Best Recent Indie Games on Lenovo Legion Go and Steam Deck

One of the areas in which PC gaming really excels, beyond perhaps being a place where AAA games may look their best, is the array of independent games out there. It’s where a lot of titles get their start. If you happen to be picking up a Steam Deck from Valve or a Lenovo Legion Go from Amazon and Best Buy, then also consider grabbing one of these recent indie games that all feel like they work best on a handheld device.

Balatro

Oh boy, is Balatro good. It’s a roguelike deck builder where you’re using Poker hands to clear point requirements to continually advance through a run. Jokers provide modifiers and multipliers. Your deck can be stacked with cards that either add more of a certain suit or specific card to make a type of hand come up more often. Tarot cards apply buffs, and Planet cards make types of hands more valuable. It’s incredibly addictive and wonderful.

Beastieball

Beastieball is a new early access PC game that is about collecting characters named Beasties! You battle with them against other Beasties! Except these aren’t traditional fights! They play volleyball against each other. You need to fulfill certain requirements in matches with wild ones to recruit them. When facing other major players and their teams, you can move your town’s team up the ranks to save a preserve. It’s very promising.

Fields of Mistria

Fields of Mistria is one of those early access games where it feels complete until you invest like 20 hours and realize certain updates and types of content aren’t available yet. It’s such a good farming sim along the lines of Stardew Valley, and I can’t recommend it enough. Plus 2024 closed out with it getting a promised major update that added a new Summer festival and heart events for love interests. 

Hades 2

The original Hades is a beloved roguelike masterpiece, and Hades 2 is also shaping up to be one of the best indie games you can play on a Steam Deck or Lenovo Legion Go. It’s already Steam Deck verified. We can head to many places with Melinoe. Even Olympus is on the table at the moment. Once again, returning to Hades seems like a promising excursion.

The Rogue Prince of Persia

The Rogue Prince of Persia is another early access indie PC game you should keep an eye on when it comes to handheld gaming. It debuted in 2024 and takes a bright approach to the classic series. Evil Empire captured what makes Prince of Persia special. It also added roguelike elements such as different weapons and medallions that can make the game feel different each run and encourage you to replay it.

Stardew Valley

Yes, Stardew Valley is a classic game. The catch here is that it keeps getting major updates that add tons of new content. In March 2024, the 1.6 update appeared! That meant new festivals, a new event, Mastery, more multiplayer options, new NPC dialogue, and lots of other items to craft, grow, or collect. So while it turned eight years old in 2024, it can still feel plenty new and is one of the best Lenovo Legion Go and Steam Deck indie games. 

UFO 50

I’m going alphabetically here, so of course UFO 50 would come last. But also, this is a case of saving the best for last, as it is one of the absolute best indie games you can pick up for a Steam Deck, Lenovo Legion Go, or handheld gaming PC. It’s Steam Deck playable, but I’ve never had an issue with any of the titles here. There are 50 games based on an imaginary retro console from major developers, and I’d say at least 40 of them are incredible. You can’t lose with this wide assortment.