Published: Jan 1, 2026 by Brandon Jones
Last year I did a recap of all the games I played during 2024, and I kinda want to make that an annual thing. So here’s my quick rundown of everything I played in 2025. Note that the list is more-or-less in the order that I played them, and I’m including almost everything I played, so none of that top 10 business here.
Caravan Sand Witch
Reccommended by a friend. Really chill, story-driven experience. Zero combat. Ending was pretty sudden, which was a let-down. Also, there’s a big character reveal that falls flat because you’re like “Wait, am I supposed to know who this is?” Still nice to just explore, though. 6/10
Star of Providence
Amusing little rouge-like that I toyed with on and off throughout the year. Never held my attention for too long, but I still enjoyed the time that I spent with it. 7/10
Blue Prince
Really REALLY enjoyed this one. Took a bit to “get it” but after that I sunk a lot of time into this one. Unfortunately never got to the true ending it because at some point you start solving puzzles who’s reward is just clues to other puzzles you’ve already solved, while some of the biggest puzzles remain too opaque to move forward on. Still, highly recommended! 9/10
Undertale
Finally got around to playing this one all the way through. Tried for a fully peaceful run first go, only to find out that that’s pretty much forbidden by the last boss. It was…. fine? I liked it, but I’m not sure I really get the intense fandom. (Megalovania slaps, though! Too bad my run skipped it entirely.) 6/10
Doom the Dark Ages
I really enjoyed Doom 2016, still had fun with but felt less enthusiastic about Doom Eternal. This felt like a very comfortable middle ground for me, and I had a blast with it. I could have done without so many Very Serious Cutscenes, though. Doom’s storytelling for me peaked in the first 10 minutes of Doom 2016 when the player smashes an intercom to get the lore dump to shut up, and they’ve never really recaptured that. 9/10
Spider-Man 2
I really enjoyed Spider-Man and Miles Morales, so was hoping for more of the same here and it mostly is, but the story didn’t click for me as well and the state that the game leaves you in after 100%ing it (monster attacks still randomly spawning all over the city) left a bad taste in my mouth. Still, hard to complain about how fun it is to just swing and glide around the city. 8/10
Unravel 2
I had started playing this one with my son a couple of years back but he wasn’t quite ready for it. Gave it another shot this year and we made it all the way through! Sequences where you’re being chased by some sort of critter are the best. Ends pretty abruptly. Still a fun co-op experience. 7/10
Viewfinder
Interesting, reminded me a lot of Superliminal in that it clearly wants to be Portal and brushes up against it, but in the end just doesn’t quite have the same kind of hook. 7/10
Silksong
I know this isn’t a ranked list, but this is far and away my game of the year. Beautiful, fun, and brutally difficult, I sunk more time into this than I care to admit, and am ravenously awaiting the DLC. Everything I had hoped for from a Hollow Knight sequel and more! 11/10
Hades 2
Technically a game I started in 2024, but I came back after they hit 1.0 to finish the story mode. The story wraps up nicely! But I also have some issues with how that story resolution is squared with the game loop, which isn’t handled here nearly as nicely as in Hades 1. Still, it’s a fantastic game! 10/10
Lego Voyagers
Another co-op game with my son. Controls took a bit of getting used to. We had fun with it for a while but he eventually lost interest. I enjoyed the abstract Lego-ness of it all. 8/10
Ball x Pit
A fun take on the Vampire Survivors formula which I’ve only started playing. Wish that harvesting wasn’t such a pain, but the main gameplay is fun! 8/10
Games I tried but bounced off of pretty quickly
- Mika and the Witches Mountain
- Peak
- South of Midnight
- Sektori
Nintendo games which I played for a few minutes before the Switch was reclaimed by my children
- Mario Kart World
- Donkey Kong Bananza
- Mario Galaxy 2
Not actually a game, but cute and fun anyway!
- Tiny Glade