Several indie game showcases took place on Thursday, highlighting upcoming titles and new releases across platforms like Steam, Nintendo Switch, and PS5. Highlights include Zelda-inspired adventures, skateboarding games, and innovative concepts from solo developers. Steam Next Fest runs from February 23 to March 2, offering demos for many titles.
Indie game developers shared updates through multiple showcases on Thursday. The Black Voices in Gaming Showcase featured trailers for available games such as Space Warlord Baby Trading Simulator, Aerial_Knight's DropShot, and Relooted, alongside previews of forthcoming titles. Erased, an open-world fighting game set in a cyberpunk world with dance battles and parkour, is in development by solo creator Jerron Jacques, who handled some motion capture personally.
The Convergence Showcase provided a first look at a boss in Mouse: P.I. for Hire, a first-person shooter with rubber-hose animation scheduled for March 19. Gecko Gods, a Zelda-inspired adventure, will launch on Nintendo Switch, PS5, and PC on April 16. Wax Heads, a record shop simulation, arrives on PC, Xbox Series X/S, PS5, and Nintendo Switch on May 5, with a demo available during Steam Next Fest.
Indie Fan Fest announced Raccoin, a roguelike deckbuilder in a coin pusher format from Playstack, set for March 31, with a demo now live. GridBeat, a rhythm-based dungeon crawler under Acclaim, targets Nintendo Switch and Steam on March 26. InKonbini: One Store. Many Stories, a Japanese convenience store simulator, is planned for Steam, PS5, Nintendo Switch, and Xbox in April.
The Quebec Games Celebration Showcase introduced Surfpunk, a co-op action RPG with surfing elements from Double Stallion, due later this year, featuring procedural islands and craftable gadgets. Other titles include the precision platformer Croak, Tears of Metal hack-and-slash roguelite for spring, and Gothic sci-fi Metroidvania Silent Planet.
New releases include Under The Island, an action RPG resembling The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, available now on Steam, Xbox, PS4, PS5, and Nintendo Switch for $20 with a 15 percent launch discount. Demon Tides, a 3D open-world platformer with shapeshifting, is out on Steam for $25, discounted to $20 until March 5. Skate Bums, a 2D skateboarding game akin to OlliOlli, launched on Nintendo Switch for $15 with a 15 percent discount until February 27. Love Eternal, a psychological horror platformer, is available on multiple platforms for $10 with a launch discount.
Upcoming games feature the Adventure Game Aptitude Test on February 28, a four-hour '80s-style adventure challenge. People of Note, a musical narrative adventure, arrives April 7 on various platforms for $25 with a 10 percent discount. Titanium Court, a surrealist roguelike strategy game, is coming to Steam imminently. Become, a third-person adventure where players control a sperm, is slated for later this year on Steam.
