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indielist (beta)

The best classic indie games, ranked by reviews

5 min read for players

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Data report Built from live indielist data on 2026-09-07. Rankings update as data changes.

indielist tracks 20 classic indie games on Steam, holding 598,595 reviews at an average of 92% positive. This list ranks them by Steam review count, the most reliable public sales proxy, with a white-box sales estimate behind every title. The most reviewed is Plants vs. Zombies GOTY Edition with 141,936 reviews. Figures are tracked by indielist; sales numbers are estimates that each expand into their full formula.

The ranking

  1. Plants vs. Zombies GOTY Edition · 141,936 reviews · 98% positive · 2009
  2. Black Mesa · 134,638 reviews · 95% positive · 2020
  3. POSTAL 2 · 117,286 reviews · 97% positive · 2012
  4. The Henry Stickmin Collection · 55,671 reviews · 99% positive · 2020
  5. Journey · 38,492 reviews · 94% positive · 2020
  6. Two Point Hospital · 26,621 reviews · 92% positive · 2018
  7. Streets of Rage 4 · 17,254 reviews · 92% positive · 2020
  8. Serious Sam 4 · 15,568 reviews · 83% positive · 2020
  9. Papa's Freezeria Deluxe · 12,243 reviews · 99% positive · 2023
  10. FAITH: The Unholy Trinity · 7,993 reviews · 95% positive · 2022
  11. Cave Story+ · 5,208 reviews · 93% positive · 2011
  12. World of Goo · 4,835 reviews · 94% positive · 2008
  13. Penumbra Overture · 3,783 reviews · 90% positive · 2009
  14. GRIP: Combat Racing · 3,665 reviews · 85% positive · 2018
  15. GemCraft - Chasing Shadows · 3,654 reviews · 95% positive · 2015
  16. Freedom Planet · 3,316 reviews · 95% positive · 2014
  17. Ikaruga · 2,193 reviews · 95% positive · 2014
  18. La-Mulana · 2,068 reviews · 80% positive · 2013
  19. Myst · 2,000 reviews · 88% positive · 2021
  20. Higurashi When They Cry Hou+ · 171 reviews · 87% positive · 2023

How this list is built

Games are ranked by Steam review count, the most reliable public proxy for sales when actual figures are private. Each title links to its indielist page, where the white-box sales estimate expands into the full Boxleiter formula, so you can audit the number rather than trust a black box. Review counts come from Steam; sales figures are estimates, not official sales data.

Want the underlying estimate for your own game? Try the sales estimator, or browse the full game directory.