we’re living in a time when indie games
are becoming just as popular as high
budget triple-a games and these
creations prove it
welcome to watchmojo.com and today we’re
counting down our picks for the top 10
indie games that made it big
for this list we’re looking at those
independently produced video games that
became immensely popular in the
mainstream we’re basing our decision
both on the games as critical acclaim
and most importantly its popularity in
the mainstream market we won’t be
counting indie games that were
distributed by mainstream companies such
as no man sky and journey in order to be
eligible the game must have been
developed and distributed completely
independently number 10 FTL faster than
light what’s amazing about FTL is that
it was developed by only two people
Matthew Davis and Justin mom both
ex-employees of 2k games who became
disillusioned with mainstream gaming and
sought out the independent market what
resulted from their curiosity was one of
the finest indie games of the year
complete with punishingly difficult
imaginative situations and gorgeous
music even winning major industry awards
for the latter
FTL is also notable for being one of the
first games released with the help of
Kickstarter raising over $200,000 and
proving that this method could be
beneficial to both gamers and indie
developers alike number 9 Fez Fez is
perhaps best known for its dramatic
production led by its outspoken lead
designer phil fish and covered in the
film indie game the movie after quitting
his job and dedicating his time fully to
Fez fish became known as a temperamental
perfectionist and even discussed killing
himself should he be unable to finish
the game if this if this fails I don’t
think I’m home working games again
however after countless irritating
delays finish it he did and Fez was
released to positive reviews mostly due
to its charming retro style and it has
since sold over 1 million copies the
game capitalized on the public’s
newfound interest in indie games and
it’s one of the most successful because
of it number 8 undertale
led by one man in one man only undertale
was not only one of the best indie games
of 2015 but it’s quite possibly one of
the best indie games ever released
undertale was developed written and
scored solely by toby fox who was barely
even experienced in developing video
games at all aside from a few RPGs he
made with his brothers on RPG Maker 2000
however he proved to be unnatural and
through the game’s terrific writing
relatable and well-rounded characters
and unique combat system undertale
quickly caught on with mainstream
audiences and has since sold over 1
million copies on Steam creating one of
the most dedicated fan bases we’ve seen
in recent years
number 7 rocket league developer
psionics released a game in 2008 for the
ps3 annoyingly titled supersonic
acrobatic rocket powered battle cars and
although it’s sold relatively well it
wasn’t considered a big success by
changing its name to the far more simple
rocket League and tweaking the gameplay
which included adding the now signature
neon art style psionics had a
masterpiece in multiplayer gaming on
their hands
praised for its fast-paced simple
gameplay and addictive nature rocket
League became a runaway success selling
over 6 million copies in one year
earning more than a hundred million in
revenue and becoming an officially
sponsored eSport by joining the ESL
sometimes it’s the simplest games that
are the most fun believable play and
that is going to solidify your MLG
season one champions number six shovel
knight serving is the first video game
released by Yacht Club games shovel
Knight is a loving nostalgia ridden ode
to the NES era coming equipped with
beautiful old-school graphics gameplay
and music announced alongside a
Kickstarter campaign as many indie games
are shovel knight eventually raised over
three hundred million dollars and even
when that amount ran dry they were still
able to continue development out of
dedication alone
players and critics alike greatly
enjoyed the nostalgia trip and the game
is sold over 1.2 million copies with ps4
and Xbox one versions getting Kratos and
the Battletoads to appear as cameos and
the Wii U version getting its own amiibo
credible new shovelknight amiibo from
Yacht Club games is not only so dang
cool you’ll scream aah
it will also unlock a brand new mode in
shovelknight for the Nintendo Wii U
number 5 breed arguably the game that
started at all braids brought indie
gaming to the mainstream and provided
players with one of the most unique
gaming experiences of the late 2000s
developed by Jonathan Blow with the help
of David Hellman providing the game’s
beautiful artwork braid was praised for
its mature story transcendent music and
challenging but ultimately rewarding
puzzles blow wanted to deconstruct video
game trends with braid but in the
process he may have started a trend
himself braid caught everyone’s
attention and is now rightfully
considered to be the game that
kick-started the mainstream indie
movement number 4 terraria
designed by the three men who form real
logic terraria is a two dimensional
survival adventure game with a heavy
emphasis on exploration crafting and
combat complete with retrospective SNES
era graphics and exploration based
gameplay terraria harkens back to the
Golden Age of Nintendo bringing to mind
oldies but goodies like Super Metroid
this blend of adventure and nostalgia
seemed to please gamers as terraria was
a massive success and has sold over 18
million copies and Counting those
numbers would be staggering for a
triple-a title let alone an
independently produced one proving
paradoxically that indie games are now
the mainstream as our next three entries
will definitely prove as well
number three five nights at Freddy’s
after his previous game was deemed
unintentionally terrifying developer
scott cawthon went with a more
intentional approach and by god he
succeeded in scaring the pants off a lot
of people like Weezy and film or is
usually done right when taken in the
most basic primitive direction the cheap
approach to this game such as having
minimal music ends up helping it in the
long run as the game relies on the ever
increasing tension to generate scares
rather than a more high budgeted
in-your-face approach like we see in
triple-a horror games the game was a
wild success becoming a major hit with
YouTube lets players generating for
sequels and a lifelong fear of chucky
cheese number two
Angry Birds it’s not often that mobile
games spawned pop-culture phenomenon but
Angry Birds pulled it off
becoming one of the most profitable and
popular video games of the 21st century
the game holds the record for the most
days atop the Apple paid apps chart at
275 and had been downloaded 50 million
times within its first year of release
like a popular movie the success of the
video game led to merchandising like
toys and cookbooks and other forms of
media including a feature film and a
television series suffice to say this
indie game made more than a few waves in
the pop culture scene of the 2010s
before we unveil our top pick here’s a
look at a few honorable mentions
number one minecraft
at first glance minecraft might seem
like an unfinished version of a better
game especially due to its blocky
primitive graphics however this didn’t
deter players from experiencing the most
popular indie game of all time
originally designed by one man and
released without advertising minecraft
spread through simple word-of-mouth and
became a phenomenon over a hundred and
six million copies of Minecraft have
been sold making it the best-selling PC
game and the second best selling video
game of all time
second only to Tetris again with the
blocks it’s amazing what simple
word-of-mouth and eventually YouTube can
do but when you have a game that’s this
much fun it’s easy to understand the
success that its accumulated do you
agree with our list what do you think is
the most successful indie game for more
start up top 10s published every day be
sure to subscribe to watchmojo.com
you
are becoming just as popular as high
budget triple-a games and these
creations prove it
welcome to watchmojo.com and today we’re
counting down our picks for the top 10
indie games that made it big
for this list we’re looking at those
independently produced video games that
became immensely popular in the
mainstream we’re basing our decision
both on the games as critical acclaim
and most importantly its popularity in
the mainstream market we won’t be
counting indie games that were
distributed by mainstream companies such
as no man sky and journey in order to be
eligible the game must have been
developed and distributed completely
independently number 10 FTL faster than
light what’s amazing about FTL is that
it was developed by only two people
Matthew Davis and Justin mom both
ex-employees of 2k games who became
disillusioned with mainstream gaming and
sought out the independent market what
resulted from their curiosity was one of
the finest indie games of the year
complete with punishingly difficult
imaginative situations and gorgeous
music even winning major industry awards
for the latter
FTL is also notable for being one of the
first games released with the help of
Kickstarter raising over $200,000 and
proving that this method could be
beneficial to both gamers and indie
developers alike number 9 Fez Fez is
perhaps best known for its dramatic
production led by its outspoken lead
designer phil fish and covered in the
film indie game the movie after quitting
his job and dedicating his time fully to
Fez fish became known as a temperamental
perfectionist and even discussed killing
himself should he be unable to finish
the game if this if this fails I don’t
think I’m home working games again
however after countless irritating
delays finish it he did and Fez was
released to positive reviews mostly due
to its charming retro style and it has
since sold over 1 million copies the
game capitalized on the public’s
newfound interest in indie games and
it’s one of the most successful because
of it number 8 undertale
led by one man in one man only undertale
was not only one of the best indie games
of 2015 but it’s quite possibly one of
the best indie games ever released
undertale was developed written and
scored solely by toby fox who was barely
even experienced in developing video
games at all aside from a few RPGs he
made with his brothers on RPG Maker 2000
however he proved to be unnatural and
through the game’s terrific writing
relatable and well-rounded characters
and unique combat system undertale
quickly caught on with mainstream
audiences and has since sold over 1
million copies on Steam creating one of
the most dedicated fan bases we’ve seen
in recent years
number 7 rocket league developer
psionics released a game in 2008 for the
ps3 annoyingly titled supersonic
acrobatic rocket powered battle cars and
although it’s sold relatively well it
wasn’t considered a big success by
changing its name to the far more simple
rocket League and tweaking the gameplay
which included adding the now signature
neon art style psionics had a
masterpiece in multiplayer gaming on
their hands
praised for its fast-paced simple
gameplay and addictive nature rocket
League became a runaway success selling
over 6 million copies in one year
earning more than a hundred million in
revenue and becoming an officially
sponsored eSport by joining the ESL
sometimes it’s the simplest games that
are the most fun believable play and
that is going to solidify your MLG
season one champions number six shovel
knight serving is the first video game
released by Yacht Club games shovel
Knight is a loving nostalgia ridden ode
to the NES era coming equipped with
beautiful old-school graphics gameplay
and music announced alongside a
Kickstarter campaign as many indie games
are shovel knight eventually raised over
three hundred million dollars and even
when that amount ran dry they were still
able to continue development out of
dedication alone
players and critics alike greatly
enjoyed the nostalgia trip and the game
is sold over 1.2 million copies with ps4
and Xbox one versions getting Kratos and
the Battletoads to appear as cameos and
the Wii U version getting its own amiibo
credible new shovelknight amiibo from
Yacht Club games is not only so dang
cool you’ll scream aah
it will also unlock a brand new mode in
shovelknight for the Nintendo Wii U
number 5 breed arguably the game that
started at all braids brought indie
gaming to the mainstream and provided
players with one of the most unique
gaming experiences of the late 2000s
developed by Jonathan Blow with the help
of David Hellman providing the game’s
beautiful artwork braid was praised for
its mature story transcendent music and
challenging but ultimately rewarding
puzzles blow wanted to deconstruct video
game trends with braid but in the
process he may have started a trend
himself braid caught everyone’s
attention and is now rightfully
considered to be the game that
kick-started the mainstream indie
movement number 4 terraria
designed by the three men who form real
logic terraria is a two dimensional
survival adventure game with a heavy
emphasis on exploration crafting and
combat complete with retrospective SNES
era graphics and exploration based
gameplay terraria harkens back to the
Golden Age of Nintendo bringing to mind
oldies but goodies like Super Metroid
this blend of adventure and nostalgia
seemed to please gamers as terraria was
a massive success and has sold over 18
million copies and Counting those
numbers would be staggering for a
triple-a title let alone an
independently produced one proving
paradoxically that indie games are now
the mainstream as our next three entries
will definitely prove as well
number three five nights at Freddy’s
after his previous game was deemed
unintentionally terrifying developer
scott cawthon went with a more
intentional approach and by god he
succeeded in scaring the pants off a lot
of people like Weezy and film or is
usually done right when taken in the
most basic primitive direction the cheap
approach to this game such as having
minimal music ends up helping it in the
long run as the game relies on the ever
increasing tension to generate scares
rather than a more high budgeted
in-your-face approach like we see in
triple-a horror games the game was a
wild success becoming a major hit with
YouTube lets players generating for
sequels and a lifelong fear of chucky
cheese number two
Angry Birds it’s not often that mobile
games spawned pop-culture phenomenon but
Angry Birds pulled it off
becoming one of the most profitable and
popular video games of the 21st century
the game holds the record for the most
days atop the Apple paid apps chart at
275 and had been downloaded 50 million
times within its first year of release
like a popular movie the success of the
video game led to merchandising like
toys and cookbooks and other forms of
media including a feature film and a
television series suffice to say this
indie game made more than a few waves in
the pop culture scene of the 2010s
before we unveil our top pick here’s a
look at a few honorable mentions
number one minecraft
at first glance minecraft might seem
like an unfinished version of a better
game especially due to its blocky
primitive graphics however this didn’t
deter players from experiencing the most
popular indie game of all time
originally designed by one man and
released without advertising minecraft
spread through simple word-of-mouth and
became a phenomenon over a hundred and
six million copies of Minecraft have
been sold making it the best-selling PC
game and the second best selling video
game of all time
second only to Tetris again with the
blocks it’s amazing what simple
word-of-mouth and eventually YouTube can
do but when you have a game that’s this
much fun it’s easy to understand the
success that its accumulated do you
agree with our list what do you think is
the most successful indie game for more
start up top 10s published every day be
sure to subscribe to watchmojo.com
you
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