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Last June, Jagex - the developers of medieval MMO Runescape - found themselves at odds with players after deciding not to create any new content for Pride Month. Disputed internally at the studio before the discussion then leaked online, the decision appeared to be a retreat in the face of a world turning on minority groups.
Following up in September, Games Industry asked Jagex CEO Jon Bellamy if he stood by the call to simply re-run existing Pride-themed quests and events. "Ultimately, my job is governance and protection as much as anything else, and so sometimes those kinds of harsh decisions have to be made to protect the imminent future of the game," he told them. "If there are tough decisions to be made next year, we'll make them. If the world has changed a bit and the environment is different, we will react accordingly."
Five months on and with this year's Pride Month on the horizon, we've asked if the environment is different.
This is probably a sentence that could be said literally any day of the week, but a new cosy farming sim is on the block, this time taking the form of Starsand Island. The flavour on this occasion is of the anime variety, with some slightly goofier farming mechanics (i.e. turning your watermelon patch into one singular, 10 foot tall watermelon), some very Pokemon Legends: Arceus looking combat, and some appropriately cute animals to hang out with. And there's skateboarding! But never do launches go all that smoothly, as developer Seed Sparkle Lab have had to do a dash of damage control regarding some concerns over the game.
I hope you like warlocks. Well, if you're someone who regularly delves into Diablo, I hope you at the very least don't detest warlocks with all of your hellish heart. Because yesterday evening's Diablo 30th anniversary shindig was rather heavy on warlocks, with the class coming to not just Diablo 4's next expansion, but also Diablo 2 and Diablo Immortal. Meanwhile, Diablo 2: Resurrected has moseyed on over to Steam.
I still haven’t left the starting area in Skull and Bones, but it’s a relief to know that as and when I do, I’ll have some big molluscs to bombard alongside those boring galleons. Ubisoft’s open world Jolly Rogerer forges bravely on with another season of updates, Eye of the Beast, despite Ubisoft recently jettisoning a bunch of games and studios in their efforts to buoy up the share price. Yes, this is the same Skull and Bones that has 320 in-game players on Steam as of writing, and a worryingly Biblical user review average of 66.60%.
Welcome to SUPERJUMP's annual Games of the Year celebration.As always, I like to introduce these awards by expressing gratitude for the year gone by.
Thank you game developers.
You are creating marvels of art and science - important cultural artifacts - under increasingly difficult circumstances. Whether you work for a large studio or you're a solo developer: thank you. We continue to live in an increasingly turbulent and intolerant world; your creative talents not only give many of us a brief escape from this reality, but importantly, you remind us of the importance of human creativity and connection.
Thank you SUPERJUMP team.
It is truly the honour of my life to work with so many extremely talented people who, aside from being brilliant creative minds, are also truly outstanding human beings. Our organisation is fuelled by talent, passion, and love: love for video games, love for the people who make them, and love for each other as friends and colleagues.
Thank you special guests.
We are joined every year by special guests from across the games industry - whether game development/publishing or media - who give up their time to craft GOTY reflections to share with our audience.
Thank you to our Backers.
Our ability to create that authors' coop environment is heavily influenced by our incredible Backers. Thanks to you, we are able to pay authors every single month. And thanks to you, we have avoided any need to gate our work behind pesky paywalls. On behalf of the entire team, I want to thank you for believing in us and supporting our hard work.
Thank you to our Editors.
Without our brilliant Editors, I couldn't keep this publication humming so smoothly. They also contribute an enormous amount of their time to edit this unbelievably large Games of the Year feature every single year. Thank you to Bryan, Rachel, Briana, and Cat. You are true superstars!
Finally, I'd like to make one final point, just in case there is any doubt: at SUPERJUMP, we believe video games are for everyone. Everyone. Everybody deserves dignity, respect, and - above all - safety. No exceptions. Nobody left behind.
And now, on with the show. Please enjoy this extraordinary and comprehensive celebration of 2025's best video games. And if you like what we're doing, how about buying us a coffee?
James Burns
Founder and Editor in Chief
We have very deliberately titled this feature 2025 Games of the Year. The plural matters. As per our tradition, SUPERJUMP does not award an overall “Game of the Year” trophy to any single game.
Rather, each contributor can select up to three of their favourite games released in 2025 to discuss. Naturally, some games have more contributions than others (so, if you like, you could deduce a “winner” on that basis).
In order for a game to be considered for this piece, it must have been released in 2025. This is a slightly rubbery criterion that also includes:
This is our fifth Games of the Year feature, and as has become tradition, we've invited several special guests to join us. As always, our guests are people we love and admire from around the games industry. We're honoured that they took the time to join us in celebrating the best games of 2025.
Daryl Baxter is a writer, author, and podcaster. He is the author of three books (The Making of Tomb Raider, 50 Years of Boss Fights, and The Making of Tomb Raider: 1997 - 2000), and is a prolific tech and gaming journalist.
Naomi Jackson is a video editor and online presenter/community builder. In addition to editing national and international stories for the ABC Australia network desk, Naomi is a producer/podcast host at SIFTER and a video editor here at SUPERJUMP.
James O'Connor is a multi-award-winning author and narrative designer. His contributions to video game journalism are extensive (including a wide range of print publications from Edge and Hyper to IGN, GameSpot, and Game Informer among many others). James has also contributed to multiple video games as script editor, narrative lead, and narrative designer (including Power Rangers Mighty Force, Ava's Manor, and Kulebra and the Souls of Limbo). James' latest book project is about the making of Untitled Goose Game (check it out here).
Amy Potter-Jarman is the Director of Marketing at Synty Studios. She is the creative force behind Frosty Games Fest (a digital showcase of games made in Australia and Aotearoa, NZ), buzzbang.co (a boutique marketing service supporting ANZ indie game makers), and Pixel Explorers Club (a digital community for curious, short indie game lovers).
Nate Shearer is a video game journalist. He is a regular contributor to Qualbert (specialising in a wide range of game reviews) and NextPlay (crafting diverse stories from news and interviews to reviews and special features).
Jörg Tittel is a director, writer, producer, and publisher working across video games and film. He is the Founder and Creative Director of RapidEyeMovers, the studio behind the Golden Joystick-nominated C-Smash VRS. He is also the creative mind behind The Last Worker, and Skew.
Presented in alphabetical order (this is not a ranking).
"9 Kings isn’t merely a good example of a burgeoning sub-genre —it’s something much closer to Slay the Spire, pushing out into brand new territory."
By Sad Socket
On a personal level, I’ll say this about 9 Kings: This is the first time I've followed a game throughout its Early Access period, putting each individual update through its paces. It was worth the effort.
9 Kings is a simple concept at heart, but one that provides a diverse wealth of content. With its hour-long, city builder meets turn-based tactics mechanics, it’s a game riding the quick strategy trend. However, while most of those games are rigidly recreating 4X gameplay in a smaller package, 9 Kings offers a gameplay loop designed from the ground up with the busy strategy fan in mind. As such, it outmaneuvers its competition and stands out by a clear mile.
9 Kings isn’t merely a good example of a burgeoning sub-genre —it’s something much closer to Slay the Spire, pushing out into brand new territory. It’s an ever-evolving game full of little surprises and details, and a must-have for anyone with an interest in strategy.
"The game's sense of grief feels very real, and its cartoony rendering of Jakarta is lovely."
By Pikselnesia
I've decided to use my submissions in this list to point towards some games that have, in my mind, been underrepresented on end-of-year round-up lists, and Afterlove EP is a game that I have a deep fondness for. It follows a young man, Rama, who lost his girlfriend Cinta a year ago.
As the game opens, he starts to figure out how to pick up the pieces of his life and carry on. He needs to reunite with his band, attend therapy sessions, and decide whether or not he's ready to date again. How the game ends will depend on your actions and choices. It's a lovely and heartfelt experience that was created in the wake of the team's own loss: creative director Mohammad Fahmi died in the middle of development.
The game's sense of grief feels very real, and its cartoony rendering of Jakarta is lovely. It's not a perfectly tight experience, but in some ways that makes it more endearing.
"But for what it's worth, I feel like I'm part of an active, living community, something I haven't felt since Elden Ring."
I know my populist choice for 2025 GOTY might send me straight into SUPERJUMP's purgatory (where game writers like myself are strapped in for the video game equivalent of Clockwork Orange's chair sequence, with footage of Indie Game: The Movie beamed right into our retinas), but I have to go for Arc Raiders, AI-related discourse be damned.
This is an extraction shooter that has my favorite bits of Hunt: Showdown, including sound design, that crunchy gun feeling, and an infinite pool of adrenaline. It shares the post-apocalyptic horror/tension of The Last of Us (played out in real-time, no script!), with enough No Country for Old Men bullets-whizzing-past-your-head moments (while being chased for dear life) to sustain Coen-heads like myself through this cold winter.
However, no matter how good the mechanics and those ray-traced sunsets in Buried City are, the real star of Arc Raiders is the proximity chat. You can talk your way out of being turned into Swiss cheese or thank a random stranger for deciding to revive you after shooting you from a mile away (and turning you into their pet monkey). You can trash-talk a team of three when being cornered while knowing the chances of survival are Prosciutto-slice slim.
Listen, I played a lot of great games in 2025 – Silksong, Total Chaos, Clair Obscur, Baby Steps – but none of them felt as refreshing as this cyberpunk-dystopian extraction shooter where people either team up against deadly robots or shoot each other Wild West style for a lemon or two and a dog leash. Sure, Arc Raiders doesn't exactly shovel a great deal of matter into the tube marked "Evidence for Video Games’ Potential as capital-A art." But for what it's worth, I feel like I'm part of an active, living community, something I haven't felt since Elden Ring. And for that alone, this game gets my GOTY lemon.
"And Roger is an unmissable example of the power of video games."
One thing about me is I love a one-sitting game experience. This is a game I strongly believe is best played with as little prior knowledge as possible, so I will keep this brief. If you’re interested in an emotionally resonant game, with a beautiful two-tone, hand-drawn aesthetic, that packs an enormous narrative punch into its short 1 hour runtime, And Roger is an unmissable example of the power of video games.
"The dialogue and sound are hilarious - it’s all so wonderfully cruel and strangely affecting - there’s simply no other game like it..."
by Bennett Foddy, Gabe Cuzzillo, and Maxi Boch
Developed by indie greats Bennett Foddy (QWOP, Getting Over It) Gabe Cuzzillo (Ape Out) and friends, I like to describe Baby Steps as Daft Stranding.
In this game, all you have to do is control a hapless loser’s legs and feet and make it up a sprawling mountain full of increasingly insane challenges.
The dialogue and sound are hilarious - it’s all so wonderfully cruel and strangely affecting - there’s simply no other game like it and the less I spoil here, the better.
Just keep on your pajamas and clamber.
"I became absolutely addicted..."
By LocalThunk
Though the game came out in 2024, the community has absolutely exploded in 2025, unveiling collaborations with other popular titles like Don't Starve, Among Us, Stardew Valley, and even The Witcher 3! I became absolutely addicted; I now have the game on three different platforms, and I wouldn't have it any other way.
"BallisticNG feels like both a love letter and a fully realised game in its own right."
By Neognosis
In 2025, BallisticNG finally hit “feature complete” with its last major update, version 1.4. The update delivered a rebuilt physics mode, new ships and tracks, refreshed menus and UI, plus a stack of quality-of-life improvements including stronger modding tools and plenty of under-the-hood polish. More importantly, it marked the game’s final form and cemented it as one of 2025’s standout indies.
Boiled down, BallisticNG is the closest thing we have to a modern re-imagining of the classic PS1-era Wipeout series. It’s an anti-gravity racer that understands what made those original games so special: bold iconography, angular ship design, ridiculous speed, intense combat, razor-thin racing lines, and super satisfying airbrakes that let you carve through twisting hairpins and chicanes.
I still love Wipeout 3: Special Edition on the PS1, and I’ll drop back in anytime I need that hit of nostalgia and adrenaline. BallisticNG is the modern, fan-made follow-up to those late-90s classics that defined the genre. It nails the floaty rhythm that feels like surfing on magnets, where every mistake gets punished and you’ll lap a track so many times your left thumb starts to hurt.
First released in 2018 and refined over the past seven years, there’s a huge amount of accumulated content on offer too. Most ridiculous is the sheer number of tracks, with the quality matching the quantity. They’re gorgeous and varied, packed with smart lines, cheeky shortcuts and weapon placement that keeps every lap feeling fresh.
And when the speed classes get truly unhinged, the game stays smooth and responsive, letting you lock into the music and hit that tunnel-vision flow state. With the 2025 update putting the final polish on the whole package, BallisticNG feels like both a love letter and a fully realised game in its own right. It is easily one of this year’s best racers.
"The game is a nesting doll of mysteries. You think you figure things out, at first, and then something surprises you on the next run."
By Dogubomb
The subtle double meaning behind the name of this game captures its charm perfectly. In 2025 this game had me intrigued, entranced and utterly, hopelessly absorbed.
The simple controls, muted colours and faint, elegant music rightfully allow Blue Prince's spectacular story to take precedence as the mystery of Mt Holly and its previous inhabitants worms its way into my brain where it re-emerges long after I step away, beckoning me back to explore its halls once more.
After raving about this incredible puzzle game I was reviewing early last year, I somehow managed to convince my partner to play it. After sitting down next to her and talking her through the basics of the game, I went completely hands off, not wanting to spoil the experience. It was magical to see the things that sparked so much joy in me a month prior were also beginning to electrify her mind in the same exact way.
The game is so subtly moreish and well designed that I don’t share a love of video games with Chloe, so to see her get home from work each day and practically jump right back into my world was so important to me. For weeks on end, I got to share the thing I love most in the world with the person I love most in the world. Blue Prince was my GOTY for 2025 not only because of what the game was, but what it gave me.
I used to love puzzle game growing up. Nancy Drew was my go-to, and recently I've taken a keener interest in low-key games that I can play in a few sessions or generally just pick up and put down.
Blue Prince is not that game. I found myself up far too late or playing for far too many hours trying to unlock all of the mysteries of the darned maze-like manor house.
Blue Prince does not, typically, test my patience, as some puzzle games might (and certainly have). It is curious enough in its slipping of secrets to you that I felt like a cat pawing at a new toy. All I wanted to do was figure it out. I've taken a great deal longer to do that than expected, because my tendency to rush the game meant I didn't linger in its many rooms or search for any deeper clues; but as I played, I realized I had to play more thoughtfully.
The game is a nesting doll of mysteries. You think you figure things out, at first, and then something surprises you on the next run. It is a rogue-like, a genre I've only really experienced through Hades, but it is delightfully different in how "just one more" feels too much like I'm in a gambling house.
The number of times I'd say that to myself – "just one more day" – and I'd inevitably wind up playing through 4 more. Each new potential door feels like it might be the one you need, and I don't know how it manages it, but Blue Prince's randomization mechanics and execution of item dispersal and acquisition (being that they reset everyday) makes it more compelling to play.
"Clair Obscur is, to put it simply, a very important game."
Enough will be said about this game this year by many people, but it really is that fantastic. I'm usually story-aspected when it comes to games, but Clair Obscur's gameplay was one of the reasons I kept coming back. The entire system of timing parries, dodges, and jumps combined elements of action and turn-based gameplay that I, personally, hadn't seen before. I'm often lazy when it comes to games that require "grinding", something I tend to more so associate with turn-based RPGs, but Clair's combat cycle and enemy variation make its battles addictively repayable.
Clair Obscur excels, likewise, in its art direction; its expansive world and general commitment to its core aesthetics create a beautiful, cohesive visual narrative that really is unlike anything out today. Maybe Bioshock? It fills rich, florid environments with sketchpad creations against a haunting backdrop of pseudo-Victorian/Regency iconography. It is breathlessly artful throughout the entire run. There are some levels, such as the musical desert of Sirene, that are so achingly lovely I spent the entire time immersed in the music and the setting to the point of not wanting to progress past it. Sirene, siren: it certainly became its name.
The story, usually my make-or-break when it comes to enjoyment of a game, is lovingly melancholic. The color scheme betrays its mood – dark black, bright gold, deep red – and we are left to start the game on an opening scene that treats tragedy as a surety, nonetheless worth celebration. We play in the beginning as a character – however briefly, just a walk down a crowded, flower-strewn street – who is dead by the end of its opening scene. Clair Obscur is, to put it simply, a very important game.
"Since finishing it, I’ve found myself enjoying this hobby of gaming again."
by Jenny Jiao Hsia, AP Thomson, Jie En Lee, Violet W-P, Ken "coda" Snyder
Finishing Consume Me has been one of the most important gaming experiences I’ve had in a long time. Outside of the game’s clever, gamified design of everyday tasks and quirky art, I fell in love with the message of Consume Me. As someone that constantly puts too much on their plate, the game’s depictions of anxiety, societal pressures, and growing into oneself resonated with me on such a deep level.
Consume Me made me introspect more than I had done with any other piece of media last year, smacking me in the face with an ending that had me pondering the futility of stretching myself thin to the point of collapse. Since finishing it, I’ve found myself enjoying this hobby of gaming again. When I find myself beginning to slip, I know I can always revisit that tear-welling ending and reground myself.
"I adore the gorgeous 2D animation."
By Team Ficus
It was a delight to play Contract Rush DX this year. You get the joy of a shooting game with a fun story and boss battles that keep you on your toes. Or on the ledge, depending on which contract you have decided to complete. I do wonder how we can be discreet when at least one target has a huge ceremony to attend on television. But discreet we have to be, or our characters don't get paid.
Contract Rush's premise is simple. Times are hard; how do you pay bills when the coffee shop has so few customers? Simple: you assassinate! Use coffee and other cafe items to keep you energized. And you'll need the firepower – portals to hell open up at the wrong time, or you might fail to get the right power-up just when the boss has appeared. Time to load up, hope for the best, and try again if needed. Just watch out for monsters and unwanted witnesses.
Contract Rush DX makes sure to balance a high difficulty level with plenty of alternative strategies and ample ways to practice in the tutorial. It helps that you get multiple lives and checkpoints, so you don't have to go all the way back to the beginning each time a bad fall ends in spikes. Not being penalized makes a huge difference in the fun factor of the play experience.
I adore the gorgeous 2D animation. The game is hand-drawn, and the developers show a unique style that lends well to the gameplay. I fell in love with this world - even through the tutorial level - which decides to get demonic while showing us the ropes.
"Death Stranding 2 asserts its divisive and impressive storytelling regiment, reminding us that creativity is still possible in gaming's most expensive spaces."
There was a particular moment in Death Stranding 2, as I directed Sam Porter Bridges up a slope in Mexico. The overlarge moon was hanging like a luminescent disc over my destination, my sight artistically directed toward an unfamiliar bunker perched at the top of the ridge. The star-speckled sky oppressed the mountain ridge while Dancing Ghosts by Hania Rani played, and I thought, 'I'm home again.'
Death Stranding 2 accomplished what often seems artistically and mechanically impossible: Death Stranding is an incomparable experience, and somehow the sequel feels both immediately familiar and foreign, a tribute to both technical and creative expertise. Between the forest fires and the monorails and the endless trek through Australia, Death Stranding 2 asserts its divisive and impressive storytelling regiment, reminding us that creativity is still possible in gaming's most expensive spaces. Death Stranding, as a series, continues to not only be an outlet for Kojima's self-indulgence, but irrefutable proof that creative design and cohesive team-oriented development create spectacular experiences that cannot be replicated in any other form of media. Keep on keepin' on.
I never understood the first Death Stranding, despite it being a perfect fit during COVID, due to its delivery system and isolation. But with On the Beach, Kojima sprinkled some action into the mix, complete with a bunch of MGS references, especially at the end. Having become a dad in 2023, several moments hit me hard, which made me understand Sam Porter Bridges' motivations far more than the previous game. It's also a great showcase of the PS5's power, with fantastic landscapes and moments.
Why aren't more big budget games set in Australia? Sure, Death Stranding 2 isn't exactly an accurate depiction of my home country (although to be fair, it's set in a post-apocalyptic future, so it's not attempting any contemporary accuracy), but nevertheless, I think it does capture something about what makes this continent so magical and unique. From the vivid red soil of the outback to the strange liminality of massive pieces of infrastructure ferrying industrial cargo through empty deserts; there's something truly awe-inspiring about Death Stranding 2's depiction of Australia.
But even more importantly - and as Brandon said above - Death Stranding 2 really accomplishes something I didn't think possible: it brings back so many loveable elements from the first game while still ambitiously crafting its own identity that is truly compelling on its own terms. Yes, the emphasis has shifted: Death Stranding 2 assumes you've played the first game, resulting in a gameplay baseline that provides a platform for further expansion. This means there's less emphasis on finding your footing from moment to moment. Now you're delving into far more complex logistics management with much larger payloads and a significantly greater inclusion of combat (which feels so engaging and rewarding in and of itself).
In a world so focused on nostalgia, sequels, and risk aversion, Death Stranding 2 feels like something that really shouldn't exist in the current era (a big budget experience that is unapologetically weird on almost every level and doesn't rely on frequent callbacks from decades ago). But I'm so very glad it does exist. The art form of video games is all the better thanks to this series.
"I finished the game and immediately wanted to dive in again and see how my choices might play out differently for every character, which really made Dispatch a standout of the year for me."
By AdHoc Studio
This game reminded me how much I love the interactive narrative genre, as a worthy spiritual successor to the Telltale Games.
Half the game is dialogue-led story, and half is management style gameplay where you’re assigning a team of superhero misfits to a variety of jobs across an LA-like city. I found myself equally invested in the narrative cut scenes as I was in the management gameplay. I can’t believe how invested I was in playing what was ultimately call center work, but I really had a blast clocking gleefully in for each episode and learning the quirks of each character. And what a cast of ethically questionable super hero characters they are, thanks to the brilliant writing and incredible voice acting!
I’ve been burned by “choices matter” games in the past where decisions that should have been impactful were made to feel inconsequential, and vice versa. But in Dispatch I truly felt like I was building my own version of the protagonist. My choices were clearly played out in crucial narrative arcs, but also in minor interactions. I finished the game and immediately wanted to dive in again and see how my choices might play out differently for every character, which really made Dispatch a standout of the year for me.
As someone who loves games with branching stories that provide choices which can affect your relationships with other characters, I was cautiously optimistic about Dispatch. While I was confident in AdHoc Studio based on their seasoned pedigree, where many of the developers used to work at Telltale, I didn’t know what to expect from the story and gameplay. The idea of a superhero workplace comedy was intriguing to me, even though I wasn’t sure how I felt about the management-sim mechanics, where you choose which hero can compete a given task, like saving people's life's from a natural disaster or stopping a villain.
I was genuinely surprised by how much I enjoyed playing through Dispatch. It even ran well on my Steam Deck with no issues. This game had some of the funniest dialogue that I have heard in a video game, which made me burst out laughing multiple times. The voice cast was outstanding, with each performer given the chance to shine through compelling delivery. Playing as Robert, a disgraced superhero who had to manage a team of former supervillains, was interesting to see. Many of the choices I made felt like I was bonding with my team, as they became friends in my eyes, while I tried to steer them toward heroism and having fun with them as well.
While I have yet to replay Dispatch, I can’t wait to start a new playthrough and see what new decisions I make that could get me to a new ending.
"If you haven't played Donkey Kong Bananza and you have even a passing interest in 3D platformers, you are absolutely missing out. It's a must-play experience."
By Nintendo
As much as I love me some nostalgia, I'm a firm believer that we're currently living through Nintendo's most bold and creative era. The Switch/Switch 2 period has been remarkable in terms of Nintendo's willingness to innovate and push its core franchises much further than ever before.
Donkey Kong Bananza is the latest - and perhaps the best - example of Nintendo's unflinching boldness at the moment. Although nowhere near as commercially successful as Mario in the modern era, Donkey Kong remains Nintendo's original breakout mascot. And with Donkey Kong Bananza, Nintendo didn't just give him a shiny 2020s facelift; they cast aside much of his gameplay history in order to unleash entirely new possibilities. The result is an experience that doesn't feel like an iteration on past Donkey Kong games. It is, rather, a surprising and clever new 3D platformer that dramatically reinterprets the entire genre. Its simple core premise (the ability to almost completely destroy entire levels with DK's fists) is the anchor for an array of cohesive and lovingly-crafted systems that intuitively stack on top of each other in ways that will keep a smile permanently plastered on your face.
If you haven't played Donkey Kong Bananza and you have even a passing interest in 3D platformers, you are absolutely missing out. It's a must-play experience. Donkey Kong - and Pauline in her vibrant and loveable new form - is far from a call to nostalgia here. These characters are now, again, ambassadors of the truly cutting edge as befits their legendary status.
"Flaws aside, Doom: The Dark Ages’ combat experiment largely succeeds, with the defensive shield confidently rewriting the rules of engagement in a 30-year-old franchise."
By id Software
This year’s Doom keeps its kills bloody and its firearms ultra-violent. While rapid movement has been a pillar of its predecessors, there’s a different rhythm at play in Doom: The Dark Ages.
One key addition shifts its pacing: the Shield Saw. While Doom: Eternal had you evade enemy projectiles, you now block and parry them. The shield isn’t just a defensive tool; you can throw it to pin large enemies or tear through small ones.
A shield slam lets aggressive players zip toward enemies at incredible speeds. At this distance, crunchy melee weapons tempt you to go Whac-A-Mole on some poor demons. The slower combat loop works remarkably well in The Dark Ages’ larger battlegrounds, which are packed with environmental puzzles and high-density hordes.
Having a shield means you’re pelted with even more bullets, but with a well-timed parry, green projectiles are returned to their senders. Parrying in quick succession felt like boxing bouts more than cross-dimensional demon hunting.
Stepping out of combat is when The Dark Ages’ power fantasy cracks. Tame fistfights with a 30-foot-tall mech and hovering on a dragon to dodge fire from stationary turrets made for dull digressions. Flaws aside, Doom: The Dark Ages’ combat experiment largely succeeds, with the defensive shield confidently rewriting the rules of engagement in a 30-year-old franchise.
"Gaming studios should be reminded that interesting multiplayer experiences can continue to happen, should companies be brave enough to create something new."
Multiplayer gaming experiences feel fewer and farther between these days for gamers who are not interested in firing a motley of guns or building temporary structures. While FromSoftware has proven itself again and again, there was momentary doubt that the Elden Ring format could be so easily transferred over to a multiplayer, rogue-lite experience.
Endless hiccups and continual updates have marginally improved an experience that, while flawed, has become more than a bonding ritual for my siblings and I throughout 2025. Frustrating, difficult, and sometimes confusing, Nightreign might be a strange pick for Game of the Year, but after spending 200 hours in the game and playing it nearly every evening for months, the ritual has grown into something precious, the sort of experience that we have been woefully unable to find for nearly a decade. Gaming studios should be reminded that interesting multiplayer experiences can continue to happen, should companies be brave enough to create something new.
What do we think? Just one more run?
"There are a lot of games built on good and evil, but not many on naughtiness in the way Expelled! is. It's a real delight."
There is perhaps no cooler narrative game studio than Inkle – in terms of both the games they make and the tools they've made available so that other people can also create narrative games. Expelled! is both a continuation and expansion of their previous "Overboard" concept, a reverse who-dunnit where each play session is focused on shifting blame and hiding your actions. It has a series of wicked, extremely fun twists hidden within, and the clockwork nature of the world they've built is truly a joy to poke at. There are a lot of games built on good and evil, but not many on naughtiness in the way Expelled! is. It's a real delight.
"The performances delivered within are continuously impressive, and made me feel like I was experiencing this well-trodden road for the first time again."
By Square Enix
Does a thirty-year-old game deserve a spot on anyone's Game of the Year list? After seeing Final Fantasy Tactics make NPR's list of best games in 2025, it cemented for me what FFT has been for decades: the defining game of its genre.
It would be somewhat strange in any other genre for one game to completely dominate and dictate the good and bad for three decades, but Final Fantasy Tactics has continued to do just that, and with the many impeccable quality of life updates brought upon by the Ivalice Chronicles, it will be the defining version of the game from here on out. Not only is FFT: TIC responsible for bringing new players to this immaculate role-playing game, but it has again reminded gamers young and old that the life of a game is not beholden to launch cycles and updates and popularity contests. Final Fantasy Tactics has something to say, and as Yasumi Matsuno reminded us: "The will to resist is in our hands."
I imagine there existed a rather large club of Final Fantasy fans who trudged through less-than-ideal ways to play Final Fantasy Tactics over the years simply because we love that game. Playing it on an original PlayStation is great, but its aged complexion becomes noticeable, as we’ve grown accustomed to certain quality-of-life standards over time. The mobile version is fine. It works, it’s portable, but my hands and eyes would ache. It works well on a PlayStation 1 emulator, allowing for save states and the ability to fast-forward, but still, a void lingered.
Enter Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicles, its final Pokemon-esque evolution. The wait was worth it. This game, existing somewhere between a remaster and remake, is just SO damn good. Within its hearty stew of improvements, one ingredient rises to the top: the addition of voice acting. This new creative avenue adds incredible depth to every character, and thus enhances the game's overall storytelling. All the voice actors absolutely crushed their performances. I’ve played FFT a dozen or more times over the years, but only now do I find myself reevaluating characters, including ones I previously wrote off as one-dimensional assholes. I can even empathize with their positions, and more deeply care about characters that I felt were ancillary to the story.
I could sing the praises of the many other improvements all day. It all blends together to create an experience that feels and plays great. Yet I cannot say enough about the voice acting. So many elements contribute towards a game’s narrative design, and the original Final Fantasy Tactics already did a wonderful job with what it had. The performances delivered within are continuously impressive, and made me feel like I was experiencing this well-trodden road for the first time again.
"I love everything I’ve played from Supergiant Games. You can feel their dedication, passion, and joy for the craft come through in their games."
Back in the original Hades days, I thoroughly devoured every bit of content the game had to offer. Months later I started anew and did it all over again. I wanted more Hades, even though it already provided a veritable smorgasbord of content and replayability. Thankfully, Supergiant felt the same!
There was zero doubt in my mind that Hades 2 would be an incredible game. Supergiant Games knows what they’re doing, and simply does not miss. As I expected, Hades 2 consumed a majority of my gaming hours from the moment of release to the moment I rolled credits.
Hades 2 gives you more, the flavor never fading over the many accrued hours and runs. Instead, it changes and develops as you continue to enjoy it. It makes me think of the everlasting gobstopper from Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory; You can likely enjoy this game for just as long! Each run feels unique thanks to the mindbogglingly intricate web of reactive dialogue, and the creative weapons, aspects, and customizations you can give Melinoe. One run can make you laugh, while another may stoke grim determination. One can frustrate you, while another results in you finishing triumphant and glowing with satisfaction.
The writing is phenomenal (of course), and so is the soundtrack (of course). I can give the same exact praise to every single aspect of this game, each with their own “(of course)”. I love everything I’ve played from Supergiant Games. You can feel their dedication, passion, and joy for the craft come through in their games. Some arcane spellwork of ethereal osmosis transmits that love and passion for their games into us, the players.
"...I feel it to be worthy of a mention here due to how uniquely special it set out to be."
By Rogue Factor
There were a few games that had the unfortunate fate of releasing within the same window as Hollow Knight: Silksong. Hell Is Us was one of them, though as a AA game, it fared better than others. Nonetheless, while I believe there were better games in 2025, I feel it to be worthy of a mention here due to how uniquely special it set out to be.
Hell Is Us does not live in one genre alone. At heart, it is an immersive sim. There's no hand-holding in its semi-open world. You are thrown into the fictional nation of Hadea, a war-torn country based on Balkan culture. The atmosphere is bleak, the soundtrack liminal, the energy brooding like a constantly brewing storm on a hot summer day. It is held up by combat that is Souls-ish in style, though it refrains from falling into too many of the Souls genre's pitfalls. There are no RPG systems, really; it uses combat as a means to an end, keeping the game rather well-paced.
At times, it is also a puzzle game. Never a truly difficult one, mind you, but with puzzles along the lines of "comfortable" if nothing else. This works into my biggest lasting memory of Hell Is Us – the tone. The game is gritty and does not avoid the horrors of war when you're exploring. Some towns you'll visit are still burning, while another is still occupied, its civilians hauntingly gone as if vanished into thin air. Creative Director Jonathan Jacques-Belletête was a former Art Director on the Deus Ex series and that influence shines across the board here in what is one of the biggest hidden gems of 2025.
"Silksong is my top game of 2025."
By Team Cherry
A fantastically challenging, frame-perfect test of technique, this Aussie-made sequel to the popular Hollow Knight has the polish you would expect from a game seven years in the making.
The springy, fast-paced yet methodical nature of the combat will delight and entice you to give it 'just one more try'. This game weaves a web in more ways than one — the intelligent way areas of the deceptive map are hidden adds to the fun of untangling this game's story as if it were a really tight silk knot, while tools and map resources can only be purchased with hard-to-come-by currency that is easy to lose, cleverly forcing hoarders like me to accept and surrender.
My love/hate relationship with this haunted kingdom that's a dream to unlock, but a nightmare as I try to unlock it, grows more and more affectionate every day I dare to play it.
Silksong is my top game of 2025. There’s little I can write that I haven’t already written about its game design. Instead, I offer my experience within the realm of Pharloom, and what it made me feel.
Hope: For breaking free of imprisonment to discover a new world. For seeing a respected game studio deliver on an ancient promise, and having fun doing it.
Sorrow and anger: For the countless lives churned through in service to a flailing would-be god. For those downtrodden and brainwashed masses serving in pursuit of an artificial enlightenment that demands complete servitude. And seeing the real world reflected therein.
Wonder and an adventurous spirit: For the map that continued to grow in size and magic beyond all expectations. It turns out that repeatedly finding whole new biomes through hidden walls is one of my love languages.
Grief: For relationships, both budding and blossomed, that were suddenly demolished by brutal turns in a story, and for knowing that loss intimately.
Admiration and empathy: For the rebellion of community amidst despair, and persisting in a world rife with danger, religious manipulation, and disguised cruelty. And for those with a unique song in their hearts, shared only when a welcoming tune is played.
Silksong’s story is divided into acts, but the story I experienced felt like movements in a symphony. Slow and somber beats mingle with playful, curious notes peeking throughout the measures. Rapid blasts of danger and excitement. A steady, building rhythm leading to an emotional crescendo. Pace and feeling tied together, pulling the listener into adventure, summoned from string and wind. I can tell you what beats happened in each act, but those alone are hollow when compared against what they came together to create.
"It makes me appreciate the art that can only be told through a medium such as video games."
by amptomp
Stumbling upon this right before the end of last year was a gift. How To Walk Out The Door delivers a succinct and poignant narrative in a game that lasts less than half a minute; one of love lost and how those bonds break easier every time we try and walk away.
It’s a testament to the beauty of the creative mind and what it can achieve despite the limitations that can be placed on it. It makes me appreciate the art that can only be told through a medium such as video games.
"Overall, Hyrule Warriors: Age of Imprisonment is my game of the year because it surprised me as a musou game, having an endearing story with peaceful undertones, charming characters, and satisfying combat."
By Koei Tecmo
I often identify with the character designs, personalities, stories, and powers of supporting characters in media. This even includes designated damsels of distress like Zelda and their ironically elusive magical powers. Hyrule Warriors: Age of Imprisonment shines a light on the supporting characters within the Zelda: Breath of the Wild world. Kicking ass with a Korok, Zora Warriors, Zelda, and more, never felt so refreshing.
Zelda is woken up in a field by Rauru and Sonia, the king and queen of Hyrule. The group is then attacked, and Zelda holds her own using her explosive light magic. That alone got an astounding "YES, THIS IS WHAT I WANT" from me. The kingdom takes her in and teaches her how to hone her powers to help find her way back home.
Hyrule is later attacked by Ganon, creating a war throughout the continent. Zelda and company make allies from multiple tribes who have lost important people in their lives during battle. Rauru's approach to fighting for peace is to be cordial with other factions, even if there was recent tension. I found this premise to be quite inspirational, considering real-world current events.
Age of Imprisonment includes a cast of diverse and stylish characters. Raphica is a Rico who attacks with airborne spinning kicks and volleys of arrows, and his pompadour is amazing! Lago is a Zora warrior whose swift sword slashes kind of reminded me of fencing, and he mixes in whirlpools with his combos. Characters can even perform flashy team-up attacks to inflict more damage.
Overall, Hyrule Warriors: Age of Imprisonment is my game of the year because it surprised me as a musou game, having an endearing story with peaceful undertones, charming characters, and satisfying combat.
"Into the Emberlands becomes empowering when dealing with a darkness that you can face and survive while helping those who have been lost for so long."
By Tiny Roar
Into the Emberlands asks an allegorical question and makes it literal: how do we guide those who are lost out of the darkness? The answer: With a lot of patience, memory, and careful resource management.
When Miasma invaded the Emberlands, they deprived the Lightbringers of their magic and villages of their residents. Those lost in the Miasma fell to the darkness, unable to return home or travel to find others. When you enter a village in need of renovations, you are the first Lightbringer who hasn't gotten lost in ages. That means you can find everyone who wandered past the boundary and slowly rebuild people's homes and businesses. The trick is to know when your lantern will go out, or you will become lost as well. You also have an incomplete map (so, no pressure) as the Miasma lurks around you. With the right navigation, you can find tools to extend your lantern's light and carve paths back to the village.
A game about finding those struck by disaster and getting them to safety sure feels familiar. No one could predict the Miasma in Emberlands or the sheer cruelty in ours. It hits close to home to those suffering from similar nonsense, where you can't blame the evil on a purple fog. And yet, in here, you don't have to let it overwhelm you.
Into the Emberlands becomes empowering when dealing with a darkness that you can face and survive while helping those who have been lost for so long. The way back feels warm and comforting, while the way forward is mysterious and foreboding. Still, you have to go forward, or you will be mired in safety without knowing who else needs you.
"I love the cute little-shape characters and the simple yet challenging organization, as well as the convenience of being able to play it on my Switch 2 wherever I go."
This cute and quirky puzzle game is exactly the kind of relaxing, thoughtful, but not overthinking experience that people look for when the world is too stressful, and we need to feel in control of something. I love the cute little-shape characters and the simple yet challenging organization, as well as the convenience of being able to play it on my Switch 2 wherever I go.
"...the point here is that there's a certain beauty to what Keeper provides, and how it speaks to why gaming as a medium is so meaningful."
By Double Fine
When it comes to artistic vision in gaming, one of the games that I felt was most representative of that in 2025 was Keeper, a little game from the studio Double Fine. It was released in an awkward spot, between major releases from other members of the Big Three – Sony's Ghost of Yōtei and Pokémon Legends Z-A. Unfortunately, this caused Keeper to get brushed under the rug to a certain extent, and I was shocked to find it wasn't even nominated for Best Art Direction at The Game Awards. Though, the point here is that there's a certain beauty to what Keeper provides, and how it speaks to why gaming as a medium is so meaningful. Keeper is so blatantly different than those aforementioned games, yet they all coexist within the same medium.
Keeper is essentially a walking sim mixed with a puzzler. Though there are some light platforming segments, a majority of the gameplay involves the player in control of a living lighthouse, with a bird companion sitting atop it. There is no dialogue whatsoever, and any semblance of story must be assumed or taken from the player's own perspective. Lee Petty is the Creative Director, and he was an Art Director for games such as Broken Age. They use a Tim Burton-like art style here that strums the line of Grimbright and Noblebright in tone. At times it is dark and melancholic, while at others it is bright and hopeful. I'd love to delve into it further, but out of respect for Lee Petty's artistic vision, I would rather you experience Keeper for yourself. Petty himself even said as much, intending for players to preserve "some of the mystery for others wherever possible." May you always experience art on your own volition and terms.
"Star-Crossed World contains a multitude of beautiful additions to the already lovely levels contained in this forgotten land."
by Nintendo
A stunning, sparkling wonderland awaits in this 2025 DLC. Star-Crossed World contains a multitude of beautiful additions to the already lovely levels contained in this forgotten land.
I inhaled the new small details and lore clues as if I were the pink blob himself and thoroughly enjoyed his new forms and the mechanics that came with them.
The game that saw my son and I through the pandemic was Berlin based Megagon Industries’ Lonely Mountains: Downhill.
Published by Thunderful, the hyper stylised mountain biker was hard as nails but the instant resets, beautiful visuals and sound - and the almost endless shortcuts and hidden corners made it a game we kept coming back to - and still do to this day.
For Snow Riders, Megagon have gone without a publisher but that hasn’t made them any less ambitious. This one’s about skiing and while it dons an equally great single player mode, Snow Riders shines in (crossplatform) multiplayer.
Now my daughter’s into the game, too, and we’ve all been competing against each other - crossplatform multiplayer with a super simple code system enabling play between PS5, a Steam Deck etc...
A recent update also added a chase camera (as opposed to the largely isometric semi-fixed cameras of Downhill) which has become my new default.
"The unmistakable sights and sounds of coastal Australia fill this cozy, beautiful world which invites you to explore and become part of the community."
I’m being very self indulgent with my list of titles submitted for this, so there was no way I couldn’t include the cutest, coziest, juiciest ANZ-made game of 2025 (in my humble opinion).
On the surface, sure, this is a game about delivering mail in a new-to-you city, but on a deeper level this is a game about the impact one person can have if they are just the right amount of nosy… I mean curious. As you deliver (and open) the mail and meet the vegetable townsfolk, you learn what makes Arralla special, and you become a force for connection.
The unmistakable sights and sounds of coastal Australia fill this cozy, beautiful world which invites you to explore and become part of the community. ‘Letters to Arralla’ is a snack-size, wholesome experience which delivers many moments of humour, whimsy, and calm. Plus, you can take photos, which is what really matters to me in a game, let's be honest!
"My daughter and I love a good Vs Grand Prix, and it's safe to say I don't go easy on her, but I can see she enjoys the challenge. Either way, my daughter is obsessed with the game, and she especially loves playing with me and the time we spend together."
By Nintendo
2025 was not the best year of gaming for me. I spent most of my time playing catch-up with my already large backlog, but there is one shining light for me from this past year.
Christmas of 2024 saw my daughter get her very own Switch Lite, and since then, she's been hooked. Her playing time was mostly dominated by Pokémon. A few months later, Nintendo unveiled the Switch 2, and the very thing that caught her eye was Mario Kart World. Instantly, she told me she wanted to play Mario Kart. She was already hooked on Mario Kart 8, but she would not stop begging. After every advert she'd see for it, there'd be a "Dad, can we get Mario Kart World?!"
Safe to say that June 5th was quite the wait. Eventually, the Switch 2 and the game launched, and for the first time, I had to share my new console with someone else.
Now I'm not saying Mario Kart World is a perfect game; in fact, it's far from it. It's made some serious changes over the insanely popular Mario Kart 8, and sadly, most changes have brought their detractors; I still haven’t gotten used to the wall jumps yet. But they tried something new, something different, and that’s sometimes all you can ask for.
My daughter and I love a good Vs Grand Prix, and it's safe to say I don't go easy on her, but I can see she enjoys the challenge. Either way, my daughter is obsessed with the game, and she especially loves playing with me and the time we spend together.
Gaming was always my thing, now it’s ours.
"A true classic."
By Virtuous
MGS returns, but as a way of reintroducing itself in 2025. Instead of reinventing the wheel, it was remaking it, with incredible graphics and a UI that helped cut down on that rare monotony of changing stolen gear and weapons. The crucial scenes still hit as they did when MGS3 came out in 2004, complete with the original voices. A true classic.
"Combat is fluid and punchy, and the open world is gorgeous to explore."
By Capcom
Looking through my Backloggd, it's easy to see that while I did a fair amount of gaming throughout the year, I didn't play very much that actually released this year. Observing everything new that I played, very few of those games compelled me to sink my teeth into them until the very end. One of those games was Monster Hunter Wilds.
I was bitten by the Monster Hunter bug ages ago, starting with Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate on the Wii U, then diving deep into 4 Ultimate on my Nintendo 3DS. Since then, I've enjoyed a little bit of everything the series has had to offer, and Wilds sits as a near-favorite entry in the series, right behind Rise. While design decisions have pushed Monster Hunter to become more about getting to hunt large monsters as opposed to the slower emphasis on Man vs Nature those earlier entries highlight, I can't help but sing its praises when talking about Wilds. The character customization Capcom continues to offer ever since Street Fighter VI is robust, amplified only further by the riddance of gender-locked cosmetics. Combat is fluid and punchy, and the open world is gorgeous to explore. I often find myself thinking about the developer showcases where one of the developers was fishing and birding instead of joining in on the hunt.
It's been a while since I booted up the game, admittedly. Once I rolled credits, I explored some of the Artian weapons and postgame hunts, but never took the time to explore all the subsequent updates. With the announcement that the final update to the base game will arrive in February, I'm stoked to go back and revisit the game to see all the content that's been piling up.
"The dungeon-crawling, shopkeeping-sim mashup formula is back, but the pixel-art graphics have been replaced with a gorgeous 3D glow-up, and the experience is so much better for it."
Seven years on from the original, getting Moonlighter 2 in Early Access was a wonderful treat as 2025 came to a close. The dungeon-crawling, shopkeeping-sim mashup formula is back, but the pixel-art graphics have been replaced with a gorgeous 3D glow-up, and the experience is so much better for it.
The switch to 3D allows for the existence of stages with multiple levels, and the sheer amount of stuff going on immediately elevates it above the flat design of the original’s dungeons. The second biome, known as The Gallery, features a background of moving cubes filled with artifacts, some of them living creatures. And the third biome, a Grecian-inspired level of floating islands, sees you zip-lining up and across the area to reach the next piece of land, where you’ll battle your foes.
The graphical glow-up extends to the characters and enemies themselves. You can see Will’s backpack bounce along as he swings his sword, watch the expressions on the faces of your enemies as they attack and perish, and see the grass waving lazily in the breeze as sparks and explosions cascade across the screen. It’s a level of detail simply not possible with sprites, and it gives the sequel a level of personality that was sorely missing from the original.
More interesting levels and enemies help make the combat more interesting, too, and the devs have done a great job of taking advantage of the extra dimension this time around. Rolling away from one attack to immediately execute a lunging attack on a ground enemy, then firing off your pistol to take out an airborne enemy, all while avoiding fireballs and lobbed grenades, makes for a smooth and exhilarating gameplay loop. I’m extremely excited to get my hands on the rest of the game once Moonlighter 2 leaves Early Access.
"Everything has changed since the first build of OFF hit the web, but the tale of the Batter is as impactful as it ever was — maybe even more so."
By Mortis Ghost
The debt of gratitude that both indie developers and indie fans owe to people like Mortis Ghost is hard to wrap your head around.
OFF is, at its core, a very simple game, yet without simple games like this one, we wouldn’t have the landscape of games currently available. So yes, nearly every indie RPG is in the lineage of OFF, but with its formal release onto Steam, we can see that it’s also a brilliant little game. Where most RPG Maker titles of this era have aged in the worst of ways, OFF is every bit as elemental and engaging as it ever was.
Many developers have tried to imitate this cryptic, intentionally opaque style and fallen short, but the strange mystery at the heart of OFF is truly evergreen. Everything has changed since the first build of OFF hit the web, but the tale of the Batter is as impactful as it ever was — maybe even more so.
"I have a simple rule: if Wadjet Eye Games makes a new game, I play it."
I have a simple rule: if Wadjet Eye Games makes a new game, I play it. Old Skies is the latest title from director Dave Gilbert, and follows time-travelling agent Fia Quinn as she escorts wealthy clients to different eras as an agent of the ChronoZen agency. All the while, unbeknownst to most of the population, the present radically shifts based on their actions. Wadjet Eye Games has always celebrated and streamlined the classic point-and-click experience, and Old Skies is perhaps their most celebratory take on the medium yet. It's not just a lovely story in and of itself, but an ode to the kind of lovely stories you can tell within this genre space.
"Pac-Man on Atari 2600 is still a fascinating artefact and surprisingly still fun and playable, while the newly commissioned Atari 7800 port is a fine piece of retro engineering that captures the magic of Pac-Mania."
The Atari x Namco collaboration in 2025 has just been a real dream-come-true for retro gamers. It gave fans more than just cool merchandise; it created an excellent Namco DLC pack for Atari 50, Pac-Man-themed Atari consoles, and an exclusive new Pac-Man release for Atari + platforms.
Pac-Man: Double Feature feels like an ultimate collector's edition for any retro and Pac-Man enthusiast. It brings together the highly controversial Atari 2600 port of Pac-Man with an all-new Atari 7800 port, all in one tasty cartridge featuring throwback 80s artwork. Pac-Man on Atari 2600 is still a fascinating artefact and surprisingly still fun and playable, while the newly commissioned Atari 7800 port is a fine piece of retro engineering that captures the magic of Pac-Mania.
"It has that same goofy yet uplifting vibe that the most recent Like A Dragon games have, and that's the kind of wholesome-ish gaming I can get behind."
It’s a great credit to Promise Mascot Agency developer Kaizen Game Works that not only have they managed to create one of the year’s most memorable characters, but that character is a mascot shaped like a dismembered pinky finger. Pinky is the fiercely loyal and fiercely funny sidekick to Michi, a disgraced Yakuza member sent away to a dying town, tasked with resurrecting a failing mascot agency. As you can see, this game is quite a big mishmash of things. It’s part management game, part open-world game, part vehicle-based platformer, with a story that’s full of humour and heart and political commentary.
It all comes together as a cohesive whole, with a compelling gameplay loop of upgrades to your agency or your trusty, beat-up truck, which allows you to uncover a new story beat, meet a new mascot, or get more jobs from a local business. Then there are the constant problems arising during jobs that are a constant source of gags – your perpetually crying tofu black is stuck in a door, your goth jelly baby is getting attacked by teenagers, Pinky is running for Mayor and keeps threatening violence.
It has that same goofy yet uplifting vibe that the most recent Like A Dragon games have, and that's the kind of wholesome-ish gaming I can get behind.
"Ratatan isn’t the game I spent the most time with in 2025, but it’s the one I’ll remember in years and maybe decades to come."
By Ratata Arts
Before Ratatan was announced, I really thought that the world had forgotten the rhythm/strategy hybrid game Patapon — an absolute shame, as it’s one of the most charming video games ever made. I wouldn’t have even dreamed that such a strange, wild, beautiful, innovative title would come back.
Yet here we are, looking at the independent successor that Patapon always deserved. I’ve shown you a lot of music-focused games, but with Ratatan, we have a game where the mechanics and the sound can’t be separated. What you hear, what you see, what you do — it’s all one free-flowing current that doesn’t resemble anything on the market, including its predecessor.
Ratatan isn’t the game I spent the most time with in 2025, but it’s the one I’ll remember in years and maybe decades to come. Like Patapon before it, it’s about the art and emotion of the package, and nothing else felt the same way.
"Rogue Craft DX is a deceptively simple yet addictive roguelike RPG, using an isometric viewpoint to make its chess-like exploration engaging right from the get-go."
In 2025, Evercade went from compiling lost IPs to scoring major exclusives, and Rogue Craft DX was an enhanced edition of a homebrew Amiga game. The Amiga, as a vintage PC platform, continues to be a fascination for the British gaming scene. There's still a dedicated print magazine for it, while the Evercade platform itself captures the very vibe of retro gaming in the UK.
Rogue Craft DX is a deceptively simple yet addictive roguelike RPG, using an isometric viewpoint to make its chess-like exploration engaging right from the get-go. Plus, it has the meanest chickens ever seen in a video game since The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening.
"I have died a gazillion times in this game - the most I’ve failed in a game since Celeste perhaps - and like in Maddy Thorson’s classic, I can’t stop coming back for more."
by Kimmo Lathtinen and Tommi Lahtinen
Released in mid November, Sektori may have come in under most people recap radars, but it quickly garnered a dedicated fan base and much deserved rave reviews.
Developed solo over five years by former Housemarque veteran Kimmo Lahtinen, the twin stick shooter is the work of a master at the top of his game. I lied, Kimmo did not compose the banging electronic soundtrack - the tunes are by his brother, Tommy Baynen, and it matches the game in intensity and ingenuity.
At first glance, Sektori most closely resembles Bizarre Creation’s Geometry Wars, but very quickly you realise that it’s much much more than that. The game moves - and makes you move - in the most kinetic ways and it’s been ages since a game has put me into a trance state, where your survival instincts fade into your subconscious and you just…flow.
A Gradius-style upgrade system coupled with rogue-like perks adds an infinite amount of possibilities - sure, luck is involved, but ultimately when you fail it’s only down to you. And fail you shall. I have died a gazillion times in this game - the most I’ve failed in a game since Celeste perhaps - and like in Maddy Thorson’s classic, I can’t stop coming back for more.
"They had an artistic vision when creating Silent Hill f, and it deserves to be experienced firsthand."
The return of the Silent Hill series arrived in the form of Silent Hill f, a brand-new mainline entry. It was one of the most unexpected surprises of the year in terms of storytelling. There are not enough games that dare to be different, to be so potently resonant with their themes that they have a lasting impact months later upon their player. Silent Hill f strives to bring the identity of the series back to something very imbued with Japanese culture, shunning the more Americanized approach. It does not pull its punches, and it shows that the concept of "Silent Hill" is much more than a town alone – it is a phenomenon, an occurrence that can happen anywhere.
While that is a great implication on its own, it is the psychological aspect of Silent Hill f that cuts so deeply. This is a game that is unafraid to tackle the themes the industry seems so afraid to handle in its storytelling. Going against the grain to this extent is very valuable to women, who the themes of this game represent in their entirety.
Spelling out what these themes are would be an absolute disservice to the creators of this game. They had an artistic vision when creating Silent Hill f, and it deserves to be experienced firsthand. In terms of 2025 releases, I believe Silent Hill f is the most important of them all, for how bold it intends to be, and for how willing it is to make its players uncomfortable.
"It has this great lo-fi, psychedelic aesthetic that still manages to be very readable, and a soundtrack to match."
By Sam Eng
I’m glad SUPERJUMP’s GOTY piece is published in January, because there is no fallow period for good games these days. December releases probably get the short shrift among the end-of-year lists and awards, so in a year where a bunch of great indie titles were competing for my top three, I’ve decided to give some props for the best game released this December.
Skate Story has a hell of an elevator pitch, figuratively and otherwise. You play as a demon who has one goal: they want to eat the Moon. The Devil gives you a skateboard to help you reach the Moon, but in exchange, turns you into a glass. You are going to skate through the underworld, and you are going to eat the Moon. If I was giving out specific awards, I would give this the Absolute Coolest Shit In A Game award. It has this great lo-fi, psychedelic aesthetic that still manages to be very readable, and a soundtrack to match. And there’s a streak of dry, absurdist humour throughout the game.
This is not to mention the skating itself, which is rock-solid. Well, not really, because your character shatters in a million pieces when you wipe out – but even that lends itself to the overwhelming style of Skate Story.
"I love how the music flows throughout the game, crescendoing into vocal songs that explain the various bosses’ backstories, one of the many things that makes the game so engaging to play."
I feel like South of Midnight is a game that’s going to be overlooked by many people. I always enjoy a good story-driven adventure game with smooth platforming sections and a compelling narrative, but I didn’t think I was going to embrace the Southern Gothic aesthetic that this game gives out in spades. I love the handcrafted nature that the developers at Compulsion Games created, which makes South of Midnight one of the most visually appealing games of 2025. While I would have wanted an expansive combat system with multiple branching trees to spend my skill points on, I’m glad that the gameplay didn’t become overly complex, as I wanted to find collectibles that could improve the abilities that were present to me.
I love how the music flows throughout the game, crescendoing into vocal songs that explain the various bosses’ backstories, one of the many things that makes the game so engaging to play. I found it fascinating that you use your weaver powers to unravel enemies to heal the world instead of killing them outright. I’m glad I got to play it via Xbox Game Pass, as I would easily recommend it to someone who wants to play something that isn’t a traditional single-player adventure game.
"The entire game is a testament to that wonder of creation – kernels of greatness nestled in half-finished ideas, some stories that might benefit from a rewrite, or old lullabies we sort of just sing to ourselves."
My fiancé and I eagerly played Split Fiction together, pretty quickly after release. We'd blown through It Takes Two, and Split Fiction was more of the same couch co-op we'd loved.
It also starred two authors, and as an aspiring one – and one existing in the world of AI – the game's themes of corporate and computational thievery rang unfortunately close to home. But beyond that tagline – the idea that our core memories manifest and help us build the stories we tell – Split Fiction's true shining achievement is in the tremendous variety of its level design. It has fantastic gameplay, requiring you to flip-flop through two very different genre trappings: science fiction and fantasy. Both are speculative arts, but drawing from often different foundational tones.
Our two protagonists have their own inner battles that unfold through the narrative, and they're well-done stories that take time to tell themselves. One story, or "chapter", might tackle identity, another loss. There are even side stories that you encounter throughout the game, which boil down to racing, platforming, or snowboarding mini-games, and they are all executed (and mapped on the controllers) wonderfully. None of these swaps of gameplay styles feels jarring. There was one particular level involving magic and general witchery, where you could transform yourself into yarn and fly on broomsticks. It was as joyful as opening a toy box. The entire game is a testament to that wonder of creation – kernels of greatness nestled in half-finished ideas, some stories that might benefit from a rewrite, or old lullabies we sort of just sing to ourselves. Split Fiction is a paean to creatives, and it's a damn fun time.
This game easily provided me with one of the most enjoyable co-op experiences that I've had in a long time. Each new level was creative and exciting to play through, where I never knew what would happen next. While I would have preferred to play with another player by my side in person, I enjoyed my time with my fellow SUPERJUMP editor, Bryan Finck, who was along for the ride as we constantly commented on what we saw on our screens, making jokes and helping each other out along the way. One moment, I was riding a futuristic bike in a cyberpunk city, and the next, I was playing as a yeti in a fantasy world.
It constantly switched between the fantasy and science fiction genres to mix up the gameplay, which I greatly appreciated. Even some of the side missions that I found gave me some laugh-out-loud moments that I still think about to this day. I became attached to the stories of Mio and Zoe as aspiring writers who needed to process their issues by helping each other as the narrative progressed. Split Fiction is easily one of the most beautiful games that I played this year, running on Unreal Engine 5, where I didn’t notice any slowdown or glitches whatsoever. I knew that Hazelight was going to put out another excellent game after It Takes Two, but I never expected to have such a fantastic time with Split Fiction.
Split Fiction can be described in many ways – bold, endlessly creative, bursting with brilliant set pieces; a best-in-class co-operative experience. What the game, and its developer Hazelight Studios, can’t be called is subtle. The studio is led by Josef Fares, perhaps best known for shouting ‘fuck the Oscars’ at The Game Awards, among other outlandish quotes (my favourite is telling a journalist they can break his legs if they don’t like A Way Out), but he can keep saying goofy stuff if he and Hazelight can keep walking the walk so emphatically.
Split Fiction is a game that you have to play with another person, about a tech magnate trying to suck up all the story ideas from authors' minds, under the guise of testing out supposedly revolutionary new technology. The villain of the piece may as well be called Sham Shaltman from ShenAI. Not subtle, but maybe this is not the time for subtlety.
The hook of the game, in which the imagined worlds of a fantasy and a sci-fi author intertwine, allows for a constant stream of new ideas. Every level provides something new and impressive, whether it be a fresh twist on the central puzzle-platforming, a fun, breezy side-level, or an impressive boss fight (or all of the above). And it all feels so carefully crafted, by people who have, you know, spent years honing their skills by working on this particular kind of game. Skills and experience you cannot generate out of thin air, or rather, ones you cannot generate from litres of water evaporated into thin air to cool a room full of pointless computers.
Split Fiction was a truly sublime experience and is easily my favorite of 2025. Hazelight Studios was already well-known for its co-op formula, following the excellent It Takes Two, but their latest title quickly became their most acclaimed and best-selling release.
Every level brings a new delight from a gameplay standpoint, with different perspectives, mechanics, mini-games, and hidden side-stories around every corner. With the game itself so good, the story didn't need to be the star of the show, but I found it to be my favorite part of the experience. Protagonists Mio and Zoe grow together as they work to escape their predicament, from a pair of feuding individuals into a true team that supports each other. Some truly excellent moments bring emotional weight to the story, elevating the entire game.
By the time you've worked your way through each incredible level, especially the final act where things get turned up to 11, you feel like you've been part of a true AAA title. Hazelight may not be the biggest studio, but they continue to punch well above their weight and have legions of fans, myself included, waiting impatiently for their next amazing adventure.
"With its broader console release this year, it’s easy to recommend to basically anyone who likes action roguelites, shmups, or anything that rewards clean movement and smart builds, and it’s absolutely worth a nod on any end-of-year tier list."
By Team D-13
In 2025, Star of Providence (originally called Monolith) finally broke out of its PC cult-classic bubble with a proper console release, including on Switch, and this gem absolutely deserves a place in the spotlight. The premise is simple: you’re a tiny ship climbing a mysterious tower, floor by floor, trying to reach the top. It’s twin-stick shooting meets bullet hell in a roguelite package, so you’re constantly moving, dodging, and threading the needle through dense patterns of enemy fire.
The movement feels great, and it’s backed up by a surprisingly deep loot and build system. Your starter weapon is fine, but you’ll quickly start finding guns with different firing styles, bullet sizes, ammo limits, and other quirks. On top of that, weapons can roll random modifiers that change their behaviour even more, so two runs with the same gun can feel completely different. Because secondary weapons have limited ammo and break when they’re empty, you’re constantly making decisions about what to carry and when to use it. Between floors, you’ll grab passive upgrades, stumble onto random modifiers, and choose buffs that slowly turn your tiny ship into something ridiculous. Then you hit the boss at the end of the floor, and that’s where this bullet hell really shows its teeth.
Since landing in 2017, Star of Providence has steadily grown into a much bigger beast, adding new enemies, room layouts, weapons, meaner endgame content, and an ascension-style difficulty ladder for anyone who wants the challenge to keep escalating. With its broader console release this year, it’s easy to recommend to basically anyone who likes action roguelites, shmups, or anything that rewards clean movement and smart builds, and it’s absolutely worth a nod on any end-of-year tier list.
"It’s super fun and impressively polished for an indie release, both in how it plays and how it looks."
Some games you buy after rewatching the trailer, reading a couple of reviews, and letting them sit on your wishlist for a while. Star Racer wasn’t one of those. I saw a few seconds of it pop up on YouTube, loved the retro sci-fi vibe and pixelated look, and thought, “Yep, this’ll be mine.” Five minutes later, it was downloading on Steam.
Even better, the game lived up to those first impressions. It’s super fun and impressively polished for an indie release, both in how it plays and how it looks. During races, you’ve got a mix of SNES-style 16-bit sprites, with environments leaning into a chunkier 3D look that feels very much like Star Fox 64. On top of that, the comic-book art style really brings the characters and cut scenes to life.
The gameplay itself is really fun too. Air brakes on the shoulder buttons let you strafe through corners, and the whole combat-racing loop is built on continual trade-offs. You can burn shield energy to boost and hold the lead, or play it safe and risk getting nailed by the pack. Every lap is high stakes, with even the best races coming unstuck at the final bend.
It’s not just pure racing either. You’ve got weapons, including the ability to bash rivals into walls, and even fire lasers during flying sections. There are airborne segments that crank up the Star Fox vibe even more, and they’re not just for show either. Flying drains your shields, so if you run dry mid-air, that’s it. Race over. You’re constantly balancing speed, aggression, and survival.
Plus, there are unlockable vehicles, a track editor for tinkerers, and four-player local split-screen, which is always a win. I still reckon it would be perfect on Switch, but even on Steam, it's firmly earned its place on my Top-Of-2025 list.
"In what may be the most ambitious visual novel of all time, Kodaka and his co-authors have created a game with 100 different endings."
By TooKyo games
The Hundred Line comes straight from the twisted imagination of Kazutaka Kodaka, the writer of the despair-inducing Danganronpa franchise. In what may be the most ambitious visual novel of all time, Kodaka and his co-authors have created a game with 100 different endings. Some of these endings are comedic, some are tragic, and some are downright disturbing. It just wouldn’t be a Kodaka game if it didn’t make you feel deeply uncomfortable by some of its twists.
Whatever else this sprawling hydra of a story might be, it’s upheld by its lovably flawed cast and its ability to masterfully flip between the grim and the absurd.
"Tiger-Heli is a tough shooter with thrilling progression and great use of contrasting colours."
By TATSUJIN Co.
A brand new exclusive port for the Atari 7800 by a Japanese developer? Crazier things have happened in gaming, but for Toaplan to commission a new port for its seminal Tiger-Heli shoot 'em up in 2025 to commemorate its 40-year anniversary, it doesn't get crazier than this.
It's a marvelous release too; the arcade shooting classic translates perfectly to the Atari 7800's hardware specifications, and the experience is completely different from the NES port from way back. Tiger-Heli is a tough shooter with thrilling progression and great use of contrasting colours. The World War II energy here is like Capcom's 1942 turned up to 11.
"But of course, the standout here is Angel of Darkness..."
By Aspyr
It's no secret that Tomb Raider IV-V were made under pressure, and by a (mostly) new team. But of course, the standout here is Angel of Darkness, a game that floundered at its foundations, due to huge bugs, a strange RPG system that's now a meme, and mostly away from Tombs.
It's my GOTY because the collection is an example of how a series strays away from what made it so good in the first place, despite good intentions from the team.
"The mechanics were simple to follow, and the map was fun to explore; though there were a few moments of confusion, I never felt frustrated enough to put the game down."
This game blew me away with how adorably deep and thoroughly cozy it was! It was a relatively short experience, but I never felt rushed; beautiful scenery, sweet characters, and charming music made me comfortable vibing for long play sessions.
The mechanics were simple to follow, and the map was fun to explore; though there were a few moments of confusion, I never felt frustrated enough to put the game down. I was thrilled to be able to play shortly after launch, and even moreso for the chance to chat with the devs directly!
One of the most important parts of history is the rise and fall of the various dynasties littered across cultures. As empires come and go, the families atop these governments become staples, immortalized in culture through the arts, coming in the form of sculptures, books, and of course, video games.
Old World, the 2022 grand strategy game from developer Mohawk Games, features interesting innovations on the nation-building game formula. Rather than offering a selection of global nations, it focuses its sights on the diverse cultures that made up the Ancient Mediterranean. From here, each of these civilizations has multiple leaders to choose from, influential in the culture's development, and with a family to follow them throughout history. Each of these leaders is different, offering players a variety within each different nation to begin their dynasty. While each culture has its own hallmark research topics and structures, the starting characters and decisions that follow propel the events of this narrative-driven strategy game.
In my playthrough, I began my journey as “Pericles the Founder," a versatile statesman and founder of Greece, married to Queen Consort Aspasia, who, for some reason, was already upset with me. I focused on trapping as my initial research to take advantage of the resources around Athenai, the capital of what would be Greece, and set off into this new world. It only took a year for me to realize why Aspasia was disgruntled with me – pregnancy will make anyone irritable. In an effort to please my unhappy wife, I chose to name our newborn daughter after her, born in the second year of our nation's founding.
Old World has some familiar trappings of the strategy simulation genre. I can eventually become governor of my capital or offer the role up to somebody else in my court, the former bolstering my city's development. As I take the job with honor, it's only two years later that I become “Pericles the Settler,” with the foundation of Trapezus, the second settlement under my control. It's also worth noting that the years of Old World are depicted as "Year One" and so on, rather than having an assigned year or date.
The key actors of this game always seem to bring something with them, turning the pages of your nation's history with their own stories. Leonidas enters Greece with his knowledge of civil government to help propel us forward to a modern civilization. Sappho is exiled after a political scandal, allowed to roam freely in other lands, and eventually joins a rival family. Cultists are found living in ruins on a hill near a mountain range, and I allow them to continue their worship and even put up a shrine in what is now my land.
The daughter who soured my wife's mood towards me in the early years has finally turned 10, meaning it's time I formally teach her about the world. It's here that I must confess that my knowledge of world history is limited – it's been quite some time since I've been graded on my ability to remember dates and why they matter, and I was only ever so good at that anyway. I took the time outside the game to glance at who Pericles was when he was alive, and thus decided to teach Aspasia about commerce so she could go down a similar path as an Orator.
My time as a Grecian statesman comprised my first playthrough, and while I've managed a handful of other nations since then, I found that this first endeavor into Old World was more narratively fruitful. My first mistake would ring out through the rest of my playthrough – not knowing how to manage my money. Where Greece had been making some small profits for Years 1-12, it hadn't been enough to hire a philosopher to the court that my wife wished for. Her opinion of me soured more, yet I would not give up any of our resources. In a sort of irony, my daughter would ask me about a situation with money. Since Pericles isn't wise enough to tell her that money isn't everything, I tell her that she can spend money with her friends however she pleases, and this decision would set her on a path from which I could not save her.
Old World is made of ebbs and flows, bouncing gameplay developments with characters and stories that will throw a wrench into things. By Year 24, King Pericles the Pioneer turns ill. Rather than ride out my golden years sick and on the throne, I abdicate the throne to my daughter. Remember how earlier I told her she could spend her money with her friends as she pleases? That lesson alone formed her into a lackadaisical sort of person, and as an adult, she's become an alcoholic. The first thing she does is remove the cult of Aphrodite, those who have been dwelling in the mountains since before our arrival; their religion is gaining too much influence over the city. To make matters worse, we've been at war with foreign invaders for a few years now. I, as Pericles, lived a taxing life, and I can't help but feel guilty for my ignorance. Maybe my wife was right about that philosopher after all.
By the 33rd year, Aspasia had brought many positive developments to the throne. The neighboring Danes offered their leader, Rorik, to be her husband in an effort to unify the countries, and he sits on the throne as King Consort. Through this, it's discovered that the people of Carthage have been spying on Aspasia, and their agent is dispatched expeditiously. Where Pericles' time was focused on building a nation, Aspasia's era is to make the people of Greece happy and safe as we advance towards the future. Only a year later, Rorik and Aspasia give birth to Arisonoe, and in a similar fashion, the throne still can't afford to hire a philosopher to the court.
Some of the narrative events of Old World can feel more random than others, harder to pinpoint their causes. From a narrative standpoint, combining self-prescribed ideas with flavorful text that drives the concepts home, Pericles' sickness comes and goes while his daughter is on the throne. He's healthy again the year she takes over and only gets sick again towards the end of his lifespan while he's back in the political seat as governor of Athenai.
In the early 40s, things continue to take a turn for the worse. War erupts across the country from both the people of Carthage and Persia. Our lack of military might holds us back as we scrounge up soldiers, but governors in the cities fall ill and perish as well or simply make poor decisions. In Year 44, only a year after the passing of Pericles, Aspasia is doomed, sick, and close to death, and Arisnoe is only 10 years old.
In Year 45, disaster falls. Both the King and Queen die from their illnesses as war ensues on Greece's borders. Arisnoe is still just a child, so a court member arrives to take the throne until she turns 18. By year 52, Arisnoe has been raised as an orphan during nearly a decade-long war with Carthage. Rather than pursuing commerce like her mother, she learns military training, the last chance to stop the nation from collapsing. As she turns 18, Polyxena, the regent queen dies of a sudden illness, making way for Arisnoe. As the 50s arrive, city after city falls to barbarians from the south and Carthaginian soldiers from the north. First, Trapezus. Then Thebes. Then Argos. At 25-years-old, Arisnoe takes to the battlefield in Corinth, and in an insane twist of fate, she's spared from death after being rescued by one of her soldiers and returns to the capital. It doesn't take long before Athenai falls to constant attacks.
In my story, Greece is a nation that couldn't make it to a century, with three rulers to take the throne, each bearing the sins of the last. An unwise settler, a listless queen, a daughter forged in war. When I play strategy games like this, or games in the Civilization series, I tend to go with the flow, making decisions on the fly and doing whatever feels natural. While this isn't optimal, Old World rewarded that behavior with a developing story.
I've started new playthroughs in Old World a handful of times since this initial story, and each of them has been different. No two rulers have been the same, nor have their developing moments and national impacts. Each war has demanded something different, each bloodline resonates with different ideals, and each story branch has led to something new.
For a long time now, I’ve thought about ways to transcribe my playthroughs in nation-building games, opting to recount the events as if they were going into a history textbook. The issue I’ve found with this, after multiple attempts, is that the focal point of a nation isn’t gripping when a face isn’t attached to it. Where other games draw on distinct historical figures that work as gameplay mechanics rather than characters, Old World bridges the gap through story developments that act as motivators for gameplay. I applaud Old World for its ability to weave story and gameplay in a way that the historical strategy genre has very much inspired its players, and very clearly benefits from.
RimWorld is a strange, beautiful gem of a game. Masquerading as a colony simulation experience, as you survive a daunting alien world, it's also arguably a story generator. For every haunting night that you barely see the next day, you'll also have a situation where your elderly colonist gets instantly wiped out by a meteor that decided to land exactly where he was. Or perhaps you slap a T. rex into learning its place in the world. Either way, it's an absolutely chaotic experience that rarely goes on offer, especially its DLC, yet they're all cheaper than ever with Fanatical's latest sale.
Read the full story on PCGamesN: Grab RimWorld for cheaper than ever, and get its excellent expansions at a great price, too
If you’re new, it can feel overwhelming. This guide will walk you through the essentials so you can feel confident and start enjoying your Second Life right away.
Second Life is not a traditional game with levels or quests. It’s a virtual world built almost entirely by its residents. Every region, store, home, club, and experience is created by users.
You decide what your Second Life looks like:
There is no “right way” to participate, explore and find what fits you.
Mastering your camera is one of the most important skills in Second Life.
You are interacting with real people from around the world.
If someone is disruptive:
Never share personal information you’re not comfortable sharing.
Your avatar is fully customizable.
You can change:
Many modern avatars use mesh bodies and heads. Always:
Your Inventory stores everything you own.
Inventory contains:
When shopping, pay attention to permissions:
Always check permissions before purchasing.
The in-world currency is Linden Dollars (L$).
You can:
Smart shopping tips:
Each region has its own rules.
Before exploring:
Good manners go a long way in Second Life communities.
As a new resident, consider visiting:
Joining groups is one of the fastest ways to learn and make connections.
Second Life is what you make of it.
Welcome, and enjoy your journey.
My goal was simple: make the space feel peaceful.
The first thing I did? Add more sakura trees. You can never have too many cherry blossoms, right? I spread them around the platform and instantly the space felt softer and more alive. After that, I placed more flowers across the ground to fill in empty areas. It’s amazing how much small details change the mood of a build.
One practical addition was an invisible wall around the edges. Since the platform floats high in the sky, visitors could easily fall off. Now they’re safe, even if they get a little too curious exploring the edge.
I also cleaned things up by removing rocks I wasn’t using and adding a couple of benches. The benches made the space feel more welcoming, like somewhere you’d actually sit and relax.
The biggest challenge? Finding the perfect centerpiece.
I tried placing a campfire, but it didn’t match the calm garden vibe I was going for. I removed it pretty quickly. I considered adding a pond, but I couldn’t find one that fit. I even checked out a river kit at the Omni Outlet, but it just wasn’t what I had in mind.
So most of the stream became a creative experiment, placing trees, moving objects, adjusting layouts, and seeing what felt right. And since uploading textures costs AV$, I worked with what I already had.
Even without a final centerpiece, the platform feels closer to becoming my dream sky garden.
If you’re curious about AvatarLife and want to start building your own virtual escape, check out my link. And if you enjoy cozy creative streams, coffee donations are always appreciated ☕
✏️ Sign up for AvatarLife here: https://avatarlife.com/register?referee_username=Mai%20Character
☕ I love coffee, can someone buy me a cup to drink?
I just wrapped up another fun hour in AvatarLife, the OpenSim alternative to Second Life, and I wanted to share what I got up to! My main goal today was to work on my massive platform floating 2000 meters in the sky, pretty cool, right? But as usual, I needed more stuff, so I went on a freebie hunt.
First stop was AvatarLife Mall, but sadly, no freebies there 😅. Not giving up, I headed to London Town – Camden, hoping for a better luck… but then I got distracted by Fish Coin!
Luckily, I did grab the Fish Coin Free Rod from the Welcome Area and finally decided to give fishing a try. It was super relaxing watching my avatar fish hile also tuning into Josh Strife-Hayes on YouTube talking about the Stop Killing Games initiative. I hear they were presenting it to the EU Parliament, fingers crossed it makes a difference!
Before ending the stream, I tried figuring out if I could exchange Fish Coins for AV$, but no luck finding info yet. Maybe next time I’ll dig into that.
If you want to join the fun and explore AvatarLife yourself, sign up using my referral link: https://avatarlife.com/register?referee_username=Mai%20Character
Catch you in the skies, happy building and fishing! 🎣🪂
I headed back to the Omini Freebie shopping place to see what I could find. There are so many free items there, and I wanted more landscaping options.
This time I picked up:
I also checked out the houses again, but honestly, none of them really felt like “me.” So I decided to do things a little differently.
The admin gave me access to a free home, which was super nice! But instead of just using it as-is, I had another idea.
I placed a platform 2000 meters up in the air.
Yes… I’m building in the sky. ☁️
I’m going to keep the house on the ground for now, but my real project is going to be my own custom sky build. There’s something really fun about having your own peaceful space way above everything else.
After setting up the platform, I started unpacking everything I grabbed:
I spent a surprising amount of time just going through the different grass textures to find the one I liked best. It’s funny how small details like that can completely change the feel of a space.
The sakura trees are going to look amazing once everything comes together. I’m already picturing a soft, peaceful sky garden vibe.
And yes, the lion will absolutely have a place somewhere up there.
There’s still a lot left to build. One hour barely scratches the surface when you’re creating a space from scratch. But that’s part of the fun, taking your time, experimenting, and slowly shaping your own world.
If you’d like to join me in AvatarLife, you can use my referral link:
https://avatarlife.com/register?referee_username=Mai%20Character
Would you build your home on the ground… or 2000 meters up in the sky? ☁️
Here’s what I experienced during my first hour.
I began in the Welcome Area, which is usually the first place new users arrive. It’s designed to help players learn the basics and find useful locations.
While I was there, I picked up some objects for the Podex Affiliate system. I also received 100 AV$ from someone before I even started my livestream, which was a nice surprise. AV$ is the in-game currency used in AvatarLife.
One interesting feature I found was camping spots. There were:
These are places where you can sit or dance to earn AV$. However, it didn’t clearly say how long you need to camp to earn money. That made it a little confusing for beginners.
Still, it’s a simple way for new players to start earning currency without spending real money.
There was also a bump car area. The idea is that players drive small cars and bump into each other for fun.
Unfortunately, it wasn’t very exciting because no one else was there at the time. Bump cars are definitely more fun when you have other players to interact with.
One of the highlights of my visit was the Free Homes area. I was able to select a free home for my avatar.
Now I just have to wait for an admin to assign the home to my account. If everything goes smoothly, I’ll soon have my own place in AvatarLife. For a free virtual world, that’s a pretty nice feature.
I also visited the Omni Free Items location, and this was impressive. There were many free items available, including:
For new players, this is a great way to customize your character without spending AV$.
After spending an hour in AvatarLife, here’s what stood out:
Pros:
Cons:
Overall, AvatarLife seems like a solid option if you’re looking for a free OpenSim virtual world. It has strong potential, especially if more users are online and active.
I’ll be checking back once my free home gets assigned to see how the experience improves!
I recently decided to test Decor Forge, a gather-and-crafting RPG in Second Life, using Speedlight Viewer. The experience was interesting! While some visual effects, like sparkles on resource nodes, didn’t appear (making resource gathering a bit tricky), I could still explore the world, interact with others, and enjoy casual gameplay.
If you want to test Second Life in a browser, chat with friends, or casually explore, Speedlight Viewer is ideal. It’s not perfect for heavy crafting or advanced gameplay, but it’s a lightweight, accessible way to experience Second Life.
🌐 Try Speedlight Viewer yourself: https://speedlight.io/?ref=10366
🎥 Watch my full experiment with Decor Forge in Second Life: https://youtube.com/live/jtP8j7q3wlU
Step into the game's bamboo thickets, feel your sandals press into loose gravel, listen to a lone red-crowned crane screech above, and the moment isn't really a moment- it's history tapping you on the shoulder. Call the scene a digital ukiyo-e if you want, because the picture is so delicate it might shatter, yet the swordplay behind it is loud enough to wake the dead.
Last year's Director's Cut, one of the best action-adventure games of the year, added a thicker coat of mud and gave Jin Sakai another reason to stare out at the ocean as if hoping the tide would wash his guilt away. The extra stories don't just drop new missions on your map; they dig deeper under his armor and ask whether honor survives a war that won't take a day off. For a nerd who reads dusty tomes after class, firing up this update isn't escaping anywhere; it's sliding into the past's ring and hoping it lets you walk back out.
Yeah, the island still makes your jaw drop. Even if you're on an old console, as someone who still buys cheap PS4 games or the shiny PS5 Director's Cut, sunsets pour across the sky like spilled orange paint, and the mist clings to the trees as if it's actually wet. But the real kicker is the stuff you barely notice. You can spot the torn collar of a farmer's kosode, the deep whorls carved into temple beams, and the tiny scratches on hand-wrought blades. This is not your-okay-to-touch exhibit at a feudal theme park; it feels like the land is still breathing and still sore.
Under the light, you see dirt lodged in fingernails, exhaustion pooling in villagers' eyes, and hurried stitches trying to hold bombed-out houses together. That slap of detail hammers home a simple truth: Tsushima was less postcard and more tightrope, sitting between an angry ocean and an even angrier Mongol horde. Environmental storytelling has never been the game's weak spot, and here it sounds a heck of a lot louder. A busted shamisen next to a charred hut yells about loss; a forgotten toy left in a looted street whimpers long after the player shuts the console.
Playing the new cut honestly hits you in the gut. You can't miss the price Jin pays, and suddenly, the huge war feels like just one guy's awful Tuesday. Jin's entire story-sometimes called the Ghosts Unquiet Heart-is really a list of old debts that won't quit asking for money. Stepping into that fresh campaign, you're shocked to find the debt has grown, not vanished. The choice between polished samurai honor and back-alley sneaky tactics is still on the menu, yet the menu now warns, Eating this will sting.
The upgrade doesn't throw out the core duel between blade-up, rule-following honor and shadowy, keep-the-people-alive pragmatism, yet it pours salt into that wound. Each time you pick stealth over bright steel, you half-expect Jin to cough out I'm sorry under the breeze.
Voice actor Daisuke Tsuji nails the new rasp, making every word sound like yesterday was a long, bloody walk. Deep lines tug at Jin's cheeks now, almost begging for a break. Betrayal, whether it's the pop-in uncle Lord Shimura or that fancy code, sits on his back like a drunk guardian demanding a ride home.
Ghost of Tsushima: Director's Cut hits hardest once the spotlight turns to the story. Extra scenes sneak in stare-downs and silences that say more than a pile of cut-lines ever could. One shot lingers on his dad's grave, another freezes him mid-reach for the Ghost mask, and one more lets us feel how even old friends flinch at the name that used to protect them. Inside, a crack keeps spreading. Slipping into dirty tactics was step one, yet now the white-faced wraith fits his shoulders better than the clean-hilted katana. The grind of button-mashing buttons can't decide if it's feeding a savior or birthing a twin of the invaders they all hate. Players get loaded with that question and left waiting for an answer that never comes. Blockbuster titles flirt with gray, but this one pretty much dives in and swims laps.
Iki Island, believe it or not, is way more than a pretty side quest with a couple of cool mini-games. The place slams into you like a bare, exposed nerve ending. As soon as the boat crunches onto the beach, memories of Jin's old man, the complicated ghost called Kazumasa Sakai, come blasting up the shore.
These Mongol raiders don't just chop wood and, yeah, steal your horse. They dig right under your skin, lead storyteller in that savage campfire being the sharp-eyed Ankhsar Khatun, half shaman, half mind-reader. Khatun isn't interested in fair swordplay; she slices right through to Jin's guilt.
Decades ago, his father-both a warrior and a war criminal-turned this island into a bloody ledger book, and little-boy-Jin helped him fill the pages without asking why. Now the same villagers he once cut down are staring back, bruised and exhausted, but alive enough to scream for rescue. Khatun makes sure Jin hears every single wail because the louder it gets, the slower he moves.
Man, that story twist hits hard, and is better than the recent Ghost of Yotei. One minute you're thinking samurai are the good guys; the next, every neat, black-and-white idea you had just crumbles. Jin-and, okay, anybody playing him-has to swallow the gut punch that his beloved code once helped crush innocent people. He idolized his old man and chased honor to prove he wasn't some failure. Funny thing: the old daimyo carved out his rule with the same cruelty that marked the Mongol raid, maybe worse. Folks on Iki never forgot the blades and banners, so they eyeball Jin with more than Ghost fear; they see another son of the man who broke them.
For Jin, wandering around Iki feels like dragging his conscience out for a public apology. Lending a hand to the islanders, he figures, might scrub away both his old man's mistakes and the guilt he's stacked up. The fresh legends popping up on Iki are wild and colorful, almost like street gossip that refuses to die, and they show a side of Tsushima that's messier and louder than people expect from the main island. Every new story reminds you that the Mongol fleet is really just the next thump in a very long drumbeat of invasion, and that the locals have been fighting over honor and survival long before the banners showed up. History nerds, meanwhile, will lose hours on Iki because its medieval Japan turned upside down, simple, unruly, and stubbornly spiritual, and those details do a ton of heavy lifting for the game's background.
So, what is it about this Ghost of Tsushima Director's Cut that hooks a person who can't stop thinking about real history and characters that feel like they've finally breathed?
The movie flat-out refuses to polish the image of the samurai. Bushido shows its steel spine while letting you see how that same spine can snap and stab. Peasants keep taking the hard end of the stick, whether the banners flying belong to a benevolent lord or an outright monster, and most choices drift through the muddy gray zone. Every scrap of armor, every angled sword stance, got double-checked with craftsmen and trainers, so the screen feels as heavy as a lacquered chest plate. Shinto whispers and Buddhist chants sit beside clangor and blood, thundering past your ears instead of collecting dust in a subtitle box.
Jin doesn't slide casually into his dark side anymore. Ghost of Tsushima Director's Cut, and especially the Iki stretch, twists the story into an outright head-spinning midlife quiz. The honor he threw away has ballooned into his whole sense of self and the family name he thought was locked down. One painful choice piles on top of another until saving Tsushima feels like a tax bill for the legend people keep asking him to be. Gamers still pause on the big question: Is the Ghost a brave hero or the wild law his ancestors swore to keep in check? The script never blinks; you're stuck weighing it yourself.
Iki Island isn't a drag-and-drop bonus. It's a furnace that slams Jin face-first into the ragged pages of his bloodline. The stories the samurai told themselves about honor get punched in the gut the second he steps ashore. The added scenes hammer on cultural wounds, argue with resistance, and loop back to why violence so easily repeats. Khatun cuts deeper than steel; she claws right at who Jin thinks he is. That kind of enemy leaves no muscle untouched.
Dealing with the Ghost of Tsushima never lets you forget you, not just Jin, but the scared Mongols and the rumor-hungry townsfolk are busy sewing the same story together. The game jabs at you, saying lifting a fighter up to mythical status can fill people with hope one moment and chill them to the bone the next. Even the samurai who wears that spooky mask winces every time he hears the tale spread, and the Director's Cut drags the player right into that awkward silence with him.
A Win, Not a Slip. Nothing in gaming is flawless; nobody denies that some of the old sidequests still feel like running back and forth across a map that never shrinks. The Iki Island add-ons- an out-of-the-way animal sanctuary that smells like wet earth and the bow trials that whisper forgotten history- slide into the loop like they were part of the plan from day one. When you step back and squint, the expanded story looks less like a bolt-on extra and more like a surgeon peeling tape off a long-healed scar.
Fresh cuts throb harder than the original bang. Jin Sakai starts out as an unlucky guy grinding his way through tough calls, yet by the end, he feels less like a tragic hero and more like a soldier stuck in quicksand, wrestling with the bloody footprint his legend has left on the island he swore to save.
If you're the kind of player who wants more than flashy cut-scenes and tidy endings, you absolutely need Ghost of Tsushima: Director's Cut. The game leans hard into real history and gives its characters enough grit to make you squint. An expansion like this usually piles on busywork, but here the extra quests breathe new life into old ideas and keep the story honest. You learn pretty fast that honor looks a lot worse in daylight than it does on banners, legends are stitched together from blood and bad choices, and a single sword swing can echo for years. When the wind sweeps across the screen, it doesn't just rustle leaves-it carries old secrets, fresh regrets, and the quiet threat of the Ghost standing behind you. So, are you going to ignore that whisper or step into the storm?
HIGH I need to know what is on that island.
LOW Another chest of junk was on that island.
WTF What is piracy without cannons?
Salt 2: Shores of Gold is a first-person role-playing, exploration and sandbox adventure themed around piracy that sailed out of early access in November, 2025.
As is standard with any role-player rubbing elbows with a ship, the story opens with my character surviving a presumed shipwreck — and this happens often enough to be a running gag. A blurry figure greeted me, excited I survived. They then departed for destinations unknown while I suffered another brief blackout before the tutorial.
The tutorial was typical fare for anything involving crafting and survival mechanics these days. Several scattered books gave tips to help me along as a new player, and by the end of half an hour, I was the proud owner of some half-usable crafting materials and a ship of my own.
I set sail following my heart to see what was on offer. As I began my journey, the uncooperative wind danced aimlessly behind my sails more than a fickle mermaid princess celebrating the find of a new dingle-hopper. I assumed this would hinder my progress, but soon discovered that the wind held little sway over my course — in fact, neither the wind nor ocean current presented an impediment. I was free to sail anywhere I liked, with the only thing impacting me being when the ship bounced on waves.
I had hoped for a bit more immersion with the sailing physics, but the graphics and audio filled in with the sun and moon charting their course through the sky, casting beautiful shadows. Together with the sounds of the sails and ocean, it created serene moments as I marked new islands with my sextant. The music came and went gingerly, never overstaying its welcome and setting a wonderful mood for exploration. Unfortunately, this serenity was jarred by islands popping into my spyglass due to the game not being able to manage immersive draw distances.
Setting foot onto an early island gave me a taste of combat, and it was bland like stale hardtack and watered-down grog. The only complexity in the first-person shooter-style gameplay was a basic parrying system that didn’t help when I was outnumbered. I also noticed that a mechanic from pen-and-paper games was a stowaway here — I was “rolling” critical failures indicated by red damage numbers popping up. Even when making a headshot with my flintlock from stealth for bonus damage, I often got minimum damage rolls, ruining my opening attacks at random.
These critical failures dismantled all feelings of power from gear upgrades and made dungeon delving for better kit feel like a waste of time. There were ways to mitigate this through randomly-generated gear traits, but I lacked the resources to craft equipment early on. By hour ten, I stopped caring and healed my way through combat setbacks with copiously provided potions as I took advantage of the easily confused, often-stuttering enemy pathfinding.
My hopes for sea combat were dashed as all ships I encountered ended up being friendly shops. Despite a non-player character mentioning cannonballs, I never found a single cannon to pilfer or fire. The only quarry to sink my cutlass into were pirates, undead, and animals — and even then, on the islands only. There were no beasts or other freebooters to combat on the seas.
Island exploration also sunk. Salt 2 uses procedural generation to randomly place islands based on a seed, though the islands themselves are pulled from handcrafted assets with pseudo-random points of interest. In about six hours, I had seen the same underwater cave multiple times with loot in the same spots. Boredom followed swiftly.
Puzzles found on these islands posed zero intellectual challenge, with none more complex than pulling levers in the correct order, and there was always a note that told the answer. The only one that held some promise was a brief riddle towards the end of the major quest chain for the Sea Divers Guild. However, even that quest was no more difficult than paying attention to where each statue was looking.
Acquiring loot from enemies, random containers, or treasure chests brought terror-inducing flashbacks of Bethesda-style grabbing of everything that was not nailed down. It was an unwelcome feeling and never felt satisfying, and searching islands or dungeons for treasure chests often yielded junk. The only notable find was a legendary recipe for a spyglass that required hours of leveling skills to craft.
Speaking of crafting, the system is tiered and basic as the rest of the experience. Each level of equipment is locked behind a secondary skill that requires spending time and resources to level up. I attempted to make better gear often, but could never find new recipes from shops. This forced me to try and hunt for them, but I never managed to discover even a middling boot recipe in my 30 hours with Salt 2.
All of this lead me to one poignant conclusion — none of this content made me feel like a pirate.
The pirate theme was everywhere, but rather than imparting immersion, it felt like a cheap Halloween costume, flimsy plastic sword included. Also, after 30 hours, I had died a total of two times — once in combat getting my sea legs, and again from a buggy fall due to the complete absence of climbing mechanics. Taking risks is a key facet of piracy! My ship was unsinkable. There was never any risk of drowning. Food was copious. I could always strike enemies unopposed and heal near infinitely. Bosses had no unique abilities or mechanics to challenge me.
Ultimately, I can’t imagine who this game was for. If it was directed at children I could understand the level of difficulty, but the thin content and basic systems will hardly appeal to seasoned players. If Salt 2 were a ship, it would give the Kraken indigestion.
Rating: 3 out of 10
— John Powell
Disclosures: This game is developed and published by Lavaboot Studios. The game is currently available on PC. This copy of the game was obtained via Steam as a paid digital download by the reviewer. The game was reviewed on PC. Approximately 30 hours were devoted to the single-player mode and the game was not completed. 0 hours of play were spent in the multiplayer mode.
Parents: This game is not rated by the ESRB. The game includes depictions of blood, alcohol use, mild violence, mild horror, references to gambling, human remains, references to cannibalism, and suicide.
Colorblind Modes: No colorblind modes are available.
Deaf & Hard of Hearing Gamers: The game does not offer subtitle settings. The introduction cutscene contains subtitles. All other dialogue is presented via written text regardless of audio settings. Spoken dialogue when interacting with non-player characters is flavor dialogue only. Enemies have non-subtitled audio cues when reacting to the player. This game is not fully accessible. Interface and written text options include: English, French, Italian, German, Russian, Simplified Chinese, Portuguese for Brazilian audiences, and Spanish for Spain and Latin America audiences.
Remappable Controls: This game offers fully remappable keyboard controls. Full controller support is offered through Steam for Xbox, DualShock (USB Only), and DualSense (USB Only) controllers. Controller buttons are not remappable in game, but are remappable via Steam interface. The game displays controller face buttons and their functions through user interface context hints. Keyboard binds are similar to first-person shooter-style WASD schema. The gamepad had a mostly standard setup based on Xbox controllers — left stick move (click for sprint), right stick look (click for crouch), A for jump, and X for use. An odd choice was the right bumper was dodge and right trigger was attack. Left bumper is reserved for the weapon wheel and left trigger is block.
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