Episode 24: The best free indie games money can't buy

The last quarter of 2024 is somehow already upon us, and while it's definitely too early to be putting up the Christmas decorations (bombastically side-eyeing my local pub there), it is the time of year when many of us stop buying so much stuff for ourselves so we can write wish lists, and/or start saving up our hobby money to spend on the people we love instead. Which makes this a totally seasonally appropriate episode and not an excuse for Rebecca to launch a thorough examination into one of her many special interests: free-to-play games.

The free-to-play model has quite a few negative connotations associated with it, not entirely unfairly; but the Indieventure gang are here to make the case that to dismiss all F2P titles is to ignore the wide range of what's on offer in the space, especially amongst indie games. To that end, prepare for a big old chat about our favourite free indies, including Battle For Polytopia; Butterfly Soup; Doki Doki Literature Club; If On A Winter's Night, Four Travelers; Indigo Park; Interview with the Whisperer; Lily's Well; Marie's Room; Max Gentlemen; Our Life: Beginnings & Always; Pineapple On Pizza; Samsara Room (by Rusty Lake); Simulacra: Pipe Dreams; Slice and Dice; Start Again: A Prologue (prototype prequel to In Stars & Time and not technically free it turns out, but very cheap and just generally germane to the conversation); South Scrimshaw; Sucker for Love: Prelude; Supermarket Simulator: Prologue; and the mobile port of Vampire Survivors.

Two things of note here: one, this is maybe the first time we've dedicated significant podcast chat to the subject of indie mobile games specifically; and two, everyone who feels like we're constantly trying to bankrupt them with wishlistable titles, rejoice! This episode doesn't need to cost you a penny.

Unless, that is, you decide to keep listening to our new temporary segment! With GOTY voting rapidly approaching, we've decided that it's not enough to check in with what we've all been playing every couple of months, and instead we're going to start updating you on all the cool stuff we've been checking out in every episode. Rachel and Liam have both had their professional reviewer hats on to check out The Plucky Squire and Shogun Showdown, respectively; while Rebecca — fashionably late after several months dedicated to playing hefty AAA games for her day job — has finally arrived at Thank Goodness You're Here, which turns out to be brilliant! Who knew?!

As ever, we end on hyperfixations — and would you believe it, we've all been playing some video games? Rebecca has finally completed her three-year-long mission to play all 10 visual novels in that iconic series about gay lawyers, having just wrapped up the recently-released Ace Attorney Investigations Collection. Liam keeps the Capcom hype train chugging along with his love for another of their latest game preservation projects, the Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster. And you'll be pleased to know that we're all being very on-brand, because Rachel has been playing Frostpunk 2, which may be one of the very few city building simulators out there to actually narratively justify getting a sequel.

Our music was written and performed by Ollie Newbury! Find him on Instagram at @newbsmusic. Meanwhile, you can find us at indieventurepodcast.co.uk or wherever you listen to podcasts.