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- Indie titles accounted for 25% of Steam revenue in 2025.
- Of the $17.7 billion Steam generated this year, over $4.5 billion came from indie developers.
- R.E.P.O., PEAK, Hollow Knight Silksong, and Escape from Duckov were the top-performing indie titles in 2025.
Calling 2025 the year of indie gaming wouldn’t be too wrong, as titles like Expedition 33, Hollow Knight: Silksong, and Dispatch have overshadowed their AAA counterparts. Sandfall’s Expedition 33 even broke the record for most wins in The Game Awards history, while also taking home GOTY.
Indies have also been succeeding monetarily this year, with half of Steam’s best-performing games being either indie or AA. New data now shows that indie developers were actually responsible for a massive share of Steam’s record-breaking revenue in 2025.
Why it matters: Indie titles have long been the primary hub of creativity in the gaming industry, and their growing visibility on Steam is a positive sign for the future.
According to data shared by Alinea Analytics, Indie games accounted for 25% of Steam’s overall revenue this year. Valve’s storefront has grossed more than $17.7 billion in 2025 to date, with indies accounting for a substantial $4.5 billion.
In addition, more than $500 million in revenue came from just the top 5 selling indie games alone, namely Schedule I ($151 million), R.E.P.O. ($147 million), PEAK ($87 million), Hollow Knight: Silksong ($75 million), and Escape from Duckov ($53 million).
As per Alinea Analytics, co-op games with slapstick physics that turn your partner’s errors into a comedic spoof are a big reason for this new indie dominance, as players want to record their friends failing horribly at titles like R.E.P.O. and PEAK.
Indies like Hollow Knight: Silksong have also set new standards for fan service in the gaming industry, pricing their title at only $20 and also giving fans a free DLC expansion after the game had sold 7 million copies.
Many suggest that indie gaming is going to be the saviour of the industry, and if things keep going this way, that could very well turn out to be true.
Do you think there should be a bigger push for indie games in the industry? Tell us in the comments below or head to the Tech4Gamers forum for discussion.
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Shameer Sarfaraz has previously worked for eXputer as a Senior News Writer for several years. Now with Tech4Gamers, he loves to devoutly keep up with the latest gaming and entertainment industries. He has a Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science and years of experience reporting on games. Besides his passion for breaking news stories, Shahmeer loves spending his leisure time farming away in Stardew Valley. VGC, IGN, GameSpot, Game Rant, TheGamer, GamingBolt, The Verge, NME, Metro, Dot Esports, GameByte, Kotaku Australia, PC Gamer, and more have cited his articles.
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