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Best Indie Action Games of 2023

What are the best indie action games of 2023? Find out here, including 20 Minutes Till Dawn, Patch Quest, Everspace 2, and more!

If you’re looking for the best indie action games released in 2023, then you’ve come to the right place. We’ve assembled the cream of the crop across all the major consoles, and we think that these picks will leave your knuckles white and your palms sweaty.

En Garde!

Platforms: PC

En Garde! is all about being a swashbuckler like in classic adventure movies, and it has you playing as the daring Adalia de Volador as she gets into scrapes and foils the plans of the evil Count-Duke.

With plenty of sabre-rattling comes plenty of sarcastic quips and insults, but excelling in this action game also requires you to use your environment to your advantage. No one said you have to play fair as a swashbuckler!

Patch Quest

Platforms: PC

Patch Quest is a melange of roguelike games, metroidvanias, and monster taming games like Pokemon. The result is a fast-paced, chaotic time on a jungle island.

The game’s bullet hell gameplay is accentuated by your lasso – which allows you to tame any monster you see, and use their abilities to your advantage.

30XX

Platforms: PC

30XX comes from the developer of the 2017 indie classic “20XX”, and like its predecessor, this one is also a roguelike action platformer. Set a thousand years after the original, you find yourself in a world that’s forgotten you, but one in which you must fight to protect what remains.

You’ll be challenged on both your platforming and combat skills in a style that takes influence from Mega Man X, while adding the roguelike gameplay of games like Dead Cells. The game also packs a level editor and a multiplayer mode, so that you can play alongside a friend either locally or online.

Brotato

Platforms: PC

The wildly popular Brotato is a top-down arena shoot ’em up done roguelite style. You play as a potato capable of wielding six weapons at a time as he fights off hordes of aliens and waits for his mates to come get him.

With a very wide range of weapons to pick from and each run lasting 30 minutes, Brotato is easy to pick up and hard to put down. You can also switch up your character to customize your run and adjust accessibility settings to make sure the gameplay is tailored to your preferences.

Blasphemous 2

Platforms: PC, PS5, Xbox Series X/S, Switch

Blasphemous 2 is a lush, gothic Metroidvania action game in which you once again play as The Penitent One, who struggles against the Miracle in a new and unfamiliar land.

With grotesque and macabre enemies standing in your way, you’ll explore a non-linear world, battle devastating bosses, and improve your skillset as you go forth in your quest for penance.

Gravity Circuit

Platforms: PC

Gravity Circuit is an action platformer inspired by console classics, and in it, you play as the war hero Kai as he journeys through a futuristic world and takes on the Virus Army.

As you rescue innocent civilians throughout the game’s stages, you will unlock new powers with which to fight the evil mastermind behind the Virus Army.

Have a Nice Death

Platforms: PC, Switch

Have a Nice Death is an action roguelike in which you play as Death, CEO of Death Incorporated, whose employees have run rampant and left poor Death a mountainload of work to do.

In your efforts to remind your employees who’s boss, you’ll have to hack and slash your way through the offices of Death Incorporated, you’ll have to balance the temptation of gaining new powers at the risk of empowering your subordinates.

Everspace 2

Platforms: PC, PS5, Xbox Series X/S

Take your shooting into space with action-adventure Everspace 2, where you play as a clone pilot attempting to escape a zone of clashing factions.

Following up on the original game, Everspace 2 boasts a beefy campaign in which you’ll engage in intricate space dogfights, build up your own collection of fighter spaceships, search for secrets, solve puzzles, and gather up powerful loot.

20 Minutes Till Dawn

Platforms: PC

20 Minutes Till Dawn is a survival roguelite where surviving the dark of the night means mowing down hordes of attacking Lovecraftian monsters.

Staying alive for as long as you can grants many an advantage, allowing you to create your own overpowered build and unlock persistent upgrades that stick between runs.

Ember Knights

Platforms: PC, Switch

Ember Knights if a 1-4 player roguelite where you play as the heroic titular knights battling the mad sorceror Praxis’ army of horrors.

The game’s knights are armed with six weapons, each with its own modifications. Apart from your own weapon and character build, however, you’ll have to pay attention to your allies, as synergies and combos are critical for beating the enemies and bosses Praxis throws at you.

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Thanks for reading our article on the Best Indie Action Games of 2023! For other interesting articles on Into Indie Games, be sure to check the links below!

• Into Indie Games Homepage
• The Invincible Walkthrough – Demo 2
• En Garde! Review
• Best Indie Games on Nintendo Switch in 2023
• Indie Dev Interview: Peter talks Remorse: The List