The Best Indie Games To Play On PS5

Triple-A games tend to be quite anticipated because of their high budgets and potential to elevate otherwise common mechanics. However, indie games are just as important, if not moreso. They’re usually made by small teams (and sometimes even mostly one person, like in Undertale’s case), which means more freedom to experiment with mechanics and genres.

Many indie games have a heart behind them that’s like no other because the developers are free to tell their own stories without as much risk of things getting cut by upper management. With the PS5 generation, there are a lot of quality indie games that will blow your expectations out of the water.

Updated on November 29, 2024, by Kyle Chamaillard: The PS5 has been around for a while now and hosts many awesome Triple-A games. But the amount of quality indie games you can play on it is even more plentiful. We’ve added more of these great indie games to the list.

24 Animal Well

Animal Well is perfect for anyone who enjoys games that throw you into their worlds without tutorials or hand-holding, such as Tunic or The Witness. Instead of sitting through a lengthy prologue that establishes characters and lore, you begin the adventure with nothing and must figure out what to do naturally or by looking at environmental clues.

This Metroidvania is full of wonderful surprises for you to discover and a dazzling visual style that creates the perfect ambiance for your journey. Try going into Animal Well with as little knowledge as possible for the best experience.

23 Balatro

Balatro is a deceptively simple roguelike deck-building game that takes a familiar concept and turns it into something fresh and endlessly satisfying. You must earn enough points to clear blinds and defeat bosses by using a deck of cards and unique Jokers that provide multipliers and other bonus effects for each run.

You can use endless strategies and card combinations to your advantage, and discovering a new way to earn points quickly is always rewarding. It’s a phenomenal game to play while listening to music or a podcast, and even if you’re unfamiliar with the rules of poker, Balatro will teach you everything you need to know before hooking you with its amazing gameplay and aesthetic.

22 Thank Goodness You’re Here!

Thank Goodness You’re Here is easily one of the funniest games on the PlayStation 5. It often feels like you’re playing through a lost episode of a fictional show co-produced by the BBC and Adult Swim as you help the citizens of a small town in Northern England with minor tasks like mowing lawns or watering crops.

The game begins on a relatively normal note before snowballing into delightful chaos. It’s impossible to predict where the story goes, but the feeling of joy that constantly shines throughout the short adventure is unmatched. Humor in video games can be tough, but Thank Goodness You’re Here will tickle you with its abundance of gags and jokes.

21 Shovel Knight: Treasure Trove

Shovel Knight had a bunch of expansions in the past, and now they’re all neatly packed together in Shovel Knight: Treasure Trove. Most of the campaigns feature a different main character with their own abilities, but the core gameplay is the same: it’s a 2D side-scroll platformer reminiscent of older titles like Castlevania, though the style and atmosphere are less dark and more lighthearted. The more treasure you acquire, the better you can make the protagonist with special upgrades and bonus abilities.

But every time you die, you lose a bit of that treasure. You can get it back if you manage to survive and retrace your steps when you respawn, but if you die again before getting to that point, the treasure is gone forever. And if you like high stakes, there’s a mechanic that gives you the choice of destroying checkpoints that you reach for even more treasure. If not done well, this could’ve turned the game into a nightmare to play, but Shovel Knight’s tight controls and ongoing humor make it anything but.

20 Paradise Killer

Paradise Killer is a detective game that’s on the quirkier side, from characters’ designs to their personalities. You play as Lady Love Dies, an investigator who was once exiled from Paradise Island, only to be brought back to investigate the murder of the island’s entire council. Sounds like a normal enough setting… until you add in the aliens, demons, experiments, and sacrifices.

Unlike many other detective games, Paradise Killer hands you the reins on who and how you investigate. You won’t be led down a linear path; what you discover and conclude is totally up to how you spend your time. For example, you can keep it professional with suspects or choose to build relationships with them, giving you more access to evidence but also possibly affecting your objectivity. You may need multiple playthroughs to figure absolutely everything out, but that’s a pleasure, considering the game’s quality.

19 Cuphead

Cuphead is impressive in more than one way. The hand-drawn graphics and animations with an art style reminiscent of 1930s cartoons are always a wonder to behold, no matter how many times you see them. It’s almost enough to distract you from the difficulty of some stages. Almost. But that’s another great aspect of the game: it may seem way too hard at first, but figuring out every stage’s mechanics and moves is like learning a dance that you gradually get better at.

Because of this, the thrill and satisfaction of finally beating a stage’s boss is like no other, and you’ll find that you’ve been having fun figuring out the patterns rather than tearing your hair out over them. For the most part, anyway. And if you have a friend who also likes a challenge, they can join you in co-op.

18 Sea Of Stars

No matter how admittedly archaic retro games are, there’s a certain charm to them that’s usually missing in modern games. Fortunately, games like Sea of Stars seek to bring back the beloved aspects of older games, such as their graphics, while modernizing the actual gameplay.

You follow Valere and Zale, two Children of the Solstice who’ve combined their powers in the hopes of defeating the Fleshmancer and his abominations. The pixelated graphics, UI, and themes are reminiscent of the retro RPGs you know and love but without the old-fashioned aspects like grinding and random encounters. Check out our review of Sea of Stars to learn more.

17 Sifu

Let’s face it: Kung Fu is awesome, but you probably haven’t invested time into learning it yourself. Good news, you don’t have to! Sifu lets you get in on the Kung Fu action without having to move off your couch. And if you happen to die in the game, you’re brought back to life via a mysterious amulet in your possession. The only downside is that every time you’re brought back to life, you age a little.

But that’s a small price to pay in your quest for revenge. You’ll be facing crowds of enemies, and they’re not the forgiving type. Use your skills and the environment around you to counter and defeat them all in this fast-paced, challenging, and ultimately satisfying action game. Just how challenging could it be, you ask? Find out in this review of the game.

16 Spiritfarer

Death is never an easy topic to think about, but it’s a reality that nobody can escape from. Games dealing with the subject can make it easier to come to terms with, and one of those games is Spiritfarer. In it, you play as Stella the Spiritfarer, a guide to the spirits of those who have recently passed. Despite the heavy themes, the game itself is actually pretty cozy.

How you go about your travels is up to you. You can cook, craft, fish, and more as you get to know the spirits you escort and experience their stories–until it’s time to say goodbye to them. Basically, if bittersweetness were a game, it would probably be this one.

15 Outer Wilds

This game didn’t win Best Game award at the 2020 BAFTA Game Awards for nothing. Outer Wilds has you exploring the near-endless mysteries of space. There are many planets you can traverse, all with different types of climates and environments. However, time is a major factor in your exploration, and you must race against it if you want to see what every planet has to offer. Otherwise, they’ll fall apart before your eyes.

On top of that, the planets won’t just hand over answers without a fight. If you want to discover all their secrets, you’ll have to go up against disastrous events like storms and tornadoes. If you like beautiful experiences that could also kill you, Outer Wilds is perfect.

14 Hollow Knight

Hollow Knight is a 2D side-scroller, but that doesn’t mean it’s a linear experience. There are different paths to take, and they have different foes to face and rewards to grab. You play as a character simply known as The Knight, going through the ruined kingdom of Hallownest and discovering its secrets along the way.

There are enemies and bosses you’ll encounter on your journey, but there are also memorable allies and charms that will aid you. You can also unlock different skills and abilities that’ll make your travels easier (and flashier). This game has got it all in both gameplay and art style.

13 Cult Of The Lamb

Don’t be fooled by this game’s cute graphics. Cult of the Lamb is exactly like it sounds: you play as a lamb whose goal is to build their own cult to appease the entity that saved them from death. As you recruit followers, you must also destroy non-believers and rival cult leaders, as well as other miscellaneous enemies.

Collecting resources like bones and lumber lets you build structures like summoning circles and propaganda speakers. You can use them to encourage your followers in their faith and make them temporarily possessed, increasing their strength when fighting alongside you. Needless to say, the game doesn’t hold back in the creepy and dark factor, though there’s a sense of humor throughout the whole thing. You can read our review of the game for an in-depth perspective.

12 Gris

Gris is one of those indie games that will stay with you long after you’ve finished playing it. You play as Gris, a young girl who’s trying to deal with grief. There are stages associated with grieving, and as Gris, you maneuver through each one.

The game doesn’t have the typical gameplay of wielding weapons and facing enemies. Rather, it’s a peaceful experience where you don’t have to worry or rush as you do some light platforming and puzzle-solving. It’s especially cathartic if you can relate to dealing with loss, but even if you can’t, Gris is a truly heartfelt experience that you may leave with something new learned.

11 Dead Cells

Dubbed a ‘roguevania’ by the developers, Dead Cells is an intense game that shows you don’t need to move your physical body to get your adrenaline going. If you die, you’ll have to start from the beginning, no matter how far you made it before perishing. But the point isn’t to never die at all; it’s about learning your enemies’ patterns to beat them next time.

In fact, dying means you might get to take different paths to get to the same place. You also get a host of weapons and skills to help you beat your enemies and make your way through the levels. The game is tough, but it’s also fun and smooth to play, as well as pretty to look at.

10 Stray

If you like games where you get to play as animals, Stray is right up your alley. It’s a heartwarming tale of a cat thrust into a city full of robots and dangerous mutant bacteria. Your goal is to navigate and eventually escape this unfamiliar city while interacting with, avoiding, and fighting off the robot residents and bacteria you encounter.

The game is so graphically impressive that it’s almost hard to believe it was made by a small handful of people. Plus, the cat’s controls and movements are quite well done and realistic, thanks to the pet cats the team used as references. But just how catty does the game get? Our review of the game has the answer.

9 Disco Elysium

Disco Elysium is so widely loved that it won Indie Game of The Year after it came out. It mixes mystery with RPG elements. As a detective, you can put points into different skills as you explore the city and solve crimes. You have absolute freedom to become an upstanding detective or one of the most corrupt ones in the city.

The skills you choose determine how well you do when performing certain actions. For example, Intellect and Psyche skills affect dialogue options, whereas the Physique skill affects physical actions. This system offers a lot of replayability in addition to the game’s amazing quality. Its dialogue and story are wonderfully woven to adhere to what your build is like. Check out our review to learn more.

8 Inscryption

Inscryption is a fun but challenging game that combines card gameplay with the psychological horror genre. There are even optional puzzles outside the card game that reward you well for solving them. Your mysterious opponent is also the card game’s eerie narrator, and he doesn’t give you much of a choice when it comes to playing with him.

As you play, the game’s story unfolds, and you’ll find yourself going through multiple acts as you slowly uncover what’s happening. The game’s atmosphere is top-notch, and you might find yourself playing the card game for hours.

7 Haven

Haven is an RPG where you get to control two protagonists at once. They’re a couple who have escaped their planet and are trying to survive in a new, unfamiliar one. They must cook, craft, build, and fight to make it. The combat system in this game is unique, as you still control both of them at once during battle and have to sync their moves to get the best results.

It takes some getting used to, but it’s fun when you do. Haven also puts a lot of focus on the couple’s relationship and interactions in things both big and small, bringing them to life and showing you exactly why you should care about them.

6 Kena: Bridge Of Spirits

Kena: Bridge of Spirits has you exploring the spirit realm as Kena, a spirit guide. Naturally, this means the game doesn’t shy away from themes of death, but it’s not painted in the negative light you’d expect. The spirits are your cute little companions, and there are many of them to choose from. They’ll help you out as you endeavor to break a village’s strange curse.

Everything in the game is enchanting and immersive, from the environment to the combat to the story. You can tailor your spirit companions’ abilities to your tastes, as well as your own. Also, there are different outfits and a photo mode if you’re into the aesthetic side of things! Want to know more? You can read our review of the game.

5 Chicory: A Colorful Tale

True to its name, Chicory: A Colorful Tale is all about adding lots of color to a monochrome world. A renowned artist has gone missing, and she’s taken all the colors with her. It’s up to you to bring color back and find her. All the environments work like pages of a coloring book, so you can paint wherever you want on them. You have to solve puzzles with your paint abilities and unlock new ones along the way.

There are lots of collectibles, including clothes, so you can change your outfit as you color the world. You also get to enjoy fun side quests, making the game’s awesome content last for even longer.