Sometimes you want a game which you can put on in an evening and melt into. A game which offers repeatable missions, multiple difficulties and side missions that are so bite-sized they fit perfectly with the popcorn you’ve got as a snack.
Other times, though, you want every part of the game to be the main event. Games which are so focused on their core ideas, that they cut out all the unnecessary bloat.
10 Best Indie Games That Barely Have a Plot
The finest options when all you want to do is have a good time.
This could be anFPS campaign, anopen-world gameor even aJRPG. Or, as will be talked about below, an indie game, as they give the developer the freedom to develop their vision.
Entries will be ranked by how much killer to filler there is in the games, based on reception and my own personal opinion.
10Mr Shifty
Shift Around Quickly
Platform(s)
PC, Nintendo Switch, PS4, Xbox One
Beat ‘Em Up
Release Date
April 2017
In Mr Shifty, you play as the eponymous thief, who’s tasked with stealing a plutonium core from a secure facility.
Unlike in most video games, where you have health bars and the ability to withstand massive amounts of damage, in Mr Shifty,enemies can kill you in one hit, causing you to restart the level at the beginning.
To combat this, you have the ability to ‘shift’, teleporting you a few meters in any direction, through walls, enemies and bullets.
This means you need to be constantly moving, evading enemies while working out when you may get close enough to them to punch them into oblivion.
There’s little time to think, and definitely no time to find any collectibles.
As Quick As A Gun To Your Head
In Gunpoint, you play as a freelance spy who infiltrates various buildings to fulfill assignments for clients. Similar to Mr Shifty, the game emphasizes your inability to take more than one gun shot to the head, forcing you to play cautiously.
Thankfully, the game has a system called ‘Crosslink’, which allows you to hack into the security features of a building and reprogram them.
Want to amend a light switch to activate a weapon in the building? Or open the final door to allow you to sneak in using your ‘Bullfrog Hypertrousers’ which allow you to traverse great distances and break through glass? You can.
Every feature in Gunpoint is made to allow you to finish a level the way you want to, and with the entire game taking place over3-6 ½ hours, it’s an experience you may dive straight into.
Like a guard from a 5-story office building.
The Ocean Is Deep But This Game Knows Where To Go
Abzûis what would happen if you tookJourneyand submerged it in water. A journey through the ocean, from the surface to the hidden depths, you play as a diver who wants to bring life back to the ocean.
The game is linear, with small, hub areas that allow for exploration and even areas where you can sit and just enjoy the environments if you choose to.
While there are a few optional collectibles to gather, the game overall takes only4 hours to 100% complete, according to HLTB, so nothing outstays its welcome.
You’ll also find that with such aunique art style, you’ll want to stay in the world for as long as you may.
Journey is an honorable mention for this list as well. I just prefer the ocean to the desert.
7Undertale
Subverting Random Encounters
Undertalerevels insubverting expectations. An RPG which lasts, at most, 20 hours, and that includes all three endings.
As with some of the other games on this list, Undertale initially starts out suggesting there will be a lot of unnecessary grinding and challenges.
But due to its unique take on EXP and combat, every random encounter is actually important for you to understand the games’ morals and how to get all the endings.
One of only a handful of games in which I’ve finished a playthrough and instantly jumped into a new one, Undertale takes the idea of bloat in RPGs and turns it on its head, similar to how you can deal with most of the monsters.
6Transistor
It’s All Part Of The Process
Transistor
Transistoris the second game from the indie-legends atSupergiant Games, and the one that inhabits the idea of all-killer, no-filler the most.
A game which took my brother a plane journey from Tokyo to London to beat, in which he spent most of his time glued to the screen, when we weren’t spotting the Northern Lights.
In the game, you take control of Red, a popular singer, who, under mysterious circumstances, comes into control of a greatsword called Transistor.
Every Supergiant Game, Ranked
From Bastion to Hades II, ever game produced by Supergiant Games is a certified banger.
Without getting into spoiler territory, Red and the sword are inextricably linked, so you can’t just go back to your day-job, instead you have to venture forth to defeat the evil Process.
While there are collectibles and optional challenges, the game pulls you through them with a mix of charm and great game design, as in all Supergiant Games.
What A Contrast To Other Games
Contrastis the debut game fromCompulsion Games, and is like ifPortalmet the jazz scene. In the game, you control the character of Dawn, an imaginary friend to Didi.
You have to find your way through various levels and puzzles to uncover the mystery of the world and help Didi’s parents.
To do this, you’ll need to interact with objects to create shadows in the 3D realm, which Dawn can then traverse through in the 2D realm.
One of the first games I 100%, Contrast never outstays its welcome, lastingroughly 4 hours, even with collectibles and achievements.
4Monument Valley II
It’s M.C Escher Time
Monument Valley 2
Monument Valley IIalong with the rest of the series, takes place in a world inspired by M.C Escher. The world is all twisted and turned around, and it’s up to you to guide Ro and her child through a variety of mazes.
This type of puzzle game requires the entire game to be killer, as the puzzles must take anageto plan and design, and there can only really be one right answer.
An anthesis to most mobile games at the moment, there’s no new game plus, daily challenges or power-ups.
Instead, there’s just some fantastic and mind-bending puzzles, and with Monument Valley III recently released, now is the best time to jump into the series.
3Into The Breach
Small, Focused Battles
Into the Breach
Into The Breachis a tactical, turn-based roguelike, set in the far future whereby humanity fights against a monster armyusing giant mechs.
It’s also set in a future where the player’s time is prized above all else, with each battle only being able to take a certain number of turns inside a small 8x8 grid.
Compared to games likeXCOMor other roguelites likeThe King is Watching, whereby rounds can take hours, each round in Into The Breach takes roughly 30 minutes, with the player needing to plan moves efficiently to minimize waste and collateral damage.
Otherwise, known as needing to be all-killer and no-filler.
Do You Dare To Journey Inside?
Insideis the go-to game I think of when I think of an all-killer, no-filler game. The follow-up toLimbo, Inside is a 2D platformer/adventure game which absolutelyoozes atmosphere.
You play as a child who finds a mysterious building and goes, well, inside. What follows is4 and a ½ hoursof constant subversion and surprise as the game slowly reveals its secrets.
The game’s puzzles are gentle and focus more on creating an atmosphere than being particularly challenging, so you always feel like you’re progressing and getting further, even if you have to try some of them a couple of times.
I completed it in two evenings, felt complete when I beat it and I think of it fondly on occasion. You can’t get much higher praise than that, I don’t think.
1Outer Wilds
Knowledge Is Power
Outer Wilds
Outer Wildsis a masterclass in creating a taught, streamlined experience while not compromising on scope.
You are an explorer, sent to explore the far reaches of the solar system, to find further evidence of a mysterious race of aliens.
Without going into spoiler territory,time loops become involvedand the only thing that carries on over from each loop is the knowledge you unlock about the universe.
As you prod and poke at the solar system and unlock its secrets, every detail is important and worth noting, from how the gravity of each planet feels to the order you explore per loop.
No side quests or collectibles to speak of, instead a beautiful and reflective journey in the stars.
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