Indie Selects for November 2025 (and Extra Cool Issues!)

Each Wednesday, dive into the Indie Choose Hub — your gateway to a contemporary, curated indie assortment plus 4 themed spotlights that rotate weekly! You’ll be able to at all times discover this assortment hub within the Xbox Retailer and on Xbox.com/IndieSelects.

The vacation season is right here, and the ID@Xbox crew is worked up to share this month’s Indie Selects! Earlier than we dive in, we need to categorical our honest gratitude on your continued assist of unbiased video games on Xbox as we rejoice the second yr of this program. Thanks for exploring our employees picks and for championing the unimaginable creators who make these experiences potential.

We’re additionally excited to deliver again our annual Indie Choose Highlights! Beginning December 10 and thru the top of the yr, we’ll be showcasing and selling a few of our favourite titles from 2025. Don’t miss out!

Lastly, mark your calendars! On January 28, 2026, the Indie Selects Anniversary Celebration returns. We’ll be curating six standout indie titles from the previous yr, our absolute must-play picks, and that includes them in our particular Anniversary Assortment to honor their lasting impression. We’re excited to share extra particulars quickly, however for now, let’s take pleasure in what’s right here and now. Right here’s what we’ve obtained for you this month (in no specific order):

Blood West is a gritty, stealth-horror immersive sim that drops you boots-first right into a cursed frontier the place each shadow hides one thing sharp, hungry, or undead. Assume cowboy survival however dipped in occult folklore and stitched along with traditional immersive-sim determination making. It’s a slow-burn expertise — one the place each bullet issues, each footstep counts, and each encounter feels prefer it got here straight out of a dusty nightmare.

Leaping into Blood West felt like stepping right into a fever-dream remix of Thief, S.T.A.L.Okay.E.R., and a late-night spaghetti-western. What grabbed me first wasn’t the monsters — it was the silence. The sport rewards persistence, planning, and the quiet satisfaction of outthinking one thing that undoubtedly desires to eat you. Earlier than lengthy, I used to be creeping by way of deserted mines, scavenging for ammo, and studying how you can flip the setting itself right into a weapon. There’s an actual sense of mastery as you begin threading collectively stealth routes, touchdown excellent bow photographs, and managing scarce sources like a frontier tactician.

In case you’re somebody who loves immersive stealth, tense exploration, and that unmistakable “I survived by this a lot” adrenaline, it will really feel like house — properly, the bizarre, haunted form of house. Followers of slow-building pressure, intelligent programs, and atmospheric worlds will discover lots to take pleasure in right here. And in the event you’ve ever wished a western that leans all the best way into supernatural horror with out dropping its grit, Blood West rides tall in that area.

 – Steven Allen

A observe as much as its award-winning predecessor, Tormented Souls 2 is a set digicam survival horror sport that embraces the ambiance and path of the classics, whereas tailoring the expertise for a contemporary viewers. Gamers take the position of Caroline Walker, who’s on a quest to avoid wasting her sister from a sinister cult. Clear up puzzles, combat monsters, and get misplaced a number of instances!

From the second I fired it up, Tormented Souls 2 felt virtually like a continuation of the unique Resident Evil remaster – which I LOVE. It stays true to the roots of the early survival horror classics by way of mounted digicam angles, puzzle design, restricted sources, and so forth., whereas embracing options and distinctive ideas to make the expertise really feel trendy. In different phrases – in the event you just like the gameplay and tone of traditional Resident Evil and Silent Hill however need one thing new with contemporary visuals and no tank controls, then this sport is for you!

It’s a wild, gothic horror, kinda lovecraftian story about saving your sister from a cult, stuffed with varied enemies and managers to combat, a number of soar scares, attractive environments to discover, and naturally, mind-boggling puzzles. I wouldn’t name myself a survival horror aficionado, however from what I’ve performed, the 15-to-20-hour runtime actually stood out to me — the style often leans tighter and quicker, but this one retains rising in ways in which keep participating. You don’t must play the predecessor to leap in, however I really feel like I owe Twin Impact a thanks for re-igniting my forgotten love for the style. This sport had me hooked from begin to end and simply grew to become one in every of my prime picks this yr!

– Deron Mann

The celebration pack is again child! In case you’ve by no means tried this sport night time favourite, name up some buddies to come back over, as a result of this new pack delivers.  This pack has no repeats with 5 brand-new video games, so it’s undoubtedly a must have for these of us common partygoers gearing up for vacation get-togethers.  Per ordinary, no further controllers wanted — everybody joins the foyer on their telephone, able to show they’re as intelligent as they declare!

Our buddies began with Legends of Trivia and oh my god, the nerds within the room rejoiced.  This instantly set the bar excessive because it’s a freaking 6 participant cooperative D&D fashion trivia sport with lessons, monsters, loot, and branching paths. Conquer the land of Tri-via with details and wit!

We moved on to Suspectives, a brand new mafia/werewolf-style celebration sport with surveys that actually take a look at your lie-detecting expertise. After belief was shattered, the artistic crowd jumped into Cookie Haus, a drawing sport the place you design cookies with wild textures, loopy requests, and tons of customization. The twist? You’re locked into your chosen form, so assume outdoors the field! Subsequent was Hear Say, all about sound and visuals: get a immediate, mimic it together with your mic, and watch the perfect interpretation play out. Mic required, laughter assured. Lastly, we hit Doominate, essentially the most traditional Jackbox-style sport: begin with a cheerful phrase and end it with the funniest terrible twist. Probably the most “Debbie Downer” reply wins!  All in all, this made for a really dope sport night time.

That is most likely my favourite Jackbox Get together Pack in years.  In case you’re wanting so as to add one thing new to sport night time, that is it, no matter whether or not you’re new to the collection or have a bunch of those packs in your library.

– Raymond Estrada

In case you’re after chaotic enjoyable with a distinctly Southeast Asian twist, Sedap! A Culinary Journey by kopiforge is the co-op cooking-combat sport for you. It’s a vibrant celebration of our area’s meals tradition, the place you and a buddy race to serve up classics like hen rice, beef rendang, banh mi and extra, to hungry clients, all whereas exploring the magical, monster-filled Khaya Island.

The magic of Sedap! (“scrumptious” in Malay) is in its joyful mayhem: you’ll be chopping, frying, plating, and (inevitably) yelling at your companion as orders pile up and monsters crash the kitchen. Whether or not solo or in co-op, each second is a hilarious take a look at of coordination, timing, and your capacity to maintain cool because the proverbial chili hits the fan throughout Rush Hour mode.

Sedap! cleverly builds on the Overcooked components with its distinctive two-role system: Som the Cooker and Gon the Hunter. This implies teamwork is important as every has a job to do, however hilarity ensues when one should cease chopping mangoes to assist the opposite hunt a hen, or the opposite should cease looking to go make boba. There’s additionally weapon and utensil upgrades, a Makanomicon to replenish with all types of dishes, and biomes with distinctive challenges to navigate.

With its whimsically contemporary Southeast Asian vibes, cheeky character banter, and riotous gameplay, Sedap! is stuffed with character that’ll depart you hungry for extra.

– Jun Shen Chia

Grasp Lemon: The Quest for Iceland is a whimsical indie journey that blends cozy exploration with light, idea-driven puzzles and charming pixel-art aesthetics. You play as Lemon, a brave polyglot navigating storybook variations of Iceland—windswept coasts, mossy trails, and quirky characters—whereas a heat, low-key narrative encourages curiosity over velocity.

I began with a “fast play” and hours later realized it was properly previous midnight. The sport layers new traversal methods and puzzle ideas like pleasant nudges: you be taught, you smile, you attempt yet another factor. What actually stunned me was the way it sparked my love for languages. I discovered myself listening to Icelandic phrases (different languages too) and repeating them out loud. These moments made Lemon’s world really feel genuine and turned gameplay right into a cultural journey. It even reminds you that phrases carry energy—one thing simple to overlook in on a regular basis life.

Realizing the backstory made the expertise much more significant. It is a deeply private undertaking from founder Julio de Santi, impressed by his buddy André Lima (“Limão”), a Brazilian polyglot who dreamed of studying Icelandic and visiting Iceland. After Limão fulfilled that dream, he tragically handed away. The sport stands as a tribute to him and an invite for gamers to chase their very own goals.

In case you benefit from the calm exploration of A Quick Hike, the playful mischief of Untitled Goose Sport, or the quirky creativity of Donut County, you’ll really feel proper at house. It’s excellent for anybody searching for an imaginative area to unwind, be taught by doing, and savor small discoveries. You’ll come for the attraction, keep for the “aha” moments, and depart with a few new phrases rolling round your head.

– Jessica Ronnell

The opening music units the tone instantly: lush, nostalgic, and evocative of epic tales. Paired with charming, cozy art work, you understand from the start that The Lonesome Guild is inviting you into an journey with a coronary heart. The story begins with Davinci, a unusual anthropomorphic rabbit inventor exploring the outside when the world is enveloped by a mysterious pink mist that infects the whole lot that it touches with Loneliness and turning them into evil beings. Whereas escaping the chaos, you encounter a anonymous ghost who fell from the sky with none reminiscences.

Regardless of the title, because the story unfolds you recruit new guild members from all walks of life, every pushed by their very own causes and motives however with the identical objective of saving the world. The solid is splendidly written, providing not solely distinct fight kinds but in addition charming personalities that genuinely steadiness each other. Earlier than lengthy, you’ll discover a favourite character just like the quiet archer, Mr. Fox or the fashionable and spirited Capybara, Ran Tran Trum.

The fight is a top-down hack-and-slash RPG with every character possessing distinctive particular talents. You management as much as 4 characters by utilizing the ghost to “possess” the character you management, which provides an additional enjoyable layer of attraction and creativity for puzzle-solving and fight.

My favourite factor had been the campfire relaxation stops; these are memorable moments that serve not solely to pause and replicate on the story thus far but in addition to advance and progress your characters by way of Relationship Factors. These moments really feel heat and intimate supplying you with the area to bond with the characters, paying homage to classics like Chrono Set off the place you’re feeling invested in each storyline and ending.

In case you’re in search of a comfy sport with emotional depth to brighten and heat the winter days, or just desire a stress-free mix of puzzles, exploration and fight, The Lonesome Guild is a simple suggestion. Pull up a seat by the campfire and benefit from the firm of its charming crew — you’ll be stunned how rapidly the actual foe, “Loneliness,” disappears.

– Oscar Polanco