Best Indie Dev Zone in Washington — 25 verified listings

• Ironwood Studios — Seattle. Seattle studio founded late 2019. Their debut Pacific Drive (Feb 2024, published by Kepler Interactive) is a survival driving game set in the Olympic Peninsula. Secured $4M seed in 2026. Based in Seat
• Harebrained Schemes — Kirkland. Founded 2011 in Kirkland by Jordan Weisman and Mitch Gitelman. Made Shadowrun Returns/Dragonfall/Hong Kong, BATTLETECH (2018), and the upcoming Graft. Became independent again in 2024. Based in Kirkla
• Hidden Path Entertainment — Bellevue. Bellevue independent founded 2006 by ex-Bungie/Microsoft devs. Created Defense Grid: The Awakening (2008) and co-developed Counter-Strike: Global Offensive with Valve. Based in Bellevue, Washington. I
• tinyBuild — Bellevue. Bellevue/Utrecht indie publisher founded 2011. Publisher of Hello Neighbor, Streets of Rogue, SpeedRunners, and Graveyard Keeper. Based in Bellevue, Washington. Indie publishers fund, market, and ship
• Outerloop Games — Seattle. Seattle minority-led distributed indie founded 2017 by ex-Uber Entertainment veterans. Made Falcon Age (2019) and Thirsty Suitors (2023, published by Annapurna). Based in Seattle, Washington. Independ
• ConcernedApe — Seattle. Eric Barone's solo project. Stardew Valley (2016) was developed entirely by Barone over 4.5 years and has sold over 50 million copies. He's currently working on Haunted Chocolatier. Based in Seattle,
• Pirate Software — Tacoma. Tacoma-based indie studio founded by Jason Thor Hall (ex-Blizzard). Developing Heartbound, an Undertale-inspired RPG, while running a popular game-dev streaming channel. Based in Tacoma, Washington. I
• Hardsuit Labs — Seattle. Seattle independent (now under Keywords Studios) specializing in Unreal Engine development and co-development. Worked on Blacklight: Retribution and Bloodlines 2. Based in Seattle, Washington. Indepen
• Big Mode — Seattle. Seattle indie publisher founded 2022 by YouTuber Jirard 'The Completionist' Khalil. Published Animal Well (2024), a debut sleeper hit by solo dev Billy Basso. Based in Seattle, Washington. Indie publi
• Bay 12 Games — Olympia. Tarn and Zach Adams' two-brother studio in Olympia. Creators of Dwarf Fortress (2006 free; 2022 Steam release sold 800k+ copies). Based in Olympia, Washington. Solo developers ship full games as one p
• Spiderweb Software — Seattle. Seattle indie founded 1994 by Jeff Vogel. Has shipped 35+ classic-style indie RPGs including the Avernum, Avadon, Geneforge, and Queen's Wish series. Based in Seattle, Washington. Independent game stu
• Big Fish Games — Seattle. Seattle casual-games publisher founded 2002. Massive catalog of hidden-object and time management indie titles. Based in Seattle, Washington. Indie publishers fund, market, and ship games for outside
• Strange Loop Games — Seattle. Seattle indie founded by John Krajewski. Made Eco (2018), the global survival sim where the ecosystem and government simulate together. Based in Seattle, Washington. Independent game studios self-fund
• Innersloth — Redmond. Redmond indie founded by Marcus Bromander, Forest Willard, and Amy Liu. Made Among Us (2018), which exploded in 2020 with 500M+ players. Based in Redmond, Washington. Independent game studios self-fun
• Studio Wildcard — Redmond. Redmond indie founded 2014 by Doug and Susan Kennedy. Made ARK: Survival Evolved (2017) and ARK: Survival Ascended (2023). Self-published with 35M+ copies sold. Based in Redmond, Washington. AA studio
• Spry Fox — Seattle. Seattle indie founded by David Edery and Daniel Cook. Made Triple Town, Alphabear, Cozy Grove (2021), and Cozy Grove: Camp Spirit (2024). Acquired by Netflix in 2022. Based in Seattle, Washington. Mob
• Glass Bottom Games — Seattle. Seattle indie. Made SkateBIRD (2021), a chill skateboarding game starring birds. Based in Seattle, Washington. Independent game studios self-fund or partner with publishers to ship games on their own
• PopCap Games — Seattle. Seattle studio founded 2000 (EA-owned since 2011) but indie-rooted. Made casual classics Bejeweled, Peggle, Plants vs. Zombies, and Zuma. Based in Seattle, Washington. AA studios sit between solo indi
• Nightdive Studios — Vancouver. Vancouver WA remaster specialists founded 2012 by Stephen Kick. Made System Shock (2023), Quake II Remastered, Doom + Doom II re-release, Star Wars: Dark Forces Remaster, and Turok HD. Based in Vancou
• ProbablyMonsters — Bellevue. Bellevue studio holding founded 2016 by Harold Ryan (ex-Bungie). Houses Cauldron Studios, Firewalk Studios (Concord), and others. Based in Bellevue, Washington. AA studios sit between solo indie and b
• Pillar Studio — Seattle. Seattle indie making narrative experiences. Based in Seattle, Washington. Independent game studios self-fund or partner with publishers to ship games on their own terms - small teams, distinctive art
• Sail Forth Games — Seattle. David Evans's Seattle solo project. Sail Forth (2022), a procedural seafaring adventure published by The Quantum Astrophysicists Guild. Based in Seattle, Washington. Solo developers ship full games as
• Seattle Indies — Seattle. Seattle's indie nonprofit org — runs weekly and monthly meet-ups in the greater Puget Sound area for indie devs. Based in Seattle, Washington. Game developer cooperatives and collectives gather indepe
• Null and Void Games — Seattle. Seattle indie. Created The Sentient Severed Arm, the IndieCade 2025 Developers Choice winner. Based in Seattle, Washington. Independent game studios self-fund or partner with publishers to ship games
• Penny Arcade Games — Seattle. Seattle webcomic empire that hosts PAX. Published the Penny Arcade Adventures series and partnered with Crash Lab, Hothead, and others for indie titles. Based in Seattle, Washington. Indie publishers

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