Indie developers are revitalizing the underappreciated immersive sim

When Arkane Austin was shuttered by Microsoft, many gamers wistfully wondered if this was the end of the AAA immersive sim. While that legacy lives on through projects like Wolfeye Studios’ upcoming sci-fi RPG, the genre is absolutely thriving in the indie scene. Recently, we’ve noticed an explosion of intriguing, ambitious, and fascinating immersive sims from smaller developers that capture the best parts of classics like the iconic Deus Ex, Prey, and Dishonored.

These games are built around player choice, taking place in complex and crowded environments. The player typically has a variety of skill sets and strategies at their disposal, like brute force, hacking, or social manipulation. For instance, while investigating a suspicious corporate executive, a player might sneak into their office using vents and hack into their work PC. Or perhaps they’ll socially manipulate a nervous secretary to gain access. Or they might find the executive at home and rough them up.

It takes a lot of work for a developer to build a world complex enough to allow for all of these choices, but when it all comes together, it’s a uniquely satisfying experience.

Shadows of Doubt was released in early access in 2023; the game celebrated its 1.0 launch on Sept. 26. In Shadows of Doubt, you’re a private detective in a dystopian alternate-’80s noir voxel city. I am called to murder scenes, where I scan for information — fingerprints, shoe marks, receipts, recent calls. As I follow up on leads, checking out workplaces and talking to friends, I slowly build out a board with all my clues.

I track connections with red string, narrowing down leads until I finally find the killer. Shadows of Doubt doesn’t have the same narrative heft as other titles, as every city and every citizen are procedurally generated — but I’ve rarely felt so satisfied as when I finally crack a tough case. The procedural generation is unusual for immersive sims, but the vast scale of the city makes the system work well. Sometimes it takes hours of scanning a building for errant fingerprints, or a convoluted chain of chores in order to hack into a computer system with a camera directed at the crime scene — but that just makes solving the case even sweeter.

On Sept. 24, Ctrl Alt Ego was released on consoles; the game originally launched on PC in 2022. Ctrl Alt Ego positions you as a ghost in the shell, a sci-fi poltergeist hopping between bots and devices. In order to navigate the space station, players will need to utilize both brute force and clever tactics. Often, I grow frustrated with puzzle games because there’s only one way to solve things, and I don’t know how, so I bang my head against the wall. Ctrl Alt Ego is far more flexible — and if push comes to shove, I have a shotgun to overwhelm any obstacles in my path.

Corpus Edax is a wildly inventive and ambitious immersive sim in the vein of Deus Ex, created by one person. The physics and how they play out in melee combat is a major highlight of this game; you can pick props up and throw them at enemies, who wildly ragdoll. On my first playthrough, I tried to go for social skills and hacking, and quickly realized that subtle methods pale in comparison to the power of kicking a guy in the face.

While Corpus Edax starts on a very strong note, there’s an illusion of choice in the early game that really never pays off in the way that other immersive sims manage. However, it’s a promising game that harkens back to an earlier age — it’s the closest thing to a new take on the classic Deus Ex formula that you can get your hands on. Also, I love lurking on rooftops and chucking bricks at patrolling goons’ heads.

If sci-fi is a turnoff and you prefer something a bit more Gothic and brooding, then Gloomwood will likely be your cup of tea. Gloomwood takes place in a Victorian city full of ghastly citizens and newly born monsters. Stealth is your most valuable ally — well, except for your canesword and six-shot revolver. Gloomwood has been in early access since 2022, so the game is not yet complete, but the depth of its existing systems means there’s already a ton to explore.

Immersive sims are complex games that require a lot of love and handcrafted detail, but as the barrier to entry for making games lowers, developers are able to dedicate themselves to meeting that challenge. Cruelty Squad is ugly, unpolished, and still one of the best indie immersive sims in recent memory. Corpus Edax was made by one person, Ctrl Alt Ego by two.

While we may not be getting a big-budget follow-up to the Dishonored games anytime soon, the immersive sim is still thriving. Similar to the horror genre, the genre is being refreshed and revitalized by indie developers making daring choices. Using avenues like early access, games like Shadows of Doubt and Gloomwood can test the complex avenues of choice with players. With today’s tools, even small — or solo — teams can create vast sandboxes and elaborate cities for players to explore. There’s still a hunger for this style of game, and indie developers are meeting the challenge.