Exploring the indie frontier beyond Steam.
🌐 Why Itch.io Matters
While Steam dominates the PC market, Itch.io remains one of the most important spaces for independent creators. It’s an open platform that gives developers total control over pricing, visibility, and creative freedom—without the gatekeeping or algorithms that often bury small projects.
Itch.io is where experimental ideas thrive, where prototypes become full releases, and where some of the biggest indie success stories first found their footing. Many of today’s most celebrated games began as small uploads there—crafted by passionate devs testing an idea and sharing it directly with players.
This week, we’re spotlighting two of the platform’s standout success stories: one born from fan passion and chaos, the other from heartfelt storytelling and emotional depth.
🪐 HoloCure – Save the Fans!
Developer: Kay Yu
Genre: Roguelike / Bullet Heaven
Link: https://kay-yu.itch.io/holocure
This is a completely free, unofficial fangame featuring the VTuber talents of Hololive, with gameplay heavily inspired by Vampire Survivors and Magic Survival. Collect powerful weapons and passive items, experiment with builds, and craft your ultimate character. Can you survive the endless waves of enemies and climb to the top of the rankings?
Features:
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🎮 Unlock and play as 47 Hololive characters through in-game Gacha (no real money required).
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⚔️ Each character has unique skills and special attacks.
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🧰 Dozens of weapons and passive items to combine for wild synergies.
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🎵 Original Hololive song remixes composed by Eufrik.
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👾 Battle familiar Hololive characters and mascots across chaotic stages.
Why it matters: HoloCure shows how a solo developer’s passion project can rival mainstream releases — and it’s completely free to play.
🌅 Our Life: Beginnings & Always
Developer: GB Patch Games
Genre: Narrative / Life Sim / Visual Novel
Link: gbpatch.itch.io/our-life
Our Life is a heartfelt slice-of-life visual novel that lets you shape an entire lifetime of memories—from a seaside childhood to grown-up love. Design your own character, guide them through the years, and build a relationship with your neighbor Cove Holden that changes as you both grow. Every choice—how you react, what you say, and even what kind of person you become—affects how your story unfolds.
Features:
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💞 Customize your character’s appearance, personality, and pronouns.
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🏖️ Play through four distinct stages of life—childhood, adolescence, young adulthood, and adulthood.
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🧩 Branching choices and relationship dynamics lead to hundreds of unique moments.
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🎁 The base game is completely free, with optional paid DLC chapters that expand the story.
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🎨 Wholesome art and soothing soundtrack make it a standout in the indie VN scene.
Why it matters: A beautifully written, emotionally resonant experience built by a small team that proves how much heart the indie space can hold.
🎮 More to Explore
A few more Itch.io standouts to check out this week:
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Blobun – Play as a cheerful blob bunny in this colorful puzzle-platformer where your goal is to coat every tile in slime. Simple, satisfying, and packed with clever traps to outsmart.
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Communite – A cozy multiplayer town builder about creativity and cooperation. Construct villages together, rescue friendly NPCs, and relax in a shared world that thrives on kindness.
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PIN – A roguelite twist on pinball where you master trick shots, buy mystical Glyphs, and take on cursed bumpers across evolving tables. Precision and strategy collide in this unique arcade challenge.
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Kingdom of Night (Demo) – A full vertical slice of the upcoming action-RPG blending coming-of-age drama, cosmic horror, and 1980s nostalgia. Explore the demon-infested streets of Miami, Arizona, and test five distinct classes in a story-rich demo.
From cozy cooperation to neon-soaked horror, these games show why Itch.io remains one of the most exciting indie spaces on the internet.
🌾 From Digital Sagas: No One Leaves the Field
Developer: Digital Sagas
Genre: Folk Horror / Exploration
Link: digitalsagas.itch.io/no-one-leaves-the-field-demo
If you enjoy atmospheric indie horror, check out our own demo for No One Leaves the Field, now live on Itch.io.
Wake beside your wrecked car in the middle of a cursed wheat field, where the wind whispers and something stirs in the stalks. Explore the farmhouse, uncover the story behind the family who lived there, and discover the ritual that sealed their fate.
The Steam version launches later this week, so now’s the perfect time to try the demo and share your feedback!
🧭 Join the Saga
Every week we highlight standout indie projects that capture imagination and innovation. Whether they’re topping charts or just starting to find their audience, these games remind us why the indie scene matters.
👉 Explore more indie highlights and developer stories at IndieSagas.com — and Join the Saga to support independent games and creators.