8. FTL: Faster Than Light
(Subset Games)
Original US Release: September 14th, 2012
It seemed like at one point or another, someone was extolling the virtues and singing the praises of FTL, a game that made its crowdfunding pledge 20x over with an original modest asking price of $10,000 and receiving $200,542 from almost 10,000 backers in the short time it was running. Designed by a team of two developers, it struck a chord with anyone bold enough to try their luck at traversing the treacherous galaxies and escape from the rebel forces closing in on them.
“FTL: Faster Than Light is a superb idea that has been forged into an excellent game. The music and visual design are of a high quality, carrying both atmosphere and information elegantly. Each game feels like its own adventure and it only takes a few jumps for you to become invested in the survival of your crew.”
- From the original IGR review of FTL: Faster than Light by Kit Goodliffe
Kit Goodliffe adds:
It’s rare to find a game that offers a truly unique experience, much less a game that makes you feel like the captain of your very own starship. It’s hard to imagine why no one thought of FTL before; its particular brand of permadeath space exploration and ship management stands out as a superb example of innovation in indie development. This game manages to be deeply enjoyable even when you’re losing and immensely satisfying when you finally achieve victory. FTL is a rare gem that reinforces the notion that games don’t have to hold your hand to be fun.
Top 10. 9. 8. 7. 6. 5. 4. 3. 2. 1. HM1 HM2 HM3 MA
Minecraft, Terraria, Proteus?
Thanks for your comment! Terraria was actually released in 2011, and we named it our number 3 title in our Best Indie Games list for 2011. Minecraft was also officially released in 2011. Due to its massive popularity, we felt it didn’t need the nod from us that year. You’ll also notice that while Proteus isn’t in our Top Ten for this year, we did give it an Honorable Mention.