Playdate Season Two, Spray Paint Simulator and different new indie video games price testing

One of many many stunning issues concerning the indie gaming scene is that there is at all times one thing to take a look at. So when you do not fancy taking part in Elden Ring: Nightreign this weekend, there are many different new choices. That can assist you sustain with what is going on on within the area, here is our weekly indie recreation roundup.

As a heads up, we can’t be publishing an version of this roundup subsequent week. Not as a result of there will not be sufficient video games to focus on. Fairly the alternative: Summer time Sport Fest kicks off on Friday June 6. There will likely be actually lots of of recreation bulletins and updates. There’s additionally the small matter of the Nintendo Switch 2’s arrival in a matter of days.

You’ll be able to try what to anticipate from SGF and learn how to look at the varied showcases in our preview. We’ll be bringing you information on titles of all styles and sizes from Summer time Sport Fest Reside, Xbox Video games Showcase and different occasions. We’ll even be on the bottom in Los Angeles to go fingers on with most of the newly introduced video games. Sustain with our protection right here on Engadget all through SGF.

Within the meantime, there are a number of recent video games to savor, in addition to peeks at what’s coming your approach within the coming weeks and months. Let’s get to it.

Thinky Direct

This showcase from Thinky Video games was jam full of fascinating puzzle and thriller video games. Two particularly caught my eye. The primary is a really intriguing first-person archery puzzler. In He Who Watches, you will stroll on partitions, rotate rooms and use a bow and arrow to resolve puzzles. It jogs my memory of the shrines in The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom. A demo is out now on Steam and the total recreation ought to arrive this fall.

The opposite recreation that basically stood out to me was Echo Weaver, a so-called “Metroidbraina.” Not like in lots of Metroidvanias, the place you should discover energy ups or new talents to progress, right here you will transfer ahead by buying information, together with determining your character’s particular talents.

There are no procedurally generated parts right here. As with the likes of Outer Wilds, every run is time-based. You’ll find methods to increase the restrict or sacrifice a while to move by way of a barrier. Echo Weaver is coming to Steam and Xbox (together with Sport Go).

There was numerous different fascinating stuff within the first-ever Thinky Direct. I actually benefit from the chill prepare puzzler Railbound and it was neat to search out out that there is a level editor accessible in beta. Kiko’s Apple Adventure is an adorable-looking block-pushing recreation through which the goal is to nudge apples onto rafts. It simply arrived on Steam.

The Button Impact incorporates a museum with lots of buttons, every with a goal so that you can discover out. It looks like a sure Taskmaster task taken to new extremes. The primary public demo simply hit Steam.

Nonolith is one other compelling recreation that was featured within the showcase. On this puzzle platformer, you possibly can copy and paste blocks to create openings, bridges and staircases. At first look, it jogs my memory a little bit of Animal Nicely. Monolith is coming to Steam in 2026.

New releases

One factor positively price getting enthusiastic about this week when you personal a selected yellow console with a crank proprietor is the beginning of Playdate Season Two. Each Thursday all through the six-week season (which prices $39), two new video games arrive on Panic’s diminutive system.

The primary batch contains the charming-looking Dig! Dig! Dino! and Fulcrum Defender. The latter of these is from FTL: Quicker Than Gentle and Into the Breach studio Subset Video games, whose co-founder Jay Ma went through hell to make Fulcrum Defender.

One of many titles included within the season, Blippo+, is a full-motion video game. It would have weekly episodic updates for 12 weeks, extending far past the remainder of the Season Two window. The primary episode is out now.

Trails is a beautiful puzzle recreation that just landed on Steam. You may information sandships to their vacation spot by drawing a path for them. You’ll be able to’t take a ship by way of the identical sq. twice, and you may want to ensure they do not crash into one another. There are obstacles, in fact, and you may typically have to gather and ship cargo.

I’ve loved my time with Trails to this point. Developer PurpleSloth steadily teaches you the best way to play by way of trial and error, and it provides new hazards and mechanics at a pleasant tempo, although the puzzles do change into fairly difficult.

You’ll have spent many nice hours cleansing grime off of varied objects and iconic landmarks in PowerWash Simulator (which is ready to get a sequel later this year). It is time to flip the script a bit in Spray Paint Simulator, from North Star Video Video games and writer Whitethorn Video games.

The idea is fairly comparable, in that you will full jobs for shoppers by portray sure objects or environments. There aren’t any deadlines right here and a function that permits you to masks an space to make sure you get clear strains is a pleasant contact. If marking your territory on public or personal property with sick, definitely-not-ugly tags is extra your factor, there is a free spray mode which you can play alone or with a pal in co-op.

Spray Paint Simulator is out now on Steam, PS4, PS5, Xbox One and Xbox Collection X/S. It is on Sport Go too. The sport can be coming to Nintendo Change on June 19.

Everlasting Evil debuted on Steam again in 2022, and two and a half years later, the survival horror recreation has made the soar to PS5 and Xbox Series X/S. It has principally optimistic evaluations on Steam and appears very a lot within the vein of the Resident Evil sequence (it even has a twin narrative with two characters to play). You may tackle vampires that get stronger as they feed on this recreation from solo developer Honor Video games.

How might I not embrace a recreation with a reputation like Trash Goblin? This can be a cozy shopkeeping title from Spilt Milk Studios that simply got here out of early entry on Steam. You may unearth, restore and upcycle trinkets to promote to prospects so you possibly can improve your store. It appears one you may relax with.

Elsewhere, To a T, a recreation we mentioned last week, is out now on Xbox Collection X/S, Sport Go, PS5, Steam and the Epic Video games Retailer. Cowboy-themed life sim Cowboy Country simply landed on Steam, PlayStation, Xbox and Nintendo Change as effectively.

Upcoming

I’ve had my eye on Kingmakers for some time. It is a utterly bananas-looking mix of third-person taking pictures and technique recreation from Redemption Highway through which you journey again in time to a medieval warfare, bringing trendy weapons and autos with you. Writer tinyBuild revealed during a showcase this week that Kingmakers will debut in early entry on Steam on October 8. Actually trying ahead to that one.

Past the Board is a moody-looking journey that takes a rook… effectively, past a chess board. It takes inspiration from puzzle video games like Limbo and Monument Valley, so it should not be an excessive amount of of a shock that the story is informed by way of visible storytelling and soundscapes relatively than dialogue. This recreation from Fragile Shapes Studio does not but have a launch window, however you possibly can try a demo on Steam now.

An prolonged demo for a fast-paced, melee-focused dungeon runner known as Bloodthief dropped this week. It seems like a lo-fi, medieval spin on Ghostrunner (a sequence I enjoy but am quite bad at) however with vampires. So sure, I will likely be digging into this when I’ve an opportunity. The unique demo is claimed to have 20 or so hours of gameplay and there is much more within the prolonged model, which will likely be featured in Steam Subsequent Fest. Bloodthief, from developer Blargis, is slated to reach later this 12 months.

I’ll shut this version out with a recreation you will in all probability by no means be capable of play. Developer Kenney says that, just a few years again, they helped a younger Star Wars fan make a recreation primarily based on The Mandalorian after a Make-a-Want related the pair. It is a heartwarming story, and the sport seems fairly charming primarily based on the clip that Kenney shared on BlueSky. Nevertheless, for authorized causes, it’s going to probably keep below lock and key, sadly.

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