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Actual Hidden Gems on Steam
  • That's a tough question. There's a handful of 3D space combat games like Everspace, Starlink, or Manticore: Galaxy on Fire. There's also bullet hell games like Galacide and AstroWings: Space War. But none of those are quite like the more open top down games above. Your best bet to find something might be to ask on a larger Nintendo forum. I hope you find something!

  • Actual Hidden Gems on Steam
  • Star Valor does look great. If you're on Mac or Linux you can play Endless Sky or Naev, which are both free. Or outside Steam try Starsector, which might be the best 2D space game on the market, or The Ur-Quan Masters; a continuation of Star Control 2 and also free.

  • Actual Hidden Gems on Steam
  • I almost included Lingo on my list because I'm playing it right now and loving it. But I'm only 6 hours in so I didn't want to make presumptions about anything I've not experienced in it yet. What I've played though has been fantastic. I like it quite a bit more than The Witness.

  • Actual Hidden Gems on Steam
  • I've seen Tametsi, Hexcells, and Bombe continually recommended online as hidden gems but I've put off buying any because I'm not much of a Minesweeper fan. I should really give them a try sometime though, since I think the luck aspect is my least favorite part of Minesweeper. Thanks for sharing!

  • Actual Hidden Gems on Steam
  • The Ascent is a longer game and leans harder into RPG elements than Ruiner ever does. For me, Ruiner ran better and like @Catastrophic235@midwest.social says, the music is incredible. Blows The Ascent's soundtrack out of the water. Ruiner might have slightly tighter controls too, but I'd have to replay to confirm since I played it with a mouse/keyboard while I played The Ascent with a controller.

  • Actual Hidden Gems on Steam
  • I just picked up Mainframe Defenders on GOG last week! Excited to try it out.

    And yeah, I kind of wondered if you might know those titles while I wrote them out. Steam is surprisingly good at recommending traditional roguelikes once you own a few. There's stuff like Door in the Woods, Shattered Pixel Dungeon, or the slightly different Wayward that are also on Steam but after a while your best bet to find new stuff is to search on RogueBasin or r/roguelikes on Reddit.

  • Actual Hidden Gems on Steam
  • All three of those games are fantastic! You might want to check these out too:

    • Rift Wizard is all about being an overpowered mage. Kind of like Noita, but more traditionally Rogue.
    • Golden Krone Hotel is easier and more approachable than most traditional roguelikes, but I love the sunlight mechanic it plays with.
    • Dawn of the Mexica is a mythical Aztec adventure. Wonderfully thematic and got me studying real-world Aztec history and mythology.
    • Cogmind has robots building themselves from the parts of other robots. Nice shift from the usual fantasy the genre sticks to.
    • UnReal World is one I've not actually played, but it looks super appealing if you're into hardcore roguelikes. Soulash is another that looks neat but I haven't picked it up yet.

    And of course the big ones like ToME, Caves of Qud, and C:DDA are all amazing. But you can get ToME and C:DDA from their original sites for free.

    Hope you enjoy Northern Journey!

  • Actual Hidden Gems on Steam
  • Oh wow, I missed it early on! The Eternal Cylinder is good, but some occasionally clunky gameplay alongside the very unique alien designs might turn some people away. It crashed twice on me and once you figure out all the systems of play it can feel simple (although there's a lot of complexity under the hood), so I could see some people giving up on it due to frustration or boredom - especially if the aliens or story don't hook them.

    I loved the environments and alien concept (plus the fun stress of the cylinders approaching) which kept me hooked. Plus it's much more mechanically involved than Spore was. Spent about 13 hours with the game and left satisfied. If I had to numerically rate it, it's maybe around 8/10?

  • Actual Hidden Gems on Steam
  • Just in case you weren't aware, The Oregon Trail is on Steam as a remake now, but I haven't read much about it. I like the colorful style they chose for it though. There's also the still unreleased Journey Express which looks very similar. Anyway, here's some other stuff:

    • Organ Trail is the closest to Oregon Trail I think you can get on Steam. Players control a group in the zombie apocalypse instead of journeying to the western frontier.

    • Death Road to Canada captures the same sort of travel with small events interspersed that Oregon Trail had, but plays quite a bit differently..

    • Super Amazing Wagon Adventure is an Oregon Trail-themed shooter.

    • The Flame in the Flood is about traveling by raft but more about survival in the modern gaming sense than Oregon Trail was.

    • FTL is super well known, but pretty comparable. You could also try Trigon Space Story.

  • Actual Hidden Gems on Steam

    I love obscure and overlooked games and want to share a bunch with all of you. Most “hidden gem” threads end up listing titles with thousands of reviews or that got some level of marketing. I aim to mostly avoid that. While you may see a few familiar games here, everything in the list below has under 1500 reviews on Steam and most have far less. Far fewer had any notable marketing push or appearance in gaming shows or directs. And since the Steam Sale is ongoing, it’s the perfect time to try these games for yourself.

    If you’d like more recommendations, comment with at least three games you like and I’ll respond with a couple more indie games hopefully suited to your tastes. Hope you enjoy!

    False Skies - 37 Reviews

    • A JRPG with simple GameBoy graphics but scale matching and surpassing lots of genre classics. It’s most similar to Dragon Quest III, since both deal with custom parties and somewhat open exploration of their worlds.

    Hyperspace Delivery Service - 37 Reviews

    • A Star Trek inspired take on Oregon Trail. There’s a bunch of minigames based around travel and planets and events like fighting space pirates to make each trip across space feel fresh.

    Treasures of the Aegean - 57 Reviews

    • Imagine if Tomb Raider was a 2D metroidvania and had a timeloop mechanic. That’s this game. The parkour system feels great too.

    DIG - Deep in Galaxies - 79 Reviews

    • Terraria/Starbound + Noita + Spelunky = this game. Fly through space to dig through planets and create broken character builds. The first free content update was also just released.

    Star Drift Evolution - 169 Reviews

    • A racing game with 75 tracks, 51 vehicles, multiple camera modes, and some great handling. Probably most similar to Art of Rally, but this has more variety.

    Prodigal - 182 Reviews

    • A Zelda-like game with Stardew Valley-esque characters and interactions. Loads of dungeons and a charming (if simple) story all wrapped in a GameBoy Color aesthetic.

    Intergalactic Fishing - 211 Reviews

    • Travel to infinite lakes and fish in them. Despite the simple graphics there’s a lot being simulated and yet the complexity of it all never makes the game overwhelming.

    Elsinor - 235 Reviews

    • An adventure game about Hamlet, but you play as Ophelia and she’s caught in a Groundhog Day scenario. While I don’t think this is the best narrative game (that would be Scarlet Hollow), I do think this is the most intriguing one with so many clever and interesting ideas to share.

    RITE - 251 Reviews

    • A difficult precision platformer like Celeste, Super Meat Boy, and I Wanna Be The Guy. It’s split into dozens of bite-sized levels so it’s easy to pick up for short play sessions.

    Ctrl Alt Ego - 350 Reviews

    • An immersive sim that stands toe to toe with classics like Deus Ex and Prey. You play as a detached consciousness which can jump between robots to make your way through various missions and levels however you want.

    The Eternal Cylinder - 383 Reviews

    • This is like Spore, but even weirder and there’s a cylinder that’s going to kill your aliens.

    ADACA - 449 Reviews

    • Imagine S.T.A.L.K.E.R. with Halo’s weapons and a special move that’s Half Life 2’s gravity gun and you’ve got ADACA. The two current story acts are just an introduction to the more open zone mode with quests and mysteries to explore and solve.

    Legend Bowl - 723 Reviews

    • If you ever played Tecmo Bowl or Superbowl on the SNES, this is basically an upgraded version. I think this is the best American Football game on Steam. Mutant Football League is a close second.

    Environmental Station Alpha - 1046 Reviews

    • It’s really difficult, but I think this is the best encapsulation of the Metroidvania formula. Plus the postgame is more substantial than you’ll probably expect.

    Heaven's Vault - 1410 Reviews

    • Did you like uncovering the secrets of an ancient alien civilization in Outer Wilds? This offers something like that, with a slower pace, more direct narrative, and focus on learning a lost language.

    Northern Journey - 1453 Reviews

    • Explore a mystical and mysterious Nordic region. The atmosphere this game builds for itself through environments and music is possibly the best I’ve ever experienced in any game ever. It’s really that good.
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    A recommendation pleading post (with a twist)
  • APICO maybe? It's got some crafting, but is mostly pretty chill, concentrating on breeding bees.

    Dorfromantik is relatively mindless. You place tiles and create landscapes. There's nice music too. There's a sort of strategy to it, but it's pretty light. Unlocking new tiles is the main grind. If you wanted a bit more thought involved, just about any turn-based strategy like Civilization 6 should do.

    If you want to keep to JRPGs but at a calmer pace than FF7R, False Skies might be up your alley. ARPGs like Chronicon are also low on the intense/concentration scale (although like most ARPGs, you shouldn't expect much of a story).

    But more than any of those, I think Dave the Diver is your best bet. Ocean theme, doesn't require great concentration (besides the odd minigame), and has a bunch to be taken in at your own pace.

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    Hieracosphinx @beehaw.org
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