6. Hotline Miami
(Dennaton)
Original US Release: October 23rd, 2012
Hotline Miami, built in GameMaker by a couple of rogues of the indie world including Cactus whose typical fare is like an infected autobiography rendered in neon vomit, found lifetime die-hards as quickly as head-scratchers wishing these damned kids would get off their lawn. Either way, it is a certifiable pop cultural phenomenon, and its fever-dream storyline, woven throughout Dark Souls-level come back for more of a smackdown than you think you can stand twitch gaming, made for an unforgettable experience.
If you don’t believe us, just check out the Hotline Miami’s fan art Tumblr. It’s certifiable Clockwork Orange gold.
“…Its nuanced and fulfilling shoot-em-up action will leave you feeling something like watching Scarface with hyper-colored glasses. And that’s a good thing…because there are few other good things I can remember from the 80′s.”
– From the original IGR review of Hotline Miami by primofimo
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.