## Is the Indie Spirit Rising? Why AA Games Are Leading the 2025 GOTY Race
Forget sprawling AAA behemoths and their billion-dollar budgets. This year, the Game of the Year crown might just belong to the underdogs. Polygon’s recent hot take claims that the top two contenders for 2025 GOTY are both AA games, and the gaming community is buzzing. Could this be a sign that the industry is finally shifting its focus, embracing the innovative and impactful stories that often emerge from smaller studios?
Flexibility and Creative Control: The New AA Advantage
A Shift in Scope, a Focus on Quality
A familiar refrain over the last few years has been the death of what we like to call AA games: mid-budget games made by mid-sized teams. AA games have production values that are comparable with AAA blockbusters — you know: full voice acting, cinematic cutscenes, fancy 3D graphics — and occupy similar genres, but tend to have a more modest scope and realistic set of ambitions. They used to be the industry’s stock-in-trade, until they were squeezed out by an exploding indie scene on one side and risk-averse publishers’ focus on mega-budget sure bets on the other. Now they’re an endangered species. Or are they?
A post on the gaming forum ResetEra recently alerted Gamestanza to something interesting. The two best-reviewed games of 2025 so far (alongside the indie darling Blue Prince) – and the two leading front-runners for Game of the Year at The Game Awards in December — are Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 and Split Fiction. These both retail for $50 — not the industry-standard $60 or the increasingly widespread premium price point of $70 (never mind Nintendo’s decision to break the $80 taboo with Mario Kart World). The poster framed this as a triumph of fair pricing over the greed and bloat of AAA gaming. Personally, I’m wary of constructing critical arguments around pricing and value — not least because paying more for our games is an arguably necessary, if painful, counter-measure if the game industry is to survive inflation, skyrocketing development costs, and stalling growth in the gaming audience. But it’s also true that accepting more expensive games that take even longer to make isn’t the only path to sustainability for gaming.
Alternatively, we could reframe our expectations for the scope and technical specifications of the games we play, and the sheer amount of labor that goes into making them. As the meme puts it: “I want shorter games with worse graphics made by people who are paid more to work less and I’m not kidding.”
That sounds like a description of a AA game to me. Well, maybe not the “paid more to work less” part — certainly not in the category’s 2000s heyday — but even this might have room to change as new publishing and development models emerge.
Exploring the Potential for Ambitious Storytelling on a Smaller Scale
AA games have historically been known for delivering compelling narratives without the need for sprawling, expensive productions. They often excel in tight, focused storytelling, allowing developers to craft nuanced characters and explore complex themes within a more manageable scope.
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, for example, is a narrative-driven survival horror game that focuses on the psychological impact of isolation and the horrors of the unknown. Its compact setting and smaller team size allow for a deep dive into the protagonist’s psyche and a more intimate exploration of the game’s themes. Split Fiction, on the other hand, is a narrative-driven action-adventure game that emphasizes player choice and consequence. Despite its smaller scale, the game boasts a rich and engaging story with multiple branching paths, highlighting the potential of AA development to deliver impactful narratives.
The Impact of Smaller Teams on Development Cycles and Budgets
The decreased development costs associated with AA games allow for more experimentation and risk-taking. Smaller teams can iterate more quickly, respond to player feedback more efficiently, and explore innovative ideas without the pressure of delivering a blockbuster experience.
This agility can lead to more creative and original games that push the boundaries of genre conventions. The rise of the indie scene has already demonstrated the power of small teams to produce innovative and critically acclaimed games. AA development can build upon this foundation, offering a middle ground between the limitations of the indie market and the constraints of AAA production.
Re-evaluating Critical Reception: Is “Good Enough” No Longer Enough?
The AA classics of the past — games like Second Sight, Stranglehold, or The Darkness — were good, but seldom considered great in their time. They were enjoyably pulpy genre efforts that mostly stayed in their lanes, and were gently penalised by reviewers for their lack of ambition. Clair Obscur and Split Fiction, however, have both enjoyed universal acclaim, reflected in 90-plus scores from major gaming publications. This suggests a shift in critical perception, with a growing appreciation for well-crafted games that deliver a focused and rewarding experience, regardless of their budget.
This change in critical reception could be a sign that the gaming industry is finally moving away from a system that prioritizes blockbuster spectacle over quality and innovation. Gamestanza has long advocated for a more diverse gaming landscape, one that embraces games of all sizes and ambitions. The success of Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 and Split Fiction is a welcome development in this direction, proving that smaller, more focused games can still captivate players and earn critical acclaim.
The Implications for Gamers and the Industry
A Potential Solution to AAA Gaming’s Bloat and Price Inflation
The rise of AA games as potential Game of the Year contenders offers a glimmer of hope in the face of AAA gaming’s increasingly inflated prices and bloated development cycles. While some argue that AAA games are necessary to push technological boundaries and deliver truly immersive experiences, others believe that the industry’s focus on spectacle has come at the expense of quality and innovation.
By providing a viable alternative to the AAA model, AA games can help to rein in the industry’s runaway costs and create a more sustainable gaming landscape. Gamers, in turn, can benefit from a wider variety of high-quality games at more reasonable prices.
Encouraging Diversity in Game Design and Genre Exploration
The success of AA games can also help to foster greater diversity in game design and genre exploration. Smaller teams are often more willing to take risks and experiment with new ideas, leading to a wider range of creative and innovative games. This can be particularly beneficial for emerging genres and underserved audiences, as developers are free to pursue their passions without the pressure of meeting mainstream expectations.
The rise of AA games can help to create a more inclusive and diverse gaming landscape, one that celebrates creativity and innovation over blockbuster spectacle.
The Future of Gaming: A Hybrid Landscape?
The future of gaming likely lies in a hybrid landscape, one that embraces both the scale and ambition of AAA productions and the flexibility and innovation of AA development. By striking a balance between these two approaches, the industry can create a more sustainable and diverse gaming ecosystem that caters to the needs and desires of a wide range of players.
The success of Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 and Split Fiction serves as a promising sign for the future of AA gaming. Gamestanza will continue to track the development and impact of these games, and explore how they shape the evolution of the gaming industry.
Conclusion
So, Polygon’s article throws down a gauntlet: this year’s GOTY contenders are leaning towards AA games, and that’s a cause for celebration, not concern. The article argues that these “middle child” games, often overlooked in favor of blockbuster AAA releases, are bursting with creativity, innovation, and heart. They’re proving that compelling storytelling, innovative gameplay, and stunning visuals don’t always require a massive budget. Instead, they thrive on passion projects, tight development cycles, and a laser focus on delivering a truly memorable experience.
This shift in the GOTY landscape is more than just a passing trend. It signifies a changing tide in the gaming industry, one where smaller teams with bold visions are carving their own space. It challenges the notion that bigger is always better and reminds us that true innovation often comes from unexpected places. The success of these AA games empowers independent developers and opens doors for fresh perspectives, potentially leading to a more diverse and exciting gaming future. As players, we have an opportunity to embrace this evolution, to champion these hidden gems, and to demand more of the games that capture our imaginations, regardless of their budget.
After all, the best games aren’t measured in megapixels or marketing dollars, but in the stories they tell, the worlds they create, and the emotions they evoke. Let’s raise a controller to the AA games shaking up the status quo and proving that greatness comes in all shapes and sizes.
