Best games
Best Indie games of 2016
The 104 best Indie games released in 2016, ranked from 20,571 critic and player ratings.
The best Indie game of 2016 is Inside, with a critic score of 92/100 — 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 80 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: 2016.
- 50 games are listed on this page, carrying 20,571 ratings between them.
- Rankings are recomputed hourly; this one was last rebuilt on 28 September 2026.
Top 50
01
Inside
An atmospheric 2D side-scroller in which, hunted and alone, a boy finds himself drawn into the center of a dark project and struggles to preserve his identity.
92
/100
02
Rez Infinite
The ultimate version of Sega's psychodelic rail-shooter adventure Rez, fully remastered and evolved, including VR support and additional new content, all by members of the original development team
91
/100
03
Stardew Valley
Stardew Valley is an open-ended country-life RPG! You’ve inherited your grandfather’s old farm plot in Stardew Valley. Armed with hand-me-down tools and a few coins, you set out to begin your new life. Can you learn to live off the land and turn these overgrown fields into a thriving home? It won’t be easy. Ever since Joja Corporation came to town, the old ways of life have all but disappeared. The community center, once the town’s most vibrant hub of activity, now lies in shambles. But the valley seems full of opportunity. With a little dedication, you might just be the one to restore Stardew Valley to greatness!
89
/100
Inside
An atmospheric 2D side-scroller in which, hunted and alone, a boy finds himself drawn into the center of a dark project and struggles to preserve his identity.
92
/100
02
Rez Infinite
The ultimate version of Sega's psychodelic rail-shooter adventure Rez, fully remastered and evolved, including VR support and additional new content, all by members of the original development team
91
/100
03
Stardew Valley
Stardew Valley is an open-ended country-life RPG! You’ve inherited your grandfather’s old farm plot in Stardew Valley. Armed with hand-me-down tools and a few coins, you set out to begin your new life. Can you learn to live off the land and turn these overgrown fields into a thriving home? It won’t be easy. Ever since Joja Corporation came to town, the old ways of life have all but disappeared. The community center, once the town’s most vibrant hub of activity, now lies in shambles. But the valley seems full of opportunity. With a little dedication, you might just be the one to restore Stardew Valley to greatness!
89
/100
04
Hyper Light Drifter
Echoes of a dark and violent past resonate throughout a savage land, steeped in treasure and blood. Hyper Light Drifter is an action adventure RPG in the vein of the best 16-bit classics, with modernized mechanics and designs on a much grander scale.
89
/100
05
Owlboy
Owlboy is a platform/action-adventure video game created by Norwegian developer D-Pad Studio. Explore a vibrantly crafted pixel world in this flying adventure platformer. Being a mute, Otus struggles living up to the expectations of owl-hood. Things spiral from bad to worse with the sudden appearance of sky pirates. What follows is a journey through monster infested ruins, with unexpected encounters, and burdens no one should have to bear.
89
/100
06
The Witness
The Witness is a single-player game in an open world with dozens of locations to explore and over 500 puzzles. This game respects you as an intelligent player and it treats your time as precious. There's no filler; each of those puzzles brings its own new idea into the mix. So, this is a game full of ideas.
88
/100
07
RimWorld
87
/100
08
Orcs Must Die! Unchained
Wisecracking multiplayer action that uniquely blends the strategic depth of a MOBA with intense third-person combat as you fight in a wild battle for fortress supremacy. Orcs Must Die! Unchained is a high-octane PvP action game in which you storm the opposing fortress together with your friends and defend your own base. Your enemies are also sending their minions to your rift – construct a maze of traps and beat back everything they send at you. Grinding, roasting, slashing or good old-fashioned thumping – every dirty trick is at your disposal when both attacking and defending.
87
/100
09
Pony Island
Pony Island is a suspense puzzle game in disguise. You are in limbo, trapped in a malevolent and malfunctioning arcade machine devised by the devil himself. It is not a game about ponies.
86
/100
10
Orwell: Keeping an Eye on You
Using the new governmental security program that has the power to survey the online presence of every person in The Nation, you investigate the lives of citizens to find those responsible for a series of terror attacks. Information from the internet, personal communications and private files are all accessible to you. But, be warned, the information you supply will have consequences…
86
/100
11
Shadow Tactics: Blades of the Shogun
85
/100
12
Thumper
85
/100
13
SuperHot
85
/100
14
SpeedRunners
84
/100
15
Salt and Sanctuary
84
/100
16
OneShot
84
/100
17
ICEY
84
/100
18
Severed
84
/100
19
VA-11 Hall-A: Cyberpunk Bartender Action
84
/100
20
OneShot
83
/100
21
Darkest Dungeon
83
/100
22
D
Don't Starve Together
83
/100
23
ABZU
83
/100
24
Grim Dawn
83
/100
25
Devil Daggers
83
/100
26
Momodora: Reverie Under the Moonlight
83
/100
27
C
Enter the Gungeon
82
/100
28
The Banner Saga 2
82
/100
29
Burly Men at Sea
82
/100
30
Duelyst
82
/100
31
SuperHot VR
82
/100
32
Overcooked!
82
/100
33
Starbound
81
/100
34
B
Slime Rancher
81
/100
35
American Truck Simulator
81
/100
36
GoNNER
81
/100
37
Arizona Sunshine
81
/100
38
Redout: Lightspeed Edition
81
/100
39
Abzu
81
/100
40
Oxenfree
80
/100
41
Tricky Towers
80
/100
42
Move or Die
80
/100
43
TOXIKK
80
/100
44
Ultimate Chicken Horse
79
/100
45
Firewatch
79
/100
46
Hue
79
/100
47
Furi
79
/100
48
Fractured Space
79
/100
49
Samorost 3
79
/100
50
Offworld Trading Company
78
/100
Hyper Light Drifter
Echoes of a dark and violent past resonate throughout a savage land, steeped in treasure and blood. Hyper Light Drifter is an action adventure RPG in the vein of the best 16-bit classics, with modernized mechanics and designs on a much grander scale.
89
/100
05
Owlboy
Owlboy is a platform/action-adventure video game created by Norwegian developer D-Pad Studio. Explore a vibrantly crafted pixel world in this flying adventure platformer. Being a mute, Otus struggles living up to the expectations of owl-hood. Things spiral from bad to worse with the sudden appearance of sky pirates. What follows is a journey through monster infested ruins, with unexpected encounters, and burdens no one should have to bear.
89
/100
06
The Witness
The Witness is a single-player game in an open world with dozens of locations to explore and over 500 puzzles. This game respects you as an intelligent player and it treats your time as precious. There's no filler; each of those puzzles brings its own new idea into the mix. So, this is a game full of ideas.
88
/100
07
RimWorld
87
/100
08
Orcs Must Die! Unchained
Wisecracking multiplayer action that uniquely blends the strategic depth of a MOBA with intense third-person combat as you fight in a wild battle for fortress supremacy. Orcs Must Die! Unchained is a high-octane PvP action game in which you storm the opposing fortress together with your friends and defend your own base. Your enemies are also sending their minions to your rift – construct a maze of traps and beat back everything they send at you. Grinding, roasting, slashing or good old-fashioned thumping – every dirty trick is at your disposal when both attacking and defending.
87
/100
09
Pony Island
Pony Island is a suspense puzzle game in disguise. You are in limbo, trapped in a malevolent and malfunctioning arcade machine devised by the devil himself. It is not a game about ponies.
86
/100
10
Orwell: Keeping an Eye on You
Using the new governmental security program that has the power to survey the online presence of every person in The Nation, you investigate the lives of citizens to find those responsible for a series of terror attacks. Information from the internet, personal communications and private files are all accessible to you. But, be warned, the information you supply will have consequences…
86
/100
11
Shadow Tactics: Blades of the Shogun
85
/100
12
Thumper
85
/100
13
SuperHot
85
/100
14
SpeedRunners
84
/100
15
Salt and Sanctuary
84
/100
16
OneShot
84
/100
17
ICEY
84
/100
18
Severed
84
/100
19
VA-11 Hall-A: Cyberpunk Bartender Action
84
/100
20
OneShot
83
/100
21
Darkest Dungeon
83
/100
22
D
Don't Starve Together
83
/100
23
ABZU
83
/100
24
Grim Dawn
83
/100
25
Devil Daggers
83
/100
26
Momodora: Reverie Under the Moonlight
83
/100
27
C
Enter the Gungeon
82
/100
28
The Banner Saga 2
82
/100
29
Burly Men at Sea
82
/100
30
Duelyst
82
/100
31
SuperHot VR
82
/100
32
Overcooked!
82
/100
33
Starbound
81
/100
34
B
Slime Rancher
81
/100
35
American Truck Simulator
81
/100
36
GoNNER
81
/100
37
Arizona Sunshine
81
/100
38
Redout: Lightspeed Edition
81
/100
39
Abzu
81
/100
40
Oxenfree
80
/100
41
Tricky Towers
80
/100
42
Move or Die
80
/100
43
TOXIKK
80
/100
44
Ultimate Chicken Horse
79
/100
45
Firewatch
79
/100
46
Hue
79
/100
47
Furi
79
/100
48
Fractured Space
79
/100
49
Samorost 3
79
/100
50
Offworld Trading Company
78
/100
Frequently asked questions
What is the best Indie game of 2016?
Inside currently tops the ranking with a score of 92/100 across 1,594 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.