Australia's best indie game developers

Summary

• Australian independent developers like Spitfire Interactive, 5 Lives Studios and Witch Beam create innovative and engaging games.

• These studios showcase creativity through games like Capes, Cozy Caravan, and Unpacking, receiving critical acclaim and awards.

• Developers like Jordan Mochi and House House also contribute unique titles like Conscript and Untitled Goose Game to the gaming industry.

There are some amazing and creative developers operating out of Australia. Australian independent studios produce some of the most unique, innovative and sometimes downright bizarre games on the market.

Despite the loss of amazing development companies like League of Geeks (on extended hiatus) due to various pressures following the pandemic, there is still fabulous work to be done in the Australian games industry. This list is designed to celebrate the creativity of established and emerging people in video games. Here are some of the most interesting development companies and their recent releases.

7

Interactive Spitfire

Based in Brisbane

Spitfire Interactive is a Brisbane company that released Cloaks in 2024. Cloaks shows an irreverent love for comic book superheroes and XCOMturn-based strategy style. It's a game that emphasizes teamwork and finding the best way to use each superhero's unique abilities.

Cloaks is Spitfire Interactive's first game as a studio and shows a lot of promise for further projects. The studio's creatives have already worked previously Hand of destinywhich was also a clever take on an established playstyle, the sinister rogue-style deckbuilder. It will be interesting to see where they go from here.

6

5 vine studies

Independent developer from Brisbane

5 live studios Cozy caravan It's only in Early Access but is still creating quite a bit of buzz. There's no doubt that Australian studios produce some of the best cozy games around Cozy caravan definitely offers those cozy vibes.

Cozy caravan received an award at the Australian Game Developer Awards for sound design in 2024. While 5 Lives Studios may be better known for the recognition Cozy caravan recently received his previous game, Satellite Kingdom, is a wonderfully dystopian strategy game that fans of class combat will enjoy.

5

Summerfall Studies

Musically inspired Melbourne developers

Summerfall Studios are the creators of Stray Gods: The Role Playing Musicalwhich received a lot of attention from critics and gamers upon its release in 2023. The game has received numerous awards, including the Australia Game Developer Awards Game of the Year. It's a beautiful, multi-linear musical RPG that draws on mythology to inform its characters and branching narrative.

The studio includes seasoned industry veterans in the gaming field in collaboration with qualified industry newcomers. The new Walkers DLC 'Orpheus' shows an ongoing commitment to continuing the legacy of this complex, intelligent and inclusive title.

4

Huge monster

The Melbourne studio has gone international

Massive Monster is an independent game studio based primarily in Australia and the United Kingdom. By far the most popular version of Massive Monster is the exceptionally bright one Cult of the Lamb, released in 2022 and published by Devolver Digital. In Cult of the Lamb, players must spread their cult as far and as fast as possible, aiming for world domination.

The first Massive Monster games, The adventure companions AND Never give upthey're platformers with a delightfully mischievous visual style. They are also fiendishly difficult at times, in particular Never give up, which has some insanely punishing levels and grizzly deaths. It's unclear what Massive Monster are working on, but they seem committed to promoting fan culture out there Cult of the Lamb as well as promoting support and inclusion in the gaming industry at large.

3

Jordan Mochi – Catchweight Studio

Solo developer from Melbourne

Jordan Mochi is a solo developer responsible for the award-winning game Conscript. Conscript is a fantastic top-down survival horror game. If Amnesia: The Bunker AND Dark wood she had a baby, that's what it might be like. The terrifying setting of World War I battlefields is perfect for exploring the cruelty of humanity.

Conscript is Jordan Mochi's first game and shows a love for the subject matter and a deep understanding of visual design despite his lack of experience in the industry. If its results so far are any indication, it's definitely an Australian developer to keep an eye on in the future.

2

Home Home

Sound the horn! Sound the horn! Sound the horn!

House House is a small development team based in Melbourne and is certainly best known for its delightful success Untitled Game of the Goose (which was recently presented at ACMI). The player is a “terrible goose” who threatens a picturesque village in various fun and creative ways. Its popularity has been further bolstered by the addition of a multiplayer mode, allowing you to double the mayhem.

Their signature cartoonish visual style was already established in their first game, the strange multiplayer space puzzle game Push me, pull me. The characters of the village in Untitled Game of the Goose have a lot more clothes and feet. Their next match Great walk seems to blend that cartoon aesthetic with real-world footage.

1

Witch's Ray

Small development team from Brisbane

Witch Beam is probably best known for its gameplay Unpacking. Players who experienced the beautiful exploration of home and belonging that was there Unpacking will be well aware of Witch Beam's ability to design games that evoke emotion through simple graphics, spatial puzzles and staged narrative.

They are currently working on a new project called Time which has a reveal trailer available now. It looks like it will showcase Witch Beam's signature charm, but this time with transformable environments and adorable character models. Time It has yet to have an official release date on Steam but is now available to wishlist.