The Best & Worst Games of 2025
The Best & Worst of:
2024 / 2023 / 2022 / 2021 / 2020 / 2019 / 2018 / 2017 / 2016 / 2015 / 2014 / 2013 / 2012 / 2011 / 2010
Are we sure it's been a year?
It feels like I was writing my 2024 wrap-up just a few months ago. Gushing about Infinite Wealth, six months ago tops. Maybe eight?
I may have lost the ability to accurately gauge the passage of time, but I know we certainly got twelve-month's worth of games this year. Good games, too. We even got a new console. Definitely twelve months, even if it felt a bit like eight.
Maybe nine?
2024-me couldn't have predicted the games we'd end up discussing most this year. Surprise indies, rebounding AAA franchises, high profile re-releases, and even RPGs! The game of the year darling was widely compared to Lost Odyssey and Final Fantasy XIII, and it wasn't meant as an insult! Truly, a year of surprises.
In 2025, we argued about definitions. I mean, I didn't, but you might've. What's an indie game? What's an RPG? Also, did just one person really make this game? What was the budget? The entire industry shuffled its plans around the shifting launch of Grand Theft Auto VI, while the indie community sweated over the arrival of Silksong. Console prices sky rocketed, layoffs continued at a frightening pace, generative AI increasingly infected things I love, and Xbox might have begun the process of giving up.
A lot of silliness, but we were never short of something fun to play.
I started the year getting consistent use out of my Pocket. In general, I played a lot of "older" games this year, on my Pocket and elsewhere. I was blessed with two new, exceptional ways to revisit a pair of all-time favourites, Metal Gear Solid 3 and Final Fantasy Tactics, and I also discovered brand-new experiences to swoon over. I continued to split my time fairly evenly between PS5 and Xbox Series X, and this was the first year that I didn't play a single thing on Switch. However, my daughter ensured that it was, by far, the most used console in our house. I continued to make full use of Game Pass, but I'm very concerned about the state of Xbox and can't see myself subscribing beyond next winter, which is when my current subscription ends. I mulled a Steam Deck purchase but passed, for now, and instead picked up a Switch 2 for Christmas.
I popped back to the UK over the summer and bought all the games no one else wanted, spent a sweltering July weekend in Kyoto for BitSummit, and was of course in attendance for Tokyo Game Show.
I bought a fourth, spice orange GameCube controller.
And that was 2025. Now for the games, and then the opinions. Stick around for those, please.
Currently Playing: Donkey Kong Bananza, Final Fantasy V Advance
Bought but Have Yet to Play: Ghost of Yotei
Enjoy your games and have a very Happy New Year!
1. Game of the Year: Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
Have you ever loved a game yet had zero desire to talk about it? I ask because that's how I feel about Clair Obscur: Expedition 33.
My favourite new game of 2025, but I don't want to discuss it. I haven't wanted to deconstruct it to better understand my love for it, nor compare notes with fellow fans or push back against its detractors. I've been content to adore it quietly; privately.
I'm like that with some of my personal favourites, and would much rather chat for an hour about a fascinating 7/10 than a perfect classic. But there's more to it than that. Some of the discussion around Clair Obscur has been exhausting and the praise a little OTT. That has definitely put me off, as has the recent revelation that generative AI was used in the development of background assets. I don't like Expedition 33 less because of the gen-AI usage, but I do feel slightly worse for liking it. But more than all that, my relative silence was due to my satisfaction with what I'd experienced. No amount of words dedicated to it would enrich that experience - the moment was perfect, the moment was complete.
Not ideal when it comes to writing a GOTY spiel! And the winner had to be Expedition 33, even if I'm not keen on finding the words to justify it. I exclude remasters from my biggest annual prize and penalise remakes, because I like to make things difficult for myself, and that's why Final Fantasy Tactics - The Ivalice Chronicles didn't qualify, and why Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater didn't win. Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii was supremely entertaining, and one of the funniest games I've ever played, but it's not quite game-of-the-year material. I spent much of the year butting heads with general consensus, and didn't like Blue Prince, Lumines Arise, Silksong and Sektori as much as many of you did. Hades II and Dispatch aren't really my kinda thing, I didn't get to Ghost of Yotei or Death Stranding 2 in time, and have only spent a couple of hours with Donkey Kong Bananza and my new Switch 2. I think that's everything?
So here we are, stuck with a 9/10 that I don't want to discuss. But I'm gonna.
We'll start at the beginning, and then jump to the end.
Expedition 33 immediately grabbed me. It didn't take twenty hours to get good - see, it's not FFXIII! - and the opening hours aren't wasted on dull tutorials or overly-long exposition. It immediately exposes the player to the problem, reveals the stakes, and serves up a killer gut punch. The Gommage will not be delayed! It trusts you to grasp the gravity of the situation and the motivations of the people it affects. The player is treated as an adult, and expected to adapt to each successive emotional curve-ball, even if they can't yet fully understand them.
This is a story of substance, and it succeeds from the get-go because of the quality of its delivery, the distinct art design, the thoughtful writing and exceptional performances. This instant captivation is crucial for a new property, one that is bereft of fandom, where franchise literacy cannot be relied upon.
Let's fast forward to the end, when the world map opens up and everything is accessible. I lingered there far longer than expected. That was partly because I wanted to put off the climax, but also because I was comfortable there. As a throwback to the RPGs of my youth, it was a familiar and welcoming world, and I was overwhelmed with memories of old favourites, mostly Final Fantasy, of airships, optional bosses, gigantic foes marauding across maps, and secrets revealed to only the most inquisitive of players. Here, I rediscovered a desire to grind levels, not just to defeat something that once seemed invincible, but because I was inspired by a combat system I wanted to master, or near enough, and captivated by a world that I wished to exist in just a little longer. And there I stayed for a dozen hours, until I'd had my fill. I was overcome with sadness when I said my final farewell and moved to the last mission marker. Off to Ultimecia's Castle; off to the Northern Cave.
I don't really want to talk about it, but Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is my favourite game of 2025.
Honourable Mention: Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater
2. Best pre-2025 Game Played for the First Time: Dragon Age: The Veilguard
Thanks to Coloris, the best of the GBA Bit Generation series, and Tactics Ogre: The Knight of Lodis, I got more concentrated use out of my Analogue Pocket this year than ever before. Either of them would be a worthy winner here, but I'm going to stay within the current gen and pick Dragon Age: The Veilguard. I've been on board with Dragon Age since day one, but I was unsure about the change in art style for Veilguard - slightly more cartoony than previous instalments - and I thought it might clash with the adult themes that have always been key to DA's appeal. That was silly of me. The various design and thematic elements come together wonderfully, and are held together by the familiar Mass Effect 2 structure of gathering allies, becoming friends, and then doing something reckless. The writing is a little inconsistent, granted, but it didn't get in the way of my enjoyment. I'd happily go on another adventure with the Veilguard crew.
Honourable Mentions: Coloris, Tactics Ogre: The Knight of Lodis
3. Best Re-visit: Final Fantasy Tactics - The Ivalice Chronicles
I was delighted to be playing Tactics again, twenty-five years after my first playthrough, and fast approaching twenty since my last. The wonderful Tactics Ogre remaster from 2022 put my desire for a FFT revisit into overdrive, but my hopes were dashed by rumours that the remaster had once existed but had since been scrapped. As you can imagine, I was very surprised, and very excited, when it was unveiled earlier this year. It is not just a classic of its genre, but a classic in general. It's a work of art and I hope it reached enough new players to justify a series continuation, whether that's more remasters or, even better, a brand new Tactics, Final Fantasy or otherwise.
Honourable Mention: Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception
4. My Daughter's Game of the Year: Pokemon Z-A
As told to me by my daughter: "Pokemon Z-A is my favourite game that came out this year. My starter Pokemon is Chikorita and it's a grass type. The reason I chose it was because I always choose a grass type at first. Usually Pokemon aren't cute after they evolve, but this one is still cute! Battles are a bit different to Scarlet/Violet and I think it's better because you don't have to take turns fighting. Another bit that's good is that Pokemon can hit people! Another best bit is that you can change your clothes. I'm playing on Switch 2 and the screen is better, because it's big and I like how the Joy-Con magnets feel when they attach to the screen!
For games that came out in any year, Animal Crossing New Horizons is still my number one. I played it lots this year. I'm excited about the new update that arrives in January, mostly because of the hotel, and the Splatoon collaboration. I also played lots of Splatoon 3 this year and the best bit was the Side Order DLC."
5. Best Remake or Remaster: Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater
If I were to strip away all the categories, criteria and qualifications that I use to compile my Best & Worst, Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater and Final Fantasy Tactics - The Ivalice Chronicles would be my GOTY picks, in some order. Yes, Clair Obscur is outstanding, but in Delta and Ivalice Chronicles we got a sublime remake and a superb remaster of two of my all-time favourite games. No competition, really. I'm opting for Delta over Ivalice because it aims higher, being that it's a complete remake, and could have gone spectacularly wrong. But it didn't, as it was deftly handled and modernised in a way that does not take away from the original, but rather builds upon and compliments it. We couldn't have asked for more, and I hope that Konami will have a crack at Metal Gear Solid 2 next.
Honourable Mention: Final Fantasy Tactics - The Ivalice Chronicles
6. Name I'm Least Likely to Get Right: Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii
Like a Dragon: Yakuza Pirates in Hawaii? Yakuza: Pirates in Hawaii? Pirates in Yakuza, in Hawaii? Ryu ga Gotoku 8.5? When putting these end of year posts together, the first thing I do is compile my list of games-played, which can be found at the close of the intro. Every time I've written about Pirate Yakuza, I've had to scroll up to the top of the page to check that list and re-confirm the wording, as I just cannot retain the correct order! Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is a close runner-up, though I think I have the hang of that one now. It's like Claire Obscure, but spelt wrong.
Dishonourable Mention: Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
7. Best Setting: Sicily - Mafia: The Old Country
Earlier in the year, I called Mafia's Sicily the "widest and most luxurious corridor I've ever travelled down". I don't have much to add, to be honest. Sicily was a delight, a gorgeous backdrop to the tightest, best-paced adventure I took all year. Existing in that space for a dozen hours was an absolute treat and I was thoroughly impressed by the restraint shown by the developers in never forcing the player to explore.
Honourable Mention: Lumiere - Clair Obscur; Quito - Despelote
8. Most Disappointing: Monster Hunter Wilds
Wilds is a decent game. Good, even. But it just didn't have legs, and I was done with it far quicker than expected. Maybe I was a little burnt out after Rise, World and several 3DS entries before that? Perhaps. Regardless, Wilds was less satisfying than I had hoped. In particular, the hunts offer less resistance, and thus I found less satisfaction in their completion. Targeting monster's weak spots and smashing them up requires little more than a button press, and drop rates are so generous that I rarely needed to repeat hunts more than a couple times to put together a full set of armour. A smoother experience, which isn't a bad thing, but when the journey is this effortless, it feels less worthwhile.
Dishonourable Mention: Switch 2 language-locks here in Japan; Lumines Arise - too much Tetris Effect and not enough Lumines
9. Most Fun to Explain to my Daughter: Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater
So, there's a man who shoots bees out of his hands, a fella with a very long tongue, a guy who is mostly on fire, and a centenarian sniper who is dead, apart from when he's trying to kill you. They all hang out with a normal looking lady who is so obscenely powerful that she could batter all of them with one hand tied behind her back. Her boyfriend is a ghost. Nikita Krushchev and Lyndon B Johnson are in it too. You won't find Operation Snake Eater in your history books but this is basically what happened during the Cold War. History is awesome! I said to my daughter.
Honourable Mention: Once Upon a Katamari
10. Best Distraction: Gate Mode - Sektori
My favourite part of Sektori, a twin-stick shooter, involves zero shooting. Gate mode removes the issues I had with the main campaign - long sessions sunk by random elements, and bosses that aren't much fun - and provides more immediate satisfaction and a clearer path to high-scores. In Gate Mode, you must carefully move your ship through goals, while avoiding enemies that spawn in increasing numbers. The gates detonate when you pass through them, taking out any nearby pursuers. It's all very satisfying and the controls are so responsive that you have no one to blame but yourself when you careen into an oncoming baddie. If your session lasts more than a couple of minutes, you're doing well, and it's so easy to go for one more round. And then one more.
Honourable Mention: Collecting crew members in Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii
11. Biggest Surprise: The voice acting in Final Fantasy Tactics - The Ivalice Chronicles
The new voice work elevates Tactics, which is not at all what I was expecting. I've been thinking about these characters for twenty-five years, and they were already voiced in my head. I expected to recoil at the sound of them speaking out loud, and I wrongly assumed that accents would be heavily Americanised, when in my head the cast is very European. Well, I was worried for nothing. The unenviable task of giving these characters voices was handled with great care, and Tactics has perhaps the best voice work in a year that was full of great sounding characters.
Honourable Mentions: A time-travelling Katamari (Once Upon a Katamari); Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 in general
12. Standout Moment: Masaru's Love Journey - Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii
I wouldn't call the Minato Girls live-action segment the best moment of 2025. That distinction would belong to any number of shocking, heartbreaking and even heartwarming moments in Expedition 33. However, the live action sketches featuring Masaru the chef, played by Japanese comedian Ryuji Akiyama, were certainly the funniest, and his bizarre behaviour and inability to act naturally around women had me in stitches. When it comes to live action, the series has a poor track record of sleazy segments of pure titillation, emphasis on the tit, but this was comedy gold! It's well worth checking out if you have an hour to spare and fancy a good laugh at Masaru's expense.
Honourable Mentions: Expedition 33 - take your pick; MGS Delta - experiencing the Virtuous Mission anew
13. Worst Moment: That time a greedy goalkeeper caused me to uninstall Rematch
I uninstalled it and never went back. You can find that story here.
Dishonourable Mention: Any time family members passed through the living room when the busty priestess from Ninja Gaiden 4 was on screen
14. Fastest Shelving: Routine
To be fair to Routine, I wasn't in the mood for an atmospheric, survival horror. It was a couple evenings before Christmas, and I was looking for something a little lighter, and perhaps more festive. To be fair to me, Routine opens with a thud. It begins with you stuck in a small room with no indication of how you're supposed to escape. I was immediately turned off by the cumbersome crouch and reach controls, and spent far too long trying to grab an ID card that fell underneath a printing machine. What I saw of the base outside that initial room was interesting enough, but I gave up within five minutes, shortly after picking up a scanning tool. It's framing as an item of great importance let me know that this would be a game of sneaking and avoidance, and that wasn't what I was looking for. Routine demanded patience, and mine was in short supply.
Dishonourable Mention: Wheel World - the cycling wasn't very fun, unfortunately
15. Best Partial Playthrough: Hollow Knight: Silksong
I enjoyed my ten hours with Silksong. That was enough for me to appreciate the setting and atmosphere, make solid progress, get lost several times, and even beat a boss or two. I was able to confirm something that I already knew, namely that Silksong isn't really for me, largely because I don't wish to invest the hours needed to truly appreciate it. No knock on Silksong, but I'd rather play something else. Still, it made an excellent impression during our week together, and fully rewarded my limited time investment.
Honourable Mention: Star Wars: Jedi Survivor
16. Made me Feel like a Proper Square: Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3 + 4
I put an hour or two into Tony Hawk's, but never progressed beyond the opening tutorial area. It plays well, obviously, looks and sounds great, and appears to be very generous in content, but I just could not get to grips with it. I have no history with the series, but the biggest issue was my complete lack of skateboarding literacy. Half the time, I had no idea what the game was asking of me. "Fly off this half pipe, switch into a lazy, grind a susan. And remember: squibble at a right angle!" It wasn't so much that I couldn't pull off the moves, more that I didn't know what the moves were! Somehow, watching tutorial videos didn't help. Apparently, there is no space in my head for skateboarding and its jargon, so I gave up. I'll stick to walking.
17. Most Unlike Anything Else I Played: Despelote
Despelote is a documentary. It's an autobiography. It's a study in childhood nostalgia, and a celebration of football. It's a window into life in early-2000s Ecuador, it's a walking simulator, and it's a footy game. In 2025, there was nothing else quite like Despelote, and I would urge you to give it a go. As we embark upon a World Cup year, and a tournament that Ecuador has qualified for, I hope that Despelote will receive renewed interest and reach an even wider audience.
18. Most Frustrating: Lonely Mountain: Snow Riders
I did not enjoy Snow Riders. It wants you to get down the mountain as quickly and as cleanly as possible, yet insists on throwing trial-and-error sections at you that are near impossible to pass on the first attempt. Momentum is killed each time you wipe-out on a partially obscured hazard, and then you are unceremoniously dumped further back up the mountain, with little clue on how to adjust your approach and ensure success on a retry. I didn't want to go back up the mountain, and to be honest, I wasn't all that bothered about going down it. I just wanted off of it. Snow Riders was not for me, unfortunately.
Dishonourable Mention: Trying to fix the washed-out colours in Monster Hunter Wilds
19. Best Premise: Once Upon a Katamari
Turning the Prince into a time traveller was a stroke of genius. Once Upon a Katamari plays fairly loose with historical accuracy - I'm pretty sure they didn't have televisions during the Paleolithic - but my daughter and I still got a kick out of viewing human history through the bizarre lens of Katamari Damacy. Highlights include a mission rolling up mummies, and a trip to ancient Greece, where you must scoop up the most prominent philosophers of that era and deliver them to a party, while they each share with you something deeply profound.
Honourable Mentions: Blue Prince, Despelote
20. Best Swearing: Mafia: The Old Country
Figlia di puttana! Even if you play Mafia in English, the Italian curse words are retained, and that is a very good thing. They are delivered with gusto and flawless timing, and their usage provides a valuable insight into the relationships between the members of the Torrisi family. Even though the curse words aren't translated in the subtitles, the approximate meaning is conveyed through the setting and context in which they feature, as well as how and to whom they are directed. Good swearing will always overcome language barriers, and The Old Country has some corkers.
21. Worst Part of a Good Game: The King of All Cosmos' incessant nattering - Once Upon a Katamari
This is very annoying. The King will constantly interrupt levels to deliver a few lines of very weak and painfully unfunny dialogue, that overlays the action. You can speed through it, but you can't make it go away, and it's never worth reading. The King is a funny-looking chap, and his cut-scene escapades are fairly entertaining, but in-game he is an extremely unwelcome presence and one that I hope they do away with in future entries. Time for the guillotine?
Dishonourable Mention: The over-doing of visual effects in Lumines Arise, obscuring gameplay
22. Best Boss Fight: The End - Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater
Yes, I sniped The End when he first appeared in the early-game, fast asleep in a wheel chair, hours before our scheduled showdown. It's funny to do this because a). he's asleep, b). his chair explodes in a comical fashion and c). it circumvents one of the greatest boss fights in all of gaming, which is mad. It's like the Vatican Museum offering a fast pass that lets you skip the Sistine Chapel, and when you use it the chapel blows up in a way that is very funny. I think that makes sense? Having popped his noggin early, I of course reloaded a previous save to ensure that he'd be alive and lying in wait when I entered Sokorovenno, because I'm not a fucking moron. The epic showdown with The End remains my favourite boss fight in all of MGS, and perhaps all of gaming. There are so many routes to victory, and so many opportunities to mess up, that it feels like a new encounter each and every time. What a moment, and what a game!
23. Best Mercari Purchase: Kaze No Notam (PS1)
Considering how much time I spend on the app, it's surprising how few games I bought on Mercari this year. I made several game-related purchases, including keyholders from the golden age of Final Fantasy, a Goro Majima Pop-Up Pirate, and a collection of Splatoon and Animal Crossing choco-egg figures that I used to create a DIY advent calendar for my daughter. As for game software, my ¥1,400 purchase of Kaze No Notam probably ranks number one, as it was a good price and was the result of several months of app-watching. Good things come to those who wait.
Honourable Mention: Tactics Ogre: The Knight of Lodis in very good nick (¥1,500)
24. Best In-Store Purchase: A White Sega Saturn
It was untested, came with two mismatched controllers and no cables, and had some discoloration on the back. Still, for just ¥2,800, it was well worth the risk. As it turns out, it works perfectly and is currently my only Saturn that doesn't have any hardware issues. Give it a couple of months though, and I'm sure something will come up! Wipeout 3 on PS1 for just ¥480 comes a close second. The cover design is beautiful, and value wise, it's an even greater steal than my Saturn. However, in this household, Saturn trumps all.
Honourable Mentions: Wipeout 3 (¥480), Final Fantasy Tactics guidebook with the chick panorama and complete with stickers (¥500)
25. Most Addictive: Ball x Pit
Very moreish. Ball x Pit asks more than enough of the player to keep them engaged from start to finish, and it never becomes mindless. Whereas you could drop off for thirty seconds in Vampire Survivors - a game that I can't help but compare it to - and still be fine, Ball x Pit demands your full attention. The different abilities of each character shake up gameplay in a meaningful way, and provide further reasons to keep playing. The only reason I'm no longer bouncing balls, after reaching end credits, is that I didn't like the resource gathering mini game, which offers too many advantages to just ignore. It's not quite as addictive as Vampire Survivors, but it's not far off.
Honourable Mention: Sektori
26. Best Mechanic or Feature: The parry-heavy combat in Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
To be honest, I didn't like the combat at first. I struggled to parry, and just relied on dodging, which is far easier to pull off but much less rewarding. In Expedition 33, unlike many of the games it emulates, you can't just eat damage. If you do, you will die very quickly, possibly immediately. Once you've accepted that, ideally within the first few minutes, you can start to perfect dodges and then move on to parries, which, when triggered with flawless timing, will unleash counter attacks that far exceed your regular damage output. Few things were more satisfying in 2025 than getting into the groove of Clair Obscur's rhythmic parry system.
Honourable Mentions: the ability to call in NPC during hunts and partially replicate the feeling of a multiplayer session when you can't, or don't wish, to play with others - Monster Hunter Wilds
27. Favourite Green Freak: Prince - Plasma Sword - Capcom Fighting Collection 2
In 2025, my daughter and I continued to play Street Fighter 6, passed the controller during To a T, and had a blast playing Ghost Squad, yet our time with Plasma Sword is what stands out most. Not because it's especially good - it's fine - or because we're fans of the series - I'd never even heard of it until this year - but because we derived so much entertainment from Prince, a green humanoid alien with an elongated forehead, a big tongue, and a winning smile. Also, he moonwalks during battle. We still talk about Prince now, several months removed from our last session, with great fondness. Oh, and by the way, the Capcom Fighting Collection 2 is well worth checking out.
Honourable Mention: The Prince - Once Upon a Katamari
28. Enjoyed Far More Than I Thought I Would: Ninja Gaiden 4
I played Ninja Gaiden 4 because I had to regain my honour. I thoroughly embarrassed myself at Tokyo Game Show, dying over and over again during a demo which was almost certainly locked to easy-mode for casuals like me. Fast forward a few months, and I have fully redeemed myself, having beaten the final boss and doing so on Normal difficulty, no less. What a hero! Platinum's take on Ninja Gaiden is consistently entertaining, if a little long. There are plenty of great set pieces and the combat is more accessible than you might expect, though it does demand some commitment to continual improvement, and a willingness to learn new techniques, if you hope to defeat the next boss. The levels are a little Xbox 360-ish in design (complimentary), the music is great, and slicing up enemy grunts never gets old. I'm glad I gave it a shot.
Honourable Mention: Doom: The Dark Ages
29. Proudest Achievement: Unlocking Sonic in Christmas Nights Into Dreams
I created this category so that I could celebrate my successful playthrough of Gitaroo Man Lives earlier this year, but then something even better happened. It is an achievement that required very little skill, but had eluded me for many, many years. Playing Christmas Nights Into Dreams on Christmas Eve, as is tradition, I finally managed to unlock the Sonic mode! At the end of a successful run, you open presents in a simple matching game, where you turn tiles and try to match pairs of images to unlock extras. You need to memorise placement, but you are given so few attempts that it's essentially down to luck. With two attempts left, I turned a Sonic tile, the first I'd seen. No way I'll get a second, I thought to myself, but there it was, a second blue hedgehog. It was nothing short of a Christmas miracle, and I haven't been that excited on Christmas Eve in thirty years! Playing as Sonic makes for a pretty awful experience, obviously, as the level was not built with his land-based skillset in mind, but that's not the point. I finally have Sonic in Nights, and I've backed up the save to a cart so that I can enjoy it again during the next festive period. What a way to end the year.
Honourable Mention: Completing Gitaroo Man Lives!
30. Best Hat Placement: The double-antenna cousin in Once Upon a Katamari
Look at the little blue guy with his two hats! The artists at Bandai Namco could've put the cowboy hat in the middle, nestled between head-prongs, which would have been the sensible thing to do. They might've left this cousin out of the cowboy posse, replaced by a family member with a head shape better suited to a cowboy hat. But no, they accepted the challenge of this non-standard noggin and put a cowboy hat on each of their peaks - one on the left, and one on the right. This willingness to think outside of the box is an example of why Once Upon a Katamari ranks as one of the best looking and visually memorable games of 2025.
31. Wish I'd Made Time For: Ghost of Yotei
I managed to play most of what I wanted this year. Ghost of Yotei was one of the few exceptions, but I was fortunate enough to receive a copy for Christmas, so I'll get to it in the coming weeks. Death Stranding 2 stands out, though I'm unsure if I actually want to play it. I greatly enjoyed the first game, picking it for my 2019 GOTY, and I have a lot of time for Kojima's nonsense, but I'm just not convinced that Death Stranding needed a sequel, and I'm even less convinced that I need to play it. Maybe that'll change when the price comes down? Anyway, Ghost of Yotei.
Honourable Mention: Death Stranding 2, Hell is Us, UFO 50
32. Most Looking Forward to in 2026: Grand Theft Auto VI
I had to do some research for this one, as nothing immediately sprung to mind. Having checked out a couple of release schedules, I can confirm that there are loads of games due next year that I'm sure to enjoy, but nothing that has my pulse racing. The standouts include Grand Theft Auto VI, obviously, Pragmata, which impressed me at TGS, Resident Evil: Requiem, 007 First Light, Marvel's Wolverine, Fable, and Forza Horizon 6. I'm also curious about the spiritual successor to NBA Street, NBA The Run, though the debut trailer raised some concerns. The best result, I think, would be to have another GOTY that's not currently on my radar, much like Clair Obscur this year. For now though, let's go with GTA VI because it's bound to be good, I'll definitely play it, it'll have a massive cultural impact, and will dominate the news cycle. Let's hope it doesn't slip to 2027!
Honourable Mentions: Forza Horizon 6, Fable, Pragmata
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