2025 Game of The Year

What a year for games. Not so much for the people that make them or the world they exist in, but the games were good nonetheless. Check out below to see my Top 10 Games of the Year. Some expected, some not, all bangers. Let's get into it.

10.  Kingdom Come Deliverance 2 -  Honestly, there is only one reason this game is at #10 and it is because it is the one game on this list that I have not finished.  I will finish it, it is my solemn vow, but I didn't get back to it in enough time for this list.  What I will say is that I have played 50 hours of this game so I feel competent enough to speak on it.  This game is a triumph in open world design, specifically as it relates to player choice and progression.  This game focuses on minutiae and detail in such a way that I feel profoundly connected to Henry but I don't mean Henry as a character. I'm specifically referring to "my" Henry.  My Henry was a completely washed, destitute stranger in a strange land and had to pull himself back to relevance.  I did this by gambling, stealing, and making lots and lots of horseshoes.  The pitiful and miserable start to this game made me value every choice and opportunity in such a way that made me precious with my decisions.  It became not about what I would do but what Henry would do in these circumstances.  By the time I was done with the first act I was so connected to this world and my choices that I felt both relieved and exhausted to see him emerge unscathed.   The reason this game isn't higher isn't just because I didn't finish it.  It is because this game pushes against the player in almost every way and I just got to a point where I wanted a break.  I've been back over the last week and am really enjoying my time but I will almost certainly need another break before I finish it.  That is this game's biggest strength and biggest weakness.  It is unapologetically itself and requires you to conform to its difficult and demanding world.  This is one of those games that I think I respect more than I actually enjoy.  Therefore, it's my number 10.

9. Cauldron - It is easy to miss out on great indie games on steam.  I subscribe to several youtube channels to help me sort out what I have time for.  This year the indie game that captured my attention was Cauldron.  Equal parts minigame collection, turned based rpg, and idle game, Cauldron manages to hit most of the pleasure centers of my brain.  The numbers go up in the most satisfying way and the complexity builds to some ridiculous highs.  What starts as a minigame about collecting falling apples from a tree quickly turns into a space invaders style shooter.  A simple fishing minigame turns into an explosive score chasing combo game.  Turned based RPG battles morph into intense auto-battling sequences that require a ton of strategy to conquer.  This game is the definition of "don't judge a book by its cover."  It is super rad and you should check it out.

8.  Pipistrello and the Cursed Yo-Yo - Pipistrello was pitched to me as a cool metroid-vania with a yo-yo attack.  The art style is cool and the soundtrack rips so I figured I would give it a shot.  What this game turned out to be was one of the best 2D Zelda-likes I've ever played.  There is an overworld, there are dungeons, there are optional side quests.  It is an adventure-ass adventure game.  What makes this game rise above is the variety of abilities you recieve via your yo-yo.  The yo-yo is a weapon, a traversal mechanic, a key, and a magic spell.  The way that these abilities build over the game makes you feel incredibly powerful by the end.  The city that serves as the overworld is chock full of interesting activities and characters, often making me laugh out loud with the fun things they have to say.  This game has a clearly defined identity and it comes across incredibly charming.  Absolute banger.

7.  Ender Magnolia: Bloom in the Mist - Sorry Silksong weirdos, this is the best metroid-vania game that came out this year.  Ender Magnolia is everything I could ever want from a metroid-vania.  It has compelling abilities and traversal mechanics.  It absolutely drips with style, each area an entrancing landscape that begs your exploration.  Combat is made perpetually engaging by your weapons being tied to slain enemies where you are boss abilities in future combat.  By the end of this game I felt immensely powerful and felt like I had a full suite of complementary combat abilities.  Aside from what I just listed, the thing that makes this game go over the top for me is that there was never a time where I felt that bored or annoyed by what I was doing.  The game is paced incredibly well and every time I even flirted with being bored or annoyed the game served me up another fun thing to do.  I played over a dozen hours of Silksong and I can confidently say that I think Ender Magnolia is the best metroid-vania that came out this year.  That's just, like,.....my opinion, man.  Don't hurt me.

6.  South of Midnight - VibeZ: The Videogame.  Objectively, South of Midnight has more problems than the games that are ranked lower on this list.  The combat is repetitive and character progression isn't that rewarding.  Traversal is good and fine but it doesn't reach the heights of other games that feature fun mobility based abilities.  The actual playing of this game is....fine.  So why is it #6?  This game has such god damned style.  This game looks stunning in motion.  The stop motion style of the animation mixed with this half claymation-half cel shaded style of the visuals stopped me in my tracks on multiple occasions.  Hazel is such a relatable and sympathetic character and her quest to save her mother always rings as genuine.  The villains in this game have such personality and the eventual conflict with them is always superseded by the interactions that surround the encounter.  The music is haunting and beautiful, eliciting deep emotions from the player.  I loved every minute with this game.  Absolute banger of a 7 out of 10, which is some of the best praise I can offer.

5.  Fantasy Life i: The Girl Who Steals Time - And the award for MOST GAME goes to....FANTASY LIFE I: THE GIRL WHO STEALS TIME!!  This game is a lot.  It is a dungeon crawler.  It is a farming game.  It is a life sim.  It is a city builder.  It is an idle game.  It is everything!  This is to both its benefit and detriment.  Fantasy Life has had a few entries and this is the first game in the series that has managed to thread the needle between all these systems to make something compelling.  The job system is robust to a point where it is almost overwhelming.  The jobs serve as almost metroid-vania abilities that allow you to progress further in the dungeons so it benefits you to engage with almost all of them.  Each job has a series of quests and objectives necessary to progress through them and all of these quests feel substantial and worth your time because they offer tangible rewards.  The story is surprisingly good and heartwarming and actually goes places I did not expect.  It is remarkably funny and features multiple set pieces that are purely there to make the player laugh.  It succeeds at everything it sets out to do.  Also, you fly around on a skeleton dragon.  Banger.

4.  Pokemon Legends Z-A - This pokemon game had to do a lot to win me over.  While Legends Arceus was my favorite Pokemon game in the last 20 years, Z-A had to overcome the profound disappointment of Scarlet/Violet.  I am happy to say that it absolutely did.  The curious thing is the way that they did this is by reducing the scale.  Rather than a world with biomes and continents to traverse, Legends Z-A gives you a city.  Just a city, an absolutely tiny play space when compared to other games in the series.  This choice to reduce scope has led to some very smart and engaging design decisions.  By the end of my time with this game I felt like I knew the city top to bottom.  And I do mean top to bottom because the verticality of this city is very important to its charm.  Progressing through the levels from Z to A is always engaging and the way that they divide the gameplay between battling and catching always made me feel like I had something new to do.  Aside from this, the story is where the game shines.  This game has heart and soul in a way that this juggernaut hasn't had in a very long time.  I adore this game and I look forward (hopefully) to the lessons learned from this reduction of scope.  

3.  Death Stranding 2 - So there's this doll who is a man and his name is Dollman.  Any questions?  Death Stranding 2 is an improvement on the original game in almost every way.  All of the tedium involved in Death Stranding, tedium that I generally enjoy, is improved upon and streamlined in very smart and fun ways.  Traversal is more fun, combat is significantly more enjoyable, and the environments are more varied.  It looks stunning and there is a setpiece halfway through the game that is literally the most beautiful thing I have ever seen in a video game.  This game is crazy good.  The reason this game isn't higher is because of the story.  The story as a whole is very engaging.  I loved getting to know my new cast of weirdos, shout outs to Tarman and Rainy, and the peeling back of layers is generally very satisfying.  The conclusion of this game contains some of the dumbest (positive) and funniest shit I've ever seen.  It just fumbles the landing in such a way that I couldn't feel good about putting this game higher than the next two.  It is still absolutely worth your time if you enjoyed the first one.

2.  Donkey Kong Bananza - This is it.  This is the reason to get a Switch 2.  Pokemon rules but you can technically play it on a Switch 1.  MarioKart was just ok and needs some work.  DK Bananza is the system seller.  This game presents itself as a destruction factory and it is very much that while also being so much more.  It reinvents platformers by turning the entire idea on its head.  3D platformers usually stand on their level design.  Brilliant and talented people set up a series of obstacles that you need to navigate in order to proceed.  DK Bananza shows you your goal and just says "get there however you want."  Previous sections that would have involved carefully choreographed platforming sections are replaced with destruction playgrounds that you can navigate however you wish.  Destruction in this game feels so good.  That's an understatement.  This might be the best feeling game I've ever played.  It is also such fanservice for fans of DK games.  From the original arcade game to DK Tropical Freeze, there is music, art, and activity nodes that reference all of these games and rewards you for your knowledge of the series.  This is a game I can absolutely see myself completing annually.  The only reason it isn't #1 is because the one that comes after......get it?!?!?!?!?

1. ‎ Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 - No surprise here.  What can be said about this game by me that hasn't been said by everyone else?  Here goes:  Clair Obscur is proof that big game design doesn't have to get stale.  That is a general ass statement but I stand by it.  Clair Obscure is the example that old styles of games can be made new again through innovation, effort, and a clear vision of design.  This game sings on every level.  Story, visual, music, gameplay, etc.  It is just the pinnacle of what can be achieved in this medium.  This game deserves all of its flowers and I am happy to bestow it with another victory.  It has been well earned.  Don't like it?  C'est la vie