8 Quick Indie Games to Play Before Summer’s Over

Summer is almost over and a lot of people will soon be really busy within the next few weeks when either school or work becomes their main focus.

Some of us won’t be able to put as much time as we want into longer, content-rich games like Ghost of Tsushima or The Last of Us Part II.

So if you want to play and finish a few games before then, we’ve put together a handy list of really short video games you can complete before the summer’s over.

Getting through the story in the particular games on this list will only take at max eight hours so you’ll have plenty of time to start up another one or dive a little deeper to grab some achievements or finish a few side quests.

Sayonara Wild Hearts

Sayonara Wild Hearts is a quick and energetic game that takes elements from many different genres to create a crazy and unique experience. It blends action, music, and stunning visuals into something that you won’t often see anywhere else.

A surreal, insane, and techno-y aesthetic is the backdrop to your experience and you’ll feel like you’re both inside of a crazy 80s music video and on a weird psychedelic high as you collect hearts to beat each level.

Sayonara Wild Hearts also has an incredible soundtrack that mixes electronica, pop, psychedelic beats, and a fast tempo to create an upbeat auditory experience. This music is the absolute best part of the game and you’ll be vibing to every song as you cruise through levels.

Sayonara Wild Hearts only takes around an hour or two to beat so it’s the perfect game to play to pass the time.

Journey

A serene indie classic, Journey. is the perfect game to boot up when you want to relax or when you want to play something a bit easier in difficulty.

The gameplay is relatively simple with a bit of platforming here and there so you can easily sit back, relax, enjoy the view, and cruise through a gorgeous and meaningful story.

The visuals are perhaps the best and most impactful part of your entire Journey experience. There will be beautiful and unforgettable sights at every turn with everything you see being comparable to an exquisite piece of art.

Journey’s story only takes about two hours to complete so it’s something you can play and replay whenever you want some peace and quiet. It’s been recently ported to PC as well so now even more players will be able to experience this beauty.

My Friend Pedro

My Friend Pedro is a snappy, energetic, and hilarious game with the weirdest story concept and an incredible combat system. You don’t often see talking bananas in video games and when you do occasionally see them they generally don’t encourage you to do crime.

And that’s what Pedro does throughout the entire game. He essentially guides you on a mission to kill a specific person. Getting to this individual is easier said than done since you actually have to go through bullet hell levels and fight numerous enemies.

However, My Friend Pedro’s combat system includes briefly slowing down time, crazy parkour to traverse areas, and spinning to dodge hits. You can also ricochet bullets off of frying pans and other surfaces to creatively kill enemies.

My Friend Pedro clocks in at around four to five hours to beat so this insane gem is a quick game that’s short and sweet.

Katana Zero

Katana Zero is a futuristic side-scrolling cyberpunk game full of questionable drugs, a killer soundtrack, and a murderous samurai. If you think that sounds absolutely wild, that’s because it is. And I’m not exaggerating anything.

The gameplay is characterized by a sort of one-hit kill mechanic where any damage you take will be instant death. However, you have the ability to deflect bullets, slow time for a short period, and dodge attacks with rolls. You’re armed with only a sword so you’ll need to do crazy tricks and maneuvers to get through levels.

Katana Zero also takes you through an insane story that will have you and the main character questioning reality, morals, and what you’ve come to know as truths.

Couple that with a beautiful, techno soundtrack and you’re easily immersed in a twisted and dark world that’s full of so much mystery.

Carrion

Recently released in July, Carrion is a “reverse-horror” game that allows you to take control of a lab experiment gone wrong. As a form of revenge for its imprisonment, the evil red blob you play as wrecks havoc on the entire science facility it was held in.

It’s an understatement to say that Carrion has a lot of gore. Blood flies everywhere at every second. Absolutely no one is safe from your character’s wrath as it turns the facility upside down in its anger.

With a story clocking in at about four hours, Carrion is a quick game that’s punchy, energetic, and a whole lot of fun. You don’t often get to take control of the villain in a video game especially to this extent so Carrion is a demonic and twisted breath of fresh air for you to experience.

Gris

Think of Gris as the best combination of Limbo and Journey. It has a stunning art style with vibrant visuals, bright and rich watercolors, and gameplay elements that keep you enthralled and entertained throughout the entire game.

Every stage and level is different with its own visual themes, platforming events, and scary enemies. One second you’ll be climbing a crumbling, abandoned tower all the way to the sky and the next you’ll be diving into dark and mysterious trenches deep within the sea.

The game’s striking setting and world alone should be enough to tempt you into playing but Gris’ story is just as notable. Full of grief, loss, and emotion, the story will take you on a journey through the acceptance of death and moving on.

Gris may be a quick game that only takes about three and a half hours to finish but you’ll be thinking about this game for weeks after you’ve completed it.

Untitled Goose Game

Like Carrion, Untitled Goose Game allows you to essentially take control of the bad guy. All you do in this is wreak havoc simply because you can.

There’s nothing deeper than that in the story so this is a game to indulge in a bit of chaos.

In each level, you need to ruin the day of a number of different humans and you have a lot of creative freedom to achieve this goal. You can bully a kid into tripping and losing his glasses, annoy the hell out of a man just trying to read his newspaper, terrorize an entire restaurant, and pick on a gardener just trying to do his job.

Untitled Goose Game will bring out that little devious part of your mind you might try to hide and you’ll quickly become a vengeful goose bent on the destruction of humanity.

Co-op was recently announced as well so soon two evil birds will be able to terrorize these humans.

Return of the Obra Dinn

Return of the Obra Dinn is a stylized murder mystery that takes place on a ship that somehow manages to return to shore after having been lost at sea years ago.

You’re tasked with figuring out what happened to every single passenger on the ship and you have to come to certain conclusions based on deductive reasoning and guesses.

You hold a mystical pocket watch that allows you to travel back in time to view specific moments in each of the passenger’s lives on the Obra Dinn. You need to use the information gathered to identify each person and figure out how they lived or died.

Return of the Obra Dinn is a fantastic experience especially for people who love puzzle games that require you to really think. As you look into the passengers’ lives, you begin to unravel an eerie Lovecraftian turn of events that inevitably leads to the Obra Dinn’s demise.

While clocking in at around eight to nine hours, Return of the Obra Dinn might seem like a quick game but the amount of thought and decision-making needed to figure out what truly happened to the ship will take up much of your time.