The 12th Independent Games Festival kicks off in San Francisco next week. It’s an event that unfortunately doesn’t get a lot of main stream media coverage but I think showcases innovative ideas in interaction, game design and art. A lot of independent games are created by small, tightly knit teams that aren’t driven by commercial budgets and timelines — creating an ideal environment for exploration. I think there’s also some really beautiful art that these games adopt, often created within tight restrictions and rule sets such as production time, resources and rendering capabilities. For video coverage Bytejacker reviews independent games and Area 5 always try to cover the festival, and one of their presenters (Ryan O’Donnell) was even selected as a judge for this year’s awards.

Here are some highlights I’ve seen demonstrated that seem to be presenting innovative game mechanics, compelling story and/or really lovely art direction, click on the image for more info. Many of these games will be free and a lot were created with Flash so can even by played in your browser.

Limbo, from Playdead, Copenhagen, Denmark

Puddle, from students at ENJMIN, Angoulême, France

Trauma by Krystian Majewski, Cologne, Germany

Monaco, Pocketwatch Games, San Diego, United States

Boryokudan Rue, student from UCLA, Los Angeles, United States