The next time you’re looking to branch out beyond your typical week-to-week video game backlog, consider poring over the finalists for the 2020 Independent Games Festival. The list is brimming with wonderful indie games – some you’ll recognize, others you won’t – and it’s a great place to start.
One of the games on my must-play list is Mutazione, a garden-tending hang-out adventure from Die Gute Fabrik “where small-town gossip meets the supernatural.” It’s the most prevalent nominee this year, earning nods for the Grand Prize along with Excellence in Visual Art, Audio, and Narrative.
The IGF Awards will be hosted by Armello director Trent Kusters and live-streamed on March 18, 2020. After that ceremony wraps up, the night will continue with the Game Developers Choice Awards.
Let’s get into it. These are the Independent Games Festival finalists and runners-up for 2020:
Seumas McNally Grand Prize
- Eliza (Zachtronics)
- A Short Hike (Adam Robinson-Yu)
- Untitled Goose Game (House House)
- Mutazione (Die Gute Fabrik)
- Slay the Spire (Mega Crit Games)
- Anodyne 2: Return to Dust (Sean Han Tani & Marina Kittaka)
Honorable Mentions: Katana ZERO (Askiisoft); Lonely Mountains: Downhill (Megagon Industries); Song of Bloom (Philipp Stollenmayer); Wide Ocean, Big Jacket (Turnfollow); Elsinore (Golden Glitch); Astrologaster (Nyamyam); Heaven’s Vault (inkle)
Source: Destructoid Stuck in a gaming rut? Try playing some of the IGF 2020 finalists