Open-world games developed by Indie Companies are quite rare to find, but when players keep looking, they will eventually find some titles that will open their eyes like nothing they have experienced before. Indie devs have brought innovation to countless titles, and some of them came with incredible mechanics that set a before and after in terms of gameplay.
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In this list, players will find open-world games that will make them read the 'Indie' label with a new and different perspective. From a game that has put the S in the Survival experience like no other, to an ever-expanding universe exploration game that has beaten the odds, the criticism, and shown the potential of what an Indie studio can do when they reach for the stars.
Beware! This list contains some spoilers from the following games: V Rising, Don't Starve, Mirthwood, Bellwright, and Kenshi. Readers are advised to exercise caution.
8 Don't Starve
It's Art-style And Challenging Gameplay Are Unique In Every Sense
Don't Starve
- Released
- April 23, 2013
WHERE TO PLAY
- ESRB
- T For Teen due to Fantasy, Violence, Crude Humor
- Genre(s)
- Survival, Management
One of the things that players enjoy most about Don't Starve (and Don't Starve Together) is that it offers a balanced experience between exploration and survival, and forces players to learn fast and adapt to unexpected situations. Don't Starve's uniqueness is also due to its Tim-Burton-like art style, which mixes gothic scenarios and worldbuilding with quirky characters and horrifying things lurking in the darkness.
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It's quite fitting to call this game the perfect combination of dark humor and survival horror, though its open world sandbox is ruled by randomly generated seeds (like most survival games) that offer players a unique experience each time they set foot in it.
7 Mirthwood
A Homage To The Golden Age Of Adventure Games
Mirthwood
- Released
- November 6, 2024
WHERE TO PLAY
- Genre(s)
- RPG, Farming, Simulation
Mirthwood is a lovely and unique comedic adventure game, based on the old folk tales, Arthurian mythology, and heavily inspired by the original Fable games. The combination of open world exploring, combat, crafting, and surviving from a side-scrolling perspective is such a relaxing experience that players can lose themselves for hours in this game.
But calling it a 'cozy-game' wouldn't be proper, as much as players might try, they won't be able to avoid facing dangerous situations to progress further down the adventure. Like fighting werewolves, bandits, and other creatures of darkness that lurk around its many biomes.
6 Bellwright
The Perfect Game To Start A Revolution And Oust The Feudal Lord
Bellwright
- Released
- April 23, 2024
WHERE TO PLAY
- ESRB
- m
- Genre(s)
- Survival, Open-World, RPG
Bellwright will set a before and after for those who enjoy medieval combat, and also the experience of managing their own fiefdom with everything that implies. From encouraging villagers to settle in their improvised shelters to raising the war banner in a medieval fortress, there are tons of things to do in between.
The story compels the players to fight against an unjust Feudal Lord by founding their village and starting an internal peasant insurrection. Fighting tax collectors, liberating villages from oppression, and gathering allies and commanding them in full-scale battles. It's a massive experience made by the studios that created Last Oasis, Donkey Crew.
5 Terraria
Enormous, Magnificent, Colorful Open-world
Terraria
- Released
- May 16, 2011
WHERE TO PLAY
From the myriad of Indie open-world games available on the market, Terraria remains one of the strongest and most popular titles, and for a very good reason: It's an enormous and endless experience, perfect for those who love classic RPG-style games, and tons of places to explore.
One of the things that draws more players to think Terraria is superior in many aspects that the average open-world game is its particular level of freedom. Similarly to titles like Minecraft, the game developed by Andrew Spinks and his reduced team, maximizes the effect players have in the world, by responding to each of their actions with consequences.
4 Kenshi
A Game With A Complexity That Will Drive Some Players Mad, And Make Others Fall In Love
Kenshi
- Released
- December 6, 2018
WHERE TO PLAY
- ESRB
- nr
- Genre(s)
- RPG, Open-World, Survival
If players ever dreamed of being a post-apocalyptic world warlord, or a crafty merchant traversing the wastelands, doing anything for profit, or a vicious cult leader, then Kenshi is what they are looking for. This game has an extreme level of difficulty and also a level of depth that few other games have.
From its particularly complex combat system, to the tremendous lore behind every Faction in the game, Kenshi is an unforgettable open-world game, that would make players doubt it was produced by an Indie studio.
3 Subnautica
Puts the 'T' In Thalassophobia, Impossible To Not Get Scared Playing This Game
Subnautica
- Released
- January 23, 2018
WHERE TO PLAY
From all the things Subnautica and its sequel have to offer, there's a particular thing that makes it such an intense experience that will make players shiver in fear each time they step into the waters of this enormous oceanic open-world: They never know what they are going to find after dropping from the pod.
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Dangerous creatures from the vicious Stalker to the colossal Reaper Leviathan lurk in the waters, and if players are not extremely careful, they can become the food of basically anything that swims around these waters. It's an intense experience that has been carefully produced and elevated to near-perfection by a small Indie Team.
2 V-Rising
Raise A Vampire Lord, And Rule A Huge Open-World
V-Rising
V Rising
- Released
- May 8, 2024
WHERE TO PLAY
is a weird game, but that doesn't make it any bad. On the contrary, the particularities of this game that combines a traditional ARPG third-person view with an open-world setting where Vampires are the main characters are quite effective. Add PvPvE to the mix, with incredibly difficult bosses, a gear-leveling system that is locked behind facing these powerful enemies, and base building/survival in a dark fantasy world, and you get a killer combo.
The combat system, which combines weapon skills and magics of seven different types is really something else. The game was developed by Stunlock Studios, a small Indie team from Skövde, Sweden, and it has already delivered 3 immense expansions that have enlarged its open-world map even more. It even has a permanent collaboration with the Castlevania franchise, where players can face Simon Belmont as one of the main bosses in the game.
1 No Man's Sky
Born Too Early To Explore The Stars? I Beg To Differ
No Man's Sky
- Released
- August 9, 2016
WHERE TO PLAY
No Man's Sky and Hello Games are synonymous with beating all the odds and showing the world the power of Indie devs. When the game first launched back in 2016, people were expecting a lot, with a level of Hype that hadn't been seen in the game industry since the first Skyrim trailer first dropped. But, since the game was freshly out of the oven, and had some performance issues, as well as an absolutely random procedural engine, people were disappointed at not seeing the wondrous worlds Hello Games promised with their trailers.
But the truth was, the game was so enormous that players didn't have enough time to explore it and make an appropriate judgment of the potential of the game. Later, with several expansions adding more and more features to the game, this space exploration open-world game reached its true potential. Over the years, more and more content has been added, and their firm policy of delivering free and fresh content has worked wonders to retain their active player levels. No Man's Sky is a paragon of what it means to be Indie.