An Indie Backlog curated overview. We round up the best indie games on Nintendo Switch and how professional critics and players received each one — the scores below are theirs, linked to the source.
A serene, mind-bending puzzle adventure of worlds within worlds — from the lead designer of Limbo and Inside.
At a Glance
| Developer | Geometric Interactive |
| Release year | 2023 |
| Platforms | PC, Switch, PlayStation, Xbox |
| Subgenre | Puzzle adventure |
| Length | ~6 hours (main story) |
| Metacritic | 88 / 100 |
| Steam rating | Very Positive (~95%, 8,000+ reviews) |
| Steam Deck | Verified |
| Languages | 17 |
About the Game
Cocoon, from Geometric Interactive — founded by Jeppe Carlsen, lead gameplay designer of Limbo and Inside — is a top-down puzzle adventure built on one brilliant, escalating idea: you carry worlds on your back as glowing orbs, and you can leap in and out of them. Each world-orb has its own powers, and the puzzles come from nesting them inside one another.
It starts simple and steadily blossoms into genuinely brain-bending spatial logic — a world inside a world inside a world — without ever stopping to explain itself in text. The design is impeccably clean: there’s no fluff, no dialogue, and no wasted step, just an elegant difficulty curve that constantly makes you feel clever.
Wrapped in a gorgeous, alien biomechanical art style and a hypnotic soundtrack, it’s a tight, polished, awe-inducing experience that respects your intelligence and your time. On Switch it’s a perfect, contemplative handheld puzzle.
Screenshots
Screenshots: official Steam media for Cocoon.
Why It Made the List
Cocoon earns its place as one of the most elegant puzzle games in years. Its worlds-within-worlds hook is genuinely novel, the execution is flawless, and it’s the rare puzzler that makes you feel smart instead of stuck. A modern gem.
What the Critics Say
Cocoon holds a Metacritic score of 88. Critics praised its ingenious central mechanic, flawless pacing, and presentation; criticism is limited mostly to its short length.
What Players Say
On Steam it’s rated Very Positive across thousands of reviews — about 95% positive. Players highlight the clever escalation of its puzzles and its impeccable polish.
Praise & Criticism
Praise
- Ingenious worlds-within-worlds puzzles
- Flawless, fluff-free pacing
- Striking biomechanical art
- Makes you feel clever, not stuck
Criticism
- On the shorter side
- Little replay value once solved
- Minimal narrative
Games Like This
- Tunic — another clever, secret-rich adventure
- Into the Breach — pure, elegant puzzle design
- Gris — a serene, artful experience
Where to Buy
Plain store links for now — swap in your affiliate-tagged URLs once you’ve joined Amazon Associates and the eBay Partner Network. (Steam and the eShop have no consumer affiliate program; those links are for convenience.)
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