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indielist (beta)

The best difficult 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 234 difficult indie games on Steam, holding 7,975,350 reviews at an average of 91% 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 Geometry Dash with 578,930 reviews. Figures are tracked by indielist; sales numbers are estimates that each expand into their full formula.

The ranking

  1. Geometry Dash · 578,930 reviews · 93% positive · 2014
  2. Hollow Knight · 495,505 reviews · 97% positive · 2017
  3. Valheim · 455,972 reviews · 94% positive · 2021
  4. The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth · 393,010 reviews · 97% positive · 2014
  5. Don't Starve Together · 373,459 reviews · 95% positive · 2016
  6. Hades · 283,755 reviews · 98% positive · 2020
  7. Risk of Rain 2 · 238,509 reviews · 94% positive · 2020
  8. Cuphead · 195,201 reviews · 96% positive · 2017
  9. Slay the Spire · 191,572 reviews · 97% positive · 2019
  10. Balatro · 158,089 reviews · 98% positive · 2024
  11. Dead Cells · 155,034 reviews · 97% positive · 2018
  12. Oxygen Not Included · 142,787 reviews · 97% positive · 2019
  13. Darkest Dungeon® · 139,306 reviews · 92% positive · 2016
  14. Celeste · 129,534 reviews · 97% positive · 2018
  15. Kerbal Space Program · 118,802 reviews · 96% positive · 2015
  16. Muse Dash · 115,913 reviews · 92% positive · 2019
  17. Don't Starve · 113,208 reviews · 97% positive · 2013
  18. The Long Dark · 110,972 reviews · 89% positive · 2017
  19. Hotline Miami · 108,002 reviews · 97% positive · 2012
  20. My Summer Car · 106,838 reviews · 95% positive · 2025

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.