Best games
Best Indie games of 2003
The 9 best Indie games released in 2003, ranked from 1,148 critic and player ratings.
The best Indie game of 2003 is Soldat, with a critic score of 82/100 — updated September 2026.
How this ranking is built
- Games are ranked on the aggregated critic score out of 100 imported from IGDB and Metacritic, never on Tier's own grades.
- A game only enters the ranking with at least 30 external ratings, so a single enthusiastic review never outranks a proven classic.
- Community grades from F to S are shown next to every game, and only stated as a fact above 5 Tier ratings.
- Release window covered: 2003.
- 9 games are listed on this page, carrying 1,148 ratings between them.
- Rankings are recomputed hourly; this one was last rebuilt on 28 September 2026.
Top 9
01
Soldat
Soldat (meaning "soldier" in Italian, German, Russian, Norwegian, Danish, Swedish, French, Catalan and Romanian) is a Polish 2D multiplayer game for Windows. It is a side-scroller inspired by Liero and Scorched Earth, combined with elements from Counter-Strike and Worms. The game is shareware. Registration unlocks extra aesthetic options, such as colored jet flames and custom interfaces. Version 1.5.0 also includes a minimap and changeable screen resolution for registered users. Soldat is written and maintained by programmer Michał Marcinkowski, who started working on the game in November, 2001. It is coded in the Delphi programming language using the JEDI libraries. Though Marcinkowski is the primary developer, he works with a few others on the dedicated server and lobby, in addition to a small beta team which aids in testing prior to new releases.
82
/100
02
Praetorians
Your destiny awaits you on the battlefield. As a Roman General on a quest to forge an empire, you will be transported back to the dusty battlefields of Egypt, the frozen lands of the Gauls, and finally to the heart of the Empire itself, Italy. Your quest will be no easy task as the lands you seek to conquer are heavily defended by thousands of powerful troops. Feed you insatiable hunger to rule the empire with this combat-heavy epic adventure Command the forces of 3 civilizations - the disciplined Romans, the ferocious Gauls, and the religiously fanatical Egyptians Different landscapes play an all-important role in battle. From snow-capped mountains to sandy beaches, the AI will understand varying terrain and its defensive and offensive possibilities Battle for supremacy online in an intense multiplayer match supporting up to 8 players Master the art of war in over 20 single player missions requiring vastly different strategies
78
/100
03
Samorost
Samorost is a short point-and-click adventure game. The goal is to help the little space gnome save his home asteroid from a collision with another asteroid by solving diverse puzzles.
74
/100
Soldat
Soldat (meaning "soldier" in Italian, German, Russian, Norwegian, Danish, Swedish, French, Catalan and Romanian) is a Polish 2D multiplayer game for Windows. It is a side-scroller inspired by Liero and Scorched Earth, combined with elements from Counter-Strike and Worms. The game is shareware. Registration unlocks extra aesthetic options, such as colored jet flames and custom interfaces. Version 1.5.0 also includes a minimap and changeable screen resolution for registered users. Soldat is written and maintained by programmer Michał Marcinkowski, who started working on the game in November, 2001. It is coded in the Delphi programming language using the JEDI libraries. Though Marcinkowski is the primary developer, he works with a few others on the dedicated server and lobby, in addition to a small beta team which aids in testing prior to new releases.
82
/100
02
Praetorians
Your destiny awaits you on the battlefield. As a Roman General on a quest to forge an empire, you will be transported back to the dusty battlefields of Egypt, the frozen lands of the Gauls, and finally to the heart of the Empire itself, Italy. Your quest will be no easy task as the lands you seek to conquer are heavily defended by thousands of powerful troops. Feed you insatiable hunger to rule the empire with this combat-heavy epic adventure Command the forces of 3 civilizations - the disciplined Romans, the ferocious Gauls, and the religiously fanatical Egyptians Different landscapes play an all-important role in battle. From snow-capped mountains to sandy beaches, the AI will understand varying terrain and its defensive and offensive possibilities Battle for supremacy online in an intense multiplayer match supporting up to 8 players Master the art of war in over 20 single player missions requiring vastly different strategies
78
/100
03
Samorost
Samorost is a short point-and-click adventure game. The goal is to help the little space gnome save his home asteroid from a collision with another asteroid by solving diverse puzzles.
74
/100
04
Alien Shooter
Alien Shooter is an top-down shooter video game from Sigma Team created in 2003. It is the first title in the Alien Shooter series to be followed by Alien Shooter: Vengeance. Alien Shooter has two expansions, Fight for Life and The Experiment. They each contain five new levels, including the conclusion to the alien shooter story.
72
/100
05
Etherlords II
Etherlords 2 is an exciting mix of role-playing, adventure, and tactical combat in the fine tradition of fantasy trading card games. Rediscover the world of Ether and a whole new realm of fantastic possibilities. Lead your Hero through five campaigns, through lands filled with unsurpassed beauty and danger. Summon a wide variety of creatures--Lamia Warriors, Red Dragons, Walls of Air, and more--to help you achieve victory on the battlefield. Use all the power at your disposal to show your enemies that is you who deserves to have complete control of Ether. The Ether is eternal, the Ether is all-powerful, and now it will be under your command. If you're looking for a strategic challenge and you like trading-card games, this is your best pick! This version of the game supports co-op battles via Internet, including Round Table mode: round robin elimination tournament with random set of cards.
70
/100
06
Crimsonland
Top-down arena shooter video game with role-playing elements. It was developed by Finnish studio 10tons Entertainment and published by Reflexive Entertainment in 2003. In 2014 an enhanced re-release followed.
68
/100
07
Chaser
Chaser is a first-person shooter action video game that takes place in the future, when humanity has inhabited Mars. The gameplay is fast pace, featuring 12 maps that make up the gameplay over four different game modes.
66
/100
08
Journey to the Center of the Earth
65
/100
09
Postal 2
Try to live a week as The Postal Dude doing everyday chores on your to-do list, such as picking up milk at the grocery store. In a world where cats can be used as assault rifle silencers, it's not surprising that a milk carton costs 5 bucks. Stealing said carton might be relatively easy in your basic corner shop, but when the shop is owned by a bunch of trigger happy jihadists, you might want to think twice about trying to leave without paying for your overpriced groceries. Little mistakes like that might just flip the switch and make you go postal.
59
/100
Alien Shooter
Alien Shooter is an top-down shooter video game from Sigma Team created in 2003. It is the first title in the Alien Shooter series to be followed by Alien Shooter: Vengeance. Alien Shooter has two expansions, Fight for Life and The Experiment. They each contain five new levels, including the conclusion to the alien shooter story.
72
/100
05
Etherlords II
Etherlords 2 is an exciting mix of role-playing, adventure, and tactical combat in the fine tradition of fantasy trading card games. Rediscover the world of Ether and a whole new realm of fantastic possibilities. Lead your Hero through five campaigns, through lands filled with unsurpassed beauty and danger. Summon a wide variety of creatures--Lamia Warriors, Red Dragons, Walls of Air, and more--to help you achieve victory on the battlefield. Use all the power at your disposal to show your enemies that is you who deserves to have complete control of Ether. The Ether is eternal, the Ether is all-powerful, and now it will be under your command. If you're looking for a strategic challenge and you like trading-card games, this is your best pick! This version of the game supports co-op battles via Internet, including Round Table mode: round robin elimination tournament with random set of cards.
70
/100
06
Crimsonland
Top-down arena shooter video game with role-playing elements. It was developed by Finnish studio 10tons Entertainment and published by Reflexive Entertainment in 2003. In 2014 an enhanced re-release followed.
68
/100
07
Chaser
Chaser is a first-person shooter action video game that takes place in the future, when humanity has inhabited Mars. The gameplay is fast pace, featuring 12 maps that make up the gameplay over four different game modes.
66
/100
08
Journey to the Center of the Earth
65
/100
09
Postal 2
Try to live a week as The Postal Dude doing everyday chores on your to-do list, such as picking up milk at the grocery store. In a world where cats can be used as assault rifle silencers, it's not surprising that a milk carton costs 5 bucks. Stealing said carton might be relatively easy in your basic corner shop, but when the shop is owned by a bunch of trigger happy jihadists, you might want to think twice about trying to leave without paying for your overpriced groceries. Little mistakes like that might just flip the switch and make you go postal.
59
/100
Frequently asked questions
What is the best Indie game of 2003?
Soldat currently tops the ranking with a score of 82/100 across 35 ratings. Ranking updated September 2026.
How is this ranking built?
Games are ranked on their aggregated critic score out of 100, with a minimum vote threshold so a single glowing review never outranks a proven classic; the Tier community's own F-to-S grades are shown alongside each game.