Leaderboard
Welcome to the Indie Gamer Chick Leaderboard. This is where you’ll find my up-to-date rankings of every indie game (by the criteria I define as indie) I’ve played that has received a “positive” review and thus earned the Indie Gamer Chick Seal of Approval. Remember, all rankings are based on my personal preferences and not anything else.
So how did I determine the order? Once a game wins the Indie Gamer Chick Seal of Approval, I go to the Leaderboard and compare it to others on the list. I typically start in the center of the board and compare the new game to one of the other ranked games, asking myself if I would rather play the new game or the game already on the board. I keep doing this until I find a spot where I would rather play the game above it, but not the game below it. It’s pretty accurate. However, that opinion can shift based upon reflection or a game receiving its Second Chance.
Total indie games reviewed by Indie Gamer Chick: 643
Total Approved Games: 306
Percentage Approved: 47.58%
Latest Game: Chompy Chomp Chomp Party (#33)
Note: If you need to verify that an indie’s ranking applies to platforms not listed, ask me on Twitter @IndieGamerChick
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Dead Cells (Xbox, Nintendo Switch, PSN, PC)
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Axiom Verge (PSN, Nintendo Switch, Xbox, PC)
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Cuphead (Nintendo Switch, Xbox, PSN, PC)
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Gris: (Nintendo Switch, Steam)
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Shovel Knight (Wii U, PS4, Xbox One, PC)
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Donut Dodo (Nintendo Switch, Steam)
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Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge (Switch, PSN, Xbox, PC)
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LOVE 3* (Nintendo Switch, Steam, *INCLUDES Kuso)
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SteamWorld Quest: Hand of Gilgamech (Switch, PC)
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SteamWorld Dig 2 (Switch, PS4, Vita, PC)
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Journey (PS3)
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Escape Goat 2 (Steam, PS4)
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Kerbal Space Program (PC, Xbox One)
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Angry Video Game Nerd I & II Deluxe (Switch, Xbox One, PS4, PC)
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Baba is You (Switch, PC)
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Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon (XB1, PS4, Vita, Switch, Steam)
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Garbage Pail Kids: Mad Mike and the Quest for Stale Gum (Switch, PS, Xbox, PC, NES)
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Strikey Sisters (Switch, PC)
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Escape Simulator (PC)
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Sportsfriends (PS4, PS3, PC)
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Fez (Vita, PS4, PS3, Xbox 360, PC)
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Iron Crypticle (Nintendo Switch, PS4, Xbox One, PC)
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Kingdom (PC)
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The Deadly Tower of Monsters (Steam, PS4)
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Undertale (PC)
- Bleed 2 (Xbox One, Switch, PS4, Steam)
- Escape Goat (XBLIG, PC)
- Böbl (NES Indie, Evercade)
- Gunmetal Arcadia Zero (PC)
- Chasm (Xbox One, PS4, Switch, Vita, Steam)
- Astro Aqua Kitty (Switch, PS4, Vita, Steam)
- Dawn of the Monsters (Switch, PlayStation, Xbox, PC)
- Chompy Chomp Chomp Party (Nintendo Switch, Steam)
- Venture Kid (Switch, Steam)
- Infectonator (iOS, Android, PC)
- Gateways! (XBLIG, PC)
- Terraria (PS3, PS4, Xbox One, PC)
- We Are Cubes (XBLIG)
- Shutshimi (PS4, Steam, Wii U)
- Dungeon Defenders (XBLA, PS3, PC)
- SteamWorld Dig (3DS, PS4, PC)
- Dead Pixels (XBLIG, PC)
- The Unfinished Swan (PS3, PS4, Vita)
- Yoku’s Island Express (PS4, XB1, Switch, PC)
- OMG-Zombies! / OMG-HD Zombies! (PC, Vita)
- Death Coming (Switch, PS4, PC, iOS, Android)
- Magicians & Looters (XBLIG, PC)
- Pix the Cat (Vita)
- CastleStorm (XBLA, PS3, PS4, Xbox One, Wii U, Vita, PC)
- Doki Doki Universe (PS4, PS3, Vita)
- Bleed (XBLIG, PC)
- Thomas Was Alone (PS3, PS4, Vita, Xbox One, Wii U, PC)
- Papers, Please (PC)
- Return of the Obra Dinn (PC, PlayStation Network, Xbox, Switch)
- SteamWorld Heist (3DS)
- Q-Yo Blaster (Nintendo Switch)
- Arcadecraft (XBLIG, PC)
- Chester (XBLIG, PC)
- Hypership Out of Control / Hypership Still Out of Control (iOS, Steam)
- Slayaway Camp (Steam)
- Jack N’ Jill DX (Switch, Vita, Xbox One, PS4, Steam, Mobile)
- Antipole (XBLIG, DSi, PC)
- Miner Dig Deep (XBLIG)
- Toki Tori 2+ (Wii U, PC)
- Cthulhu Saves the World (XBLIG, PC)
- Vintage Hero (XBLIG, PC)
- Plague Inc. / Plague Inc.: Evolved (iOS, Android, Steam)
- Spelunky (Vita, PS3, PS4, Vita, XBLA)
- Penny Arcade’s On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness 3 (PC, XBLIG)
- Spyleaks (XBLIG, PC)
- Pixel Blocked! (XBLIG)
- Aesop’s Garden (XBLIG)
- Praey for the Gods (PlayStation, Xbox, PC)
- Plug Me (PC)
- Cthulhu Saves Christmas (Nintendo Switch, Steam, PlayStation 5)
- Pushy and Pully in Blockland (Xbox One, PS4, Switch, Steam)
- Chime Sharp (PC, PS4, Xbox One)
- Find Me (PS4, PC)
- DLC Quest & DLC Quest: Live Freemium or Die (PC, XBLIG)
- Super Amazing Wagon Adventure (PC, XBLIG)
- Gyro Boss DX (Nintendo Switch, Steam)
- Blocks That Matter (PC, XBLIG)
- Little Racers STREET (PC, XBLIG)
- TORIDAMA: Brave Challenge (Switch)
- Orbitron: Revolution (PC, XBLIG)
- Downwell (PC)
- Hidden in Plain Sight
- There Is No Game: Lost Dimension (Nintendo Switch, PC)
- The Adventures of Elena Temple (Nintendo Switch, PC)
- Cape’s Escape Games (Nintendo Switch, iOS)
- Smooth Operators (XBLIG, PC)
- Minigame Marathon (XBLIG)
- Mount Your Friends (PC, XBLIG)
- From Below (NES Indie)
- TIC Part 1 (XBLIG)
- Flight Adventure 2 (XBLIG)
- Cubixx (PlayStation Mobile)
- Ridiculous Fishing (iPhone)
- You Died but a Necromancer Revived You (Switch, PC)
- Toki Tori (Wii U, PC)
- Circix (Android, iPhone)
- Alien Jelly (XBLIG)
- Lexiv (XBLIG)
- Johnny Platform Saves Christmas (XBLIG)
- Wizorb (PC, XBLIG)
- Lair of the Evildoer (XBLIG)
- Crystal Hunters (XBLIG)
- LaserCat (XBLIG, PC)
- Breath of Death VII (PC, XBLIG)
- Decimation X3 (XBLIG)
- Limbo (XBLA, PS3, Vita, PC)
- Mystery Castle (PC, Xbox One, Ouya)
- Save Me Mr. Tako: Definitive Edition (Switch, PC)
- Star Ninja (XBLIG, Windows Phone)
- Shower With Your Dad Simulator 2015 (Steam)
- NOT A HERO (PC)
- You Have to Win the Game (PC)
- Wonder Boy: The Dragon’s Trap (PC, PS4, Xbox One, Switch)
- Treasure Stack (Switch, Xbox One, Steam)
- Minit (XB1, PS4, Steam)
- Safety First (Switch, Steam)
- Marble Masters: The Pit (XBLIG)
- Avatar Grand Prix 2 (XBLIG)
- qrth-phyl (XBLIG)
- Take Arms (XBLIG)
- SEAL Team 12 (XBLIG, PC)
- Charlie Murder (XBLA)
- Hive (PC, XBLIG)
- Aqua Kitty (Vita, PC)
- The Last Tinker: City of Colors (PS4, PC)
- Adventures of Pip (PS4, Steam, Wii U, Xbox One)
- Not Not – A Brain Buster (Switch, iOS, Android)
- Doodle World (NES, Evercade)
- Final Flight of the Perseus (iPhone)
- Bit.Trip Presents Runner 2: Future Legend of Rhythm Alien (Wii U, PS3, Steam)
- The Vanishing of Ethan Carter (PS4, PC)
- Maddening Euphoria (Nintendo Switch, Steam)
- Space Crüesader (XBLIG)
- Diehard Dungeon
- Super Win: The Game
- Jacob Jones and the Bigfoot Mystery
- Gunslugs (Vita)
- LightFish
- Video Wars
- Quell Memento
- Penny Arcade’s On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness 4
- Square Heroes (PS4, Steam)
- Wind-Up Knight
- Alien Siege
- Ninja360°
- Shark Attack Deathmatch (XBLIG)
- Cosmochoria
- Cute Things Dying Violently
- Aban Hawkins & the 1000 Spikes
- Bad Caterpillar (Steam)
- Dark Delve
- Johnny Platform’s Biscuit Romp
- The Last Time (Steam)
- Super Ninja Warrior Extreme
- Blocks and Tanks (XBLIG)
- Andromium
- Spermatozoon
- The Cannon
- Hook (Steam)
- Mega Coin Squad
- Gon’ E-Choo
- Bug Ball
- Platformance: Temple Death
- Bird Assassin
- SpellKeeper (Nintendo Switch, Steam, Mobile)
- Ascent of Kings
- Spoids
- King Oddball (PlayStation 4, Vita, iPhone, Android, PC, Mac)
- March to the Moon
- Crosstown
- HACOTAMA
- Platformance: Castle Pain
- Adventure in the Tower of Flight (Steam)
- Color Zen (Wii U)
- Asphalt Jungle 2
- Parasitus: Ninja Zero
- Doom & Destiny
- Super Dungeon Quest
- Parallax
- I Made a Game with Zombies in It!
- Clear Vision
- Gravity Quest (Steam)
- Little Acorns Deluxe
- Magnetic By Nature (XBLIG)
- Sherbet Thieves: Moonshine Edition
- Pendulous
- Squadron Scramble
- Block the Laser
- Obsessive Collecting Disorder
- The Impossible Game
- Farm Together (PS4, Xbox One, Switch, PC)
- Growing Pains
- Plug & Play
- Battle High 2
- Crystal Skies
- Pixelosity
- Dude, Stop (Steam)
- Dots
- Little Inferno
- Black Widow: Recharged (Switch, PlayStation, Xbox, PC)
- The Old Tree
- Centipede: Recharged (Switch, PlayStation, Xbox, PC)
- Avatar Trivia Party 2
- Avatar Trivia Party
- Zomp 3: The Quest for Z’s
- Don’t Feed the Trolls
- Inferno!
- EvilQuest
- Quiet, Please!
- Life of Pixel
- Sunny Seeds
- Storage Warfare
- Sportsball (Wii U)
- Baezult (Steam)
- Hop Til You Drop
- About To Blow Up Part 1
- Mr. Gravity
- Pingvinas
- Blok Drop U (Wii U)
- Motorbike Stunt Agent Julie
- Blocky
- Lots of Guns
- Random the Dungeon
- Puzzle Cubicle
- Who is God
- Sushi Castle
- kubic
- Volley
- Retrocade: DataStream Y2K600
- 48 Chambers
- Grand Theft Froot
- Elfsquad7
- Default Dan
- Ocean Drive Challenge
- Ramen Ninja
- Multitasking
- Starzzle
- Spectrangle360
- Produce Wars
- Demon House: FPS
- Fly O’Clock (Nintendo Switch, Steam)
- Zombie Compound
- Blow Me Up
- Human Subject
- Voxel Runner
- MotorHEAT
- Mandagon (Steam)
- Oozi: Earth Adventures – Ep 2, Ep 3, Ep 4.
- Hiiro
- Ultimate Dodgeball
- Dead Horizon (Steam)
- Mirror
- Robot Platformer
- Trailer Park King Episode 2
- Katana Land
- Avatar Panic
- The Useful Dead
- 8BitBoy
- Triviador
- Washington’s Wig
- Warp Shooter
- Shoot 1UP
- Footboholics
- Defy Gravity
- Meep 2 – Jumping Evolved
- Trailer Park King 3DD
- Maze of Apes
- Doc Logic
- Trailer Park King
- MiG Madness
- Pester
- Dot Dash: episode 1
- Hack This Game
- Clicker Heroes (PC)
- Lucky
- Haunt the House: Terrortown
- Bungee Ferret Tossing
- High Gravity Wells
- Nessie
- Blockt
- Space Cat! (Creators Collection)
- Super Skull Smash GO!
- Uncraft Me !
- Droppin’ Ballz
- Flowrider
- Bluebones Curse
- Fatal Seduction
- Dark Matter
- Trivia or Die: Movie Edition
- E.Y.E.R.I.S.
- Super Brain Eat 3
- ERMO (Xbox One Creators Collection)
- Puzzled Rabbit
- Bureau: Shattered Slipper
- Bad Bunny
- Kobold’s Quest
- Cookie Clicker
- Send in Jimmy
- Devil Blood
- Arcade of Neon
- Block Legend DX
Indie Gamer Chick 
No Mystic Forest, shame on you Kairi !
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No voxel games? That’s a shame, I love the concept of procedurally generated worlds and adventures. I hope that the genre isn’t becoming stale, it has a lot of potential.
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Wait … where’s MOAR FEZ?! JK, loving the leaderboard concept. I definitely want to try what you have approved here; builds confidence 🙂
How is Journey on Xbox Live?
I haven’t updated the wording of the board yet. The board is now fully multi-platform.
Im just curious as to where you are drawing the indie line? Journey being your top game really begs the question. It’s a hard line to draw these days but Journey is not thatgamecompany’s first game. It’s not self published seeings as it is a part of a three game contract with sony. And budget is debatable too because while I can’t comment on the numbers I don’t imagine it was an issue. Is it a development team size type deal?
Just so were clear I am not trying to be rude. I am just curious of your opinion.
I tried to nail down the line and determined it was impossible. I base thatgamecompany as Indie because they created and executed Journey with a small house, small budget, and NO oversight from any other company. Sony had no input at all. I debate these issues to this day.
Well I think the points for thatgamecompany are debatable considering the budget was in the multimillions and went through two extensions with the help of Sony. In fact there was a little controversy from thatgamecompany for getting royalties when Journey released because Sony had to make back their investment first.
http://www.vg247.com/2013/03/13/journey-cost-multiple-millions-of-dollars-no-royalties-for-a-year/
Sony is great company or so I have heard for giving free reign on projects. But on top of that they dish out a lot of money and a lot of “free marketing” to their publisher funded projects. Hello Games (now widely recognized for No Man’s Sky) reported the reason they landed on Sony’s publisher fund to help was because the xbox market was just too damn scary.
“”Why choose PSN? It was the only way we could self-publish, XBLA is kind of a slaughterhouse for smaller developers.” Sean Murray Hello Games
http://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/xbla-is-a-slaughter-house-for-smaller-developers
But anyways the real point I am trying to make here is that the publisher fund gives matches whatever developers put into their game with the return of exclusivity of a title. Joe Danger was technically developed and sold by Hello Games. They owned the ip and rights to everything as they likely will with No Man’s Sky.
With thatgamecompany their contract implied that Sony owns the rights to the Flow, Flower, and Journey ip’s which is one of the reasons thatgamecompany was excited to be leaving their contract after Journey. On top of that all three games are published by Sony and not thatgamecompany. So clearly not the same boat.
I think I went on a tangent there but made my point somewhere. Journey is a big big money title, is not self published, and the intellectual properties are owned by an industry giant.
More or less this is food for thought. I am not sure they qualify as an indie just for having a small team but there are those that would argue otherwise. Technically the line is supposed to fall on being self published. However if that was the only line then companies like Telltale, Larian, and even the mighty Bethesda, or Valve could be classified as indie.
I don’t know I think my psychosis is showing but I really like this debate. Sorry if I come across as trolly just a late night I suppose.
=D
You are right debating this might be more headache then its worth.
I completely give up on trying to label indies. I had Castlestorm originally not rated because Zen Studios had worked with the Star Wars IP and was a fairly established studio. But then I got to know their studio heads and i realized these guys operate on a shoe-string budget, nightmare deadlines, etc. That a game like Castlestorm could come from such a studio with all the BS they go through is amazing. They’re indie. Some might disagree.
If enough people complain about Journey, I’ll put it to a vote if they’re indie or not. If my readers say they’re not, I’ll take them off the Leaderboard and Escape Goat 2 will become #1. My reviews are NOT a democracy, but I suppose whether a game is an indie or not can be.
Don’t get me wrong Journey is one of might favourite games of all time. It just seems to have an unfair advantage over others. I haven’t played Escaped Goat 2 but if it’s even half as good as the first I think its deserving.
=D
IGC I am so glad to have found you and your leaderboard. As you know this is the final day of XBLIG and between this page and Co-Optimus I am combing through and buying every decent party game I can. This is an invaluable resource! Both the knowledge that someone cares enough to make a site like this, and your humour in the posts have sweetened what would otherwise be a sad day in gaming. I look forward to playing all your recommendations in the very near future 😀 thank you!
Party games? Chompy Chomp Chomp and Hidden in Plain Sight are both a pair of the definitive XBLIGs.
If you haven’t yet, check out Celeste, Super Meat Boy, Braid, Flower, and Enter the Gungeon. There are some great Nindies on 3DS too!
And Little Nightmares and INSIDE.