This yr is likely to be top-of-the-line ever for indie developers, if not the perfect. Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 made a press release in April and is widely considered a frontrunner to capture many Game of the 12 months awards. We’ve also had great hits that looked as if it would come out of nowhere, similar to Blue Prince, Peak, Abiotic Factor, Wanderstop, Absolum, and, more recently, Megabonk and Ball x Pit. Hole Knight: Silksong finally released, and Hades II exited Early Access, further adding to the list of standout indie games in 2025.
The Indie Game Awards 2025 has announced its nominees for this yr’s show, with winners to be announced on December 18, 2025, at 3:30 PM Pacific (6:30 PM Eastern). Together with the categories below, there shall be three special awards chosen by the IGAs Curation Jury, to be announced throughout the ceremony: Indie Vanguard, the Mohammad Fahmi Storyteller Award, and Industry Impact. You may also become involved by voting for Community Picks, which is open through November 24.
Achievement in Accessibility
- Abiotic Factor
- Barista
- Calm the Storm
- Peak
- Spray Paint Simulator
- Squeakross: Home Squeak Home
ANZ Indie Game Award
- Abiotic Factor
- Hole Knight: Silksong
- Mars First Logistics
- PROXIMATE
- Tempopo
- The Drifter
Bite-Sized Game
- CARIMARA – Beneath the Forlorn Limbs
- FlyKnight
- Many Nights a Whisper
- The Dark Queen of Mortholme
- this game will end in 205 clicks.
- Time Flies
Black Voices in Gaming Award
- Advent Neon
- Altheia: The Wrath of Aferi
- Sorry We’re Closed
- Spirit Swap: Lofi Beats to Match-3 To
- Sunken Stones
- Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Tactical Takedown
Community Management
- Devour Me
- Date All the pieces!
- IKEELYA
- PEAK
- Soulstone Survivors
- Strange Scaffold
Debut Game
- Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
- Discounty
- Fretless – The Wrath of Riffson
- ILA: A Frosty Glide
- Sorry We’re Closed
- Tyrant’s Realm
Emotional Impact
- Afterlove EP
- and Roger
- Don’t Get Your Hopes Up
- Henry Halfhead
- Wanderstop
- Wednesdays
Gameplay Design
- Absolum
- Ball x Pit
- Dawnfolk
- Hades II
- Hole Knight: Silksong
- Keep Driving
- Look Outside
- Öoo
- Pipistrello and the Cursed Yoyo
- The King is Watching
Innovation
- Blue Prince
- FREERIDE
- Gas Station Story
- PBJ The Musical
- Ruffy and the Riverside
- Taria & Como
Latin American Indie Game Award
- Adventure of Samsara
- despelote
- Kulebra and the Souls of Limbo
- Pipistrello and the Cursed Yoyo
- Taria & Como
- Tormented Souls 2
Music
- Everhood 2
- Herdling
- Rift of the NecroDancer
- SONOKUNI
- Sword of the Sea
- Wheel World
Narrative
- Citizen Sleeper 2: Starward Vector
- Devour Me
- Promise Mascot Agency
- The Drifter
- The Roottrees are Dead
- The Séance of Blake Manor
Solo Development
- ANTONBLAST
- Lushfoil Photography Sim
- Megabonk
- NAIAD
- Spilled!
- Vile: Exhumed
South African Indie Game Award
- Bru & Boegie Get Da Milk!
- Finding Father
- Flibbius McDoogle and The Mysterious Flying Machine
- IKEELYA
- Metavoidal
- Stick It To The Stickman
Southeast Asian Indie Game Award
- Afterlove EP
- Artis Impact
- Glyphica: Typing Survival
- SEDAP! A Culinary Adventure
- Urban Jungle
- Whisper Mountain Outbreak
Visual Design
- 30 Birds
- Artis Impact
- Cat Detective Albert Wilde
- Eclipsium
- Mashina
- Slime Rancher 2
Women-Led Indie Game Award
- Cabernet
- Duck Detective: The Ghost of Glamping
- Gemporium: A Cute Mining Sim
- Spilled!
- Urban Myth Dissolution Center
- White Knuckle
Game of the 12 months
- Absolum
- and Roger
- Blue Prince
- Citizen Sleeper 2: Starward Vector
- Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
- Devour Me
- Hades II
- Hole Knight: Silksong
- Keep Driving
- Pipistrello and the Cursed Yoyo