'Talos Principle,' '80 Days' among Indie Games Festival finalists

In the glut of major blockbuster releases like Destiny, Call of Duty, and Assassin’s Creed, it’s easy for games of smaller scopes and ludicrously smaller marketing budgets to be lost. But these small titles are no less ambitious and oftentimes more daring with their subject matter and design, and the Independent Games Festival is highlighting the 2014 experiences that deserve a look.

The 17th annual Independent Games Festival’s jury panels announced their finalists in the festival’s award categories, choosing from over 600 entrants.

The juries picked independently developed games and recognized several finalists in categories focusing on design, visuals, audio, and more.

Check out the finalists below, and visit the IGF’s official nominations page for many more honorable mentions and information on all of the finalists.

Seumas McNally Grand Prize:

– 80 Days

– Invisible, Inc.

– Metamorphabet

– Outer Wilds

– The Talos Principle

– This War of Mine

Excellence in Visual Arts:

– Donut County

– else Heart.Break()

– Lumino City

– Memory of a Broken Dimension

– Metamorphabet

– Oquonie

Excellence in Design:

– 80 Days

– FRAMED

– Invisible, Inc.

– Killer Queen

– Outer Wilds

– The Talos Principle

Excellence in Audio:

– Ephemerid: A Musical Adventure

– Phonopath

– Shovel Knight

– The Sailor’s Dream

– The Vanishing of Ethan Carter

– Thumper

Excellence in Narrative:

– 80 Days

– Coming Out Simulator 2014

– Ice-Bound: A Novel of Reconfiguration

– PRY

– This War of Mine

– Three Fourths Home

Nuovo Award:

– BECOME A GREAT ARTIST IN JUST 10 SECONDS

– Bounden

– Desert Golfing

– Elegy for a Dead World

– how do you Do It?

– Plug & Play

– Rooftop Cop

– Tetrageddon Games

Winners will be chosen at an awards ceremony held on March 4. The Independent Games Festival runs from March 2-6 in San Francisco, California,as part of the Game Developers Conference.