Top 10 games I played in 2025:

1. Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
2. Elden Ring
3. Dragon Quest XI S
4. Persona 5 Royal
5. Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition
6. The Spell Brigade
7. Persona 4 Golden
8. Project Zomboid
9. Final Fantasy VII (PS1)
10. Huntdown
SM: Dispatch

Special mention to Dispatch. It is an unranked 11th because I don't know how to rank a game who's greatest strength is playing out as an excellent TV series.

Incredible year! It was the year of the JRPG as half my list is comprised of excellent examples of that genre that I spent so much time avoiding in prior years. Clair Obscur takes the #1 on the strength of its storytelling- an incredible experience.

My top two are arguably tied and are right up there with the best games I've ever played. Given all the awards these two received that shouldn't be a surprise but I am pleased they exceeded my expectations.

My 3-5 are also incredibly close to each other before a more standard spread through the rest of the list.

Top 10 games I played in 2024:

1. Helldivers 2
2. Fall Guys
3. Factorio
4. Rimworld
5. Final Fantasy IV (SNES)
6. Mad Games Tycoon 2
7. Abalon
8. Tchia
9. Invincible Presents: Atom Eve
10. Star Traders Frontier

Honorable mention to Little Kitty Big City, a joyful game for the family, and Marvel Puzzle Quest which peaked for me and for which I have now retired.

Overall a B+ year with a lot of depth but nothing that stood tall amongst its peers. I could easily swap any of my top 4 and feel good about it, but none can compete with prior years' #1s. Conversely, there are games not on this list that would have bumped some of my bottom fives in prior years.

I'm giving the crown to Helldivers 2 though for the brilliant presentation and excellent mechanical feel. It's so much fun.

Tchia stands out as well for having some of the best open world exploration I've ever experience yet at the same time being one of my most disappointing games thanks to terrible combat and story.

Top 10 games I played in 2023

1. Baldur's Gate 3
2. Dwarf Fortress
3. Lego Bricktales
4. Retro Bowl
5. Dave the Diver
6. Solasta Crown of the Magister
7. Madden 23
8. Armored Core 6
9. Lego Worlds
10. Wildermyth

HM: Marvel Puzzle Quest & GTA Online

I thought it would be hard to top Dwarf Fortress' incredibly detailed and system driven colony adventure, but then Baldur's Gate 3 rolls into town as one of the best games I've ever played. It takes the best of games like Divinity OS 2 and Dragon Age, and adds a layer of charm and depth to it that the only complaint I have about it is the occassional bug and the overall length (a double edged sword).

I could re-arrange 3-9 and feel pretty good about the rankings.

Shout-out to Madden 23, where they actually fixed some of my decade long gripes, and the Lego games I played this year with my kid and really got to enjoy some pure cooperative gaming.

Early mention: Marvel's Midnight Suns - Will certainly be on next year's list.

Top 10 games I played in 2022

1. VTOL VR
2. Guardians of the Galaxy
3. Fall Guys
4. It Takes Two
5. Immortals: Fenyx Rising
6. Distant Worlds 2
7. The Lego Movie Video Game
8. Spider-man Miles Morales
9. Terra Invicta
10. GTA Online

A repeat! VTOL VR absolutely dominated all my gaming in early-mid 2022 and it is my clear #1 despite having already been my #1 back when it was in early access. Games are changing to an evolving product and so my list rules are evolving as well. VTOL VR made huge changes such as multiplayer and twice as many aircraft since I played in 2019.

Other than VTOL most of these didn't really wow me. GotG has the best characters with so-so level design. Fall Guys is a blast but is shallow. Immortals was a fun and colorful with an unsatisfying story.

Shout out to The Lego Movie Video Game that is the best movie adaptation ever with an awesome soundtrack and excellent voice performances.

Another honorable mention to Marvel Puzzle Quest, which continues to excel.

Top 10 games I played in 2021

1. Half-Life Alyx
2. Total War: Three Kingdoms
3. Spiritfarer
4. Yakuza: Like a Dragon
5. Ultimate Admiral: Age of Sail
6. Gunfire Reborn
7. Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order
8. Valheim
9. The Artful Escape
10. Sea of Thieves

It took a while to split out my 2-6 games and I could arrange them in any order and feel pretty good about it. Ultimate Admiral would have been a contender for game of the year because the sailing battles are incredible but the land battles are atrocious .

HL: Alyx is an amazing experience with some of the best level design of *any* game I've played.

Special shout out to Spiritfarer and The Artful Escape, which really gave me pause to think about how art plays into games. Spiritfarer crawled into my head and made me live through a death and TAE made me contemplate the idea of sound.

Honorable mention to Lego City Undercover, vicariously enjoyed through my kid, and Marvel Puzzle Quest a great phone game.

Top 10 games I played in 2020

1. Red Dead Redemption 2
2. Hades
3. Grand Theft Auto Online
4. Star Wars Squadrons
5. Deep Rock Galactic
6. Divinity Original Sin 2
7. Farming Simulator 2019
8. World War Z
9. Rimworld
10. Gwent

Easy choice for RDR2 as my #1 as it is an incredibly ambitious, beautiful, memorable, and emotional game. I needed to be in the right headspace for it, but once I was there it was incredible and it is one of the best games I've ever played. Hades would have been a strong contender for #1 had it been a different year.

GTA Online was some of the most fun I've had in years, despite all of the big flaws. 4-6 might as well be a tie, so I ranked based on the best moments and there's nothing quite like looking around in a VR X-wing. Farming Simulator is kind of an odd one as it is there because of the experience playing it with my son.

Overall a good year in gaming with the oddity that half of my list was played almost exclusively multiplayer.