8 best indie game releases in April 2025 – the best small gems from the year's strongest month yet
If you've still got room for great games after the likes of Oblivion: Remastered and Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 releasing, there's plenty of indie games to choose from.
A brief look at all the best indie games that released this past month, from anthropomorphic metroidvanias to survival horror throwbacks.
May already? That's the first thing that came to mind as I put together this month's list of top indie game picks. But as we edge ever closer to this year's season of AAA summer blockbusters, it's nice to know that there's plenty of inventive smaller gems worth checking out between the usual gamut of huge, tentpole releases. April was an especially strong month for breakout indie games, with one particularly alluring roguelite explore-a-thon making waves thanks to good word of mouth.
The following is an incomplete list of the 8 best indie game releases in April 2025 from what we were able to make time to play. So, if you're in the mood for an old-school action platformer with a skateboarding edge or a different kind of match-3 puzzler, you've come to the right place. Here are some indie games we'd recommend you check out from this past month.
Blue Prince
What Remains of Edith Finch gets a randomised, roguelike upgrade in the always surprising (and often head-scratching) Blue Prince. This is an exploratory first-person adventure where you must traverse a mysterious manor consisting of rooms that always shift, challenging you to find the mysterious 46th room over the course of multiple runs. Players have some a degree of control thanks to the ability to draft specific room types whenever they appear, yet for the most part you'll need to employ a good degree of cunning and strategy to undertake the most efficient run possible while trying not to run out of steps. Blue Prince is one of 2025's first true indie game hits, and rightly so.
Once Upon a Puppet
Bringing an appropriately theatrical twist to traditional puzzle-platformer, Once Upon a Puppet is the kind of indie game that definitely earns bonus points for its presentation. Casting you as both the puppet itself but also its floating stagehand, this mechanical twist doesn't do much to separate the game from its genre peers, but just about adds enough spice to make it worth a look for players seeking a fun thematic twist on the familiar. What Once Upon a Puppet does have, however, is a thick sense of atmosphere, which helps keep things interesting in this wonderfully macabre puppet show that doesn't outstay its welcome.
Creepy Redneck Dinosaur Mansion 3
More than just a fast-paced puzzle adventure with a relatively basic art style and quirky name, Creepy Redneck Dinosaur Mansion 3 is in fact a critique on video games themselves – and more so their tropes. You play as a conventionally hunky hero who must explore a creaky mansion and do battle with mages, fences, and yes, dinosaurs by way of match-3 puzzles. It's a barmy prospect for a puzzle game on paper, true, but in practice proves to be incredibly hard to put down and painfully funny. Bumping into dead ends as part of the story is draining, yet it's another excuse to explore Creepy Redneck Dinosaur Mansion 3's increasingly unexpected narrative threads. A gem!
Bionic Bay
If you're seeking a game primed to scratch that mysterious itch previously established by Playdead's games, Limbo and Inside, there's a lot to love about Bionic Bay. Initially starting out as a minimalist 2D platformer within a dark, dilapidated world, it doesn't take long for the ways you must move through it to gradually evolve – be it through your own developing move set or new platforming challenges being introduced. Just when you think you've grasped proceedings, you'll hit a section that will let you control time or manipulate gravity, all of which makes chipping away at Bionic Bay's central mystery fulfilling for the short time it lasts.
Sacre Bleu
When playing as a 16th-century French musketeer comes to mind, one assumes the focus will primarily be on melee combat. However, Sacre Bleu is a distinctly French action-platformer that swiftly proves otherwise, tasking you to take down the zombified forces of the French aristocracy and the Bastille's forces using gun blasts. So intrinsic to Sacre Bleu's gameplay is running and gunning, blasting beneath you to reach great heights, serves as your main method of getting around. This makes for an incredibly unique and fast-paced shooting experience that has fun with its historical theme and makes blasting through stages as frantically as possible a fun time.
Moroi
Don't be fooled by the overtly grimdark stylings Moroi initially hits you with. Much more than just your typical top-down hack-and-slasher set in a fantasy kingdom, this is the type of gruesome fairytale that's heart is just as witty as it is sadistic. Taking on reams of the undead means continually slashing them down and solving environmental puzzles, true, but equally enticing is just how twisted this surprisingly macabre tale becomes the more you venture into it and how dark its humour is willing to go. Neither the world or combat is particularly revelatory, yet Moroi is a good example of what a cosmic horror fairytale can accomplish when it doesn't take itself completely seriously. Come for the hack-and-slashing, stay for the oddball characters and twisted brand of dark comedy.
Post Trauma
If you're still in the mood for retro-style survival horror in the vein of Silent Hill, Resident Evil, and Dead Space, the indie game sphere has got you covered with the equally chilling Post Trauma from Red Soul Games. Casting players as a train conductor trying to survive within a dark and otherworldly dimension, fixed camera angles combine with some pretty sharp visuals that work excellently to build tension and keep you on your toes. Puzzles can be a bit hit or miss sometimes, yet it's clear that the developers have a true affinity for this old-school genre, channelling it fully into a short but mysterious horror adventure that plays the hits and doesn't waste your time.
Seafrog
Easily one of April 2025's most underrated indie game surprises is Seafrog, an old-school platformer that sees you play as the titular amphibian. The twist comes in how you traverse each of the thematically unique boats you're charged with exploring and fixing. Equipped with a trusty wrench needed to restore the giant vessels, it also doubles up as a skateboard of sorts that makes grinding, wall sliding, and flipping a breeze. Movement is absolutely king in Seafrog, as the slickness of Tony Hawk is presented in a more digestible 2.5 view that controls beautifully. Throw in the ability to install mods and a handful of neat bosses, and Seafrog is well worth a look.
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