There's a good chance you're going to find stuff on this list that you don't consider to be "indie." Games that eventually found a publisher, stuff that got funding mid-development, titles that may have been tangentially backed by a publisher in some way.

Thing is, there's no "true" definition of indie - but the indie games we chose for this list all have a few things in common: they were developed by independent studios, and they were exceptionally important, ambitious games.

We've gathered together the best, so get ready to open your mind and experience something different...

Taking gameplay that hasn’t been popular since the early '90s and prettying it up with Skyrim-level graphics, LoG managed to make the outdated FPS four-party dungeon quest feel brand new again. Journeying deeper into the dark depths of the prison/labyrinth that is Mount Grimrock, we were so enraptured by the game’s grid-based exploration that we felt more attached to our mute band of heroes than we do to most RPG leads.

The game’s amazing atmosphere makes you fear the poisonous bite of every giant spider, and you’ll feel like a genius when you discover your first secret chamber by clicking in an unassuming, discolored rock on the wall. LoG will be a treat for gamers old and new: veterans of PC classics like Dungeon Master and Eye of the Beholder will feel right at home, while young’uns will get a dose of old-school roleplaying that they might’ve never otherwise tried.

Limbo is what happens when art direction and gameplay become one. The game's simple, with only the most basic controls and interactions, but its striking look and mysterious tone make it instantly compelling. As a little boy who awakens in a gloomy, monochromatic forest, your goals are simply to find your sister and escape the woods. Along the way, you’ll die many gruesome deaths, in a system of puzzle solving the developers aptly named “trial and death.”

Having pulled in $7.5 million for developer Playdead, Limbo is a true indie success story. The creators resisted the “Mainstream it!” advice from numerous investors and consultants, choosing to remain true to their original vision. The result was not only a commercial home run on XBLA, PSN and Steam, but won Playdead a slew of awards, including Best Visual Art from the Game Developers Choice Awards.

Fez isn’t just another indie game - it flaunts the indie label with pride. Some others attempt to hide their small budgets behind layers of unnecessary polish and mainstream game elements, but Fez creator Phil Fish abandoned those ideas and took advantage of the publisher-less medium to create something unique.

From the adorable aesthetic to the cerebral game design (that is honestly, without exaggeration, something unlike we’ve ever seen), Fez is an absolutely impressive accomplishment. In the weeks and months following its launch, gamers talked on social media and through emails attempting to crack its codes, with some stumping even the cleverest gamers for weeks. But more than simply smart, the game is fun and rewarding, two elements that wrap the package together into an amazing experience.

2D Boy’s World of Goo is obsessed with two things: physics and sticky Goo. Your basic goal is to get blobs from one end of the map to the other by linking them together. You form blob bridges and towers, but have to make sure your sticky structure is stable enough to help your Goo boys reach their goal. It's simple, in theory, but makes for a great and addictive (if not complex) time.

Aso: it's funny! The game, developed by ex-EA employees, features achievements called "Obsessive Completion Distinction Flags" and references to the Goo blobs being molded by the corporate machine. It's a delightfully meta experience that strikes the perfect balance between the lighthearted and the hardcore.

From the moment Bastion boots up, and the narrator's voice begins to tell the story as it happens, one thing becomes clear: Bastion is different. The hack-and-slash features fairly typical gameplay - especially when compared to most other indie games - but its atmosphere, characters, and world make it an unforgettable experience. It's a game with a soul, and a heart beating out of its chest.

The presentation is simply astounding, from the wonderfully artistic visuals to the soundtrack (which we consider one of the greatest of all time). But what stands out most is the narrator, who gives the entire game a voice and breathes life and reason into the dying world. It sounds like a gimmick (and, truth be told, it just might be), but it's a damn good one, and that sets it apart from just about everything else.

Cave Story is a platformer that’s so good, we gladly paid money for it after completing it numerous times for free. This Japanese-made Metroidvania shooter combined so many things we love: simple-but-rock-solid shooting, upgradeable weapons, multiple endings, lovable characters, and a bevy of secrets for those willing to explore the carefully-crafted levels. The fact that it was PC freeware, complete with fan-made language mods, made it all the sweeter, and it gained enough positive attention to warrant faithful ports to WiiWare and the 3DS.

The fact that the original was all designed by the one-man Studio Pixel (aka Daisuke Amaya) blows our minds – not only did he program some great run-n-gun stages, but he also drew sprites and composed music that’ll take any fan of old classics straight to retro heaven. And we’ll never forget the foibles of the oafish Balrog, whose hilarious facial expressions and cheery cries of “Huzzah!” speak volumes on their own.

The twitch platformer to end all twitch platformers. The level designs that awaited our eponymous cube of raw protein were devilishly difficult – but new tries were so painlessly accessible that we became addicted to the natural high of finally completing the level that had killed us over 100 times. Each facet of the game, from the stage titles to the zany cinematics, is a nod to one retro game or another, and the unlockable cast of characters is a gathering of indie gaming’s greatest hits.

SMB even had humble beginnings befitting of any indie legend, as a flash game that didn’t drum up all that much hype. But with its staggering sales on both Xbox and PC, it’s clear that carefully-crafted gameplay and perfectly-designed difficulty will pay big dividends, no matter how maddening it can sometimes be. If you’ve beaten the Dark World or Cotton Alley, you can consider yourself among the platforming elite.

Whether you played it once or a dozen times, Braid is the kind of game that stays with you. From the ethereal story-telling to the brain-twisting chrono-puzzles introduced in each world, Tim’s heroic (or disturbing?) journey set the precedent for every puzzle platformer after it. The time manipulation mechanics felt like they were introducing us to undiscovered muscles in our brains – ones that were initially flimsy, but over time, strengthened to conquer the later stages’ mind-warping conundrums.

The plot alone gives the game indie cred, with multiple interpretations that actually make you think instead of spelling it all out for you. Is it all an allegory for nuclear weapons? Is Tim the alcoholic aggressor in an abusive relationship? Whatever your conclusion about the game’s ending, you’ll feel a supreme satisfaction for snagging every last puzzle piece and bending time to your will.

Indie games seem to go one of two ways: a lighthearted fling with a well-worn trope (often revisited with a wink and a nod), or an evocative voyage on a road less taken. Journey is the literal embodiment of the latter. It starts off by tossing you in a sparse desert landscape with one simple goal: walk toward the beacon of the light in the distance. Easy enough, but where Journey proves its worth is in its innovative approach to multiplayer.

At any point, a stranger might wander into your world, and you can communicate with this stranger only through the sparse “vocabulary” of the game: beeping “shouts,” or (perhaps) jumping around for attention. How players interact on this trippy excursion is as important as the goal. Friendships are born out of mutual aid. You can’t troll the other player; the game is purposefully built to eliminate any adversarial action. Your only options are to ignore your newfound companion and wander off on your own, or to find a way to support and communicate with each other as strangers in a strange land. It’s a surreal experiment in human interaction. But most important, it’s a surprisingly fun way to explore, both the gorgeous game world and your own inner self.

Minecraft starts you off with nothing; no weapons, no items, and no idea what you're doing. You can run, you can jump, and you can punch - that's it. But slowly, through trial-and-error and exploration, the game's many layers begin to show themselves. At first, you might punch a tree to get some wood, affix rock onto the top to make a pickaxe, and dig a hole into the mountain to protect yourself from the horrors of the night - but before long, everything changes. Within a few days, you'll be building glass tree houses in the middle of a lake of lava, or creating a to-scale replica of the USS Enterprise, floating in the air.

Minecraft, which has sold over five million copies since it released (which isn't bad, considering its shoe-string budget and tiny development team), stands as a remarkable achievement - not just for indie games, but for games in general. From its humble origins to its explosive rise to the top, the game is a well-rounded gaming experience, and gives players the ability to experiment, explore freely, and reshape their environment to an almost ludicrous level. It's charming, imaginative, and one of the most unique experiences of this generation.

Without question, there are more than ten amazing indie games. There are many, many more that completely broke the mold, changing their respecting genres forever - but, in the end, plenty had to be cut to make the final list.

What do you think? What games would you put above the rest for the best indie games of all time?

And if you want to hear about other great games so good that we felt rambunctious enough to call them "the best," check out The 100 best games of all time and the best point-and-click adventure games.