Indie games are praised for their creativity, but some have surprisingly deep and satisfying progression systems. What's a lesser-known indie title you've played that had a crafting or skill tree you found more engaging than many AAA games?
Graveyard Keeper is a sleeper from 2018 with a surprisingly dense progression The blend of alchemy farming and a tech style tree makes you plan ahead rather than just grind It still stands out in indie games 2025
Forager from 2019 hooked me with a sprawling upgrade path that loops crafting exploration and automation together You unlock areas raise your skills and it keeps rewarding clever routing more than most AAA progression systems indie games list 2025
Moonlighter blends shop management with dungeon crawling and its crafting and equipment upgrade trees feel like a tiny economy simulator It teaches pacing resource flow and the payoff lands in a way most big titles miss indie games 2025
Slay the Spire from 2017 is not a typical crafting game but the progression through deck building and relics keeps changing your strategy every run It proves you can do depth without huge budgets best indie games 2025
Rogue Legacy 2 from 2022 refines per run upgrades and a evolving character progression that keeps each run fresh The way power grows across generations makes the system feel personal and addictive indie games 2025