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I am so fucking obsessed with this game

and an important reminder to give games memorable names lol

Mixolumia is $2.50 on Steam right now, in case you forgot what it's called.

I had zero clue how much this little idea would change my life.

Here's 75% off on itch to celebrate.

It's time! The simplest survey question of the year, but maybe the hardest to answer.

What were your favorite indie games from 2023?

Respond in the comments below or give a Share! I'm really curious to see what people played. You can get a refresher on a sliver of the 2023 indies by browsing my New Releases tag.

Also I tried making a hashtag last year but that didn't really take off (lmao) but if you'd like, feel free to tag any of your GOTY list posts with #indie goty 2023

I might Share a few if you do! Let's spread the love and recognition around.

Mosa Lina was the game this year that made me stand up and shout. It takes the ingredients of a puzzle platformer and immersive sim and wonders, what if these things weren't in service of showing off how clever the designer's little puzzle is? What if the game was structured so the designer couldn't possibly know if a solution is possible, and so if you manage to beat it, it really is your cleverness that made that achievement happen?

On top of that, I really admire the way it avoids using extrinsic motivation. There are little nonsense "rewards" after completing each level that either have little to do with your actions or are basically inscrutable. And as far as I can tell, none of them are recorded. When you beat a challenge, the game basically tells you "none of this matters, there is no reward for this" and yet you feel elated having overcome the struggle by your own wits. It is A Statement, but in a way that avoids being heavy handed or obnoxious.

I also love the gall of designing some items to be so ridiculous as to be nearly useless, while others reveal their utility with experimentation. I still haven't figured out what good the gun that shoots a fish is, but the gun that shoots a limp tentacle opened up a whole new world of strategy when I discovered the tentacle flexes in response to the player's movement keys.

This might be a Game for Game Developers, I'm not sure. I can't help but see the inner workings of a lot of games these days, especially puzzle platformers, where I take one look and see a sudoku instead of a world to explore. It might scratch an itch for masochists, the kind of person who loves throwing themselves at Getting Over It and the like over and over. Your mileage may vary.

But in a very crowded indie space, this one felt fresh enough to really stick in my mind.