The best games we saw during the Day of the Devs showcase

Now that Summer Game Fest 2025 is off and running, it’s time for my favorite part of the show: Day of the Devs. Day of the Devs is a yearly showcase highlighting the newest, quirkiest indie releases, and it is frequently the source of some of my favorite games SGF has on offer. This year is another banger slate of titles from your favorite indie publishers, like Devolver Digital, Annapurna Interactive, Panic, and more. I’ll have more to share about these games once the show is over, but for now, here are my faves from the Day of the Devs Summer Game Fest showcase 2025.

Snap and Grab is a slick-looking action puzzle game that mixes Ocean’s Eleven with Miami Vice. Set in the hyper neon aesthetic of the ’80s, Snap and Grab lets you live out your master thief fantasies. Case the joint with your camera, taking pictures of the merchandise you wanna steal while also snapping pics of the people, places, and things that’ll help your team get the goods and get out. Coming next year to PC, PS5, and Xbox Series consoles.

It’s time to take a gander at the next game from Untitled Goose Game developer House House. In Big Walk, House House combines the peacefulness of a walking simulator with the wacky hijinks of multiplayer party games. You and your friends will take a… well, big walk through the countryside finding and solving puzzles using the game’s unique proximity voice and text chat feature.

Sword of the Sea is from the makers of Abzu and The Pathless. It’s a skateboarding exploration narrative game in which you cruise around a desert world doing flips off dunes and sandy half-pipes. Sword of the Sea features music by Austin Wintory and very much reminds me of Sable and Journey, but with a Tony Hawk twist.

I loved the first Escape Academy and I’m incredibly geeked that the team at Coin Crew Games is back with a sequel. In Escape Academy 2, the developers gave the people what we wanted: a bigger school with even more puzzles to solve. And now, instead of selecting levels, you can find the puzzles yourself in an open-world explorable academy filled with secrets and clues. Unfollow me now, this is gonna be the only thing I talk about for the next week.

Dosa Divas from Thirsty Suitors developer Outerloop Games is a spicy RPG that’ll make you hungry. In the game, you collect recipes and use them in cooking minigames to make food for people who have been overcome by a violent case of the itis. Dosa Diva’s turn-based combat features dodges and parries, which makes the game well situated to take advantage of the turn-based RPG hype generated by Clair Obscur: Expedition 33.

Never before has a game attacked me so violently, but in a way that still makes me really want to play it. Consume Me is a coming-of-age story that pays homage to the unique hell of being a teenage girl. Stress about your grades (rude), crushes (also rude), and weight (RUDE AS FUCK!) via a collection of WarioWare-esque minigames. This game looks like it’ll cause me a unique amount of stress. I can’t wait.

Heart Machine, maker of Hyper Light Drifter and this year’s Hyper Light Breaker, is back with its next game, Possessor(s). In the game, you play as Luca, who has been forced into cooperation with the demon Rhem. Luca uses Rhem’s powers to fight demons that have invaded their city. Together the two must solve the mystery of their world while exploring their ruined city in a search action adventure game (what the kids are calling Metroidvanias these days).

Another side-scrolling action game steeped in afrofuturistic fantasy? Don’t mind if I do! Relooted is a new game from South African-based developer Nyamakop. It combines endless-runner action with an Indiana Jones-type story. In the game, you and your friends team up to steal your culture’s artifacts back from the museums that stole them in the first place. As you run through each location, your friends are standing by, ready to use their powers to clear any obstacles to ensure you’ve got a smooth path.

These games aren’t all Day of the Devs 2025 has to offer. You can check out the full list of games here and stay tuned to The Verge’s Summer Game Fest 2025 coverage to see more from these titles later.