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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 2026-07-24. Rankings update as data changes.

indielist tracks 20 classic indie games on Steam, holding 606,220 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 · 133,917 reviews · 95% positive · 2020
  3. POSTAL 2 · 116,084 reviews · 97% positive · 2012
  4. The Henry Stickmin Collection · 54,942 reviews · 99% positive · 2020
  5. Journey · 38,120 reviews · 94% positive · 2020
  6. Two Point Hospital · 34,797 reviews · 92% positive · 2018
  7. Streets of Rage 4 · 17,162 reviews · 92% positive · 2020
  8. Serious Sam 4 · 15,489 reviews · 83% positive · 2020
  9. Papa's Freezeria Deluxe · 12,088 reviews · 99% positive · 2023
  10. FAITH: The Unholy Trinity · 7,905 reviews · 95% positive · 2022
  11. Cave Story+ · 5,151 reviews · 93% positive · 2011
  12. Freedom Planet · 4,891 reviews · 95% positive · 2014
  13. World of Goo · 4,807 reviews · 94% positive · 2008
  14. GemCraft - Chasing Shadows · 4,387 reviews · 95% positive · 2015
  15. Penumbra Overture · 3,758 reviews · 91% positive · 2009
  16. GRIP: Combat Racing · 3,650 reviews · 85% positive · 2018
  17. La-Mulana · 2,620 reviews · 80% positive · 2013
  18. Ikaruga · 2,180 reviews · 95% positive · 2014
  19. Myst · 2,175 reviews · 89% positive · 2021
  20. Higurashi When They Cry Hou+ · 161 reviews · 86% 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.