The best text-based indie games, ranked by reviews

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

indielist tracks 25 text-based indie games on Steam, holding 176,628 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 Milk inside a bag of milk inside a bag of milk with 31,753 reviews. Figures are tracked by indielist; sales numbers are estimates that each expand into their full formula.

The ranking

1. Milk inside a bag of milk inside a bag of milk · 31,753 reviews · 96% positive · 2020
2. Doki Doki Literature Club Plus! · 30,074 reviews · 97% positive · 2021
3. Milk outside a bag of milk outside a bag of milk · 20,710 reviews · 97% positive · 2021
4. Murders on the Yangtze River · 15,813 reviews · 97% positive · 2024
5. Suzerain · 10,521 reviews · 92% positive · 2020
6. The Farmer Was Replaced · 9,238 reviews · 96% positive · 2025
7. Citizen Sleeper · 8,217 reviews · 92% positive · 2022
8. The Life and Suffering of Sir Brante · 8,130 reviews · 88% positive · 2021
9. Monster Prom 2: Monster Camp · 6,137 reviews · 96% positive · 2020
10. I Wani Hug that Gator! · 5,153 reviews · 98% positive · 2024
11. BOOK OF HOURS · 4,800 reviews · 89% positive · 2023
12. Roadwarden · 4,467 reviews · 94% positive · 2022
13. Love Curse: Find Your Soulmate · 3,305 reviews · 95% positive · 2025
14. Monster Prom 3: Monster Roadtrip · 2,824 reviews · 97% positive · 2022
15. Citizen Sleeper 2: Starward Vector · 2,343 reviews · 91% positive · 2025
16. Warsim: The Realm of Aslona · 2,213 reviews · 96% positive · 2022
17. Idling to Rule the Gods · 2,132 reviews · 85% positive · 2016
18. The Chef's Shift · 1,931 reviews · 97% positive · 2025
19. Monster Prom 4: Monster Con · 1,888 reviews · 99% positive · 2025
20. Grey Hack · 1,797 reviews · 90% positive · 2017

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.