There's an article over at MSNBC that takes a look at the independant games developer scene, and the kind of games they are producing...
"The approximately 1,500 teams and individuals involved with indie development are as diverse as the games themselves. Some are in the business to make it big by selling their title or talent to a major game publisher. Others, including an ever-increasing number of developers with experience in larger companies, cherish the freedom of doing what they please."
There certainly are some very intriguing and interesting games mentioned in the article, as well as a few success stories too. Read it over at www.msnbc.com. Slashdot has some discussions on the topic as well