expectations and wasn't entirely sure if I would like it. But very quickly after getting into it I really started enjoying it. The game is a lot of fun and really blew me away with its quality.
as someone suffering from project moon brainrot, im obligated to recommend checking out lobotomy corporation, library of ruina and possibly limbus company (but that ones a gacha game which, while a generous one, can understandably put people off from it.). Lobcorp is a sorta scp management game where things can go wrong super fast from a single mistake, ruina is a card battler, and limbus is a simplified gacha version of ruina. all of them being closely connected within the same universe with some of my favorite storytelling/worldbuilding ive seen in games. also banger music.
Was looking for this comment! The Project Moon brainrot must spread!
OK you NEED to play Book of Travels. super cool and mysterious and based on experience, its a good game
Swapper is easily one of my favorite games whose storytelling left an impact on me that I'm sure to include in my work moving forward
I've played two of these. I played The Swapper a few years ago, and I agree it's a top-tier puzzle game. Meanwhile, I'm most of the way through Cassette Beasts right now, and I'm thoroughly enjoying it. Interesting character, interesting setting, interesting combat, and great monster design
Three of my favorite indie games not mentioned in either of your Indie game videos are Broforce, Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet. and Bastion. I've replayed those three many times and enjoy them every time I do.
I played crosscode because of you and that became one of my favorite games of all time! Excellent recommendation :)
Your first video made me pick up CrossCode and I absolutely loved it! Definitely going to be looking into all of these. You’ve got my trust
another criminally underated game (but understandably so)
"I was a teenage exocolonist"
is a horrible name for an amazing journey.
i wont explain the premise, as you can just read that on steam.
but shortly explained, it is a "life sim, visual novel, card game" with almost infinite replayability
i fell it's made fora very specific type of people, but if you are one of those people, it will be hard for you to stop thinking about it once you start playing :D
(also the art and music gives weirdly big minecraft vibes)
13:37 nice bait in switch, you genuinly had me confused and worried for a sec, as if Outer Wilds wasn't the Spiderverse of Indie Gaming xD
For indie games, Library of Ruina is undeniably my favorite. Addicting combat with lots of depth, great music, and god tier written characters and story. It’s quite a good game.
First time I played Citizen Sleeper I had zero expectations. Was expecting I’d probably turn it off after an hour but 6 hours later I was shocked at not only how much time time I had played but how much I enjoyed that time I spent.
I am afraid for the future installment: ‘Even More Indie Games You Missed (Definitely. I now know your life)’
I think this is the first time I've ever seen the Swapper mentioned since I played it 10 years ago. Still one of my faves.
We need more wife plays games as nongamer videos
Gonna take this opportunity to rep Wandersong. It's a game where you sing as the primary mechanic, and they use that in so many different ways to help you get around the world. And the world is the best part, because every character is deep and enjoyable, even the ones that only get a few lines as background NPCs. Also, there is a button that lets you dance at any time, even during conversations.
I really appreciate that you put the link of each game in your description bar
Oh mate, _The Swapper_ is a true work of art. The first time I played it and got to the Rec Room level I just sat there for half an hour listening to the music. Can't recommend it enough!
Last winter, I told a dear friend I had feelings for her, and she told me she didn't feel the same.
I was devastated. I felt stupid, rejected, and unloved.
Citizen Sleeper and its marvelous writing & atmosphere helped me begin to see the light and heal. I give my full reccomendation
There is someone out there for you, there always is.
@@restfulairstream9612 I hope so, but I'm learning to enjoy life in the moment and be grateful for everything I have instead of hyper-focusing on what I don't :)
@@saintallisonThank you for sharing this. I'm going through something similar at the moment so it's nice to see someone making it through the struggle.
@@DjokovicIsOurLordAndSaviour It's not easy to persevere and cling to hope, but I promise it's worth it. You're not alone!
I'm usually not a fan of time limits in games, but Unsighted seems to make a *really* cool use of it from what you described
Oh yeah, generally you have enough meteor dust to spare to keep most NPC's alive and yourself, but there's a point where you don't have that privilege anymore so you're more motivated to finish in time to save everyone, it's definitely an immersive experience on your first playthrough
my steam wishlist grows ever longer
I found my people
Adorable list. My kids are in elementary school and this has some bangers for them
me and my wife played through Case of the Golden Idol recently and we both loved it. absolutely great game, reminded me a lot of Obra Dinn (then you immediately said it was like that as I wrote this lol)
I LOVE CITIZEN SLEEPER. for people who are interested, I highly recommend leveling up your intuit skill for the dice reroll, as it allows you to reroll your low die after you've already used your good ones. before you start the DLC definitely stock up on all materials and get the engineering skill that allows condition to be repaired with scrap, you can farm it in the wasteland above the greenway (get at least 20 before starting the first DLC episode, it can be hard to juggle everything that comes with that while not at full dice). finally, never end your cycles with unused die, the low rolls can be used to get data from yatagan/havenage ports (this also becomes easier upon leveling intuit).
I just appreciate that Raz didn't presume to know my life and the games that I have played as so many other videos do. Also heck yeah for Cassette Beasts and its ABSOLUTELY COSMIC soundtrack!
Citizen Sleeper is an absolute gem. Glad you enjoyed it
I adore BOTH of the Yooka Laylee games. They're both fantastic to me and it warmed my heart that Yooka Laylee got to be my sons first 3D platformer. He might not be able to play Banjo and Kazooe anymore, but he still got that experience and it makes me so happy.
Also if you want another hidden gem recommendation. Lost Words: Beyond the Page is a fantastic game that I think deserves a lot more love. The game suffers from the fact that it released initially on Stadia (oof), but it's such a good game and I can't recommend it enough.
Weaving Tides is another cool INCREDIBLY hidden gem. It was so hidden that it had been out for a while when I played, yet it had NO achievement guides. For the first time in years I actually had to figure out how to get something because there was no guide to rely on to find stuff. There have since been guides made, but man was that a cool experience.
Citizen Sleeper - same. I started in the evening and finished around 5am! No game has ever had me so hooked. I did feel that the gameplay loop was very cleverly crafted. "Just one more go". But the dice roll the right numbers to keep you hooked. I don't think the RNG was particularly random. But that suits me 👍👍
The fact that I played most of these games and the rest being on my wishlist feeds into my main chracter syndrome lol
Ahhhh my goodness the blast of nostalgia you hit me with CrossCode at the beginning there... I need to do a replay of that game badly.
Citizen Sleeper has one of my favorite video game soundtracks of all time. I listen to it so much.
I hadn't heard about Citizen Sleeper until this video but I'm watching this video because my chronic illness is bad and I'm pretty much stuck in bed. Your description of the game perfectly encapsulates the feeling of living with chronic illness. It brought a tear to my eye. Sounds like I'll have to check it out.
I played through FAR: Lone Sails recently and I am so surprised no one has talked about it. Its super simple, maybe like 30 minutes long but I loved it. Its a moody, steampunk game about driving a little car/ship thingy. Its almost Spiritfarer esque but more puzzle focused than mini game/resource gathering. Its super cute and I recommend people get it on sale if they need a short game for a rainy day.
The sequel, FAR: Changing Tides, is an excellent follow-up too!
One relatively unknown game I really like is Hayai. It's like a mix of a hack and slash samurai game and a too down strategy game. Your character is ambushed by more and more enemies, and you have a bar that fills up over time. Once that bar is filled up, you can stop time and basically draw a path for your character to take, instantly destroying all enemies and projectile in their path. Eventually, as more and more enemies attack, it becomes almost like a puzzle trying to figure out the best route. And it's only $1.5, so there's basically no risk in playing it.
Very happy to see The Swapper getting some love 10 years after its original release. I have been championing it for years in the Vita community. It's so good that it lives rent free in my head.
I watched Vinny play Lil Gator Game, and as someone with an older sister who I am now physically apart from and don't have as much time to talk with, the game really made me cry. I bought the game for my sister for her birthday and I hope it makes her cry too.
Thank you so much for mentioning unsighted. I absolutely love that game and it is so under-recognized
How is every video you make an absolute gem? Thank you for this amazing content.
Cassette beasts is unironically one of the best games ive ever played oh my god i cant get enough of it
"Trigaea is an epic 272,000-word piece of interactive fiction. It's a combination of a sci-fi novel and an RPG adventure game, where you are in control of the story. " I found it fun
Nobody Saves the World was such a great experience. I've heard of all of these games, but it's always nice to see indies get spotlit.
13:30 - what a rollercoaster of emotions in just 10 seconds.
The rookie harbor theme from crosscode in the beggining is just awesome