Five Exemplary Indie Games Christmas Updates To Ring In The Holidays

The end of the year is the season to be jolly, but also a great last-minute opportunity to rekindle interest in your indie game. Players and influencers are often looking for things to play over the holidays, which is why developers at all levels usually release a dedicated holiday patch or seasonal update towards the end of December. Adding new content to your indie game will also encourage returning players, giving them a reason to come back and spend more time on it.

So what are the perfect ingredients for a successful Christmas update? And how can you ensure people react well to it? To answer these questions, let’s take a look at what some of the best indie games out there are doing for Christmas this year!

🎄 Tiny Glade Gives Its Players More Control

The runaway success from Pounce Light was among the first to celebrate the holidays, with a dedicated update released on December 16th. The studio focused on player freedom and control, finally including movable clutter, removing the lights limits and making light sources in the game dimmable.

New clutter and decorations were also added to the game, alongside festive music to celebrate the season. In addition to those, the developers also announced a series of daily festive themes, taking place in the run up to Christmas, which encouraged people to return to the game.

As you can imagine, the response from fans was amazing, with a 40% increase in daily players immediately after the update went live.

☃️ Travellers Rest Gets Decked Out For The Holidays

Another long-standing cosy gaming success, Travellers Rest went all out this holiday season. The developers behind the early access tavern management RPG launched a dedicated Christmas event, which will be available from December 22nd to the end of the holidays on January 6th. As part of the update, the indie game received new items, a new zone to explore, new recipes, and a slew of fixes and improvements.

On top of that, for the event’s duration, players will receive tickets whenever they serve a drink or dish in the game – which they can then exchange for exclusive decorations. Tavern guests also received some love, with holiday-themed clothing and accessories.

The update immediately revitalized the indie game’s player base, with the title attracting over 1,120 concurrent players in the first 24 hours from the release. Many of Travellers Rest’s fans also praised the developers for the amount and variety of the content they added.

🐧 Bread and Fred Prepare For a Special Christmas Mission

Couch co-op indie game enthusiasts will likely be familiar with Bread and Fred, the pixel-art adventure where you help two penguins climb a snowy peak. In a post on Bluesky, the developer announced that, once again, the dapper duo is preparing for a special Christmas mission - which will be available from December 22nd.

While at the time of writing this blog, its release is still a few days away, we have no doubt this new addition to the game will resonate well with fans.

When SandCastles Studio published its special Christmas Mission last year, Bread and Fred’s average daily players jumped from just about 170 to over 320 in the week following the update!

🚜 DigVR and Tin Hearts Pull Out The Big Guns

The team at indie publisher Wired Productions really seem to be taking this whole winter holidays thing seriously. For the occasion, their recently released title Dig VR is getting a dedicated Digmas update - with new skins, a new time trial mode, and new music.

Wired Productions also confirmed that the Play Hard event for Tin Hearts - which had already gained quite a bit of attention last year - is coming back in 2024!

🗓️ Bonus — 12 Days of Devmas!

While it is not a game update, the fine folk at Fnife Games launched 12 days of Devmas on Bluesky earlier this month!

A collection of 12 social media prompts for game developers, the event will help you go through the days immediately before Christmas without going crazy. If you want to learn more about it - and maybe even join in – you can check out their original post here!

So… What makes a good Winter Holiday update then?

As we saw above, Winter Holiday updates usually include special events, dedicated seasonal content, updates, and time-limited activities that players can complete in your game. They’re a fantastic way to encourage player interaction, with community-driven activities and social media content.

But the winter holidays are also a time to reflect on what you’ve achieved so far and prepare for the year ahead. So, make sure to unplug for a few days, rest up, eat some delicious food and spend time with your loved ones - you’ll be ready to tackle 2025 at full strength!

And, of course, happy winter holidays from the whole team at IMPRESS! Don’t forget to join our Discord and let us know how you’re celebrating! 😇

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