ID@Xbox confirms December Indie Selects and 2026 anniversary date

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ID@Xbox has named its December Indie Selects and outlined two key calendar beats for the program. The annual Indie Select Highlights will run from December 10 through the end of 2025, spotlighting standout releases from this year. The Indie Selects Anniversary Celebration returns on January 28, 2026, when six titles from the past year will be curated into a special collection. The Indie Selects initiative is in its second year, with the Indie Select Hub updated every Wednesday in the Xbox Store and on Xbox.com/IndieSelects.

December lineup – six indies in focus

This month’s picks cover stealth horror, classic survival horror, party play, co‑op cooking, a cozy language‑tinged adventure, and a character‑driven action RPG. Selections are presented in no particular order.

Blood West

Genre: stealth‑horror immersive sim set on a cursed frontier. The Xbox post frames it as a slow‑burn experience where every bullet and footstep matter. Expect methodical stealth, tense resource management, and environmental tactics across mines and haunted badlands. The team likens its feel to immersive‑sim classics and moody western horror.

Tormented Souls 2

• Format: fixed‑camera survival horror built in the mold of early genre staples, adapted for modern audiences (including no tank controls).
• Premise: play as Caroline Walker on a quest to save her sister from a cult.
• Gameplay: puzzle solving, limited resources, and set‑piece encounters against various enemies and bosses.
• Runtime: the post cites a 15-20-hour campaign.

The Jackbox Party Pack 11

Five new party games broaden the series’ social mix, each using phones as controllers:

• Legends of Trivia – a cooperative 6‑player trivia adventure with classes, monsters, loot, and branching paths.
• Suspectives – a social deduction format with survey‑driven prompts.
• Cookie Haus – a drawing game about designing cookies; you’re locked to a shape, pushing creative constraints.
• Hear Say – audio‑centric prompts you mimic via microphone; the game plays back visual interpretations.
• Doominate – finish cheerful phrases with bleak twists in a classic quip‑and‑vote setup.

Sedap! A Culinary Adventure

A co‑op cooking‑combat game by kopiforge that celebrates Southeast Asian cuisine. Players serve dishes like chicken rice, beef rendang, and banh mi while exploring the monster‑filled Khaya Island. Its core twist is a two‑role system: Som the Cooker and Gon the Hunter, encouraging coordination as orders and threats escalate. Modes and systems include Rush Hour for spike difficulty, weapon/utensil upgrades, a collectible Makanomicon, and varied biomes. Playable solo or in co‑op.

Read also our article: PlayStation Plus confirms December games and dates: five titles join

Master Lemon: The Quest for Iceland

A cozy, pixel‑art adventure that blends gentle, idea‑driven puzzles with exploration across storybook versions of Iceland’s coasts and trails. You play as Lemon, a polyglot protagonist, with the game weaving in language‑learning touches that invite players to engage with Icelandic (and other languages). The project is a personal tribute from founder Julio de Santi to his friend André Lima (“Limão”), a Brazilian polyglot who realized his dream of learning Icelandic and traveling to Iceland. The tone favors curiosity and small “aha” discoveries over speed.

The Lonesome Guild

An action RPG with a top‑down hack‑and‑slash core and an emphasis on party dynamics. A mysterious red mist spreads Loneliness, corrupting the world; you recruit guild members with distinct combat styles and personalities.

• Mechanic: control up to four characters by “possessing” the active hero via a ghost companion, adding tactical and puzzle‑solving variety.
• Between fights: campfire rest stops let you reflect on the journey and raise Relationship Points, deepening bonds and progression.
• Presentation: cozy art and nostalgic music set a warm, story‑driven tone. The cast includes the quiet archer Mr. Fox and the spirited capybara Ran Tran Trum.

Key dates and where to follow

• Indie Select Highlights: December 10–end of 2025 – a curated push featuring select 2025 releases.
• Indie Selects Anniversary Celebration: January 28, 2026 – six standout indie titles from the past year will be featured in an anniversary collection.
• Weekly hub refresh: the Indie Select Hub updates every Wednesday in the Xbox Store and on Xbox.com/IndieSelects.

Why this lineup matters

One slate, six distinct flavors – December’s picks bridge stealth‑horror tension, classic survival horror design, living‑room party play, co‑op kitchen chaos, a reflective language‑infused journey, and a character‑centric action RPG. With year‑end Highlights dated and the Anniversary Celebration locked for late January, players know when to check back for broader curation – and which indies to keep on their radar now.