Welcome to Way Too Many Indies Wednesdays where we highlight four recently released or upcoming indie games that have caught our eye. In a market where so many games can get lost in the shuffle, some true gems can sneak right past us without us knowing. These are the four games this week that we want to keep our eye on, and we think you should as well!

This week’s collection is brought to you by Oliver Shellding. The Osaka Indie Games Summit is only a couple of days away, and the denizens of Kansai and beyond are eagerly queueing up to look at the unqiue and entertaining titles concocted by the smaller side of the publishing world. There will be some larger titles there to represent the sponsors of the event, including the much beloved Schrödinger’s Call and Cygames’ upcoming epic Where the Seeds Fall, but we’re here to talk about the flagships and first tries. Oliver was able to mention a few in the first installment of the preview, but there are so many intriguing titles he insisted on doing a second! Seriously, insisted: we told him to take the week off and focus on other things but he covered his ears and screamed until we relented. This is a different meeting for a different time, but, for now, enjoy more upcoming indies in Osaka!

Rusty Winter

Developer: Ino Kinwen
Publisher: Astrolabe Games
Genre: Side-scroller, Adventure, Visual Novel
Platforms: PC via Steam
Release Date: Coming Soon
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“Rusty Winter is a sidescrolling adventure game inspired by hardboiled detective stories and urban legends. Meet a diverse cast, chase down leads that blur the boundaries between reality and the paranormal, and explore a cold, once-glorious industrial town in search of your missing loved one.” Holy goodness, when people go hard with pixel art, it still stuns me. Looking equal parts Arrest of the Stone Buddha and Space for the Unbound, this creation by solo developer Ino Kinwen is a clear labor of intense love and talent. Really excited to get my hands on this one and see what happens in the city of Ge’Shan.

Flashback Dream

Developer: MEL
Publisher: MEL
Genre: JRPG, Adventure, Story Rich
Platforms: PC via Steam
Release Date: coming soon
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” ‘Hope leads to despair.’ Welcome to Lethia, a paradise where dreams are forbidden. Amnesiac Jin takes up his sword to uncover the truth hidden by the cult and find his way back home. A top-down 2D pixel art action-adventure. In this lonely world, the future is yours to choose.” If you’ve played Japanese indies long enough, you begin to recognize a certain stylistic choice of heavier line drawings that come from careful construction in MS Paint. It’s this beautifully distinct methodology that crops up in classics like The Witch’s House, Ib, Yume Nikki and the like. You can see that here in Flashback Dream, which calls to me immediately. Then you mix in these action/adventure combat choices, a massive looking map and some seriously unsettling vibes, and it looks to be a positively grand package.

Hair Removal Salon Simulator

Developer: Yoshio Games
Publisher: 2P Games
Genre: Simulation, Shop Keeper, Medical Simulator
Platforms: PC via Steam
Release Date: Q4 2026

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“Ready your laser, rev up those trimmers, and run your own hair removal salon! Utilize cutting-edge salon tech, leaving clients hair-free and feeling fresh. Manage their pain levels, launch ludicrous sales pitches, and sink profits into gear upgrades and employees. Become a grooming powerhouse!” Look, it’s no secret that we love simulation games here at WayTooManyGames. There’s a level of distracting enjoyment that comes from farming, powerwashing or being Jesus, and this is…what? Is this going to be some kind of zen-level immersion? Am I going to vomit profusely from constantly sweeping up body hair? Can I zap someone’s nipple off? All these questions and more must be answered!

Glide

Developer: BruteForce
Publisher: BruteForce
Genre: Metroidvania, Puzzle Platformer, Adventure

Platforms: PC via Steam
Release Date: Coming Soon
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“Explore, puzzle, jump Exploration, Mystery, Puzzles. Become a cat hero and explore an unknown world. Overcome treacherous terrain, discover hidden passages, and solve ancient puzzles to uncover the secrets hidden in the shadows. Will you reach the end of this perilous journey?” Oh my God, it’s a metroidvania where you play a cat! There’s already at least one reviewer here excited for this release, but it gets even stronger the more you look at it. The purrrrfect combination of Cave Story and VVVVVVV, there’s an edge to Glide that looks fantastic to behold and enjoy, especially for fans of the older indie game contingency. I’m ready to fight for reviewing this game!

And that’ll do it for this iteration of Way Too Many Indies Wednesday! Go ahead and wishlist those that caught your eye; that kind of metric really matters for developers and publishers. Also, show support for these games in your own way: follow the devs if you can and spread the word so that these dreams can come rushing forward even faster. There’s always something for someone, so don’t forget to always be searching for the next big game that really speaks to you. If you think there’s a game that should be considered for our roundup, be sure to let u know! Have fun, and keep the indie parade going!

If you missed last weeks picks, here is a quick llink to go check them out!