Best Indie Dev Zone in California — 54 verified listings

• Double Fine Productions — San Francisco. Founded in 2000 by Tim Schafer after he left LucasArts, Double Fine is a San Francisco studio acquired by Xbox Game Studios in 2019 but still operating in its original SoMa office. Made Psychonauts, B
• Supergiant Games — San Francisco. Founded 2009 by Amir Rao and Gavin Simon, Supergiant is a small SF indie that has shipped Bastion (2011), Transistor (2014), Pyre (2017), Hades (2020), and Hades II (2025). Hades sold over 1 million c
• Mossmouth — San Francisco. Derek Yu's San Francisco studio founded in 2009. Creators of Spelunky (2008/2012/2020) and UFO 50 (2024), an anthology of 50 fictional retro games that was an IGF 2025 Grand Prize finalist. Based in S
• Lazy 8 Studios — San Francisco. Founded 2008 in San Francisco by Rob Jagnow. Made the steampunk puzzler Cogs (2009, IGF nominee) and the alternate-reality space exploration game Extrasolar. Based in San Francisco, California. Indepe
• Tomorrow Corporation — San Francisco. Founded 2010 in the SF Bay Area by Kyle Gabler (World of Goo), Allan Blomquist, and Kyle Gray. Made Little Inferno (2012), Human Resource Machine (2015), 7 Billion Humans (2018), and World of Goo 2 (2
• thatgamecompany — Santa Monica. Santa Monica studio founded 2006 by Jenova Chen and Kellee Santiago. Made Flow (2006), Flower (2009), Journey (2012, BAFTA), and the live-service social adventure Sky: Children of the Light (2019). Ba
• Giant Squid Studios — Santa Monica. Founded 2013 in Santa Monica by ex-thatgamecompany art director Matt Nava. Developed Abzu (2016), The Pathless (2020), and the surfing adventure Sword of the Sea (2025). Based in Santa Monica, Califor
• Heart Machine — Culver City. Alx Preston's Culver City studio, founded after the 2013 Kickstarter for Hyper Light Drifter (2016). Subsequent titles include Solar Ash (2021), Hyper Light Breaker (2025 Early Access), and Possessor(
• Yacht Club Games — Marina del Rey. Founded 2011 in Marina del Rey by ex-WayForward director Sean Velasco. Creators and publishers of Shovel Knight (2014) and its expansions, plus the upcoming Mina the Hollower. Based in Marina del Rey,
• Annapurna Interactive — Los Angeles. Founded 2016 as a division of Annapurna Pictures. LA indie publisher behind Florence, What Remains of Edith Finch, Outer Wilds, Stray, Solar Ash, Cocoon, and Neva. Established an in-house dev studio i
• Squanch Games — Burbank. Founded 2016, headquartered in Burbank with a Raleigh NC second office. Developed Trover Saves the Universe (2019) and High on Life (2022), a Game Pass shooter that topped Xbox charts. Based in Burban
• Wonderstorm — Los Angeles. LA story-and-play studio founded 2017 by ex-Riot devs Aaron Ehasz, Justin Santistevan, and Justin Richmond. Created Netflix's Dragon Prince animated series and is developing The Dragon Prince: Xadia.
• WayForward — Valencia. Founded 1990 by Voldi Way, WayForward is a 19,000 sq ft Valencia indie 30 minutes north of Burbank. Has shipped over 200 titles, including the Shantae series, River City Girls, and Mighty Switch Force
• Frost Giant Studios — Irvine. Orange County RTS studio founded 2020 in Irvine by ex-Blizzard StarCraft II leads Tim Morten and Tim Campbell. Their free-to-play RTS Stormgate entered Steam early access in August 2024. Based in Irvi
• Skybound Games — Los Angeles. Robert Kirkman's Skybound Entertainment launched Skybound Games in 2018 to publish indies. Headquartered at 9570 W Pico Blvd. Published Before Your Eyes, The Big Con, and Closer the Distance. Based in
• Crytivo — San Diego. San Diego indie publisher and developer founded by Alexander Koshelkov. Developed The Universim (2024), a god game funded via Kickstarter in 2014, and also publishes third-party indies via the Crytivo
• Unity Technologies — San Francisco. Game engine company headquartered at 30 3rd Street, San Francisco. Unity powers a majority of indie games shipped each year and went public on NYSE in 2020. Based in San Francisco, California. Game en
• Psyonix — San Diego. Founded 2000 in San Diego. Developers of Rocket League (2015), acquired by Epic Games in 2019 but continuing to operate as its own studio focused on Rocket League live ops. Based in San Diego, Califor
• Bolt Creative — San Francisco. Small San Francisco mobile studio behind Pocket God, the long-running iOS hit that has shipped over 50 weekly updates since 2009. Based in San Francisco, California. Mobile-first game studios build fo
• Pocketwatch Games — San Diego. Andy Schatz's San Diego studio, founded 2006. Made Wildlife Tycoon: Venture Africa and Monaco: What's Yours Is Mine (2013, IGF Grand Prize) and Tooth and Tail (2017). Based in San Diego, California. I
• Hidden Variable Studios — Berkeley. Berkeley studio founded 2011. Co-developer and current publisher of Skullgirls Mobile and Indivisible, and ports developer for Threes! Free. Based in Berkeley, California. Independent game studios sel
• Choice of Games — Berkeley. Berkeley publisher of interactive fiction founded 2009 by Dan Fabulich and Adam Strong-Morse. Built ChoiceScript and has shipped 150+ choice-based novels on Steam and mobile. Based in Berkeley, Califo
• Subset Games — San Francisco. Remote-friendly duo studio originally based in SF/Shanghai. Created FTL: Faster Than Light (2012) and Into the Breach (2018), both genre-defining roguelike strategy games. Based in San Francisco, Cali
• Number None Inc — Berkeley. Jonathan Blow's original Berkeley solo studio before founding Thekla. Released Braid (2008) — the IGF Innovation in Game Design winner that helped define the modern indie era. Based in Berkeley, Calif
• Nix Hydra — Los Angeles. LA indie focused on story-driven mobile experiences. Made The Arcana, a mystic visual novel with 4M+ players. Based in Los Angeles, California. Mobile-first game studios build for iOS and Android - fr
• Timberline Studio — Los Angeles. LA indie crafting original PC and console titles with strong art direction. Based in Los Angeles, California. Independent game studios self-fund or partner with publishers to ship games on their own t
• Namazu Studios — San Diego. San Diego indie studio and accelerator founded 2008 focused on go-to-market launch strategy and mobile gaming. Based in San Diego, California. Mobile-first game studios build for iOS and Android - fre
• Juggernaut Games — San Diego. San Diego indie founded 2011 building original PC and mobile titles. Based in San Diego, California. Independent game studios self-fund or partner with publishers to ship games on their own terms - sm
• Empty Clip Studios — San Diego. San Diego indie founded 2007. Released Groovin' Blocks and Symphony, the music-driven shoot-em-up. Based in San Diego, California. Independent game studios self-fund or partner with publishers to ship
• Akupara Games — Los Angeles. LA indie publisher and developer. Published Whispers of a Machine, A Bird Story, Cryptmaster, Last Stop, Felvidek, and various Tunic ports. Based in Los Angeles, California. Indie publishers fund, mar
• Iam8bit Presents — Los Angeles. LA cult vinyl + publisher. Iam8bit Presents has published Demon Throttle, Sephonie, UFO 50, Squirrel With A Gun, and co-hosts the annual Day of the Devs showcase. Based in Los Angeles, California. Ind
• Galactic Cafe — San Francisco. The studio name used by Davey Wreden for The Stanley Parable (HD Remix, 2013) and The Beginner's Guide (2015). Wreden continues to ship narrative experiments under this banner. Based in San Francisco,
• Mythical Games — Marina del Rey. Marina del Rey indie founded 2018. Made Blankos Block Party (2022), a free-to-play party platformer with collectible digital toys. Based in Marina del Rey, California. Independent game studios self-fu
• Tic Toc Games — Burbank. Burbank indie founded 2009 by Disney Interactive alumni. Made The Adventures of Pip and various licensed mobile titles. Based in Burbank, California. Mobile-first game studios build for iOS and Androi
• Wadjet Eye Games via LA mirror — Los Angeles. Cross-coast operations for Brooklyn-based Wadjet Eye. Listed as LA distributor. Based in Los Angeles, California. Indie publishers fund, market, and ship games for outside developers - smaller scale t
• Pyrodactyl Games — Los Angeles. LA-based indie founded by Arvind Raja Yadav. Made Unrest (2014) and Will Fight for Food. Based in Los Angeles, California. Independent game studios self-fund or partner with publishers to ship games o
• Nicalis — Santa Ana. Santa Ana publisher founded 2007 by Tyrone Rodriguez. Published Cave Story+, The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth, 1001 Spikes, and Tiny Barbarian. Based in Santa Ana, California. Indie publishers fund, mark
• Telltale (LCG Entertainment) — Malibu. Telltale Games relaunched in 2018 by LCG Entertainment after the original Telltale closure. Malibu HQ. Currently working on The Wolf Among Us 2 and The Expanse: A Telltale Series. Based in Malibu, Cal
• Campo Santo — San Francisco. SF studio founded 2013 by Jake Rodkin, Sean Vanaman, and team. Made Firewatch (2016). Acquired by Valve in 2018 to develop In the Valley of Gods. Based in San Francisco, California. Independent game s
• Jason Rohrer — Davis. Davis CA legendary solo art-game designer. Made Passage (2007), Sleep Is Death, The Castle Doctrine, and One Hour One Life (2018). Based in Davis, California. Solo developers ship full games as one pe
• Edmund McMillen — Santa Cruz. Santa Cruz CA solo dev. Designed Super Meat Boy (2010, with Team Meat), The Binding of Isaac (2011) and its DLC/expansions, and The End is Nigh (2017). Based in Santa Cruz, California. Solo developers
• Anna Anthropy — Oakland. Oakland CA queer indie designer and author of 'Rise of the Videogame Zinesters.' Made Mighty Jill Off, Dys4ia, and Triad. Based in Oakland, California. Solo developers ship full games as one person -
• alienmelon (Nathalie Lawhead) — Los Angeles. LA solo dev and artist Nathalie Lawhead. Made Tetrageddon Games, Everything is going to be OK, and individualism in the dead-internet age (IGF 2025 Nuovo finalist). Based in Los Angeles, California. S
• Creature — Los Angeles. LA mixed-reality studio. Made Starship Home (Quest 3, 2024), an IGF 2025 Nuovo finalist that turns your living room into a spaceship. Based in Los Angeles, California. VR and AR-focused studios build
• Cicada Games — Berkeley. Jason Newman's Berkeley CA solo studio. Made Isles of Sea and Sky (2023, IGF 2024 Design finalist). Based in Berkeley, California. Solo developers ship full games as one person - design, code, art, au
• Three More Years — San Francisco. SF Bay indie team behind Mini Mini Golf Golf, the IndieCade 2025 Innovation in Interaction Design and Visual Design winner. Based in San Francisco, California. Independent game studios self-fund or pa
• cirqueSaw — Los Angeles. LA live-action games collective. Made labRats, IndieCade 2025 Live Action Award winner. Based in Los Angeles, California. Game developer cooperatives and collectives gather independent creators around
• Ritual Studios — Los Angeles. LA indie. Created Fretless: The Wrath of Riffson, the IndieCade 2025 Audio Design Award winner. Based in Los Angeles, California. Independent game studios self-fund or partner with publishers to ship
• Scallywag Studios — Los Angeles. LA indie. Created Back Off Me Booty, the IndieCade 2024 Night Games Audience Choice winner. Based in Los Angeles, California. Independent game studios self-fund or partner with publishers to ship game
• PlayQ — Los Angeles. LA mobile-focused indie founded 2011. Made Sushi Bar Express, an early Cookie Jam Match 3, and Lego Legacy. Based in Los Angeles, California. Mobile-first game studios build for iOS and Android - free
• Two-Bit Circus — Los Angeles. LA arcade-experience operator and indie game developer for location-based entertainment. Based in Los Angeles, California. Independent game studios self-fund or partner with publishers to ship games o
• Hexany Audio — Los Angeles. LA audio-design house and frequent indie game collaborator. Worked on Pacific Drive, Sky: Children of the Light, and Octopath Traveler II. Based in Los Angeles, California. Independent game studios se
• IGDA San Diego — San Diego. San Diego chapter of IGDA — hub for SoCal indie devs. Based in San Diego, California. Game developer cooperatives and collectives gather independent creators around shared resources - meet-ups, hot-de
• Freehold Games — San Francisco. Brian Bucklew and Jason Grinblat's distributed US indie. Caves of Qud (2007-2024) released 1.0 in December 2024 — an IGF 2025 Grand Prize finalist. Based in San Francisco, California. Independent game

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