With GameMaker’s accessibility and ease of use, it’s no surprise that we find games made with it on every avenue in gaming. Many are surprised to find out that so many high-profile games were made with GameMaker, but after using it for any amount of time, it’s easy to see why it was the tool of choice for so many developers.
While touting itself as a hobbyist tool, GameMaker was selected by some talented developers who produced projects that went on to be critical successes on a variety of platforms. Here are 10 of the most popular GameMaker games!
10. Downwell
Devolver Digital
Downwell is a curious game about a young man with guns for boots venturing down a well in search of untold treasures. Make your way further and further down into a darkness filled with nasty creatures and mysterious secrets and collect the spectacular red gems scattered about the rocks. Step into an oddly placed shop to buy some helpful items or level up between caverns to battle well dwelling monsters and uncover hidden caves filled with riches and relics. No two trips down the well are ever the same!
Why You Should Play It
Downwell is a simple concept with great execution. Progress downward through the levels in nonstop action that takes you back to old arcade-style games. The pixel art is charming and the colors work well for the whole aesthetic of the game. It’s a great game to sit down and play in short bursts, too!
Available On
PC / Android / iOS / PlayStationNetwork / PlayStation Vita / Playstation 4
Get it on Nintendo Switch
9. Wandersong
Dumb and Fat Games
Wandersong takes you on a whimsical, musical journey across the globe. Eons ago, the goddess Eya put the universe into motion with her music–now, as she does every epoch or so, she’s going to sing a new song and reset existence. You play as a lowly bard tasked with finding the pieces of a mysterious melody called the Earthsong, which is said to be able to preserve the planet. Use your singing to help characters, solve puzzles, and save the world!
Why You Should Play It
Wandersong is a unique take on a classic formula. You use the power of song to take the Bard through an adventure with a great graphic style that feels inviting, even in the darkest environments. Never before will you be so excited to select a bard!
Available On
PC / Mac / PlayStation 4
Get it on Nintendo Switch here!
8. Hotline Miami
Dennaton Games
Answer the phone, drive to your destination, put on your mask, kill everyone. Hotline Miami is a very fast paced two dimensional top-down shooter/slasher set in the 80s Miami, where you play as an unnamed character with the objective of ending everyones lives with different melee or ranged weapons while wearing an animal mask. The player starts with one mask but different masks, each with a unique effect, are unlocked as the game progresses.
Hotline Miami features an instant level restart system which further increases the pace of the game and enables the player to quickly try out different strategies on each map. After each mission the performance of the player is graded and he is given a score, which can unlock new masks and weapons, if the score is sufficiently high.
Why You Should Play It
Hotline Miami was one of the first commercially successful games made with GameMaker, known for it’s nonstop action and stylistic flair. This is one of those games that make you feel like you’ve just landed on the set of a Tarantino movie with the dialogue and violence to match.
Available On
Mac / Linux / Android / PlayStation Network / PlayStation Vita / PlayStation 3 / PlayStation 4
Get it on PC here!
7. Nidhogg 2
Messhof
Return of the wurm! The next installment of the epic award-winning dueling tug-of-war is coming! Destroy your opponents with all new moves and weapons across ten different arenas.
Why You Should Play It
Nidhogg 2 puts 2 players face to face in a duel that’s a tug-of-war of life and death. While the original Nidhogg solidified the formula, Nidhogg 2 capitalized on its features with a completely new graphical style. Matches are tense and until the Nidhogg takes its victim, it’s anyone’s game.
Available On
PC / Mac / PlayStation Network / PlayStation 4 / Xbox One / Nintendo Switch
6. Rivals of Aether
Dan Fornace
RIVALS OF AETHER is an indie fighting game set in a world where warring civilizations summon the power of Fire, Water, Air, and Earth. Choose a Rival to bring into the battlefield and manipulate the powers of the classical elements and animal movement. Praised for its competitive gameplay and intensive training tools, Rivals of Aether is the perfect entry to the Platform Fighter genre.
Why You Should Play It
What started as a Smash Bros. fan game and evolved into something completely different, Rivals of Aether delivers in bringing a quality platform fighter to GameMaker. With online multiplayer and a variety of creative characters, battle friends and foes alike to see who can push the other player out of the ring and reign victorious.
Available On
PC / Xbox One
5. Minit
Devolver Digital
Minit is a peculiar little adventure played sixty seconds at a time.
Why You Should Play It
Sometimes the best ideas are oftentimes the simplest ones. You start by finding a cursed sword which kills you every 60 seconds. From there, you’ve got to find a way to progress far enough in minute-long intervals in order to stop the factory from producing more swords. A fun, puzzling adventure awaits with a simple 1-bit look!
Available On
Linux / PC / Max / PlayStation 4 / Xbox One
Get it on Nintendo Switch here!
4. Forager
Hop Frog
Forager is the popular crafting, exploration and base building game that can best be defined as “the idle game that you want to actively keep playing”.
A quirky mix between old school 2D Zelda experiences and modern Minecraft or Terraria-like crafting games that places players into a small piece of land with just a pickaxe and a desire for expansion and exploration.
Players can buy procedurally generated lands to uncover secrets, solve puzzles, find dungeons, treasure and forgotten relics and to expand their sprawling bases. Nearly impossible to put down, there is always something to manage or work towards!
Why You Should Play It
If you’ve ever played Minecraft or Stardew Valley, it won’t be hard to tell you why you should pick up Forager. Addictive gameplay has you trying to optimize every corner of your little world, building your wealth and crafting powerful gear. Say goodbye to your afternoons once you boot this one up for the day.
Available On
PC
3. Swords of Ditto
onebitbeyond
“The Swords of Ditto is a compact action RPG that creates a unique adventure for each new hero of legend in the relentless fight against the evil Mormo. Explore a delightful but dangerous overworld, brave menacing dungeons, and improve your hero in a charming village, during your quest to overcome the evil that plagues the island. Unleash the mystical Sword of Ditto and grab a co-op friend for an unforgettable adventure filled with delightful characters, extraordinary loot, and heroic battles!”
Why You Should Play
Swords of Ditto is what happens when you turn a Saturday morning cartoon of the 90s and turn it into an immersive gameplay experience. You will fall completely in love with the art and animation of Swords of Ditto as you and a friend save the land… again, and again, and again…
Available On
PC / PlayStation 4
2. Hyper Light Drifter
Heart Machine
Hyper Light Drifter is a 2D Action RPG in the vein of the best 8-bit and 16-bit classics, and is considered a combination of The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past and Diablo.
Why You Should Play It
Hyper Light Drifter wowed audiences when it showed its first trailer when it launched its Kickstarter in 2013. It’s post-apocalyptic environments made way for stunning visuals when paired with the neons, angles, and animation Hyper Light Drifter has to offer. This tough-as-nails game will have you coming back for more after every death.
Available On
Linux / PC / Max / PlayStation Network / PlayStation 4 / Xbox One / Ouya
Get it on Nintendo Switch here!
1. Undertale
tobyfox
A small child falls into the Underground, where monsters have long been banished by humans and are hunting every human that they find. The player controls the child as they try to make it back to the Surface through hostile environments, all the while killing or sparing the monsters they encounter along the way through a turn-based combat system with bullet hell elements and other unconventional game mechanics.
Why You Should Play It
Of all commercially successful games, few can boast as much personality as Undertale. While graphically simple and perhaps amateurish, Undertale’s writing will keep you engaged in a story of friendship and determination. Choose to be the hero or the enemy as your meet unforgettable characters in this charming RPG.
Available On
Linux / PC / Max / PlayStation Vita / PlayStation 4
Get it on Nintendo Switch here!
