Wishlist These Indie Games Now!
- Mathieu O'Brien
- 22 minutes ago
- 4 min read
As a game developer, exhibiting at conventions is a fun, and somewhat necessary activity to partake in as it gives me the chance to promote my latest project along with meeting other people in the industry.
Last month, from September 5-7th, my game development group, SkyPyre Studios↗, and I exhibited at Ottawa Comic Con↗, and just recently, from October 25-26th, at VGLX↗ in Toronto. Both events were a wonderful return to conventions for us, as we haven't been able to participate since 2019 (in the before times). At both events we got to see some people we met years ago, and many more new developers! Always fun.
What's different this year, is that the Canadian Game Awards↗ has created the Eh! Game Showcase↗ with the purpose of promoting Canadian-made games from all over the country. This past Summer and into Fall, they've been traveling to various game conventions where they showcase many developers, many of whom may not normally have the option to exhibit. Keep an eye out, as they've told me that they have big plans for 2026!
So, both at Ottawa Comic Con and at VGLX, my group, SkyPyre Studios, exhibited our latest game: Mushroam↗. It's a 2D puzzle-platformer with the twist that players place their own bubbles (essentially bounce pads) to solve each level. We had a blast showing the game and having people of all ages play. Everyone enjoyed it, giving us big thumbs up. We, of course, always come out of these events with a list of adjustments to be made, such as moving a platform slightly to the left, or clarifying some tutorial text. But, it's all to make a better game, and so far, I think we've hit it off pretty well with players.
But along the way, I also discovered a few other interesting games.
Unless
Let's start with Unless, by Bellwood Studios. It's a classic-like 2D platformer that felt really to play. The pixel art is beautiful right from the start, and the gameplay matches. The player movement was tight and felt good to control. With very few tutorial popups, the controls became clear and all that was left was to enjoy.
Unless has a playable Steam demo and was released in January 2025.
Poly Fighter
Poly Fighter, by Heartloop Games, is a roguelike fighting game. At its core, the game is similar to Street Fighter, Dive Kick, Capcom vs Marvel, and others, where you pick your character and fight another character using their unique abilities. But between fights in Poly Fighter, the player gets to pick one new perk of three options. As the game progresses, the player is creating their own version of that character that best suits their fighting style. My main wish would be to have the attack / move animations be slightly faster. When playing, they felt a little laggy behind when I pressed the buttons. Overall, the game was fun to play and the art direction and animation were great!
Poly Fighter does not have an announced released date, but it is looking for playtesters on its Steam page.
Astronomics
Astonomics, by Numizmatic, is a top-down exploration and automation game set in space. Unfortunately, I was only able to play for a short time, but in that time, I enjoyed the low-poly, fill-coloured art style. The player movement and automation mechanics were fun as you could simultaneously explore the whole terrain space, as well as harvest it all. Makes for a more dynamic level.
Astronomics released in February 2025 in early access on Steam.
Sunset Suckerpunch
Sunset Suckerpunch, by Virtual Unreality Inc., is a fast-paced PVE game where the player wields a talking, transforming motorcycle-sword-gauntlet. Due to the game's popularity at VGLX, I did not get to play it myself, but in watching, it became clear that the controls were tight, and the combat itself was satisfying. The art style is directly pulled from the 80's synthwave aesthetic and it is lovely. Between combat encounters, the talking, transforming motorcycle-sword-gauntlet goes into its motorcycle form and the player can follow the road to the next area, all the while enjoying the beautiful purple environment and the bright yellow sunset.
Sunset Suckerpunch is set to release in 2026.
Dark Age Dinos
Dark Age Dinos, by Woolly Walrus Games, is a turn-based tactical roguelike set in a medieval world with dinosaurs. Play solo, or in up to four player coop. The game's art is great, the character abilities and combinations are fun to customize, and I have to give it praise on its UI, as without needing a single tutorial, popup, or even a comment from the developer while I was playing, I was quickly able to start playing, and intuitively learned as I went. It was fun solo, but I'd be very interested in trying it in coop mode.
Dark Age Dinos' release is coming in 2026, and it has a playable demo on Steam.
JollyRoll
JollyRoll, by Sugamu Studio, is a match 3 game with a truly delightful art style and music to match. They were our neighbours during VGLX and throughout the event, at least one of my team (including me) would play a through a few levels. The base game is simple; match three marbles of the same colour, which destroys them. Destroy all marbles before time runs out. But the way the levels are designed and with their additional mechanics, it makes for an engaging and quite strategic game that gives room for players to create their own play style as well as improve with every attempt. The whole time I was playing, the art style and music just had me smiling as it captures childlike whimsy and fun.
JollyRoll's release date has not yet been announced.
There were many more games at these events, but these were the ones that I had a chance to engage with and that caught my eye.
I would encourage you to check them out and wishlist on Steam, as well as the games not on this list. You can check out the full list here for Ottawa Comic Con↗ and VGLX↗.
Thanks for reading!