Hi, I’m Chris, but I go by MrSpacePan on all platforms. I love video games, but I’ve had less time to play them as I get older. It’s made me prioritize games that are pick-up-and-play or short narrative experiences, but that isn’t everything. My favorite genre has been and will always be horror, and this year has had no shortage. I also love fighting games, FPS games, life sims, and RPGs. Some of those genres have games with quite the runtime, so I missed some things I wanted but still got around to some games I was looking forward to. Persona 3 Reload, Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero, Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, and Astro Bot are games I made sure not to miss this year, and I’m glad I didn’t.
Before we get to my list, I’d like to say a few honorable mentions. Hollowbody is a fantastic survival horror game that is a love letter to the genre, and any horror fan needs to play it. Loreal and the Laser Eyes is a puzzle game that will infuriate you at least once, but I keep returning to it. Rival of Aether 2 is a great time and a welcome addition to the platform fighter genre, and it’s not hard to turn a Steam Deck into a portable setup. Marvel Rivals is a fun hero team shooter that feels like 2016/17 Overwatch, the good and the bad. The last game I want to bring up is Clickolding, a weird short experience that I liked, but fair warning, it will make you uncomfortable. While these games didn’t make my list, I still recommend them.
10. Grunn
Grunn is a game about a gardener being hired to maintain a yard for a weekend, but something is off. The house owner isn’t around, the townsfolk seem strange, and it feels like you’re being watched. Grunn is a bizarre game, but it hits all the notes for me. It has puzzle elements, exploration, a fun art style, and even horror. The game is meant to be played in one sitting, and you will do multiple runs.
I’m still working through the endings and haven’t found the true ending myself. New things are learned each playthrough, and I even started taking notes. You can do a run in about an hour but I can’t stop myself at just one. I can’t stop myself from playing more. I unravel the mystery more with each run and can’t put it down. Grunn is a very special, if odd, game I can’t wait to unravel fully.
9. INDIKA
INDIKA is a story-driven adventure game about a Nun going through a clash of faith. You play as Indika, a young nun tasked with making a delivery that becomes a journey of self-discovery. You don’t go on this journey alone. Indika is constantly at odds with a voice in her head claiming to be the devil. She also helps a young man posing questions of God and claims that may help Indika with the voice in her head.
This is a very ambitious story, and I’m glad it nails it. Indika is a fantastic character that I can root for and connect to. I was raised Catholic, and most of my family is still very religious, even if I am not practicing. There is a strange catharsis in watching Indika go on this journey of faith accompanied by the devil. It is a narrative full of puzzles, pixel art minigames, and an art direction I can’t help but praise. I loved my time with INDIKA, and I’m still thinking about the note it ends on.
8. Natsu-Mon: 20th Century Summer Kid
Natsu-Mon: 20th Century Summer Kid is a life simulation game about summer break. You play a young boy whose parents run a traveling circus taking a stop in Yomogi Town. The circus is going through hard times, but that won’t stop you from enjoying summer. Spend all of Summer doing anything you can think of. The only limit is your imagination. As time passes, more of the town opens up, and more activities do as well. You can go fishing, collect bugs, dig up treasure, and solve mysteries.
There is no shortage of ways to spend your summer. Not only is the town full of life, but so are the people living there. I wanted to help everyone, no matter the problem, and make summer memories with all of them. While the town may seem small, the scope and sense of exploration is grand. Summer just becomes another season as we age, but Natsu-Mon reminded me why it meant so much growing up.
7. Persona 3 Reload
Persona 3 is a very special game for many people, myself included. While I have less time to play games now, I made sure to make time for Persona 3 Reload. I spent all my free time in February and March experiencing it all, and I’m glad I did. Reload brings back the emotions I felt when I played the original and adds to it. The original story is still here and packs a punch, but now there are new experiences to amplify it. I loved how the SEES members who don’t have social links now have new social events.
Each of them had me experiencing a wave of emotions that added so much to the game. I had to stop playing the first time I heard “Because I Will Protect You” because I just froze. This remake isn’t perfect. I don’t love how they removed some things, and I’m not crazy about everything they added. But even after all that, I can’t deny that this game is still beautiful, and Persona 3 Reload is a great way to experience it.
6. Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero
Like many others, Dragon Ball is something I have loved my entire life. A significant part of that is the games, and the Budokai Tenkaichi series was an integral part of my childhood. Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero brings me back to that child who spent hours sitting in front of the TV with his brother. That same child who spent hours making his favorite characters fight or reliving every major fight in the series.
The game I loved as a child is still here and something I can boot up now. Nostalgia has some input here, but I wouldn’t have this on my list if I didn’t enjoy it. I had and am still having a great time with Sparking Zero. The What Ifs are so much fun, the core gameplay is still fun, and it’s still a blast to play with friends. Anyone who’s seen a competitive tournament can tell you it’s not perfect. Some parts need work, but it’s getting updated, and I’m looking forward to seeing it grow.
5. Balatro
If you haven’t played Balatro and you’re wondering if all those posts about it are true, they are. You will lose your life to this game, and I guarantee that. The core game is quite simple, it’s poker but a roguelike. You play hands to get the needed score, and you can unlock different abilities in the shop after each round. The result is a very addicting game that is depleting my phone battery at an alarming rate.
I didn’t play Balatro until it came to phones because it looked like I should play it on my phone. When it did, I quickly saw why it had become such a success. That week, I played so much that I had to start taking my battery bank to work so my phone wouldn’t die. Even at work, I sneaked in sessions and had several close calls. I was playing it in the drive-thru, waiting for my food, not responding when being handed my fries. Since then, I’ve put a hard limit on my Balatro time, and my phone couldn’t be happier.
4. Crow Country
Crow Country is a game every survival horror fan must play. A love letter to the genre that anyone can enjoy. Everything about it is a perfect homage to classics in the genre. From the look, the controls, the puzzles, and the writing. The charm is on full display, even if that display has you shooting monsters. In it, you play a special agent investigating a shutdown amusement park. The owner has mysteriously disappeared, and even if the park is shut down, people still need help.
I can’t praise this setting enough. Both the park and the characters are full of charm. Newspaper snippets and environmental storytelling paint a picture of the world outside of this park, and I wanted to explore more. The game ends on this perfect note that left me wanting more and got me to start another playthrough immediately. There is so much to love here for fans of the genre, and I can’t recommend it enough.
3. Indiana Jones and the Great Circle
Indiana Jones and the Great Circle was my most anticipated game this year. When it was first announced, I was sold. MachineGames and Indiana Jones sounded like a perfect combination. Years later, it’s finally here, and I’m happy to say my initial reaction was correct. This has some of the most immersive levels I have seen in a game. You can explore the level any way you want and approach any problem the same. The game allows for stealth, but you can also take a more direct approach.
I love stealth in games, and it’s so much fun here. There is so much to do in each level and it’s crazy how much is happening. This is a stealth game, an immersive sim, an FPS, and a puzzle game. It even gives you a camera and lets you take pictures of cats. That’s just a tiny example of what this game offers, but the craziest part is it all works. I am still playing Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, and I recommend you do the same.
2. Mouthwashing
Mouthwashing is the most brutal narrative I have experienced this year. It is a psychological horror game about a crew on a shipwrecked space freighter. The game is told through a nonlinear narrative, and you jump from before and after the chip crashes. You play as Curly and Jimmy, the ship’s captains, before and after the crash. The rest of your crew are the medic Anya, the mechanic Swansea, and the new guy Daisuke. You must find a way to survive after the crash, but the game is more than that.
It stares into your soul and shows you what filth some people are capable of. You see people you know and feel disgusted as you remember actions you saw or even had to look past. It all stays with you even after the credits roll, and you can’t help but think about who that terrible person was. I can still see and hear scenes play out when I close my eyes. Visceral scenes that terrified me but ones I don’t want to forget. I still struggle to describe the feeling it gave me, but I’m glad I could experience it.
1. Astro Bot
Writing my list out made me realize many of my favorite games this year invoked some nostalgia. Remakes, new entries in classic series, games that remind me of childhood, and games that homage consoles I grew up with. With all that, my favorite game of the year was Astro Bot. Astro Bot is a character I’ve liked for a while now. I got a PSVR for Astro Bot Rescue Mission and don’t regret it. Astro’s Playroom might be my favorite game to come packed in with a console.
When it was announced there would be a full-fledged Astro Bot game, it quickly became one of my most anticipated titles. I am glad to report that it met my expectations and surpassed them. Astro Bot is the ultimate love letter to PlayStation, whether it’s the bots dressed up as famous characters or complete levels modeled after iconic PlayStation games.
The game is oozing charm that anyone who had a PlayStation will love. On top of that, it’s also a lot of fun. Each level is filled with inventive platforming that had me smiling my entire playthrough. It’s a blast to play from start to finish, and it’s even more fun to complete. Even the most casual player will feel compelled to save every bot and find every puzzle piece.
The game even rewards you for doing everything with one last ultimate level, and it is so much fun. Since release, it’s also gotten more levels from free updates. Each new level has delighted me and reminded me why I love this game. I hope all the love Astro Bot is a wake-up call for Sony because we need more games like it. This was my game of the year for a reason, and I hope to see more.
