Not guaranteed to be complete, but I tried to properly track what I played this year and write down a thought or two on each game, listed in alphabetical order. I’m not a reviewer, as will become evident, but always found it a good exercise to put what stood out to me into words.
- 1000xRESIST
Many words have been written about this game by way better writers than me. I want to add that the way this reveals its world is so masterful. It’s intriguing, mysterious and playful at the right moments. - Abiotic Factor
This is if “Half-Life 1 as a survival crafter” but also so much more. I played this in early access last year. Returned to it now that it’s released and had more areas added, and my opinion still stands: An incredibly fun, massive and very unique game. The sprawling facility feels more like a Dark Souls world due to the many connections and shortcuts, which add a lot to the immersion. You’ll find a lot of the common survival-game systems here, but also some mechanics that subvert genre conventions. And thanks to the generous options available to customize your experience, I can also recommend this game for solo players. - ADACA
This is pretty much a 50:50 blend of Halo and Half Life 2. Feels excellent and has a nice challenge curve to it. - Boxes
A “Room” type game, where you fiddle with mystical mechanisms and puzzle boxes. Very fun to play, especially on a touch screen. - Caput Mortum
The unique control scheme is more than just a novelty in this retro survival horror. Found this a great experience with some surprising and fun moments. - DEATH STRANDING Director’s Cut
Late to playing this one, but honestly enjoyed this one a lot. Confirms my hot take that Kojima is a better game designer than movie director. Finally, an actual “systemic” walking simulator (shout out to Miasmata) - Dread Delusion
I was sold on this as an “Indie Morrowind”, but it actually distills its RPG systems down to tight but satisfying systems that really feel empowering. It’s strange world challenges you to figure out its rules, with some memorable quests on the way. There was also way more meat to this than I expected. - Dungeons Of Hinterberg
Probably one of the most underrated games I’ve played this year. A great mix of old-school Zelda dungeon-run and Persona-style socializing gameplay, with surprisingly deep story and characters that grow on you. Gets bonus points for how it captures Austrian tourist-towns in more ways than just a cosmetic way. - Echo Protocol: Escape Room
So this is the first released game that was made with COGITO, the Godot Engine 4 template that I created, which now has multiple contributors. The game has some rough edges but some very neat puzzles. Really cool to see people using Godot templates to bring their projects to life. - Enshrouded
This is how you steal ideas from about a dozen different games and make them your own. Very easy to loose a few dozen hours in, also scratches that Minecraft itch. - The Excavation of Hob’s Barrow
I’m not a big point-and-click adventure player, but this drew me in. Charming and eerie in equal parts. - FlyKnight
A small package that bags a big punch. Fascinating to play, retro-inspired but unique style and an intriguing world. - The Forest
The quintessential horror-survival crafter. The enemy behaviour and a world map that’s just the right size keeps The Forest engaging from start to finish. - Hyper Light Breaker
I can’t help but be a bit disappointed. I’d be onboard with the rogue-light run structure (which has vastly improved over the early access time), but it desperately needs more content and improved balancing when playing solo. While the beautiful game and characters are all there, the recent staff reduction at Heart Machine makes me believe we might not see much more of HLB. - The Invincible
An absolute triumph in Sci-Fi adaptation. Fantastic art direction, voice acting and manages to really capture the mood of a grand space adventure. - Isles of Sea and Sky
- A retro adventure game based on Sokoban puzzle mechanics. There’s a lot more to this than meets the eye, though the charming retro graphics and fantastic music need to be complimented as well – but Isles of Sea and Sky also pushes the basic Sokoban gameplay to new heights with regularly introducing new mechanics and plenty of optional challenges. Do not miss this one, even if you think Sokoban is not for you.
- Little Orpheus
From The Chinese Room’s their previous games I knew to expect a “walking sim” and while it didn’t have a great finale, the moment to moment writing and voice acting were a joy. - Metal Garden
This game is vibes. A fantastic example of how much world-building can be done while keeping a constrained scope. - Moving Houses
There’s been enough games that use “subverting expectations” as a selling point where it almost becomes a trope. At a first glance, I have to admit I thought Moving Houses would fall into this category, but similar to Unpacking, there’s a reflective and introspective part to Moving Houses that depending on your own life experiences can really hit home. - The Planet Crafter
The quintessential Sci-Fi “whittle game”. I was charmed by “numbers go up” being reflected in the active changing of the planet’s landscape, weather, atmosphere and even life. - Polimines & Polimines 2
Take the mechanics of Minesweeper and Picross/nonograms and combine it into a single game – then boil it down to it’s essence and you get Polimines. The smaller number of levels in each might make them seem short, but these puzzles will force you to really think hard to find the one solution without any guesswork. - Proverbs
In a way this is the opposite approach to Polimines. Proverbs takes Minesweeper gameplay and applies it to one gigantic puzzle – a massive painting that pictures a variety of historic proverbs. Pretty and addicting. - RoboCop Rogue City
Now this is a movie-to-game adaptation that understands it’s source material. The humour and tone is spot-on, and the slower more tank-like controls makes you really feel like you’re in Robocops… Uh.. Shoes? - Squeakross: Home Squeak Home
As GRIDHACK, the game we’re working on is a nonogram game, I of course like to keep my eyes on other nonogram games. Squeakross is the standout title this year: The pitch is: What if each nonogram puzzle would unlock a piece of furniture you can use to decorate your own rodents little house? Besides the cute Animal Crossing-style house decoration, Squeakross features the most polished and customizable nonogram experience to date. Great QoL features like a cursor-based counter or toggleable zooms, to customizable details like guide-line placement, cursor start position and many more. - STALKER 2
The long awaited sequel to legendary STALKER – ginormous, beautiful, unforgiving and somehow manages to keep all the promises made and meets all expectations from fans. It almost feels like it was teleported into our timeline from a parallel dimension. - Still Wakes The Deep
Through pure coincidence, the second The Chinese Room game I’ve played this year. Impeccable vibes and a unique setting, this is probably one of the best depiction of cosmic horror in a game that I can remember. - You Must Build A Boat
Successor to 10000000 and pretty much the same game – a match-3 battler, mostly focus on playing it fast and loose, then racking up currencies to purchase upgrades.