When games like Call of Duty: Black Ops and devices like Kinect notch record-setting numbers, it’s easy to lose sight of the fact that success comes in many forms in the video game medium. Over at TIME.com, Jacob Templin takes a look at how smaller, artsier games engage players in an art gallery setting but manage to find success on iOS and Android platforms, too.
Independent game development’s become a force to be reckoned with over the last few years. Limbo and Super Meat Boy made our 2010 Games of the Year list, and great titles like Skulls of the Shogun and The Gunstringer should make 2011 an equally great year for indies as well. At GDC last week, Minecraft brought home major awards in both the Game Developers Choice and Independent Games Festival’s ceremonies. The runaway hit’s the work of Markus “Notch” Persson and the small team at Mojang Games, who’ve made millions on a browser-based title that’s not even out of beta yet.
There’s no shortage of innovation and talent in the indie games space and the digital distribution pipelines available through iOS and Android assures these games will find audiences ready to play them. The video offers a great look at one of the exhibits put on by indie arcade Babycastles and insights from top game designers Andy Nealen (Osmos) and Frank Lantz (Drop7). So, tell us, Techland readers, what’s your favorite indie game of the moment?