Weird physics, word battles and sci-fi storylines fuel the exceptional indie games chosen for The PAX 10. The videogames will be displayed in a high-profile booth at this year's Penny Arcade Expo, the semi-annual convention that's become the Comic-Con of gaming. After sifting through more than 100 submissions, the organizers of the influential gaming show picked The PAX 10. These 10 independently produced titles will be prominently featured on the show floor, where tens of thousands of gamers will be able to check them out. Here's an advance look at the 10 hottest indie games that will share the spotlight at PAX 2011, which runs from Aug. 26 to 28 in Seattle. Above: Jamestown: Legend of the Lost Colony This four-person, top-down shooter takes place on "historic Mars," where you and your teammates have to take out a bunch of aliens invading the British-controlled colony of Jamestown. Developer Final Form promises that Jamestown: Legend of the Lost Colony was created with "only the finest handcrafted pixels." Platform: PC Price: $10 Image courtesy Final Form Games

Antichamber This bizarre puzzler doesn't subscribe to the normal rules of physics. Like some sort of abstract, Escheresque piece of art, Antichamber subverts standard gaming mechanics and challenges you to think in unfamiliar terms. Platform: PC Price: TBA Image courtesy Alexander Bruce

Atom Zombie Smasher This top-down strategy game offers a neat spin on the tower defense genre, forcing you to rescue towns full of civilians before they're eaten alive by hordes of menacing zombies. You'll be able to move soldiers and snipers all around the map in Atom Zombie Smasher as you frantically try to save everybody before the timer is up and night falls, bringing darkness ... and more zombies. Platform: PC, Mac, Linux Price: $15 Image courtesy Blendo Games

Fez Mixing the adorable graphical style of Cave Story with the dimension-shifting of Super Paper Mario, Fez is a violence-free platformer that I can't wait to play. You'll explore a vast world in an attempt to put together a large golden cube that I'm sure we'll find out more about when the game is completed. Platform: Xbox Live Arcade Price: TBA Image courtesy Polytron

A Flipping Good Time The neat thing about A Flipping Good Time is that it's all about gravity. You'll be twirling and floating all over the place as you explore the underground cavern in which this platformer takes place. The other neat thing is that's completely free. Platform: PC Price: Free! Image courtesy Digipen Institute of Technology

Snapshot Puzzle-platformer Snapshot places you in the antenna-laden head of a robot photographer named Pic. By using Pic's camera, you can take snapshots of random parts of the scenery — like doors, crates and even copies of yourself — and drop them around levels in order to solve the game's plethora of puzzles. Platform: PC Price: TBA Image courtesy Retro Affect

Solar 2 You get to be a planet in Solar 2, an open-universe sandbox game that lets you float around space, crashing into other objects and nurturing your own solar system. You can attack enemies, steal other planets and follow tasks laid out for you by a godlike alien creature. Platform: PC Price: $10 Image courtesy Murudai

Splatters Splatters is all about exploding things; you play as a little blob of goo whose sole purpose in life is to slam into surfaces and destroy bombs. You can flip the screen around and take advantage of obstacles on the Worms-like maps in order to create elaborate tricks and maneuvers. The more elaborate your stunts, the more points (and bragging rights) you'll accrue. Platform: Xbox Live Arcade Price: TBA Image courtesy SpikySnail

Vanessa Saint-Pierre Delacroix & Her Nightmare Developer Bad Pilcrow summarizes Vanessa Saint-Pierre Delacroix & Her Nightmare as "Mario meets a Rubik's Cube," which seems like an apt description. Vanessa is trapped inside a giant, rotating box. It's your job to get her out by rotating the box and manipulating Vanessa's dimensions so she can hop her way to freedom. Platform: PC, Xbox 360 Price: TBA Image courtesy Bad Pilcrow