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The July 4, 2025 UMA Technology list advertised 16 games but repeated Oxenfree at numbers 7 and 16. This guide removes the duplicate and keeps the other 15 titles. See the original list.
Which indie game on Steam should you choose?
Start with the kind of play you want. The games here differ more in genre, challenge and story focus than in any measurable overall rank.
| Game | Best fit if you want | Play style |
|---|---|---|
| Hollow Knight | A vast world to explore and challenging combat | Action-adventure and Metroidvania |
| Celeste | Precise platforming and a personal story | Single-player platformer with hundreds of challenges |
| Undertale | A distinctive, story-forward role-playing game | Role-playing |
| Hades | Fast action with a story that unfolds over repeated attempts | Action-focused role-playing |
| Stardew Valley | A slower, open-ended routine of farming and relationships | Life simulation and role-playing |
| Slay the Spire | Strategic runs built around card choices | Deck-building |
| Oxenfree | A supernatural mystery driven by dialogue | Narrative adventure |
| Dead Cells | Fast, demanding combat and repeatable runs | Action and Metroidvania |
| Journey | A concise, atmospheric trip through an unfamiliar landscape | Exploration adventure |
| The Witness | Solving visual puzzles at your own pace | Puzzle exploration |
| Outer Wilds | Discovery-led exploration and piecing together a mystery | Exploration adventure |
| Firewatch | A character-focused story in a wilderness setting | Narrative adventure |
| Katana ZERO | Stylish, quick action and platforming | Action platformer |
| Disco Elysium | Dialogue-rich role-playing and investigation | Narrative role-playing |
| Superliminal | Puzzles that play with perspective | First-person puzzle adventure |
Action and platforming
Hollow Knight
Choose Hollow Knight if you enjoy mapping out an interconnected world, uncovering its secrets and learning enemy patterns through challenging fights. Its Metroidvania structure rewards curiosity and returning to places when you have new abilities.
#1 Best Overall
![Split Fiction Standard - PC Steam [Online Game Code]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/51+29RLXXIL._SL160_.jpg)
- This split-screen adventure is tailored for two. Experience co-op gameplay where you’ll have to coordinate your actions and timing as well as work together to overcome challenges.
- Invite a friend to play with you for free on any platform (Crossplay on PS, Xbox & PC) with the Friend’s Pass*. This wild ride comes to you from Hazelight, the co-op thrill-makers that brought you It Takes Two and A Way Out.
- Experience worlds that are entirely different from each other, unexpected new abilities, and a range of gameplay that includes platforming, puzzles, and more. There are surprises waiting for you and your friend in every new level.
- Mio and Zoe don’t get along at first, but soon enough they become each other’s only hopes. This journey will throw unexpected twists at them and if they want to make it through, they’ll need to have each other’s backs.
Celeste
Celeste is the clearest pick here for players who want demanding, precise platforming. The official Steam listing describes Madeline’s single-player journey up Celeste Mountain as a platforming adventure with hundreds of challenges. It lists Maddy Makes Games Inc. and Extremely OK Games, Ltd. as developers and January 25, 2018, as the release date. Check the official Steam listing for current regional availability and store details.
Dead Cells
Dead Cells suits players who want fast action, demanding combat and a run-based structure that encourages trying again. Its appeal is the moment-to-moment challenge rather than a slow, story-led pace.
Katana ZERO
For a more direct action-platforming option, Katana ZERO pairs quick encounters with a stylish presentation. Pick it when you want brisk action rather than long stretches of world exploration or character dialogue.
Rank #2
![HELLDIVERS 2 - Standard - PC [Online Game Code]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/61k+kwN16PL._SL160_.jpg)
- BECOME A LEGEND - You will be assembled into squads of up to four Helldivers and assigned strategic missions. Watch each other’s back – friendly fire is an unfortunate certainty of war, but victory without teamwork is impossible.
- LOADOUTS - Rain down freedom from above, sneak through enemy territory, or grit your teeth and charge head-first into the jaws of combat. How you deliver liberty is your choice; you’ll have access to a wide array of explosive firepower, life-saving armour and battle-changing stratagems… the jewel in every Helldiver’s arsenal.
- REQUISITION - Super Earth recognises your hard work with valuable Requisition. Use it to access different rewards that benefit you, your squad, your destroyer ship and our overall war effort.
- THREATS - Everything on every planet wants you dead. That’s what we’re dealing with. Each enemy has distinct and unpredictable characteristics, tactics, and behaviour – but they all fight ferociously and without fear or morality.
Role-playing and strategy
Undertale
Undertale is a strong fit if you want a role-playing game with a distinctive voice and emphasis on character and choice. It is less about a sprawling world to explore than the impression its encounters and story leave.
Hades
Hades combines action-focused runs with role-playing and a continuing narrative. Its repeat-attempt structure suits players who like improving through play while gradually learning more about the characters and world.
Stardew Valley
Choose Stardew Valley for a gentler, open-ended rhythm. Farming, building routines and developing relationships make it a natural alternative to games centered on precision, combat or timed pressure.
Rank #3
![Marvel's Spider-Man 2 Digital Deluxe Edition - PC Steam [Online Game Code]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/41DuJ3TQNtL._SL160_.jpg)
- Spider-Sense tingling… Mask-up for more thrilling web-slinging heroics as Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 swings onto PC. Developed by Insomniac Games in collaboration with Marvel, and optimized for PC by Nixxes Software.
- A city under siege! Spider-Men Peter Parker and Miles Morales face the ultimate test of strength inside and outside the mask as they fight to save the city, each other and the ones they love, from the monstrous Venom and the dangerous new symbiote threat.
- Traverse an expanded Marvel’s New York Explore a larger Marvel’s New York than ever before, featuring two new boroughs – Brooklyn and Queens – as well as locations like Coney Island, and more. Swing, jump, and utilize the new Web Wings to travel across the city, switching between Peter Parker and Miles Morales in open world exploration to experience different stories and epic new powers.
- Spider-Men, Peter Parker and Miles Morales, return for an exciting new adventure in the critically acclaimed Marvel’s Spider-Man franchise. Swing, jump, and utilize the new Web Wings to travel across Marvel’s New York, quickly switching between Peter Parker and Miles Morales to experience different stories and epic new powers, as the iconic villain Venom threatens to destroy their lives, their city, and the ones they love.
- An evolution of the Spider-Man story: The incredible power of the symbiote forces Peter and Miles to face the ultimate test of strength, both inside and outside the mask, as they balance their lives, friendships, and their duty to protect those in need.
Slay the Spire
Slay the Spire is for players who prefer making strategic decisions over reflex challenges. Its deck-building runs reward weighing card choices and adapting a strategy as a run develops.
Disco Elysium
Disco Elysium puts role-playing and investigation in the foreground, with dialogue and characterization carrying the experience. It is a better match for readers who want to think through conversations and a story than for those seeking action-led combat.
Recommended Free Tools
Narrative adventures
Oxenfree
Oxenfree centers on a group of young people, a mysterious setting and conversations that shape the feel of the story. Choose it for a compact, supernatural narrative rather than a combat-heavy adventure. The duplicate entry in the original list refers to this same game; it is counted once here.
Rank #4
![Stellar Blade Complete Edition - PC Steam [Online Game Code]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/615AlIdi2PL._SL160_.jpg)
- Experience the acclaimed PlayStation5 hit Stellar Blade from Korean developers SHIFT UP, now optimized for PC.
- The future of humanity is balanced on the edge of a blade. Ravaged by strange, powerful creatures, Earth has been abandoned, and what is left of the decimated human race has fled to a Colony in outer space.
- Engage in blisteringly fast combat as you slash a path through the remnants of Earth. Unleash graceful yet brutal attacking combos, unlock new moves and weapon upgrades, and face epic boss encounters that will challenge both brain and brawn in equal measure.
- Become immersed in a highly detailed post-apocalyptic world that blends beauty and horror to spectacular effect.
Firewatch
Firewatch is a story-led choice for players drawn to character, atmosphere and a wilderness setting. It favors exploration and conversation over complex combat systems or a long progression grind.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Exploration and puzzles
Journey
Journey offers an atmospheric exploration experience. It is a good option if you want a focused trip through a striking landscape rather than a large role-playing system or a sequence of difficult platforming tests.
The Witness
The Witness makes puzzle-solving the central activity. It suits patient players who enjoy noticing patterns and working through challenges at their own pace, with exploration connecting the puzzles.
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![Borderlands 4 Standard - PC Steam [Online Game Code]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/51gpM4oUSEL._SL160_.jpg)
- Pre-order Borderlands 4 and receive the Gilded Glory Pack featuring a Vault Hunter Skin, a Weapon Skin, and an ECHO-4 Drone Skin!*
- BE A BADASS: Become an unstoppable force of battle, blasting through enemies with an all-new arsenal of outrageous weaponry. Move across the Borderlands like never before—double jumping, gliding, dodging, grappling, and more—dealing death from every direction. Explode each encounter with devastating Action Skills that unleash your Vault Hunter's unique abilities. Craft your perfect build with branching skill trees and a deep, rewarding loot chase full of wild weapons and powerful gear.
- FIGHT SOLO OR CO-OP: Wreaking havoc across Kairos is awesome alone and even better with friends in 2-player splitscreen or up to 4-player online co-op.** Borderlands 4 is designed for co-op from the ground up; whether you're hunting for loot, tackling missions, or wandering freely, level scaling and individual difficulty keeps the party together and having fun.
- LESS BORDERS, MORE LANDS: Freely explore a vast and dangerous world rife with warring factions. Hop on your hover bike and ride through lush fields, towering peaks, and deadly deserts full of fearsome enemies, dynamic events, and engaging quests with unforgettable characters. Unite the people of Kairos and ignite a revolution, tackling this adventure however you see fit in a seamless Borderlands experience.
Outer Wilds
Outer Wilds is for curious players who want discovery to drive the experience. Progress comes from exploring and making sense of what you find, so it is a natural choice if uncovering a mystery sounds more appealing than following a conventional combat progression.
Superliminal
Superliminal is the pick for perspective-based puzzles. Its first-person puzzle-adventure framing makes it a different kind of challenge from the combat, deck-building and dialogue-focused games elsewhere on this list.
How to narrow down the list
- For demanding movement: start with Celeste for platforming or Hollow Knight for exploration and combat.
- For repeatable action runs: try Hades or Dead Cells.
- For story and characters: consider Undertale, Oxenfree, Firewatch or Disco Elysium.
- For lower-pressure play: look at Stardew Valley or the exploration of Journey.
- For thinking over reflexes: choose Slay the Spire, The Witness or Superliminal.
- For discovery-led exploration: try Outer Wilds.
Steam availability, editions and store details can change by region and over time. Only Celeste’s current store details are independently confirmed here; check each game’s Steam page for its present listing.
Quick Recap
Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply.
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