It's impressive seeing how much Bitsy has evolved and been modified in the last few years. We even now have a Bitsy 3D with Color that was used to make games like Breathe, which lists other Bitsy tools and stuff on there.
There's also a Bitsy-like called Bipsi? I don't quite understand how it's different or why it was made, but I've played neat stuff made with it too
I don't know if this counts as a fringe game but I feel like text adventures are rarely sold as commercial games these days so maybe?
Just completed Thaumistry for adventure game club and really liked it. It's by an Infocom alumni (Bob Bates who also founded Legend Entertainment) but also felt very modern at the same time. There's no softlocks or deaths and also has an in-game map and hint system. I was also surprised it had a small amount but positive trans man representation. Anyway, it rules and was just very pleasant to play
https://store.steampowered.com/app/532980/Thaumistry_In_Charms_Way/
I make little games, help organize game dev stuff in Michigan, and have a monthly adventure game discussion group called the Adventure Game Club. You can read all about them here:
https://virtualmoose.org/about/
Is Virtual Nightclub considered a fringe game? I think it was intended to be mainstream so maybe it doesn’t count, but it is trying to represent a counter culture that existed at the time and while it’s not good, it is interesting.
Unfortunately, having your game sold exclusively through the sci-fi channel phone line will make your game obscure no matter what the budget is.
Here’s video of the game. It’s not even on MobyGames so I’ll have to fix that
Youtube Video