We’re back again for another round-up of indie titles that have just dropped and have been consuming our attention. As always, the list below highlights just a few of the recently released indie games, but we haven’t had the time to do full-fat reviews of them at the moment.
Read More: Indie Review Roundup – Indie-Credible Gems and Passable Fare
Hopefully, these bite-sized reviews will give you a taste of what each game is about—and who knows, you might even uncover a hidden gem in the mix.
Captain Blood
Developers: General Arcade and Akella
Price: £20.99/€24.99
This is somewhat of a legend. Having been announced way back in 2003, Captain Blood has endured one hell of a rough journey to finally make it to shore. But the year is 2025, and at long last, Captain Blood has arrived. A pirate-themed hack-and-slash action game, this title wholeheartedly embraces its 2000s origins with pride. You battle enemies on both land and sea, engaging in ship-to-ship combat and sword fights to seize control of invading vessels.
You play as Peter Blood, a former privateer turned pirate, seeking revenge on the Spanish—and, of course, treasure. The story is pulpy, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing; sometimes, you just want swashbuckling action, hidden treasure, and dastardly villains.
Combat takes clear inspiration from early God of War, combining light and heavy attacks with QTE events and finisher moves. It’s a throwback, but it successfully captures the era’s distinctive feeling and vibe. Things are shaken up with ship-to-ship combat, where you man a turret as enemies board your vessel. Though fun, these encounters feel more like mini-games than substantial gameplay moments.
Visually, the game resembles a 2000s title that has received an HD remaster, though a few graphical issues persist. However, the soundtrack captures the pirate atmosphere perfectly, blending Caribbean-inspired tones with sea shanties. Captain Blood is a portal to a long-lost era—not just in hack-and-slash gaming but in video game history itself. Those who remember it will enjoy this relic, but for modern gamers, the throwback may feel too rough around the edges.
Score: 3/5
Chains of Freedom
Developer: Nordcurrent
Price: £20.99/€24.50
A turn-based tactics game set in a fictional dystopian Eastern European state, Chains of Freedom feels eerily close to reality considering today’s geopolitical landscape. It aims to deliver X-COM-style thrills while introducing a few interesting twists. You take charge of an elite military squad across various missions, but things quickly spiral out of control, leading you into a mind-control conspiracy threatening the nation. The story is serviceable but lacks true engagement—it’s extremely B-movie in tone and sometimes overly serious to its detriment.
Where the narrative falters, the gameplay holds up—mostly. While Chains of Freedom is technically a turn-based tactics game, that only applies to combat. The game is divided into two phases: exploration and combat. In exploration, gameplay occurs in real time, allowing you to roam freely. Combat, however, switches to turn-based mechanics—if you’ve played Mutant Year Zero: Road to Eden, you’ll know what to expect.
Exploration revolves around collecting resources—lots of them. You’ll gather materials to craft gear, hunt for ammo and weapons, and collect bio-crystals, which serve as upgrade points to boost squad abilities. Combat follows a traditional action-point system: take actions as long as you have points, then end the turn.
Where Chains of Freedom stumbles is in its pacing. It drags out the experience with an excruciatingly slow tutorial, repetitive waves of enemies, and, worst of all, bullet sponge foes—making fights feel artificially extended. Visually, the game looks competent but lacks personality. The voice acting leaves much to be desired, too. If you’re an X-COM fan eager for a new challenge, it’s worth trying. However, for most players, its sluggish pacing and bogged-down mechanics make it a tough sell.
Score: 2/5
Despelote
Developers: Julián Cordero and Sebastian Valbuena
Price: £11.99/€13.99
Despelote is one of those rare titles that reminds you gaming isn’t just about slaying monsters or blasting away enemies. Branded a “slice-of-life” experience, it transports players to Quito, Ecuador, during the country’s qualification for the 2002 FIFA World Cup. You step into the shoes of eight-year-old Julián Cordero—yes, one of the developers—making this, in many ways, an autobiographical title.
As such, there are no dramatic plot twists or antagonists—just a young boy, his love for football, and the nuances of family life. The game unfolds like a scrapbook, preserving key moments from Julián’s childhood while offering a glimpse into Ecuadorian life in the early 2000s. Visually, Despelote is stunning, resembling an art installation with its mix of collaged imagery, duotone filters, and striking white cutouts of key people and objects. It’s clearly been crafted with care and intent.
This visual storytelling is supported by an atmospheric soundscape—Spanish chatter filling classrooms and streets, birds singing in trees—all punctuated by the rhythmic thud of boots kicking a ball down the road. The soundtrack? Absolute perfection. If I were to sum up Despelote at its core, beyond its beautifully constructed narrative and world-building, I’d call it the most abstract football game I’ve ever played. Whether kicking a ball, a balloon, or an empty bottle, the game captures the simple joy of play.
Ultimately, Despelote is an emotionally charged football experience where the sport serves as a backdrop to a deeply personal, family-focused tale capturing childhood memories. Is it for everyone? No. But if you dare to immerse yourself in its world, let it wash over you, and stay with it until the credits roll, you’ll undoubtedly feel something—perhaps even enriched.
Score: 5/5
Into the Restless Ruins
Developer: Ant Workshop
Price: £12.99/€14.99
Into the Restless Ruins blends roguelike dungeon crawling with deck-building mechanics—an intriguing mix of genres. But Scottish studio Ant Workshop has crafted an engaging and challenging title rooted in Scottish folklore. The game unfolds in two phases. First, you build a dungeon from your deck of cards—each card adding a new room or corridor, potentially offering buffs or bonuses. Your main objective in the building phase is to create a path leading to a set number of seals.
Then, the second phase kicks in, transforming the experience into an auto-battle. You explore the dungeon you’ve constructed, collecting Glimour and hunting the seals—all while fending off cursed inhabitants lurking in the darkness. The rooms you place determine the effectiveness of your run. Some grant attack or health buffs, while others extend the time on your torch—the only source of light in the dungeon. Once the light is gone, survival becomes near impossible.
Each successful run unlocks new cards, refreshing your deck for future attempts. Since failure results from your own dungeon layout, every setback is a lesson in strategic refinement. The auto-battling draws comparisons to Vampire Survivors, where you fight ever-changing beasts but can manipulate enemy movements, adding depth to what could otherwise be a straightforward system.
Visually, the game boasts crisp pixel art with a retro aesthetic, while its atmospheric sound design enhances immersion without being intrusive. Into the Restless Ruins is a fascinating genre fusion. While some might call it Vampire Survivors with a map editor, that would undersell its intricate design. It expertly combines multiple mechanics while infusing them with Scottish charm and mystique.
Score: 5/5
Kvark
Developers: Latest Past and Perun Creative
Price: £16.24/€18.99
Kvark is a throwback FPS set in a fictional version of 1980s Czechoslovakia. You awaken in a cell deep within an underground facility—one that’s rapidly collapsing, along with the horrors that lurk within. Escaping your cell, you must fight your way through, uncovering the truth behind your imprisonment. The gameplay sits somewhere between Quake and Half-Life—a blend of classic shooter mechanics with a slight narrative backbone.
Each level presents opportunities to discover new weapons, secrets, and light puzzle-solving while battling foes ranging from zombies to robotic drones. Adjusting the settings—especially the sluggish turning speed—is highly recommended. Gunplay is smooth and impactful. You’ll crack skulls with a wrench and land satisfying headshots with an arsenal that includes assault rifles, shotguns, and later, sci-fi weaponry.
Enemy behaviour, however, leaves much to be desired. They often rush you without much tactical variation, making encounters predictable. Worse still, the checkpoint system is unforgiving—the gaps between saves are too long, meaning death forces you to replay large portions of levels. The removal of the original quick-save system feels like an attempt to artificially extend playtime rather than a genuine design choice.
Visually, the game embraces a chunky, retro FPS aesthetic, complementing its Eastern Bloc setting. The soundtrack fits the mood well, kicking in when the tension rises. Kvark is a competent FPS that delivers old-school fun without pushing boundaries. However, its save system and difficulty spikes make it a tough sell for anyone but the most seasoned shooter fans.
Score: 2.5/5
Maniac
Developer: Transhuman Design
Price: £4.19/€4.99
Take classic GTA, centre the experience around its Rampage missions, and add a touch of Vampire Survivors, and you get Maniac. A love letter to DMA Design’s magnum opus, this game drops you into a city with 20 minutes to unleash chaos before a nuclear strike wipes everything out. Your objective is simple: unlock new characters, acquire weapons, and avoid getting busted. You can run, drive, or even take to the skies across the fairly large sandbox map.
Gameplay mirrors Vampire Survivors in some ways—dodging is often more crucial than shooting. You can manually fire weapons, set auto-fire, or even enable auto-aim, making survival the main focus. When time runs out, the city erupts into flames, and you escape with bags of “found” cash. This money can be spent on perks, weapons, and abilities to enhance future runs.
Each of the six playable characters—or psychopaths—has their own abilities and arsenal, but their money isn’t shared. So, grinding is required for each unless you focus on a single character and invest heavily in their upgrade tree. Every psychopath plays differently, offering distinct strategies. While repetition can set in, short bursts of play help mitigate fatigue.
Maniac is pure, unabashed carnage—blending GTA chaos with Vampire Survivors mechanics for an explosively entertaining time.
Score: 4/5