Topic: Non-2025 Game of the Year

I've been following the Game of the Year 2025 thread and noticed that some, like myself, have mostly played games from previous years. I figured I'd create a thread to share our favourites that we only discovered this year, even though they aren't 2025 releases. I'd love to hear what games you (finally) gave a shot and fell in love with and which are the best of the bunch!

@Tjuz yeah this is pretty much always my GotY thread tbh:

1. Lords of the Fallen (2023) - an incredible homage to the Dark Souls series that actually felt like playing its next instalment.
2. The Division - I remember really struggling to like The Division 2 back around 4 years ago… but even though my memories weren’t the best, I felt a strange pull for something similar. Had a blast with the original (and if I’m honest, would’ve probably enjoyed 2 too if I’d played that at the right time). Can’t wait for D3!
3. Aliens: Fireteam Elite - was actually really wary of taking this on given the various horror tales of broken trophy hunters strewn in its path… glad I decided to give it a go though. Unbelievably cheap in regards to how the game sets you up to fail sometimes but overall such good fun!
4. Zombie Army Trilogy - not quite as good as ZA4 but still great fun… and excellent in co-op.
5. Generation Zero - reviewed terribly at its release but it’s been patched now and runs pretty well. I love the Farcry series and this is like FC set in a post-robot invaded 80’s Scandinavia. Sounds bat-💩 crazy I know… but it’s great. Such a pleasant surprise.

The Legend of Zelda Tears of the Kingdom (2023) and Super Neptunia RPG (2019)

Good thread OP.
I too will list my top 5.
1. Hitman. I bought this because of the VR1 port, started playing it and a week later they announced VR2 port was on the way so I put it on ice till this year and wow what a game, so much content that I have to pace myself.
2. Aliens Fireteam elite. I had my arm twisted into playing this and had dismissed it as a poor attempt to cash in on the franchise and whilst it does had some suspect aspects it is lots of fun with friends...just be prepared to scream “game over” every so often.
3. GT7. GaaS done well, bravo.
4. God of war Ragnarok. Story was iffy compared to the first one but the combat and world building were top notch.
5. Synapse. Really enjoyed this but just wish there was more of it.

Alice Madness Returns (PS3/2011) was the best game i’ve played in years, that I’ve only decided to try this year.

Also tried Mass Effect 1 at the beginning of this year for the first time (only played 2 & 3 initially) & I like it better than 3.

I think I’d have to say my non-2025 GOTY is…..

Axiom Verge 2

Slay the Princess: The Pristine Cut.

That game well and truly blew me away.

I'm going to go with a top 3 here, as these are the defining games of the year for me I would call a must-play without any hesitation. Without further ado, here they are:

1. Disco Elysium (2019)

I don't think there's much that needs to be said about this one, since I think every word in the English vocabulary has been used in describing it by now. Truly a masterpiece. This was actually the second time I attempted it, since the first time I bounced off of it before ever leaving the diner. This time, it grabbed me instantly and didn't let go for the whole week I spent playing it. As many have said, some of the best writing within gaming. Gorgeous visuals and fantastic voice acting. Just incredibly impressive all around. The role-playing mechanics do a great job of letting you create your own version of Harry and the reactivity within the world to your skills/afflictions/choices are so well executed. Emotional as all hell at times as well, as I can remember it making me cry on two separate occasions. Most games don't even manage to do it once!

2. Xenoblade Chronices (2010)

I think I've said everything that needs to be said about it already in my post on the impressions thread. This one really had me hooked more than any other JRPG I've played so far. I just couldn't put it down. The mind-numbing side quests, the engaging story, the world exploration and beautiful environments... the very simple loop of the incredibly repetitive combat. Not all well-executed on their own, but when it all comes together, it created for such comfortable gaming that would, at the same time, truly get me with the story beats. I did burn out on it once midway through, which more often than not is a death sentence for any game I'm playing. This one I came back to just mere months later as I couldn't let it go. The fact that I had enough attachment to it to return speaks volumes to the quality of my experience. I'll link my impressions here if anyone is interested:

https://www.pushsquare.com/forums/retro_and_other_gaming/user...

3. Resident Evil 4 Remake (2023)

Late last year marked the turning point where I both got fully back into gaming as well as getting obsessed with survival horror. Within one-year span, I played through all of the modern Resident Evil games. I started with 2 Remake and it culminated in my experience with 4 Remake. Coincidentally, the two very best of the franchise that I've played. The whole journey started and ended with a bang, and I'm still unsure which of those two I ultimately prefer. 4 Remake is just an incredibly engaging game from start to finish. The camp! It's all just so highly entertaining. The story as well as the satisfyingly refined combat and movement. 2 and 4 do different things and both excel at it. I cannot wait for the next entry with Requiem! This franchise has successfully converted me into a big fan of the genre.

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@graymamba @CaptD I'm gonna be honest. Every time I've seen Aliens: Fireteam Elite mentioned before, I thought people were talking about Colonial Marines. It's taken until it being mentioned in such a positive light by both of you that I've had to google the name to verify it and notice I've been wrong all this time. You learn something new every day! Now that I've seen what it actually is, it does look quite interesting. I can love a good 7/10 game from time to time. I might have to get some friends together to play this!

@graymamba I noticed googling around about the games I didn't know much about (like Fireteam Elite) that pretty much all of these are co-op! You said you played Zombie Army Trilogy in co-op at least, but did you play the others ones the same? I've had to note them all down as I'm constantly on the look-out for fun, new co-op experiences, so I've appreciated reading through this top 5!

@CaptD I'm jealous I don't have access to any VR hardware! Synapse looks really cool and I'm sure Hitman was fantastic in VR, indeed.

@nomither6 I might have to follow your lead on Alice: Madness Returns at some point. I've always been very interested in it, especially since I love a good adventure game as well as fairy tale theming. I'm happy to hear it didn't disappoint even when just getting into it so late!

@Ralizah Heard nothing but good things about that one! I think what's put me off until now is that (from what I know) the experience seems very reliant on playing it through quite a few times and exploring different endings. I'm the type of person who gets very put off by replaying sections over and over, but I'm not sure how much that is the case here or if I even truly have the right view of it. If I'm wrong and that isn't actually the case, I might have to put this one high up on my backlog!

@Tjuz yeah I played 2, 3 and 4 in co-op (with @CaptD and a few other guys that we know)… and I did summon/allow myself to be summoned and invade on Lords of the Fallen (not a massive amount… just enough to cover the specific trophy requirements).

Funnily enough, I’ve been a bit shocked by how much I’ve enjoyed some co-op gaming this last couple of years myself. I’ve always considered myself a solitary gamer and only really delved into the world of multiplayer gaming due to falling down the trophy-hunting rabbit hole. It definitely adds an extra level of satisfaction/accomplishment when you overcome a challenge together with other people, communicating effectively and fulfilling specific roles etc.

edit. Oh and I did actually play around 30 minutes of Generation Zero in co-op too… again for a specific multiplayer trophy requirement. 😅

@Tjuz
RE4 is great, I think it was my game of the year 2024.
I played that all in VR as well. , I still have the dlc to play though.

I’ve yet to play Disco Elysium. I downloaded it when it was part of PS+ Extra and as it since been removed I tried to buy it when it was on sale a few months back and the store refused to sell it to me.

@Tjuz It's definitely anchored around replaying the game over and over, which I normally wouldn't be a fan of either, but several elements mitigate the irritation I'd normally associate with this.

1. Any one run of the game is short. Very, very short. It's not really designed to only be played once, and you'd be cheating yourself if you did.

2. Like any good visual novel with choices/a branching narrative, you can very quickly skip through previously read dialogue. It's less 'playing through the same sections over and over' vs. experimenting with choices to see how they transform the narrative.

3. There's so many different routes and variations on routes that you're almost never just seeing the same thing over again.

I guess the worst thing about the game is, if you're going for the platinum, some of the CGs and route variations can be a bit tricky to get, which can lead to some repetition as you crawl through older routes looking for unseen content. I got the equivalent of that on PC, but honestly, it was worth it. And if you just want to see the majority of what the game has to offer, there's honestly going to be very little repetition, because you'll skip through the stuff you've already seen and access new content pretty regularly by making different choices.

Do you know The Stanley Parable? Imagine something like that, but in visual novel form.

Pretty good year for non-2025 games and me. Once I lined then all up. Some of the best games I actually beat this year:

A tier: The Case of the Golden Idol, Super Mario Odyssey, Pentiment
S tier: The Last of Us Part II, Death Stranding
S+ tier: Final Fantasy VII Rebirth

I beat The Last of Us Part II, Death Stranding, The Case of the Golden Ido

I finally got around to The Last of Us Part I and Part II, and of those two, I'd say Part II is my Game of the Year.

I'm also replaying God of War 2018 for the platinum, but since that's a replay I won't count it.

Always great to see somebody else discover the sheer depth of the recent Hitman games (although I suppose you're right, it's all one game now). I can only imagine how immersive VR must make it, but I'm not surprised to see it top your list. Hope you continue to enjoy!

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Ended up pre-emptively sharing some of mine over in the other topic, but I'll separate them out from this year's new releases and share 'em again anyway...

1) Dragon Age: The Veilguard
This has been locked in combat with Mass Effect 3 ever since I finished it, duking it out to be called my all-time favourite BioWare game. I already know that Rook's my favourite customisable protagonist from any game, ever, and I also know that it's the first time I have universally loved and connected with every single squad member in a story-driven RPG, to the point where I actually got to agonise over my choice of romance (which has never happened to me before). Its ending did such a number on me, to the point where I had to go back and immediately play it again. I wanna go back and make different choices, pick a different class and different dialogue options, but the fact that I'll likely end up repeating exactly what I did before kinda underscores how much it all meant to me. An absolutely brilliant experience.

2) Tales of Kenzera: ZAU
One of the most heartfelt, resonant stories I have ever found in a game, told via some enjoyably slick and simple gameplay (although it should be noted that I'm not an expert on the genre). Abubakar Salim's incredible performance really stuck with me. Been thinking about it for a while now.

3) Jurassic World: Evolution and Evolution 2
Again, the management simulator / park builder genre isn't my usual fare, so perhaps there's a novelty factor at play here. Add the fact that I'm already a fan of the I.P. anyway and you really shouldn't be taking my word on whether these are objectively "good games" or not, but hey, I like 'em (even when they force me to be cruel to goats and suggest I make my dinosaurs fight one another).

4) Life is Strange: True Colours
Cosy slice of local drama, kept tight and compelling from start to finish. While nobody from Haven Springs will ever knock the Diaz brothers from my top spot, the cast did a great job drawing me in and making me care about what was gonna happen next. To be honest, I could have almost done without the superpower angle, but I guess life has gotta strange. Anyway, nice game was nice.

5) LEGO Horizon Adventures
Contender for one of the prettiest games ever made. Getting to hear Ashly Burch, John Macmillan, John Hopkins and J.B. Blanc cut loose as madcap, overly-enthusiastic plastic incarnations of Aloy, Varl, Erend and Rost was (and is) a treat, one I happily endured a bunch of repetitive gameplay for.

6) inFAMOUS: Second Son and First Light
Finally got around to clearing these from my backlog and they were exactly what I expected they'd be, which is good, because I expected them to be as enjoyable as their PS3 predecessors. Not sure I agree with calls to resurrect the franchise, but it was definitely a blast while it lasted.

1. Silent Hill 2 Remake (2024) - First time playing this franchise. Moody, atmospheric, has its share of creepy moments and creature designs. Sound effects are brilliant, as are the acting. Story is confusing, and backtracking getting various objects as puzzles is annoying.

2. Red Dead Redemption 2 (2018) - Yes, finally got around to it. Played the original on x360. Characters, story, graphics, music are excellent. Had issues on the gameplay front in the form of broken sidequests (graphical bugs that stop them from starting), and various other bugs and glitches throughout.

3. Senua's Saga Hellblade 2 (2024) - Damn, the graphics and sound on this thing is better than the first game. Character design is "through the roof". Only real issue is this acts like Senua doing a game length side quest, and Ninja Theory did not expand on her psychosis condition.

4. 1000XResist (2024) - A heavily narrative driven sci-fi story with some puzzle bits. Voice acting is excellent, and cartoon like graphics. Only major issue was the camera controls which is uncontrollable in many places.

@graymamba Glad you've discovered the fun of co-op! I'm not really into multiplayer myself either, but playing co-op campaigns with friends has always been a blast. Sounds like CaptD has been a great help on that front letting you experience it all together.

@CaptD I'm not sure how much I would enjoy playing a horror game in VR. I love horror and am generally incredibly hard to scare, but I feel like that might put me over the edge and have me a trembling mess the whole time, haha. Resident Evil is at least not that bad probably, with it being all campy and such. Sucks that the store didn't let you buy Disco Elysium! If ever that gets fixed, I will obviously say it's a must-play. Sony keeping you from it is unacceptable!

@Ralizah Happy to hear that it didn't bother you when you normally feel the same way. That gives me hope that I'll be okay with it too, since it has always seemed incredibly interesting. I was surprisingly okay with doing a B-campaign of Resident Evil 2 and enjoying myself and this sounds like it'll be a lot less repetitive especially with all the skipping you can do. I do remember playing The Stanley Parable, but I think I mostly watched a lot of that on YouTube, haha. Thank you for the elaboration! I've put it on my wishlist to keep it on my mind.

@Herculean Can't say I've played any of these yet, but they are definitely a selection of big hitters! I'm mostly interested in Pentiment, so after your praise, I might have to put that one up some places on the backlog!

@Werehog Shocked to see you put Dragon Age: The Veilguard above all Mass Effect games! I knew you liked it a lot, but I didn't realise it was quite to that degree. I'm not sure whether to feel betrayed or all the more pushed to give it a proper shot. Very exciting to hear that you fell in love with each and every one of its squadmates though! I can't say that's happened with me ever either, so that sounds very promising. Do you know if the choices have wide-ranging consequences on a new playthrough or is it a lot more flavour than I might be used to from the ME trilogy?

I've had my eye on Tales of Kenzera: ZAU at points, but it didn't quite seem up my alley in terms of its gameplay. If you say that the story more than makes up for it with being incredibly well-executed though, I might have to put it back on the wishlisht and keep an eye on it. Are you planning to get the new Jurassic World: Evolution entry any time soon? I figure you might be burnt out on it a bit by now, but it looked like it made some solid and fun improvements. And even though LEGO games are not my cup of tea, I have to concur that everything I've seen of Horizon Adventures looked absolutely stunning!

@SingleStooge Glad you had a great time with both Silent Hill 2 and Red Dead Redemption 2! They're both incredible games for sure, and I've enjoyed each a lot myself. I'm actually very interested in 1000XResist as well, but I have yet to press play. I think a lot of that has to do with the fact that even though it fits right up my alley when being lauded as a huge narrative achievement, I'm still somewhat confused on what the actual gameplay of that game is like. I might have to educate myself a little to stop that from holding me back, so I'll have to after seeing you put it amongst your favourites of the year!

@Tjuz Before I reply to your reply, I wanted to mention that I watched a streamer play through Resident Evil 4 Remake recently and so, while my experience isn't first-hand, I can totally understand your praise for that game. It's great to see the series doing so well, and really hope you enjoy Requiem next year, especially since Resi seems to have sparked a new fandom for you!

Not quite above all Mass Effect games! Like I said, it's fighting Mass Effect 3 for that top spot, and my mood decides between 'em on a daily basis. That being said, I do hugely prefer sci-fi to fantasy, so I'm probably gonna throw my weight behind Mass Effect more often than Dragon Age.

This is always gonna be the most subjective part for any player but honestly, yes, I really did love everybody by game's end. I tried real hard to understand their motivations and if I ever disagreed with them in the moment, I found they explained themselves well enough in later dialogue. There was no equivalent "Please understand why I'm a dreadful space racist!" nonsense, nor any pandering to the lowest common denominator with any two-dimensional stereotypes. Everybody had something I could connect with.

It's still a cinematic story that needs to carry you to the same apocalyptic set-piece, so there's nothing that splits the game into two totally different stories or anything. But yes, there are some major choices that need to be made, some that crop up out of nowhere and others that are gut-wrenchingly inescapable. It's more about the impact they have on Rook and your squad.

Again, your actual mileage may vary. It's a very personal tale, and while it has a lot of universal truths, I could totally understand a player not connecting with it as much as I did. I was torn between it and Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown while trying to diversify the genres in my backlog and figured that, if the gameplay didn't grab me, a better story would pull me through. I think I made the right choice!

Yes, but it'll be less "soon" and more "long grass" (even though I know that, when it comes to raptors, you're not supposed to go into the long grass). I never planned on playing both in the same year, I wanted to space 'em out a bit more, but the series became a thing between me and my partner. He's played and already completed the third game and ended up a little cool towards it, so I'm happy to wait. Especially since I still haven't finished all of the second one's modes yet!

@Werehog Glad to hear you were able to enjoy Resident Evil 4 Remake just as much vicariously through someone else! I actually watched a playthrough of it myself when it initially came out and had not yet played any Resident Evil myself. I always intended to, but just never did. Finally, the time came late last year and I'm glad I pulled the trigger in the end. Therefore, my playthrough of 4 felt like a replay to some degree, but luckily I had forgotten plenty of smaller parts. I also never saw the Separate Ways DLC beforehand, so that was at least entirely new content to me.

Fair enough with your battle between the two! I do remember that we both share the often derided opinion that the third of the ME trilogy is in fact the best. They hate us only because we are right. That makes me think my own view of Veilguard might end up being in line with you all the same. I think it's been hard to separate the game from the unfair criticisms it has received from the wrong type of crowds, but everyone I trust with gaming opinions has told me they had, at the very least, a good time with it. And do I read some Ashley shade in this companion paragaph...? You'll be happy to know that in my last replay of the first, I finally killed her off instead of Kaidan in Virmire! I have yet to continue into the second one though. I always start it, play it for a few hours and then drop out of it. It's happened on three separate occasions and replays at this point. I really have a hard time getting through that one in any capacity, but it sadly means that I never get to replay the third!

Glad that your choosing ZAU worked out in the end. I had the exact same conundrum before where I wanted to diversify my backlog and also was chooseing between that and Prince of Persia. I went the opposite way and chose PoP in the end, but I haven't yet gotten to it. Too much good stuff coming out. From Hades II to Dispatch to Cronos: The New Dawn... will they ever give me time to jump into the backlog again?! Hope you'll end up enjoying the third Jurassic World more than you partner when you get to it eventually! At least you still have plenty of game to discover in the second that you know you'll enjoy for sure.

@Tjuz Yeah, after swearing blind that I'd never watch somebody else play games, I luckily stumbled across somebody I really like, and while they play a lot of stuff I already love or have already played for myself (such as Sonic, Star Wars and Spidey) they're really useful for helping me check out games I'd never consider attempting, with Resi being the prime example. Their reactions and positive commentary get me past the "ick" factor, which is a godsend considering I usually stick 'em on while eating!

I'm not sure I'd ever be brave enough to take the next step and actually play a horror game, but it's neat to know you started out similarly, so perhaps there's hope for me yet! Was there ever an instance where you felt a little bored, playing something you'd already seen before? I know you said you'd forgotten some details (and never seen Separate Ways, either) but surely there must have been a couple of "auto-pilot" moments, or sequences where you could just rush to the solution?

Yes, that's why they hate us. We know the truth.

I'll be honest, I know myself well enough to recognise that perhaps 2% of my reaction to The Veilguard comes from sheer intransigent fury against the bigots and mouth-breathers who tried to condemn the game without even playing it for themselves. That small percentage of my opinion didn't form until afterwards, however, as I was keeping myself spoiler-free and therefore only Googled around after I'd seen the credits roll, but it definitely makes me wanna focus on the positives (of which there are plenty to choose from) a little more vociferously than I might normally. That being said, I would never blindly call a terrible game "great" just to score points (otherwise that'd make me as bad as the bigots) so it's a relief that there's so much The Veilguard does right, and is absolutely worth praising.

Yes! Not only do we share a higher-than-average opinion regarding ME3, we also share a general lack of enthusiasm for ME2, so I totally understand your latest playthrough stalling. Hey, you did the most important part already! You killed Ashley! That's Shep's greatest victory, right there!!

Interesting that we both faced the same choice between ZAU and Prince of Persia, and that you went the other way. Please share your thoughts on the latter when you get around to it (although no pressure, of course)! And thanks, I'm sure I will find the fun with Jurassic World: Evolution 3 eventually. There's that first-person survival horror game coming out that I might end up trying first. To bring this reply full circle, that's a horror game I'd be okay with, as I definitely prefer dinosaurs to zombies!

I also ended up sharing thoughts over on the other GOTY thread, but I like this idea of a place to have our favorites we played this year which are not from… this year. 😄

1) Baldur’s Gate 3
I’ve said enough about this game and what I haven’t said has been said by countless others over the last couple years. It’s simply an amazing masterpiece. It’s not perfect, but it’s one of the best games of this (or any) gaming generation. And after nearly 250 hours I still haven’t finished it! I’m really close though and could probably wrap it up in a weekend, but part of me doesn’t want it to end.

2) Resident Evil 4 Remake
With all apologies to those I’ve offended over the years when I reported that playing the original was one of the most disappointing gaming experiences I’d had — the Remake truly elevates the experience from something that’s frustrating and antiquated to play, to a thoroughly enjoyable adventure which balances action, horror storyline, exploration, and light puzzles. They really nailed the remake, similar to RE2 and RE3.

3) Star Wars Outlaws
I do know that the state of the game at launch left a lot to be desired, but playing now post-patching it’s really a solid game and a love letter to fans of the franchise. It nails the aesthetic and vibe of Lucas’s creation and has a rich variety of activities and options to fill your time. The story is decent enough and I actually really like Kay Vess.

4) It Takes Two
I didn’t think I’d like this and played it at the urges of a friend. It’s really a fun time, with way more content than I expected. We’ll eventually play Split Fiction too, I suspect.

5) Crisis Core: FF7 Reunion
This was quite enjoyable, albeit a little dated, even with the remastering from the original PSP game. I’m glad to have played it for the story and character background before I dive into Rebirth next year.