Scott’s Personal Favorite Games of 2025
Another year has come and gone, and with it a veritable cornucopia of quality titles to play. Coming up with ten games was difficult, but for different reasons than years past. I played a lot of games that required a good amount of time to complete, even if they didn’t make my top ten. On top of that, I reviewed over two games a month this year. I simply didn’t have the time to play as much as I would have liked. That’s something I hope to remedy in 2026.
Honorable Mentions
2025 simply had too many games to experience them all, and I have a lot of regrets this time around. The following is a list of games that I either missed completely or didn’t play enough to justify adding to a top ten list. In an effort to avoid anyone reading this getting upset for their favorite title not making my list, here are my honorable mentions that probably deserve recognition. Sadly, I can’t play everything.
- Arc Raiders
- Baby Steps
- Cronos: The New Dawn
- Donkey Kong Bananza
- Ghost of Yotei
- Hades II
- Hollow Knight: Silksong
- Shinobi: Art of Vengeance
- The Outer Worlds 2
Now that I have that taken care of, here are my personal favorites of 2025. Be sure to check out the links for the full written reviews or podcast episode where I talked about the game.
#10 – Ninja Gaiden: Ragebound
Almost everything about Ninja Gaiden: Ragebound just feels good. It’s a game that’s nostalgic for the original games because of its speedrunning mentality. The gameplay focused on a flow state where memorizing enemy location and platforms is key to keep your momentum consistently in check. The controls are slick, and mistakes are due to a player issue instead of the game treating you unfairly. Plus, ninjas are just cool, man.
Admittedly, I didn’t roll credits on this one, but it definitely scratches the itch with its two protagonists, awesome boss fights, and overall cool factor.
#9 – Mafia: The Old Country
The only game from the Mafia series I’ve played prior to this was Mafia III, and I didn’t last very long with that one. Thankfully, Mafia: The Old Country made me sit up and take notice. Sure, the story is predictable as all get out, but it’s incredibly refreshing to see such a cinematic story told in this medium.
It’s also intentionally not a difficult game to play. Clearly the developers want its players to experience this classic tale from start to finish. The gameplay is varied, the world is gorgeous, and the voice acting is top-notch. This might be one of the best titles of the year that no one is talking about anymore.
#8 – Metroid Prime 4: Beyond
If you heard me talk about Metroid Prime 4: Beyond on the podcast, you might be surprised to see this one on my list. Sure, I had my gripes with the game. There’s nothing more than a quick shot of actual Metroids, the antagonist’s motivations are hidden behind a 100% playthrough, and the endgame grind feels wholly unnecessary. With all that said, most of the rest of the game feels exactly how the next iteration of the Prime series should. The combat is tight, the exploration is interesting, and the abilities feel great. Also, it’s the best the series has ever looked. Here’s to hoping we get more from Samus and her new friends in the future.
#7 – Ball x Pit
Ball x Pit probably gets my vote for the most addicting game of 2025. There’s something incredibly satisfying about the combination of Arkanoid-style gameplay with roguelike mechanics. Plus, my pinball loving brain loves anything with bouncing balls. Outside of the base-building, which didn’t grab me at all, this title is one of the easiest to recommend. It’s a game that once you try it, it’s impossible to put down.
#6 – Dispatch
As for the biggest surprise of the year, that has to go to Dispatch. I don’t know that I would have given this game a shot without the glowing recommendation from my cohost, Zack. When I started playing it, I didn’t like the gameplay and just wanted to see the story through. After a while, however, it grew on me, and I wound up looking forward to dispatching super heroes around Los Angeles. It’s a game like no other I’ve ever played. Couple that with a very R-rated story, an impeccable voice cast, and you’ve got a great experience worthy of any gamer’s time. At least ones that aren’t easily offended.
#5 – Blade Chimera
Blade Chimera may be #5 on my list, but it deserves so much love. It’s my hidden gem of 2025, and the game I hope people give a chance more than any other this year. It appears like your standard, run-of-the-mill gear-gated 2D adventure, but this one has something that most don’t: an incredibly engaging story. Most games of this style often feel like the narrative is an afterthought with a focus on mechanics. This one has a great narrative to tell that I can almost guarantee will surprise you by the end.
But that’s not all. There’s a ton of fresh ideas built into the gameplay that make this one stand out above the rest. You have both ranged and melee attacks at your disposal, and the former do different amounts of damage based on how far away your are from an enemy. I can’t think of another game that offers that kind of detail that wasn’t a straight-up shooter. The bosses are also a ton of fun, and your time is never wasted. All in all, I can’t recommend this one enough. Please play Blade Chimera.
#4 – Split/Fiction
To this day, my producer, Kevin Honigford, is still mad at me that I didn’t give Split/Fiction a 10/10 in my review. He and I played this one together, and (in his eyes), it’s a perfect 10. While I had some minor issues, it’s still an absolute delight to play. Kevin and I laughed harder than I ever expected, and more often than either of us expected. When it all comes together at the end, the game truly shines in a way that absolutely has to be experienced to believe.
The best part is that you can play through the entire game as the opposite character and come away with a truly unique experience. It’s a game (perhaps genre, at this point) that keeps on giving. Everyone should play this game, and the Friend Pass makes it even harder to pass up. If you haven’t checked this one out yet, I highly encourage you to remedy that as soon as possible.
#3 – Moonlighter 2: The Endless Vault
The original Moonlighter was one of my absolute favorite games of 2018. I was a perfect balance of randomly-generated dungeon crawling and shop management. Needless to say, I was very much anticipating the sequel. Even though the game is still in Early Access, it feels like a 1.0 release. It also strays from the safe play of just offering simply more of the same. It instead revamps the gameplay, forcing veteran players to relearn how to properly explore its dungeons. There’s also a ton of quality of life improvements with the shopkeeper gameplay, which helps to respect the player’s time much more than the original.
This game might not be for everyone, but it clicks with me in ways that make me feel all warm and fuzzy inside. If you’ve every been curious about the roguelike genre, you can’t go wrong with this series.
#2 – Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
What can I say about Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 that hasn’t been said already? I’m sure people are probably sick of hearing about this JRPG from France, but don’t let its popularity stop you. There’s a reason this one is so popular: it’s that good. This is the game that I would point to when people try to argue that video games are not a valid form of art. Everything about this game is gorgeous from the music, the visuals, the voice acting, the story, and the characters themselves. This is the only title from 2025 that has had me scouring the Internet for more to read about its lore after rolling credits. Even though the ending was satisfying, I still wanted to learn more. It’s truly something special.
#1 – Blue Prince
If you had shown me screenshots of Blue Prince at the beginning of the year and told me that this was going to be my favorite game of the coming year, I wouldn’t have believed you. On the surface, it looks like a simple puzzle game with cel-shaded graphics. What it turned out to be was the most memorable experiences I’ve had playing a game with a friend ever.
No, it’s not a multiplayer game at all. There’s not even an option to play it with a second player. But I had an absolute blast comparing notes with my two co-hosts, Jacob and CB. We all had countless “a-ha” moments, and did our best to support each other without spoiling the experience along the way. It made for an immensely satisfying game that I’m still thinking about to this day.
If you’ve ever enjoyed an escape room, you owe it to yourself to give Blue Prince a try. It’s the only game from 2025 that I got genuinely giddy with excitement each time I uncovered its next mystery. It’s a game unlike anything I’ve ever played, and it begs to be experienced.
What. A. Year. It’s not the best ever, but it had some of the most memorable experiences of my life. More than one of these games will be sitting with me for years to come, and I feel like that’s something I haven’t said about a previous year in a long time. Here’s to hoping that 2026 is even half as enjoyable. Even more importantly, here’s to hoping that I can make time to play everything the upcoming year has to offer.
