The rising cost of games, currently hovering between $70 and $80 for triple-A releases, is due to companies spending so much time developing their projects. One thing that takes a long time is making a game optimized for a modern system and making sure it looks as possible. It’s great to jump into a world like Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth, or Death Stranding 2: On the Beach, and be amazed by the scenery.
Cutting-edge graphics are not everything, though. These games show that players are willing to overlook modern graphics for either good gameplay or clever or stylistic designs. These games will be compared to what was, or what is considered cutting-edge for their respective eras.
Minecraft
Not Just A Blockhead
Minecraft might be the ultimate indie success story, and it never boasted robust graphics at the time of its release (or since then). It opted for a simplistic art style of blocks, almost making it feel like a LEGO game.
There was an alpha released around 2009, with the official release launching in 2011 alongside bigger games like The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim. The freedom and creativity found in Minecraft are what made it successful over a decade ago, and it will remain popular even if Microsoft somehow greenlights and releases Minecraft 2.
Vampire Survivors
Created A New Genre
Vampire Survivors came out of nowhere and dropped into Early Access in 2021. The assets look reused, and there really isn’t much to the game for a roguelike experience. Still, no one can deny how addictive it is to sit on a map and endlessly destroy enemies without much player input.
Vampire Survivors grew so big that it even created a subgenre of roguelikes and got big franchises to collaborate on DLCs, including Castlevania and SaGa.
Undertale
If Memes Became A Game
Undertale was built as an homage to classic ’90s RPGs like EarthBound, and it even borrowed the same simplistic 16-bit art style. However, it isn’t exactly a clean look, as most characters don’t even feature a uniform design.
It almost has a hand-drawn style, which looks goofy, but that’s one of the many things that fans love about it. Art aside, what really made Undertale a hit was how it subverted the RPG genre and really made players think about what they were doing in other RPGs they had played over their lifetime.
Stardew Valley
Simple Is Better
Stardew Valley is an even simpler Minecraft experience with a pixel art aesthetic. It looks decent enough on the surface, but the animations aren’t exactly fluid. Shovel Knight and Sea of Stars are two great examples of indie games that try to look like retro classics but are a cut above the competition thanks to their animation and attention to detail.
Stardew Valley isn’t that ambitious visually, but it does have a robust list of features and mechanics, from mining and fishing to planting crops. Stardew Valley’s updates keep coming so long as players are still interested, which means even the value offered by its meager purchase prices is only increasing.
PEAK
Climbing To The Top
There are a lot of puns to make with PEAK reaching for the stars and hitting them, but this little indie darling absolutely blew up the charts. It features giant open areas to explore with friends that aren’t exactly fully fleshed out, nor are the characters robust, but the colors do help the game pop visually.
The gameplay isn’t that complicated either, even though it can be challenging for players to climb their first mountain. It’s a chill experience overall, made better by a good group of friends, and even though this is PEAK’s first year, it’s easy to see that this game has legs.
Schedule 1
Successful In Lieu Of GTA 6
Schedule 1 entered Early Access in 2025, and it’s easy to tell based on the graphics alone. Visually, it looks like a blueprint someone whipped up and put online, but the gameplay says otherwise. As a drug runner and cultivator, players have access to a wide array of tools to get the job done.
Schedule 1’s success could be tied to Grand Theft Auto 6 being delayed into 2026, and players wanting to fill in the gap with a good crime game, but that’s not giving Schedule 1 enough credit. It may look basic, but a few minutes of playing the game will have players hooked.
Pokemon Scarlet & Violet
Rough Around The Edges
Pokemon Scarlet and Pokemon Violet, even by Switch standards in 2022, looked rough at launch. They didn’t run well on the Switch either, with areas looking like they weren’t filled in all the way and could use a patch or twelve. Some reviews made note of these issues, but despite that, the games sold incredibly well, as Pokemon games tend to do, and they were still fun to play.
These were another pair of Pokemon games with plenty of creatures to capture and a big world to explore, and that was enough for fans. Thankfully, Pokemon Scarlet & Violet look and run better on the Switch 2.
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