In the last few years we've seen the rise of independent game makers who often self-publish their titles and distribute their games using services such as Steam or their own sites. I know you really want to enjoy them. Problem: they're too many for their own good. That's why I suggest that in this thread we highlight those we consider interesting... and why, so as to filter what others will consider good purchases.
First is:
Available on
Steam Dustforce was made by the 4-man team of Hitbox, living in a garage near you. It's a fast-paced platformer where you have to keep the streets clean of leaves and dirt. It's not as monotonous as it sounds, because the challenge lies in keeping the speed up and doing combos, while climbing up walls, sweeping and hitting enemies. It has great art style and atmosphere, ornated by an inspiring retro-music stolen from the gods, composed by Terrence Lee. It reminds me of tunes taken from
Umineko no Naku Koro ni Chiru.
Gamefront has given Dustforce a 95/100 associating it with Flashback and Another World in terms of art, Super Meat Boy in terms of difficulty. They praise it for its brilliant and intricate level design "that requires a lot of skill", "great soundtrack", "solid controls", but admit "it may be too tough for some players".