While we are enjoying the Golden Age of Indie gaming, it is easy to get lost amidst the endless sea of releases and countless games being made every month. That is why I am happy to help you navigate those vast seas of content and hope to bring to your attention, every month, a selection of Indie offerings that for one reason or another managed to catch my eye. In no particular order, let's dive into the five Indie Games to look out in May!
Duck Detective: The Secret Salami | Release Date: 23rd May
Considering how big of a fan I am of the impeccable masterpiece trilogy that is Frog Detective, it was a given that this one would pique my interest. There's plenty to love about this one already. The hilarious title betrays the game tone, which is going to be rather light-hearted and whimsical, relying clearly on the hilarity of the case itself and a cast of over-the-top characters to sell it well. But the comedic affair is not just there to get a few laughs! It promises a 2-3 hour-long mystery game packed to the brim with de-duck-tion! Interview suspects, fill in the blanks, scribble notes in your journal, and piece the clues together to figure out the sausage-based crime of the century! In short - pretty excited for this one, and I'm having a feeling in my gut, that it's going to be a quiet hit.
Nine Sols | Release Date: 29th May
I believe by now this title has a lot of people waiting for it — it has garnered quite some hype! The promise is rather substantial, as it claims to be a lore-rich, hand-drawn metroidvania featuring Sekiro-inspired deflection-focused combat. That's quite a mouthful, and execution here will decide the fate of the game. So far, however, it looks definitely promising, as the trailers show a very fluid traversal and engaging, rapid encounters with varied enemies. Add on top of that a rather unique aesthetic that the developers call "taopunk", a mix of high-tech, dystopian trappings enriched with Eastern lore and mythos, and we get ourselves a potential for something that might not be breaking the mold but perhaps set a great standard for the genre moving forward.
Hauntii | Release Date: 23rd May
When it comes to unique offerings, Hauntii takes the cake on that list with the visuals alone. It's pretty striking from the get go, with beautiful, handcrafted, and alive linework art, setting each location within a stark, two-tone color scheme. Add to it, hah, a haunting soundtrack and an eerie atmosphere, and you've already got a mix that can catch the attention of any passerby. But Hauntii isn't just all visual flourish - it promises a deep, exciting narrative about the underworld and life after death with challenges, be they puzzles or combat, where your ability to possess bodies and objects will be crucial to your success. You're, after all, just a little ghost, but with your ability to haunt will be your bread and butter to reach your unknowable goals.
SYNERGY | Release Date: 21st May
Synergy was on my radar for quite some time. On the surface, it doesn't look like anything ground-breaking. Yet another city builder, not like this genre, is suffering from a drought with so many titles recently landing in our laps. But Synergy managed to worm itself into my mind with the promise of a very unique style, like if someone took the alien, hostile world from Scavengers Reign and reshaped it on their development anvil into a city builder. A game in which harnessing the unknown will be crucial and scouting afar to secure unknown resources will be key to a thriving settlement. The promise must really deliver to make the game stand on its own, but if they can nail the atmosphere of slowly learning a whole new world of alien fauna and flora, this might be quite an unusual experience to enjoy.
Zet Zillions | Release Date: 21st May
You just can't walk past this one, for its sheer bombast will pluck your eyes and glue them to itself! Bombing living planets? Obliterating giant space bugs with your asteroid-mounted canon? Explosions? Zet Zillions is unapologetically loud, colourful, and zany. It wants you to know, from the get-go, to not expect any sense, to put your coat of reason on a hanger and jump into it with a grin, fully embracing the ludicrousness. But behind the stylish veneer hides a pretty dynamic, clever, and devilishly straightforward roguelike deckbuilder, where merging cards is the name of the game to discover new, powerful effects. In short, it's a blast, and the demo made me hungry for more.
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