I realized today that I had been avoiding creating threads for smaller titles and indie games, that while enjoyable they simply didn't deserve individual threads.

So this is my solution. A place where you can highlight those games you discovered by chance, heard of from a friend, or picked up randomly on Steam, and ended up loving. They may not deserve their own topic, but a lot of these smaller titles go unappreciated despite how awesome they are.

Papers, Please.

Trailer.
Download for free.
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This is truly a gem. It's still in beta right now, but the 9 in game days available to play were some of the most interesting hours of gameplay I've had in a while. The graphics are simple, but perfect for showcasing the dark world the game takes place in. The simplicity actually lulls you into a false sense of security, it brought me back to days of playing Oregon Trail and similar PC titles of my youth.

Spoiler

This sense of security is irrevocably shattered when a suicide bomber explodes, taking out guards and shutting down the checkpoint

There is a fine balance one has to maintain while playing Papers, Please. In order to provide for your family you have to make a certain amount of money per day, money earned by either clearing or denying people entry into the country. Allowing someone you shouldn't in earns you a warning (the same for denying someone who was fine to enter) and you don't get paid for that person. You're allowed two warnings before you get a fine and they start taking your hard earned pay.

The moral dilemma of the game comes when you have to choose whether to play the game by the book, as in only let people in who have everything in order, or let someone in who has a phenomenal reason but incorrect paperwork, and also not get paid for it.

Ex. A woman comes up to the window and hands you her papers, she says that she's been waiting six months to enter the country in order to finally visit her son. Everything is in order except for a small error in her paperwork. Do you let her in? Yes, she has a sob story that sounds plausible and quite tragic, but she could be a terrorist praying on your emotions. So either deny her entry and a chance to see her son, or let her in and receive a warning and no pay (Thus putting your own family at risk).

The game is elegant in its simplicity, there are a few fumbles here and there but for the most part it's an excellent game.

 

I enjoyed enforcing petty rules over meaningless details to crush people's dreams way too much.

I think I have a problem.

 

Oh, titles. I thought you said something else.

 

Sounds Pretty cool, I'll have to check it out later.

Evoland.

I stumbled across this last night, only go around to playing it today. It's a quirky, fun little game. Gameplay is a little lackluster (beyond movement, one button to attack/use items), though it is still entertaining, in a Mario sort of way.

The references to other games/scenarios is fairly humorous in it's application; though if you haven't played the games it mimics, you may get bored in it.

All in all, for the price ($10 USD) I have enjoyed the time i've spent on it so far.

 

Hotline Miami. Quite possibly the most fun I've ever had for $10, and the difficulty curve on this game is insane. You'll probably finish the first level without dying. And then the second level comes and basically punches you in the dick, all while saying; "Bitch, you thought that was how shit's going to be? Please. You're going to die. A lot. Have fun!"

EDIT:

Here's some gameplay footage.

 

Binding of Issac. One of my favorite games. It's so much fun. It's a rouge like game made by one of the creators of Super Meat Boy(which is also awesome).

 

Seconded. Bastion has amazing music and narration. The gameplay is fairly engaging, too.

 

Blackwell Legacy. Primordia. Resonance. Aveyond Series. To The Moon. Anything by Wadjet Eye. Mark of the Ninja. Oh, and of course the unfinished swan. Great game.

 

I'll third the Bastion vote, I rather like that game, as my avatar might indicate. If you haven't played it, do so.

Braid is also really, really good in my opinion. I'd try that too if you haven't played it.

Chivalry: Medieval Warfare is absolutely hilarious fun. 10/10 Would recommend, especially if you get friends to play with you. The voice acting is amazing.

Faster Than Light is a game that I've heard is very good, and I really want to buy it. Haven't tried it yet though, but it looks like a lot of fun.

 

I tried FTL last week. It was a lot of fun actually, but I've got a few achievements left to get after beating the boss that I haven't really had the motivation for. It sucked me in for two days, though, which is more than the likes of Terraria and Towns can say.

Another fine game is Don't Starve, though I only played earlier betas months ago. Collect items in the wild to combine and create more items that you can use to fight off the night monsters, all while making sure your damn fire doesn't light up your field of wheat while you're off slaying or foraging.

 

Dwarf Fortress goes without saying. It's one of the few indie games I'd call art without hesitation.

 

I've played most of the ones mentioned, so I'm going to chime in on them quick.

Hotline Miami: Gnarly is the word I'd use to describe this. At first glance it seems like it's just a 2D shooter, but you quickly figure out that it's actually a very gory puzzle game. Its got one of the best soundtracks I've heard in a long time, and actually makes it feel like the video game version of the movie Drive. Overall the game is excellent, my only complaint is that the lighting effects give me a bunch of eye strain.

Bastion: Great art style, unique world, but repetitive gameplay. I love this game, don't get me wrong... but after a while I felt like I was just doing the same old shit in different areas. Great soundtrack, and a phenomenal narrator (Who you can get to be your DOTA2 announcer via a pack) in Logan Cunningham. I'll agree and say pick it up on a console though, I got a free copy for PC from a friend after I bought it on my 360, it feels way more natural with a controller.

FTL: Words don't quite cover how much I love this game. Every playthrough is a completely different experience, with new challenges to overcome and new gameplans to develop. FTL doesn't skimp on the difficulty though, and I really love that. You want to get a new ship? Well you gotta earn it. The requirements for getting new vessels are surprisingly hard, one of them is basically complete luck. Another game with a great soundtrack. Just awesome, pick it up.

Don't Starve: I love this game, and advise you to buy it. Its got an art style reminiscent of Tim Burton, a hauntingly awesome soundtrack, and gameplay that is both leisurely and frantic (You'll understand the first time the light goes out and you don't have a log on the fire) The Winter Update has brought a few problems though, the game now appears to be,

"Oh Jesus, Winter is coming! Gotta stock food, gotta get a fridge, gotta not die. --Survives Winter-- Oh, it's Summer again... Gotta stock food, gotta prepare for Winter!"

Whereas the game was originally more about surviving and exploring, it's become almost entirely about preparing for and surviving the 15 days of winter. Great game, check it out if you can.

Dwarf Fortress: I just can't get into this. Any game where I have to spend like 6 hours on the wiki just to have a basic grasp of how to play, and then still get confused as shit anyway? Ya that's not a game for me. I've seen it played a bunch, and will agree that it's an absolutely remarkable game, but it definitely isn't everyone's taste. The intro cinematic is one of my favorites though.

I really want to check out Chivalry, everything I've heard about it paints it as a more energetic and exciting War of the Roses, which sounds good to me.

Fantastic recs in here guys, keep it up.

 

I'm a huge Dwarf Fortress fan, but then I have a thing for games with learning curves shaped like cliffs. There's nothing quite like setting up a refillable reservoir of magma above the entrances to your fortress, then dumping it all on the goblins when they turn up. Of course then some idiot noble throws a tantrum and floods the entire bloody fortress, sending all your best workers into tantrums as well until your entire fortress (bar one, lone, mechanic) has been destroyed because some idiot flipped the switch for the floodgates then released the magma into your front entrance.

I'd be lying if I said that wasn't the most fun I've ever had in the game. It was hilarious.

I bought FTL last night and spent about three hours playing through and it looks quite fun. I managed to get to sector five and unlock the Engi ship before getting ambushed by a Rock bomber after I'd just gotten away from a solar flare star. Very fun so far.

 

I will agree DF is difficult to learn - but only because of its poor GUI implementation and choice of ASCII graphics. Maybe in twenty years or so, they'll have fixed those things; but there is some charm in that stuff. It feels old and clunky when you play, so it's a tad nostalgic.

But nothing else really compares. You can fucking set up mine carts and tracks for supply lines. In a decade or two, the game will be everything and a kitchen sink; and the donations are so amazingly consistent each year that Toady can afford to keep developing the game for squat. It's a free game with amazing devotion behind its mechanics. Not story, not art style, but its gameplay.

Nothing's more satsifying than mastering the game. Then the sky's the limit, because you can do whatever you want. Building palaces, death traps, arenas, submarines, crazy mechanical contraptions - someone even built a working computer using pressure plates and water flow. It's like Legos, but with moving dorfs to fuck everything up.

 

Does Terraria still count as a small game?

I've played almost 700 hours of it, apparently...

There's an update for PC coming out soon: Probably late May/early June. Looks like it's going to add a lot of really cool stuff and oft-requested features. I can't wait!

If stacking blocks can keep you happily occupied, I highly recommend it.

 

Does Limbo count? I really liked the atmosphere, and it had a good learning curve without being repetitive. Which also means it's short, since it ends after you did everything, but it's still very good.

The gameplay mechanic is basically move right, die, figure out what went wrong, try again. Which makes it a blast to watch other people play it

 

The best part of Limbo was the secret section where in you had to almost entirely rely on sound to figure out the traps, since visibility was so low. I don't think I've ever seen anything like that in any other game.

I'm also currently playing Thomas Was Alone on PS3. It starts out as simple as possible, but has a really nice learning curve with the puzzles and platforming gradually getting more complex with the addition of further characters. The narration is fantastic too. It's currently free if you have Playstation+, at least in the EU.

 

I'll probably edit this post or post again later, but for now: Dustforce is a Super Meat Boy style precision platformer, based primarily on momentum and flow. There is no story to speak of, just a large number of levels - some which are fairly ridiculous - to challenge. There are four characters, each playing slightly differently (for example, the little girl is heavy and has short jumps, but also gets a third jump, while the old man has huge jumps but is slow.) It's a really good game.