The IGF 2015 finalists have been announced, listing games you really should take for a spin

The finalists for this year’s Independent Games Festival have been unveiled today, and what a lovely bunch of games they are, too, including the morally challenging This War of Mine, the sneaky Invisible, Inc. and the painfully gorgeous Vanishing of Ethan Carter.

Have a browse of the full list below, and you might find something fascinating to play.

Seumas McNally Grand Prize:

Honorable mentions: Donut County (Ben Esposito); Endless Legend (Amplitude Studios);Killer Queen (Joshua DeBonis & Nikita Mikros); Shovel Knight (Yacht Club Games); The Sailor’s Dream (Simogo); and The Vanishing of Ethan Carter (The Astronauts).

Excellence in Visual Arts:

Honorable mentions: Crawl (Powerhoof); Future Unfolding (Spaces of Play); Hyper Light Drifter (Heart Machine); Mini Metro (Dinosaur Polo Club); The Sailor’s Dream (Simogo); and The Vanishing of Ethan Carter (The Astronauts).

Excellence in Design:

Honorable mentions: Desert Golfing (Captain Games); Dungeon of the Endless (Amplitude Studios); Endless Legend (Amplitude Studios); Helix (Michael Brough); Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes (Steel Create Games); and Mini Metro (Dinosaur Polo Club).

Excellence in Audio:

Honorable mentions: Deep Under the Sky (Rich Edwards and Colin Northway); FOTONICA(Santa Ragione); Goat Simulator (Coffee Stain Studios); Hotline Miami 2 (Dennaton); Nuclear Throne (Vlambeer); and Smash Hit (Mediocre).

Excellence in Narrative:

Honorable mentions: Curtain (Llaura, dreamfeeel); Never Alone (Kisima Ingitchuna) (Upper One Games / E-Line Media); Outer Wilds (Team Outer Wilds); The Fall (Over The Moon); The Sailor’s Dream (Simogo); and The Talos Principle (Croteam).

Nuovo Award:

Honorable mentions: Curtain (Llaura, dreamfeeel); Ice-Bound: A Novel of Reconfiguration(Down to the Wire); International Jetpack Conference (Rob Dubbin and Allison Parrish);Outer Wilds (Team Outer Wilds); Phonopath (Kevin Regamey); and Push Me Pull You (House House).