Surprise AA and A Indie Gems from 2024

2024 has been a fantastic year for indie games, proving that creativity and engaging experiences don't require massive corporations. Several AA and A indie titles have stood out.

Another Crab's Treasure: A charming yet challenging Souls-like set in a polluted ocean, starring a hermit crab. It features classic genre elements like parrying, dodging, experience recovery, checkpoints, and tough bosses, all wrapped in a Pixar-esque visual style with a dark environmental message. Available on PC, PlayStation, and Xbox.

Starcom: Unknown Space: A top-down space exploration RPG reminiscent of Star Trek Voyager. Players command a ship stranded in another part of the universe, exploring, upgrading their vessel and skills, engaging in simple but strategic combat, and forging alliances to find their way home. Available on PC.

The Dark Horde: A solo-developed, retro-style deck-building roguelike with a timer-based combat system reminiscent of old-school Final Fantasy. Players build decks, strategize in turn-based battles, manage an in-round economy, and even control enemies. Currently in Early Access on Steam.

College Bowl: A retro-style college football game that builds upon the foundation of Legend Bowl. It offers deeper player rating disparities, robust option-play, a completely overhauled and customizable playbook system, and extensive customization for players, teams, and leagues. Available on PC, with potential console releases in the future.

Magicraft: A top-down roguelite where players control a nerdy protagonist wielding a vast array of combinable spells. It features a base camp for upgrades and delivers chaotic, screen-clearing magical action with impressive visual effects and music. Available on Steam.

Pacific Drive: A survival driving game set in a 1990s exclusion zone. Players navigate a roguelike map in their station wagon, battling anomalies, managing car maintenance, crafting upgrades, and uncovering a compelling story with excellent voice acting and atmosphere. Available on PlayStation and PC, potentially Xbox.

Nine Sols: A 2D Metroidvania with stunning hand-drawn art and strong Souls-like combat focused on parrying. While not a traditional Metroidvania in map progression, it offers challenging boss battles, a unique XP and skill tree system, and a deep, morally complex story. Available on PC, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series, and coming to Switch.

These games demonstrate the innovation and quality emerging from smaller, independent studios in 2024.