Welcome to GTOGG’s March 2025 edition of Promising Indie Game Releases, where we highlight indie and non-mainstream titles that we believe deserve your attention – in other words, “look at all this potentially cool stuff you might’ve missed otherwise”. That would’ve been too long for a title, though.
In any case, let’s get right down to it.
Centum
I made no secret of the fact that Centum was one of my favorite demos from the recently concluded Steam Next Fest, so it should come as no surprise that I’m going to give it another shoutout. Its haunting, mysterious world, its almost oppressive atmosphere and its brilliant writing all contributed to a wholly unique experience I couldn’t get enough of. If strange, surreal nightmares were turned into gorgeous pixel art, they would probably look like this.
AI Limit
In this anime-style soulslike game, the artificial ecosystem of the world mysteriously collapsed, leading to various natural disasters and wars to almost completely destroy civilization – centuries passed, and due to a strange substance called the Mud, monsters also began to infest the world. This is more or less where you come into the picture: in the role of Arrisa the Blader, an artificially created life form capable of endlessly regenerating herself after death, players will explore this post-apocalyptic land as they search for answers and attempt to repair a broken world.
Gal Guardians: Servants of the Dark
As an avid metroidvania fan, I had to include this one, and after playing its demo (and coming away very pleased), it’s even easier for me to put this promising little gem on our list. Now, you may be familiar with its prequel, Gal Guardians: Demon Purge, which was more of a classic action game rather than an exploration-centric metroidvania – and that is exactly what changes in the sequel. Servants of the Dark happily embraces its metroidvania-ness, so if that’s something you wanted from the first game, you might want to keep an eye on this similarly cutesy sequel.
Do No Harm
Described as a “doctor simulator with a Lovecraftian twist”, Do No Harm stars a village doctor who must use all the ancient knowledge at his disposal to try and treat the increasingly bizarre conditions of the locals. If that wasn’t enough, you’ll also have to deal with hallucinations and malicious entities that will try to deceive you, impacting both your sanity and your ability to do your job properly.
Godstone
Godstone is a roguelike dungeon crawler that will let you explore a dark fantasy world brought to life with pixel art; its protagonist is Gerion, a deserter who must find the titular godstone before others use it for evil ends. As you’d expect, you’ll uncover environments fraught with danger and fight massive bosses while crafting different builds – however, keep in mind that your choices can also affect the outcome of the storyline in various unexpected ways.
Beyond the Ice Palace 2
Beyond the Ice Palace 2, a modern sequel to a decades-old Commodore 64 classic, is a metroidvania action-platformer that has you step into the role of the so-called Cursed King as he goes on a bloody quest for vengeance to reclaim his throne. Wielding the very chains that once imprisoned him, you’ll not only get to stylishly wreak havoc on your enemies – you’ll also use it for traversal, such as swinging across chasms, pulling switches or tearing open doors.
Chernobylite 2: Exclusion Zone
A post-apocalyptic action-RPG that takes place in the Chornobyl Exclusion Zone, Chernobylite 2 will have you step into the boots of a parallel world-hopping planewalker trying to survive the nightmarish dangers of the Zone after it’s been altered by the mysterious, high-energy material known as Chernobylite. One thing to note if you’re familiar with the original: interestingly enough, the sequel switches things up a bit compared to its predecessor, and will be playable in both third-person and first-person mode, depending on your preferences.
