Whatoplay presents 25 of the best NEW Early Access titles for the PC. Note that this list is not based on playscore. To check out the full list, visit our page on all the Upcoming PC Games.
25. Weed Shop 3
We open this list on a high, I mean, figuratively. Manage your little green dispensary and give everyone their much needed fix. You start off with almost nothing and the only way to make it out of this financial hell is to sell the green stuff. Do business right and customize your lovely sanctuary at your heart’s content. Its developers have continuously supported the game throughout its Early Access run.
24. Siralim Ultimate
Siralim’s ambitious monster-collecting features over one thousand creatures. As you make it around its treacherous, procedurally-generated dungeons, numbers will be your best friend. The grind can be addicting, especially for players who are obsessed with experimentation. The Early Access offers more creatures and new realms with each major update, as well as extra fixes.
23. Skinwalker Hunt
A horror-survival game where you actually have a chance to kill the monster. Play as a hunter and find the legendary cryptid that haunts the land. Everything in this game is procedurally generated, so each hunt gives you randomized loot and items. Make sure you make the most of them.
A game that looks exactly like its title would suggest. Yep, you fight in tight spaces. For a brawler game, we’d expect real-time combat. But that is what sets it apart: a gameplay that involves deckbuilding and turn-based mechanics. As your player is trapped in this claustrophobic room, strengthen your hand(s) and pick the right abilities for each turn. Each game update fixes bugs and adds a few modes for replay value.
A 3D platformer that borrows mechanics from the likes of Super Mario and Banjo-Kazooie. Instead of Italian plumbers and bears with a bird on its back, you play as… a ball. Using your spherical prowess, roll your way around its world and solve puzzles. The game doesn’t take itself seriously and there’s a lot of internet humor to keep you giggling. It has a few levels available so far and the devs are working hard to add more content.
A top-down roguelike shooter that’s all too common in this day and age. What makes Voidigo special is in its vibrant art style. The dynamic colors match well with its blazing fast-paced combat. Each run gives a new challenge and you can even customize your loadout throughout this endless hell. It still has a long way to go, but the devs are adding more content into the mix, like new guns and powerups.
For anyone trying to scratch that creative itch, this Indie game from Voolgi might be for you. Trapped in the four walls of your boring condominium, let out your creative juices and spruce up the place with a variety of high-tech art-stuff. It takes place in the future, so expect the silliest or most impressive machines to help you in your artistic quest.
18. Scarlet Hollow
A point and click horror game where you navigate the dying Appalachian coal town of Scarlet Hollow. As you progress through its episodic stories, the choices you make will alter the course of the narrative. While it is branded as ‘horror’, it doesn’t shy away from humor that breaks the tension of its spooky moments. The much awaited third episode is still in development.
A relatable indie title for anyone suffering from evil landlords and their insufferable rent prices. Tear the capitalistic system apart by… gambling. Test your luck by playing a weirdly designed slot machine that affects your character’s real life situation. It’s pretty simple, especially when your main goal is to take down your landlord.
16. EVERSPACE 2
An ambitious single-player space-flight game where you play as a freelancer in an unforgiving universe. It’s the kind of sci-fi story where you make your own choices. With your trusty ship, make your way around the endless open-world universe and hunt for bounties and treasure. More updates are coming to the game, including massive expansions with new star systems to explore.
Megaman meets roguelike. It’s a combination we never knew we needed and the guys behind Batterystaple Games know what’s up. It’s a sequel, so it’s set after the events of 20XX. The endless cycle has room for a number of trials and errors. Mix and match weapons and upgrades and make your way around its tricky 2D world.
Gamedev simulators are commonplace in the gaming market. What sets Mad Games Tycoon apart is its time period. Would you want to make a videogame in 1976? As alluring and lucrative as the videogame industry is right now, the future for games wasn’t quite as certain in the 70s. This sequel lets you manage your budding company, experimenting with genres and seeing what hits.
13. Rail Route
Have you ever wondered how it feels to become a train traffic conductor? This game captures the spirit of it, without the real-life button-pressing and pressure. Similar to Dinosaur Polo’s Mini Metro and Mini Motorways, you decide the most optimal path for your trains. Make sure no accidents will happen and ensure smooth sailing from beginning to end. Story modes and a revamped tutorial will be coming in its future updates.
12. Dread Templar
This Early Access FPS takes us back to the good ol’ days of 90s gaming. If you enjoy the DOOM series, or even Quake, then you are Dread Templar’s target audience. Survive Hell and blast your way around labyrinthine hallways. Collect a variety of powerful guns and blow the heads (if they have one) of these dastardly creatures.
11. Rocket Assault
This is definitely not pod racing. If you’re looking for some mindless racing action, this fits the profile. You take control of a car kitted with a high-powered rocket. Unfortunately, it’s all single-player so you can’t compete with other players. All you can do is beat your record and blow stuff up with your missiles.
This Alchemist simulator seems to have lost its audience back in the 16th century. Replicating the feel of old manuscripts, this unique game lets you concoct fascinating potions with their own effects. Its pleasing art style works so well with its crafting gameplay. Figure out the best way to make powerful potions and enjoy hours and hours of experimental fun. The game just entered Early Access last month so expect more updates soon.
It seems like Simulators are keeping up with real life issues. Bum Simulator is exactly what you’d expect it to be: you play as a bum. Live out your daily life by surviving this hellhole. It’s more than just begging for money and getting pissed at strangers, it’s also about exploration. Throughout your bum life, you’ll meet unusual people, each with their own stories to tell and secrets to uncover. You can even weaponize a pigeon. For what purposes? Who knows.
Combining fighting games with turn-based combat, this is a rare treat for fans of both genres. It features a stellar cast of colorful characters, each with its own powerful abilities. The gameplay is basically a battle of attrition. Send one fighter out and outplay your opponent’s chosen heroes until they run out of characters. If you want to take your skills to competitive levels, it also supports online multiplayer.
A city-builder that takes inspiration from Shining Rock’s 2014 title, Banished. Anyone familiar with the genre knows that it’s all about expanding your territory. Manipulate landscapes and survive from the terrible weather that plagues the land. You can even manage your own trade routes, in the hopes of building a massive civilization in the long-run.
A game that also recently entered Early Access. This is a dark-fantasy RTS that lets you build the last bastion for humanity against the horde of Nightmares. Engage in its complex procedurally generated world and construct the most formidable defenses. Its unique ‘SwarmTech’ can allow over 70 thousand AI units to come to your doorstep. The devs have just released a roadmap, teasing the arrival of its story mode and multiplayer mode.
A 3D tower-defense game where you collect candies and build ingenious traps. To get more sugar-coated rewards, you have to be smart about constructing traps that halt the enemy’s progress and stop them from stealing your candies. The game is nearing the end of its Early Access this November. Devs are adding a Snow Level to commemorate its “graduation”.
Giving riches to the poor? That’s old school. Become a badass medieval warrior in this free-to-play third-person shooter from CAGE Studios. The goal is to beat the crap out of your enemies with style. You can team up with a friend in its co-op mode or go solo in its low-poly parkour fun. It doesn’t take itself seriously, so if you’re looking to pop off a few heads in bullet-time, you should try this one out.
A bullet-hell indie title from ABShot. IRA won’t be a stranger to players who like Binding of Isaac or Enter the Gungeon. It has both the challenging bosses and the overwhelming numbers of enemies on screen. It has a long way to go in terms of development. While the base biomes and enemy variety are great, the game suffers from shoddy translation work. Luckily, the devs have been fixing most of the game’s issues with their continued updates.
Another game where we once again colonize the Red planet. This colony-simulator is targeted for players who enjoy Surviving Mars, Per Aspera and any other colony-sim. It has huge potential design-wise and players are looking forward to improving its core gameplay.
1. Rolled Out!
It definitely looks like Super Monkey Ball. If you don’t have the budget for the latest re-imagining of SEGA’s arcade platformer classic, then this is something you should get as an alternative. It plays like Super Monkey Ball, if ever you’re wondering. Controls are responsive yet frustrating at times, just like its inspiration. There’s not much to say here, only return to monkey.