Gosh, there are a lot to choose from!

My current favorite is Nexus: The Jupiter Incident. The graphics are amazing and we're even better when it launched like, 15 years ago. I love the story and the way you control a small fleet is unlike anything else I've played. It had some weird quirks, but I love it.

Tales of Maj'eyal is probably my overall favorite. I love that it is constantly being added to, tweaked, and loved. I go back to that game all the time.

Honorable mention to FTL and Banished!

Rain World.

Its world is such an interesting place to explore and learn to survive in. Even if it feels a bit harsh at first.

Brigador, because I like to steer huge mechs and the game doesn't take itself too serious.

If I was mean I would hope no one else noticed the copy&paste mishap and try to win on a technicality at the last minute :/.

Though I also don't want my account name used for marketing so not an official entry. To narrow down I used the strictest definition of indy (self published by a small, not yet established company) and I think I would pick A Short Hike since it is fun and relaxing and has nice parkour racing. A close call between that and Guacamelee by a different Canadian developer.

Hollow Knight. Awesome atmosphere, great graphic design and a lot of content with very intuitive combat and satisfying upgrade system. Cliche, but it feels like a Dark Souls in 2D.

My favorite Indy game is Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis, a great original story that...oh wait, you were talking about INDEPENDENT games, NOT Indiana Jones games? D'oh!

Well then, my favorite indy game then would have to be Stardew Valley, so fun to get lost in the game creating your own farm, it's easy to loose track of time when playing it!

Dead Cells. Motion Twin are awesome. Almost all their flash games are cool: Teacher Story, Monster Hotel, Dino RPG, Snake or the minigames in Kado Kado.

Really worth trying to play their games

https://www.gog.com/game/spelunky

I had to think a lot, because lot of indie games are really really good (Factorio, Rimworld, Enter the Gungeon, Dead Cells, Creeper World, ...).
But I think my top of all is Spelunky. Because through the free version, I discovered an awesome plateformer, who was generating procedural levels, with great gameplay, chaos, and... destructible environment :D It may sounds exagerated now, but for me, when it released, being able to bomb a platform to dig through a platformer level was so great (platformer level who was generated procedurally but still awesome to play).
And through the "full released" version... you keep all of that and you add... COOP !!! With my girlfriend, it's one of our most played game, even today :) We regularly play it, it's "the" coop game for us, that we can't get bored to play :D

I can't wait to see Spelunky 2 here :)

Stardew Valley! <3

It doesn't get anymore Indie than Stardew Valley's One-man band. Eric Barone created a true masterpiece and love letter to gaming with this one. It hits all the right notes...RPG, management sim, social sim, and simply a place to relax. The pace is as frenetic or chill as you wish. The amount of gameplay is insane, and free DLC is released yearly. When you factor in that SDV has the nicest, most helpful gaming community I've seen in years, and we have a winner.

A game that I thought would be a pleasant time-waster during the pandemic has turned into one of my favorite games of all time, my hours played are approaching BG2 and Oblivion. When I consider that this masterpiece was created by one person at an ordinary PC, it literally gives me chills.

Great game. One of the very few games that uses procedural generation well. I'm still wondering why Spelunky 2 isn't here yet. =/

Absolutely ! And for a platformer, I think it's especially hard.

Yeah, I'm waiting for it a lot too... I remember a bit that they were saying they would try to fix/improve things before releasing "other places". I hope it won't take toooo much time :P

[oh, I just found again the quote in their FAQ :

Could you bring the game to GoG/EGS/itch/Switch/Linux/Xbox/Mac and offer official support for Windows 7/8/8.1?

We will evaluate porting and officially supporting other platforms in the future.
Right now we have our hands full between W10, PS4, the global crisis, fixing the online multiplayer for PS4 and bringing the online to PC.]

Night in the Woods

It's not only one of the best narrative games ever, it also looks great and has a fantastic soundtrack.
Maybe it also had such a great impact on me, because like Mae I also grew up in a small town in the middle of nowhere and could relate to many of the things that happen in the game, especially to the experience of coming back home and meeting old friends whose lifes just went on.

Also: Gregg rulz ok!

Most of my gaming since 2010 has been indie, so it's really difficult to name a clear favorite. Since a few others have already been mentioned (in particular Hotline Miami and Dead Cells), I'll highlight something else:

Gunpoint (2013)

I don't like stealth games very much.

I really don't like puzzle platformers.

But I love Gunpoint.

How is this possible, I'm not sure. Is it the atmosphere, created by the perennial night and jazzy music? The surprisingly enjoyable writing (when you replay the whole game to find out whether you can change the fate of a single side-character, you know it hooked you)? The fact there's no single correct solution and no single correct playstyle? Dunno, but it's a shame the game isn't on GOG, I could go for another playthrough (it's a short game, another thing I enjoy about it).

Damn, this is a toughie. Here's a few for me...

* Hollow Knight, because it combines fantastic visuals with tight gameplay and an interesting story. It has a good learning curve, yet remains accessible for most players (except for the optional content, which is grinds your nose to the floor and makes you like it.

* To the Moon and its sequels, because they make you question your priorities and your own perspectives on life even as they lure you in with the idea of implanting false memories. Easily accessible to even the most casual gamers, they nonetheless include several self-aware shoutouts for gaming veterans.

* Gris, for its killer soundtrack and beautiful visuals. Tight platforming, with strong emotional ebbs and flows that keep you invested in the story. It's brief enough to be completed in a single playthrough, but given how I couldn't put it down, that's a good thing.