19 Products
86 Avg Interest
Santa's Bouncy Quest Top Launch
0.15 Avg Engagement

19 products. One category. Five years of data. Here's how Indie Games looked in 2023, ranked by the community's response to each launch.

2025 2024 2023 2022

Q1 2023

Learning Science by Experience
28

Experience the wonders of chemistry in a whole new way with Explayn! Immerse yourself in a virtual chemistry lab and discover the properties of everyday compounds through interactive simulations and games.

Virtual Reality Indie Games Education
Feb 2023 6 discussions 0.21 engagement
Clean, minimalist & joyful Sudoku app for iPhone and iPad
127

A clean, minimalist, joyful sudoku app for iPhone and iPad.

iOS iPad Indie Games
Jan 2023 21 discussions 0.17 engagement
A persistent browser based RPG game
79

Sengoku: Yōkai is fully developed by one person, the game experience is like in old browser text based games but with the fresh modern look. One of the main themes are Yokais that player can use as a class that you would have in normal MMO.

RPGs Indie Games MMOs
Mar 2023 11 discussions 0.14 engagement
Subscription service for PC indie games
106

MagnaPlay is a subscription service, like Spotify, but for independent games on PC. For $8 a month, users can play as much as they want, write reviews and even donate part of their subscription to a specific game. No streaming, play directly on your PC.

Indie Games Games Community
Jan 2023 14 discussions 0.13 engagement
Pixel art editor for iPad
73

Resprite is Pixelart and Animated sprite editor for Ipad.

Design Tools Art Indie Games
Feb 2023 8 discussions 0.11 engagement
Bet on mice, win big, buy funny hats
84

Place your bets! Based on an old Chinese game used by the gentry of old to place wagers on mice in a mouse house. Spend winnings on funny hats! Multiplayer, have each friend select a mouse and see who is the last one standing!

Android Indie Games Games
Jan 2023 5 discussions 0.06 engagement

Q2 2023

Test your hand eye coordination
65

Perfect Fit: A game of precision and timing. Move the paddles to select your gap size, and drop the cube. It's simple to play, yet challenging to master. Can you get a Perfect Fit? Dive in and take the ultimate challenge now!

Android Indie Games Free Games
Jun 2023 7 discussions 0.11 engagement
Let the coin decide your fate
80

Coin Flipper is a simple and easy to use virtual coin tosser that helps you to take a decision by flipping a virtual coin. A coin flipper can be a great way to make a decision when you're feeling stuck. Just flip the coin and let fate decide for you!

Productivity Indie Games Games
Jun 2023 6 discussions 0.07 engagement
Strategy game about birds
107

A relaxing, award-winning strategy card game about birds for 1-5 players. Each bird you play extends a chain of powerful combinations in one of your three habitats. Your goal is to discover and attract the best birds to your network of wildlife preserves.

Android Indie Games Strategy Games
Apr 2023 7 discussions 0.07 engagement
Horror reimagined
86

First-person psychedelic horror chronicle focused on tense exploration and immersive storytelling.

First Person Shooter Indie Games
Jun 2023 5 discussions 0.06 engagement

Q4 2023

Bounce into festive fun with Santa in this retro arcade game
91

Santa is on on a mission to deliver gifts that float in the air, awaiting his nimble catch. To assist Santa, two elves hold a trampoline to help him bounce and reach the gifts. The game blends elements from classic block-breaking games such as 'Breakout'.

Android iOS Indie Games
Dec 2023 58 discussions 0.64 engagement
The ancient royal game of conquering kingdoms
86

Stealth Chess, the ancient royal game of conquering kingdoms, is back after almost 30 years! This award-winning board game is all about setting up with strategy, moving in secret, and capturing the King! There's no check or checkmate.

Board Games Indie Games Strategy Games
Oct 2023 22 discussions 0.26 engagement
The 1st 3D gen AI app to enable mesh, textures & animations
93

Masterpiece X - Generate create characters with rich textures and animations, animals, or even objects - making it perfect for game environment props or early concepts. All that’s needed is a keyboard, a browser, a little imagination - and just a few words…

Indie Games Artificial Intelligence 3D Modeling
Oct 2023 18 discussions 0.19 engagement
Instant web games on any website
114

Sidecade is a FREE Chrome extension that adds a game arcade to any website you are on. The games run in self-contained windows within the webpage that can be moved, resized, and minimized.

Indie Games Free Games Games
Oct 2023 19 discussions 0.17 engagement
Solve logical mystery riddles by asking AI yes/no questions
87

Dive into text-based puzzles where your mission is to solve riddles and scenarios using questions answered with Yes or No by the AI. Unravel each challenge and discover the truth.

Android Indie Games Puzzle Games
Nov 2023 10 discussions 0.11 engagement
Can you guess the word in fewer than 20 questions?
86

A daily word game. Can you guess the word in fewer than 20 questions?

Indie Games Free Games Word Games
Nov 2023 8 discussions 0.09 engagement
Interactive widget-only game. Play from the home screen.
56

Play your favorite emoji-cards game directly on your home screen with this widget-only game using interactive widgets.

iOS Indie Games Games
Oct 2023 5 discussions 0.09 engagement
A riveting story-driven thriller on the Red Planet
94

An experience envisioned by the developers: A uniquely singular cinematic experience! The story is told across four chapters. Like a Netflix series, Fort Solis can be binged in one intense session, or played chapter by chapter like an episodic TV show.

Indie Games Space Games
Oct 2023 8 discussions 0.09 engagement
Crew up, sail pirate seas
103

Take command of an 'Age of Sail' ship and her crew, exploring a vast, story-filled world that reacts to your decisions. Engage enemy vessels, fortifications and sea monsters in brutal tactical combat.

Android Indie Games Games
Oct 2023 8 discussions 0.08 engagement

Indie Games in 2023: The Data

The category contracted by 39% compared to 2022, moving from 31 launches to 19. Average interest score across all 2023 launches: 86. Average engagement ratio: 0.15.

Frequently Asked Questions

Engagement ratio captures discussion quality. A product can game interest with a well-timed launch. It can't fake 200 substantive discussion threads. We default to engagement ratio because it's harder to inflate.

Highest community engagement at launch, measured by interest score and engagement ratio. These are traction rankings, not editorial picks.

Launch timing matters. Q1 products face different competition than Q4 products. Seasonal patterns affect both launch volume and community attention. Quarterly grouping makes comparisons fairer.

No. Some of the best-loved tools in our index have modest interest scores but sky-high engagement ratios. That pattern means a smaller audience cared deeply. I'd take that over 5,000 interest and crickets in the discussion threads.

Over 30. AI, Developer Tools, Productivity, Marketing, SaaS, Design, and everything in between. Most products appear in 2-3 categories. Some show up in 5+.

Track Indie Games launches

Get weekly updates on what's shipping in Indie Games and across 30+ categories.