The Media Indie Exchange just held their The MIX Summer Game Showcase for 2025, showing off a bunch of dope indie games, with the aim of raising visibility for independent developers and publishers from around the globe.
I’ve picked out my five favourites from the showcase, a selection of games that I’m just itching to jump into and try for myself.
Quest Daily’s Top Picks:
Absolum
Beat ’em up fantasy-roguelite Absolum looks like it might just scratch my nostalgia itch for games like Streets of Rage and Double Dragon, while bringing a fresh take to the genre itself.
The action-packed combat looks fast and chaotic, while the art-style and enemy design is like a graphic novel come to life. Its roguelite DNA promises branching pathways to explore, unpredictable enemy encounters, and near endless replayability.
Absolum is planned to release on PC, Nintendo Switch, and PlayStation 4 & 5, though there’s no release date just yet.
Elusive
Elusives are tiny humanoid creatures that, unbeknownst to us, inhabit our homes. If you’re old enough to remember the book/movie The Borrowers, they’re basically that. In the metroidvania platformer Elusive, you play as Zoe, a raider who loves nothing more than to explore and find treasure.
Gameplay wise, it looks like a cross between the 2D side-scrolling style of something like Ori and the Will of the Wisps (especially that giant demon raven!) and the 3D platforming of It Takes Two (albeit without the co-op action). The game also has resource gathering, community building, and crafting elements.
Elusive is planning to release on all major platforms, though sadly, it isn’t expected until 2027.
Opus Prism Peak
OPUS: Prism Peak is a beautiful anime-style narrative adventure following a mysterious girl and a middle-aged photographer as they try to find their way home. Along the way you’ll encounter various animal spirits that you can befriend, and the choices you make in the game can lead to different endings.
Using an old beat-up camera, you gather clues and unravel the secrets of the ethereal realm where you’re trapped. If the trailer is anything to go by, the game looks quite relaxing and peaceful to play through. Can’t wait.
Opus Prism Peak is expected later in 2025 for PC.
Big Hops
Forget about that moustachioed plumber, Hop the frog is the new ‘hopness’. Big Hops is a new indie 3D platformer drawing inspiration from the likes of Mario Galaxy and Sonic Adventure.
Tongue-swinging, free-climbing, swimming, wall-running, diving, rolling, and (of course) hopping; there’s a tonne of movement mechanics packed into one little amphibian. Tools also help you get around, with the likes of hookshots, bouncy mushroom pads, climbing ivy, and tightropes to help you solve the environmental puzzles.
This cute and ‘ribbeting’ adventure has a Kickstarter ongoing at the moment! So if this floats your lily pad, head over and show Big Hops some monetary love.
Esoteric EBB
One for the tabletop fans out there, Esoteric Ebb is an isometric CRPG where your choices and actions are guided by your characters’ stats and a twenty-sided die. Self-described as a ‘Disco-like’ (named for smash indie hit Disco Elysium), the game promises deep and varied dialogue trees, leading to a tonne of choices. Your different stats literally voice their viewpoints to you, nudging your choices in different directions.
You play as The Cleric, unravelling a political conspiracy within a city in the midst of its first ever election. I’m both drawn in and terrified of games that have seemingly endless choices available to you. The freedom can feel liberating and overwhelming at the same time, but an experience that can be completely different each time you play the game is immensely appealing.
Esoteric Ebb is ‘coming soon’ to PC.
If you’re thirsty for more from The MIX Summer Game Showcase, check out the full showcase below.
