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MAGFest Announces Finalists for the 2027 Indie Retro Homebrew Showcase

By CtrlQueen11/03/2026Updated:11/11/2026No Comments4 Mins Read

Event: MAGFest Indie Retro Homebrew Showcase 2027 Organizers: MAGFest · Indie Retro · Mega Cat Studios Dates: January 7–10, 2027 Location: National Harbor, MD Finalists: 22 announced · 1 more coming Platforms: NES · Game Boy · Game Boy Color · Genesis · TurboGrafx-16

🕹️ The MAGFest 2027 Indie Retro Homebrew Showcase finalists are here. Twenty-two brand-new games for the NES, Game Boy, Game Boy Color, Genesis and TurboGrafx-16 will be playable on real hardware at MAGFest in National Harbor, Maryland, from January 7–10, 2027, with one more finalist still to be revealed.

📺 A CRT-Filled Celebration of Homebrew Now in its ninth year, the Indie Retro Homebrew Showcase celebrates the passion and creativity of the homebrew community: indie developers making brand-new games for classic consoles. The event features a CRT-filled gaming area where you can go hands-on with a massive assortment of new experiences for your favorite retro systems.

It’s organized by MAGFest and Indie Retro, in partnership with indie publisher and developer Mega Cat Studios.

New games, old hardware, and a room full of CRTs.

It’s that time of year again. Mega Cat Studios, Indie Retro and MAGFest have announced the finalists for the ninth annual MAGFest Indie Retro Homebrew Showcase, celebrating more than 20 of the most exciting games currently in development for classic consoles. From Mega Kaiju Boom Ball to Supermarket Spree DX, they’ll all be playable on the show floor when MAGFest 2027 kicks off in National Harbor, Maryland, on January 7. Mega Cat, which recently brought the NES homebrew Echoes of the Unread to Steam, has also released a video showing off every finalist.

MAGFest 2027 Homebrew Showcase Finalists

Game	Developer · Platform
Glory Hunters	2think Design Studio · Game Boy
Astro Burn	Beyond the Pixels · Game Boy Color
Getaway the Primate	CrazyGroupTrio Games · NES
A Journey Into the Unknown	Dale Coop · NES
Amberly Hollow	Geonjaha · Game Boy Color
Dracula: Burden of the Sea	Maxjk0 · Game Boy
Beyond the Pins: The 2nd Frame	KHAN Games · NES
FLEARUN!	Lowtek Games · NES
Toxic Crusaders	Retroware · Genesis, Game Boy, NES
ESPecial Jobs	Miguel Ángel Pérez Martínez · Game Boy
Mega Kaiju Boom Ball	Orebody Inc. · NES
Supermarket Spree DX	Pacdude Games · Game Boy
Cursed Castilla Requiem	PlayOnRetro · Genesis
Darkula	Locomalito · Genesis
The Book of Rynn	Sebotron · NES
Rick and Alice: Retro Games Hunters	Selviha · Genesis
Sky Paws Awakening	Signum Ludens · Genesis
Flushville Fun	Smileco · NES
Repugnant Bounty	Starlab Games · Game Boy Color
Packet	Turtle Time Media · NES
Fortune & Glory in the City of Cats	Video Game Story Time · Game Boy
Billy’s Bad Day	Vintage Arcade Works · TurboGrafx-16
???	One more finalist will be revealed in the coming weeks

🎮 By the Numbers • NES: nine games (counting Toxic Crusaders), the biggest group, including Mega Kaiju Boom Ball, FLEARUN! and The Book of Rynn
• Game Boy: six, including Glory Hunters and Supermarket Spree DX
• Genesis: five, including Locomalito’s Darkula and Sky Paws Awakening
• Game Boy Color: three: Astro Burn, Amberly Hollow and Repugnant Bounty
• TurboGrafx-16: one, Billy’s Bad Day
• Multi-platform: Retroware’s Toxic Crusaders appears on Genesis, Game Boy and NES, so it’s counted in all three totals

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🏆 Last Year’s Standouts The previous Showcase featured nearly two dozen indie retro gems. Standouts like Atarath Games’ Light From Within, Pixel Craft Games’ The Adventures of Panzer Frontiers, LocusMotions’ Wicked Plague and Phonorail’s Tactus won over a panel of judges from across the retro scene with creative design, polished mechanics, and genuine love for the hardware they were built for.

About MAGFest

The Music and Gaming Festival (MAGFest) is a four-day celebration of video games and video game music, with concerts, panels, a 24-hour arcade and countless gaming experiences. Since it started, it has grown into a community hub for gamers and musicians alike.

Event	MAGFest Indie Retro Homebrew Showcase (9th annual)
Dates	January 7–10, 2027
Location	National Harbor, Maryland
Partners	MAGFest · Indie Retro · Mega Cat Studios
Finalists	22 announced, plus one still to be revealed
Hardware	NES · Game Boy · Game Boy Color · Sega Genesis · TurboGrafx-16, played on CRTs

📅 January 7–10, 2027 · National Harbor, MD Homebrew fans and retro gamers can play every finalist on the MAGFest show floor. Find tickets and details at magfest.org.

Visit MAGFest Watch the Finalists Video

For more gaming news and reviews, check out our reviews section.

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Game Boy Gaming Events Homebrew Indie Retro MAGFest MAGFest 2027 Mega Cat Studios NES retro games Sega Genesis TurboGrafx-16

CtrlQueen

Hi there! I’m Marie, also known as CtrlQueen. I’m passionate about keeping up with the latest in gaming news and sharing my insights. RPGs steal my heart with their rich narratives and immersive worlds, but I also love unwinding with fun, casual games. Whether you’re here for deep dives into game mechanics or just to chat about your favorite casual game, you’ve found the right place! Let’s game and explore together.

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