Dear readers, valued friends, steadfast enemies, I bid you all welcome! As tends to happen whether we want it to or not, another year is quickly wrapping up. With that change comes my favorite time of year: list time! I love lists: making them, reading them, watching them, so I get a lot of joy out of the end of any given year! This is especially important now, because 2024 was one of the biggest rollercoaster years in recent memory.
For instance, one highlight was when I went to DC for the first time. While I was there, I had about a billion street vendors trying to sell me MAGA shirts just because I'm bald, have a beard, and happened to be wearing shirts with the American flag on them...but I also got to see one of the original Gutenburg Bibles (the first ever documents created with the printing press) in the library of Congress. For a lover of literature such as myself, visiting the Shakespeare library was also a once-in-a-lifetime experience, with that library being home to first edition copies of works such as "Peter Rabbit" and "The Return of the King" in addition to all the first edition Shakespeare works.
But on the opposite side of the coin, there was my sweet Lola's passing. For those who aren't in the know, Lola was a wheelchair dog that I adopted in early 2019. She was my world for 5 wonderful years until the arthritis in one of her only good legs finally got the best of her in September 2024. The whole year had been filled with glorified hospice nurse work for me as her health deteriorated over time.
What that fact means for this year from a gaming perspective is that for as little patience as I've had for time wasting and as much weariness as I've felt about the constant slew of sequels and remakes, I've felt every negative emotion more than usual. So despite having more free time than normal, I've found myself much harder to impress than I have been in the past. With that in mind, leading up to making my decisions for these lists, I was convinced that this year had been basically a total bust...but then I found that it was incredibly hard to make these decisions. For all of my hindsight-colored negative thoughts about the year, 2024 actually had an incredibly strong showing...it just wasn't in the ways I would normally expect. So, before we get started, it's time to set some ground rules.
1): As always, only games I both played and reviewed are eligible for any spots on any list. In 2015 there were simply not enough reviews written and far too many games included just in passing, and I didn't like the results. So, this rule keeps me honest and productive, as it means I have to flex my writing muscles for anything that I want to give shoutouts to, even if it only means stretching those muscles a little bit. The typical rule of thumb is to look up into the navbar to determine whether or not I played a thing you're thinking of this year...but that's going to change pretty quickly, as there are already enough reviews up there to take up the majority of the page...so I'll have to be trimming that down soon.
But I digress! This clearly means that you won't see the latest Call of Duty or Madden title on any of these lists. It isn't that they'll never make it....just that they're going yet another year with me having zero interest. It's possible that Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth is exactly as good as everyone is saying, to give another example. However, I refuse to entertain the turn-based direction that Sega are taking with this franchise, so no-can-do! It's also possible that Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League is exactly as vapid and pointless as people have claimed, but I don't tend to spend my money on things I know for a fact will be bad. On the other side of the spectrum, I played a game called Elderborn at the tail end of the year. It was fantastic, and you should 100% check it out, but I didn't really feel like doing anything with it writing-wise, so you won't find it anywhere here. Finally, it's also possible that Concord is actually the greatest thing ever conceived and the character designs are actually good and it wasn't a terrible idea to begin with, only none of those things are true! So if you can't find a review of it anywhere on this blog, it ain't showing up here!
2): It isn't ok if you disagree with me. You don't have my permission to disagree with me. How DARE you be different?! Clearly I'm joking, but whenever I see a content creator do a five minute disclaimer pampering their viewers and saying how totally good golly holly swell it is if you disagree because it's just their opinion, I feel like throwing up. Obviously this is my opinion. You wouldn't be here if not to see my opinion, and to say otherwise would be to act like you aren't an intelligent adult.
3): You should 100% expect there to be spoilers on some of these lists. Many years ago I decided I didn't want to dance around spoilers anymore, as being vague just lead to many blurbs reading exactly the same. So, I always try to keep the headings for a blurb spoiler-free, but if you see that something you don't want spoiled has won a spot on one of these lists, I'd scroll to the next item. You've been warned. There is only one exception to this rule, and that's Mouthwashing, since that is a game that absolutely must be experienced with exactly 0 knowledge. Other than that, expect spoilers for anything!
4): As has tended to be the case in previous years, at the time of writing I'm on the fence about how many pictures and the like I'm going to include. When I have the time, I like to include a little something for every blurb, as it makes the whole thing come together nicely. However, this doesn't always work out. This year, I'm starting the writing in early-mid November (while still keeping an eye out for new releases that might be interesting), so hopefully I'll have the time to go ham, but we'll see.
5): Like last year, there are going to be some categories that I started out with 10 winners for but decided to bump down to 5. Whether that's because I don't have enough to say about half of them or because of time or because I just don't feel up to it, who can say? But in cases like that (and not the awards where there were only 5 winners to begin with), I'll list who the winners were (in order) in the introductory blurb.
6): I'd like to issue an apology to the Stellar Blade fans who I made fun of for gooning for Eve. I made fun of you because you were super weird about it when there are avenues of titillation that don't cost $70. But under Project 2025, Stellar Blade may very well actually be the only avenue left, so I clearly spoke too soon. So, sorry, Stellar Blade fans. Y'all were clearly ahead of the times.
Now, without further ado....
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The Technical Awards
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Best Realistic Graphics:
Graphics, being the most superficial part of any game experience, are a good place to start off a gaming discussion in any year. And of the two overarching graphical styles, I find the ones that go more for realism are simpler, but require more power. In a category such as this, raw power tends to go further than art direction does, but both are worthy of consideration. So, in what is clearly the most important category for the IGNs of the world, these were the games that succeeded the most in graphical styles aiming for realism.
#10): Rise of the Ronin
#9): Dragon Age: The Veilguard
#8): Pools
#7): Indika
#6): Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine II
#5): Enotria: The Last Song
#4): Still Wakes the Deep
#3): Senua's Saga: Hellblade II
#2): Black Myth: Wukong
Realistic Graphics of the Year: Silent Hill 2
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Best Artistic Graphics:
As I always imply about this particular award, I tend to vote with my gut rather than my eyes. Looking good is, of course, an important aspect of any game up for an award about graphics, but it's here where art direction is far more important than anything else...and how does one begin to truly quantify that? I still don't have the answer, myself. So, I just go with my gut feeling on these! These were the games with the most impressive graphics that aimed for something a bit different.
#10): Hauntii
#9): Crypt Custodian
#8): Stellar Blade
#7): Astro Bot
#6): Cryptmaster
#5): Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth
#4): Another Crab's Treasure
#3): Neva
#2): Animal Well
Artistic Graphics of the Year: Harold Halibut
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Best Performing:
Ask just about anyone who has current-gen hardware this question: do you use quality mode or performance mode? With few exceptions, I would bet money on everyone picking the latter. All the graphical fidelity or quality art direction in the world doesn't count for anything if a game runs like a powerpoint presentation. With some games, achieving an excellent framerate is a sure thing due to either graphical or gameplay simplicity. With others, it's a true achievement because of how many systems are at work in a given moment. And for 2024, these were the games with the most stable framerates of the bunch.
#10): Pools
Pools, as I've already mentioned, is an incredibly simple game that relies purely on its graphical big guns. With no gameplay systems other than walking, it's therefore a simple goal to achieve a solid 60fps, but a good framerate is a good framerate!
#9): Crow Country
On the other side of the spectrum, Crow Country is a title with an art style reminiscent of some of the original Silent Hill games, and therefore doesn't require as many resources to run smoothly. However, there actually is a degree of gameplay involved, so it earns a spot higher than Pools for that alone.
#8): Melatonin
It may seem odd that a game with both a simple art style and an equally simple, restricted gameplay loop could earn a spot higher than the previous two winners. However, this being a rhythm game, it's even more important that the framerate be rock solid...and as anyone who played Fable III's lute minigame back in the day knows, that's evidently not as easy to do as one might think.
#7): Lorn's Lure
Coming in just below rhythm games in terms of framerate importance are platformers. Lorn's Lure is far from a bare-bones experience despite being simple, so with the amount of surface interactivity that it needs to be able to fire off at a moment's notice, any lesser game might crumble. It does, however, sport a rather pixely art style, so it does save some resources on that front.
#6): Still Wakes the Deep
Of the games of 2024 that rely solely on their technical fidelity, Still Wakes the Deep is the one that feels the most impressive from a performance standpoint. I can't point to any one detail that makes this the case, but sometimes I just have to go with my gut!
#5): Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine II
This one may seem an odd choice given that the framerate does sometimes dip...but bear with me. If you haven't already, watch some gameplay of Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine II. Notice just how many enemies and how many effects are in the forefront of the screen, to say nothing of the hordes running in the skybox. In a AAA title, that all might not be a huge deal, but for a game with as modest a budget as any Warhammer 40,000 release, it's beyond amazing that it keeps up a stable framerate as consistently as it does. It still can't get a spot any higher because of those occasional dips, but as I said in the artistic graphics segment, elbow grease goes a long way with me!
#4): Stellar Blade
Any spectacle fighter is all about what the genre title suggests: spectacle. Dodges, flips, special effects, cool-looking particles, all of it is present and accounted for in Stellar Blade. And with nothing else to render but boring deserts, boring underground laboratories, and bazongas, it had better keep a stable framerate!
#3): Astro Bot
As much as I'd love to be all petty and say that Astro Bot only earns a spot up this far because it has the Sony money backing it up (and Sony evidently has a surplus of it they're trying to get rid of if Concord is anything to go by)....I love Astro Bot. So, instead I'll say this: Astro Bot is one of the best-looking games of this year, and it's also one of the most uncompromisingly well-tweaked ones as well.
#2): Animal Well
Remember what I've been saying about chutzpah and the well-lubricated joints that come with it? Well, Animal Well developer Billy Basso created his own engine for this game. It runs at a silky smooth framerate throughout entirely because of an individual's hard work, not because of any existing technology. Normally that would be enough to secure a top spot on this list, but it's not like the game has to handle that much to begin with. So, definitely worthy of as many accolades as can be given, but there was one game whose stability was just the slightest bit more impressive.
Most Stable Game of the Year: Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth
While not nearly as wealthy as Sony, Square Enix money tends to go just about as far. But Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth is all the graphical power of Astro Bot, more frequent and more impressive special effects than Stellar Blade, and above all else, more gameplay systems at work than any other game on this list. Yes, it's safe to say that in lesser hands, Rebirth could easily go the Space Marine II route of having the occasional framerate dip, but it doesn't. With the next installment in this franchise evidently already paid for, I'm excited to see what kind of wizardry the team will conjure up next time!
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Best Controlling:
Not to be confused with the traditional Honorable Mention I typically do to celebrate excellent control schemes, this award is more focused on the feeling of control. How does it feel to move around? Does it feel like you're swinging a weapon where you want to swing it when you want to swing it? These questions and more are considered for this category.
NOTE: Spots #10-#6 went to: Enotria: The Last Song, Melatonin, Penny's Big Breakaway, Cryptmaster, and Animal Well.
#5): Black Myth: Wukong
Dodging is the bread and butter of Black Myth: Wukong. With such a system being so crucial to the primary gameplay loop, a responsive character is not just appreciated, it's necessary. Thankfully, our banana-loving hero has excellent reflexes! I can't give this one a higher spot than #5 because of several bosses with invisible walls on their bodies. These toss that feeling of control away like it's a possum in the orangutan enclosure...there's also the fact that you almost never actually heal when you press the heal button...but aside from that, it's a fairly responsive experience.
#4): Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine II
In a game where you play as a gigantic hulking space marine with more muscle than brain cells, a reliable feeling of control isn't necessarily what's on your mind the most. In fact, one might expect there to be a bit of unruliness to emphasize the gigantism on display. But for what it is, Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine II controls like a dream. Snappy frame-long dodges, a generous parry window, and an equally generous takedown distance all serve to make the act of playing this game feel excellent.
#3): Lorn's Lure
Lorn's Lure is part of a genre of games I like to describe as having an overwhelmingly good sense of control...whether you like it or not. It's a game in which small mistakes lead to failure, and these mistakes happen because you don't keep your head in a moment of stress and move just a little bit too far in a landing. This can be pretty frustrating. However, if you can learn to use the stress of an intense platforming challenge as a way to activate your quick decision-making, you can turn several little mistakes into one big success. That's where a lot of the enjoyment inherent in Lorn's Lure comes from.
#2): Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown
Just like Lorn's Lure, this year's Prince of Persia (likely the final one, as Ubisoft closed the studio down recently) belongs to that genre of games where you have an overwhelmingly excellent amount of control in ways that can sometimes be frustrating. What this game has over the previous winner, though, is a combat system wherein this sense of control also applies. The only thing keeping this one out of the top spot is the fact that everything I've said kind of goes out the window with some pretty intensive difficulty spikes later on.
Best Control Feeling of the Year: Astro Bot
Platformers, by necessity, tend to be the kings of this award. Control is vital in any game experience, but it's at its most crucial when the gameplay loop involves crossing great distances and landing on precise places. So far we've covered a handful of titles that provide a far more comprehensive feeling of control than Astro Bot provides, but in many cases that extra control is a detriment. Forgiveness and some degree of guidance is far more worthy of this list than just bare-bones "do this thing and x happens immediately," after all. Astro Bot is incredibly responsive to player feedback, but it has enough bells and whistles in place to gently guide the player in a way that means they aren't likely to make mistakes in the first place. It doesn't hold the player by the hand, and one can still fail a challenge, but these are really your challenges to lose. Add onto this the fact that it just feels really good (possibly due to the inclusion of the dualsense controller feedback), and you have a clear winner for this award!
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Best Sound Design:
Sound design is something of an unsung hero in the world of game development. A lot of the time it isn't something that is noticed unless it's really bad. But this underdog of categories goes far further for any given game than one might expect. Take the ring collection sound from any Sonic the Hedgehog title, for example. Not only is this sound instantly recognizable, but this recognizability is part of the identity of these games. Another example would be the "alert" noise from the Metal Gear games. I once had a coworker who had that sound as his text alert sound, and it triggered my fight or flight right there on the spot! So, these were the games in 2024 that had the most care put into their audio samples.
NOTE: Spots #10-#6 went to Melatonin, Dragon Age: The Veilguard, Senua's Saga: Hellblade II, Lorn's Lure, and Silent Hill 2.
#5): Still Wakes the Deep
An oil rig is kind of a hostile, almost alien setting for your average Joe. And this truth seems to be at the forefront of Still Wakes the Deep's audio design. Every other second of the relatively short runtime is accompanied by haunting creaks and groans from distant load bearing columns. It all contributes to this sense that you truly are almost entirely alone in a tiny little speck of artificial land in the middle of the overbearing majesty of the ocean...and that at any minute, everything around you could plunge into the depths without mercy.
#4): Mouthwashing
There isn't a whole lot of sound to mix in Mouthwashing, but a lesser developer could've easily just taken the horrific noises present in the horror segments and let them be jarring and loud. But instead of that, they managed to understate some of these sounds in a way just effective enough to be disturbing without being overwhelming. For proof, look no further than what I believe is the second post-crash sequence, wherein Jimmy wakes up in the middle of the night hearing something that we, the player, can't quite identify.
#3): Animal Well
All it takes is one look at Animal Well to see that it's more alien-feeling than the past two spot winners combined, and while most of this is due to the visuals, sound also plays a pivotal role. We all know what ostriches, cats, and kangaroos look like. But never before Animal Well have I ever been scared of a cat or a kangaroo. These animals aren't screeching like demons or anything, all the sounds are fairly subtle, but they're still unnerving beyond belief. And if that sounds like great design to you, that's before we get to the little sounds that just about everything else makes. It's all definitely on the low-fidelity side of things, but it's still strong.
#2): Crow Country
Speaking of strong low-fidelity sound design, in the runner-up spot, we have Crow Country. If you haven't yet played it, then I defy you to enter the first major hallway where you encounter the first of the "guests," listen to the mid-high-pitched droning that plays, and tell me your skin didn't start crawling. Then I defy you to tell me the same thing when a "guest" notices you and that droning ups in pitch ever-so-slightly. That's the only example I intend to give here, but it's an effective one.
Sound Design of the Year: Astro Bot
Does Astro Bot's audio stick with me so much because each sound is accompanied by the haptic feedback that the dualsense controllers come with? It's a distinct possibility, but one could argue that that inclusion is in itself an audio design choice! Almost every sound that happens in Astro Bot is top-tier stuff in terms of both quality and memorability. The little "plink" of invisible platforms being revealed by a lightbulb, the "tickatickatack" of a spiked path as you roll across it on top of a robotic armadillo, the "pitterpatter" of rain as it falls on your little umbrella hat, all of it. Plus, as I've already said, each of these sounds comes with a comparable touch feeling that probably would've been there even without the stim toy that is the dualsense controller. So, for the second category in a row, Astro Bot is the clear winner here!
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Best Soundtrack:
For most categories in this yearly tradition, there are objective qualities that can be pointed to so I can justify where I put spot winners. When it comes to soundtracks, though, it's just about as subjective as a category can be. But I will say this: for me, a soundtrack doesn't just need to be good...it also needs to fit the game it's a part of. So, these were the 10 soundtracks that I felt stood out the most this year.
#10): Enotria: The Last Song (Aram Shahbazians)
I am a white man. I am, therefore, easily impressed by and possibly extremely gullible when it comes to other cultures. So, I recognize that Enotria's soundtrack may only be so good to me because it sounds exotic...even more so because I have a natural inclination to enjoy just about anything Italy-adjacent. Some already great boss fights are made even better with rapid Italian-language singing and riffing. But it's my list!
#9): Stellar Blade (Keiichi Okabe)
This time I'm not going to make any snide comments about Stellar Blade. The soundtrack is, indeed, quite good. I recently booted the game back up again to see if I'd softened on it with time (I hadn't), and I noticed that I was a bit more impressed with the soundtrack than I was in the first run. If the tracks were just a little bit longer so I wasn't having to hear the same thing over a hundred times in a given level, I'd say this ost would be worthy of a higher spot.
#8): Dread Delusion (Daniel Staley)
The one negative I can point out with Dread Delusion's soundtrack is just how few tracks there are. You can like a track more than life itself, but if you're hearing it on loop for 20 hours, you're probably going to grow tired of it. But the whole thing is still excellent!
#7): Crow Country (Ockeroid)
You could play me any track from the Crow Country ost, and I would immediately have flashbacks to whatever I was doing while that track played in-game. It ranges from the ominous to the relievingly beautiful and excels at both.
#6): Still Wakes the Deep (Jason Graves)
Soundtracks are likely not the first thing you think of when you think of horror-adjacent games. Except for Bioshock, perhaps....and just like Bioshock, the soundtrack for Still Wakes the Deep combines beautiful themes with dissonant undertones to create a sense of cautious beauty befitting the tone.
#5): Just a To the Moon Series Beach Episode (Kan Gao)
In any year with a Kan Gao release, he's a shoe in for the soundtrack of the year award. This year, however, there are one or two excellent tracks that are surrounded by retreads of old themes. It doesn't make the soundtrack bad by any means, but I still can't justify giving it a higher spot on this list.
#4): Mouthwashing (Martin Halldin)
Similarly to Still Wakes the Deep, the OST for Mouthwashing weaves dissonant elements together with beauty to create a soundscape fitting of the downward spiral that is the game's story. The difference? The horror pieces are far more haunting and the peaceful pieces are far more beautiful. Hell, the commercial jingles that play are also bangers!
#3): Metaphor ReFantazio (Shoji Meguro)
Of the Atlus soundtracks, Metaphor ReFantazio is undoubtedly the weakest...but a weak offering from Shoji Meguro is clearly better than most things. It's a bit more of a generic fantasy soundtrack, but the constant battles didn't bother me because, as is always the case with Meguro's work, they meant I could listen to the battle themes yet again.
#2): Bleak Faith: Forsaken (Martel)
Anyone who has played Bleak Faith: Forsaken may be scratching their heads on this one. It's true that Martel's soundtrack is the most understated of all of these spot winners, but this is an example of a soundtrack that wins a spot by how well it fits alone. Bleak Faith: Forsaken is a game with a tone tailer-made for me, and that's largely due to its soundtrack.
Soundtrack of the Year: Neva (Berlinist)
I can scarcely listen to Neva's soundtrack without getting teared up. If I had to put a finger on why, I'd say it's because of the excellent way that it's utilized to punctuate emotional moments. I simply defy you to watch the opening scene of this game with the soundtrack as high as you can stand without feeling something. It's a simple reason without much nuance, but that's the soundtrack category for you!
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Best Soundtrack Piece:
As subjective as the award for best soundtrack is, this award is far more subjective. So, let's not dawdle: these were the individual tracks from OSTs that I felt were the best this year. As has been the case for a couple years, the title of each blurb will contain a link to the track in question
Jenova Lifeclinger is the boss that comes right after....that scene. You know, the one with Aerith. It comes at the emotional peak of the story where everyone is devastated and ready to kick some ass. So, as the fight begins and the screams of anger and exertion start to play alongside that ass-kicking, it would've been emotional enough...but then the soundtrack piece quickly and seamlessly segues into a fully orchestrated version of Aerith's theme. I can't say that the scene itself got me teary-eyed since everyone knew it was coming. But during this exact moment, I did have to pause the game for a second to wipe away a stray drop of water or two because it was such an effective stylistic choice (one that made me say "aw, man" to myself).
In the Lavellan Ending, a female elven inquisitor comes to stop stop Solas at the end with the power of love because the writers are stupid. However, this ending does come with an excellent callback to the Solas "Lost Elf" theme from the end of the Tresspasser DLC, which was the best soundtrack piece in all of Dragon Age: Inquisition because it set Solas up as the tragic villain he never got to be thanks to the talentless writers at modern Bioware. Skip to about the 6 minute mark for that bit.
Heilung is a band that is a hyperfixation of mine. I've been to see them live 3 times, with one of those concerts being a 10 hour drive. So it's a real shame that Ninja Theory engaged in blatant false advertising by saying that Heilung was involved in the soundtrack when they really weren't...but the song they used to advertise is really good.
While this isn't a pretty track by any means, I was listening to the soundtrack while writing, and my statement in the soundtrack blurb rang true: once "I Am Not Alone" started playing, I could see the associated hallway load in in vivid detail.
I had a white friend in college who was fluent in Chinese. One day, she met a frat guy with a Chinese tattoo, and he was boasting (as frat guys are want to do) about how it meant "dragon." My friend then informed the man that the character he had on his arm actually translated to "water otter." His confidence quickly waned as he became more and more aware that my friend was right. I say all this because I feel like I am the proverbial frat boy with the water otter tattoo when I nod my head listening to "Listen Not." I have about as much idea what any of it means as I do about what anything going on in the animation means. But it's a good song!
I always enjoyed spending time in Hallow Town because it meant I got to listen to this piece some more. There's something so calming about it, not unlike stopping in a friendly town after a long time out in the unforgiving wilderness fighting trolls.
As I've grown a thicker skin in regards to horror over the years, I've found that the best horror stories are the ones that give us an emotional hook. The protagonist's grief in Talk to Me. The many troubles of the kid from The Sixth Sense. Our constant desire to see the kids in Skinamarink escape. The best horror stories are the ones that don't just want to scare or disturb us, but rather just to make us feel. As corny as that statement was, I find it's true in Mouthwashing's case, if nothing else. "What's New On The Radio" is the track that accompanies the story's most devastating revelations. By extension, it's the track that most emphasizes the hopeless nature of the situation. "Heroes" is also a standout track for opposite reasons.
The main vocalist sounds like he's doing the Macarena. Now that I've ruined that for you, it's worth noting that this track made every accompanying battle feel epic.
#2): Opening Track (Neva)
I may have mentioned this already, but I can scarcely listen to this track without getting teared up. It was really hard on me even finding the video with the track in it, hoo boy. The moment it accompanies makes it emotional enough, but it's the knowledge of where the story goes from here that really turns on the water works.
Soundtrack Piece of the Year: World in a Memory (Just a To the Moon Series Beach Episode)
In stark contrast to the last spot winner, I can scarcely listen to "World in a Memory" without feeling a deep pit in my stomach. This is the emotional track that plays after Eva confronts Neil and officially reveals to us that he passed away sometime after the events of Impostor Factory. The Neil we'd been interacting with this whole epilogue was just a construct created from his memories as a way to help Eva slowly come to accept reality. As Kan Gao once again delivers a masterpiece song, our two heroes enjoy one last stretch of time together having fun before Eva begins to prepare herself to say goodbye to her friend for good. This epilogue came out maybe a week after I had to say goodbye to my dog, and this song just ruined me for a while. It's not just a great song, it's a great song that made me feel seen in the throes of my grief, so I can think of no better winner.
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Best Level Design:
Moving right along to happier things, let's talk about level design! A great gameplay loop is almost always a must-have for any game, but it can almost never exist in a vacuum. If a level is bland or uninspiring, it's difficult to be excited about a combat or platforming experience. Whether it's excellent visuals or a structure that compliments the gameplay loop, these are the games that had the best level design in 2024.
NOTE: Spots #10-#6 went to Black Myth: Wukong, Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth, Enotria: The Last Song, Dread Delusion, and Mouthwashing.
#5): Another Crab's Treasure
Souslikes depend on level design more than one might expect. Given the difficulty that usually is inherent in the genre, a consistent feeling of some progress is needed to keep less patient players from feeling like they've hit a brick wall. While it's difficult to find anything specific to Another Crab's Treasure that can't be said for any other high-quality soulslike, good level design is good level design!
#4): Crow Country
Part of the joy of any old-school survival horror game is discovering how locations connect with each other. Crow Country is no exception, and in fact, it's an excellent example of how to do an interconnected world right. There's a constant sense of forward momentum because of the pacing with which progress is dished out. The typically claustrophobic locations also work wonders for the slow aiming speed.
#3): Animal Well
Animal Well is an example of how to pack a game full of levels with sub-levels hidden within them without the experience feeling crowded. Despite the fact that almost all side content in this game is completely hidden, you can almost always correctly guess where a collectible might be hidden based either on the layout of the room or by the way the room looks on the map. An often overlooked staple of good level design is training the player to intuit things on their own, and Animal Well is superb in this regard!
#2): Astro Bot
The name of the level design game in Astro Bot is variety. No two levels are exactly the same, and while levels are relatively short, they're all exceptionally good. Each little world you visit is an effective test of your platforming skills, but many of them also test your skill with one of the game's many extra powers. Take the level where you get the ability to shrink down to the size of a mouse, for instance. You'll duck beneath bed sheets, slide across laundry lines, and break things open like Ant Man up Thanos' butthole. Beyond this, every environment you end up in allows you to flex your deduction skills as you look for your little bot friends, puzzle pieces, and portals to the lost galaxy. Yes, it's safe to say that Astro Bot would be undefeated were it not for...
Level Design of the Year: Lorn's Lure
There's been a lot of talk in this article about elbow grease and how far that goes with me, and in the level design sense, there's no elbow greasier than that of Lorn's Lure. Every single moment of this game is a problem to solve, and literally every square inch of a level is a potential solution. Your objectives are always to climb up something or climb down something, and it's almost always a step-by-step, slow-going process. If you're going up, you'll either use your climbing axes to get a little bit of distance on certain surfaces or kick yourself off of walls to reach platforms that seem a little too far away. In many cases you'll have to do both, and as I said, literally every surface of every kind is a potential avenue to reach your goal. The same is true when you're descending, only these problems also involve controlling your velocity. Just like the ascension, any surface can be used to eek out precious milliseconds of slowing down. This is a game with boundless love put into the design of each area, and it's the clear winner for this category!
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Best Atmosphere:
At last we come to the award that is the ultimate achievement in technical fidelity. A quality atmosphere requires an art style with a strong sense of place and gravitas, enough overall quality to avoid immersion-breaking issues, level design that fits the situations, and a soundtrack that helps with that aforementioned sense of place. These winners may not all be the absolute tip of the top of the technical stack (spoiler alert: I wouldn't say that Astro Bot is exceptional from an atmosphere standpoint, for example), but these are the games that best utilized their technical stacks in the name of immersion.
#10): Pools
#9): Still Wakes the Deep
#8): Lorn's Lure
#7): Dread Delusion
#6): Harold Halibut
#5): Crow Country
#4): Indika
#3): Animal Well
#2): Mouthwashing
Atmosphere of the Year: Bleak Faith: Forsaken
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The Character Awards
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Best Character Development:
When it comes to the character awards, I typically only go by category of character: antagonist, protagonist, major lame-os, etc. But that doesn't leave a lot of nuance for any particular game overall, especially since I try to limit each category to only one entry per game (if possible). So, this first category aims to celebrate the games that featured the best overall character development.
NOTE: Spots #10-#6 went to Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth, Metaphor ReFantazio, Another Crab's Treasure, While We Wait Here, and Dread Delusion.
#5): Just a To the Moon Series Beach Episode
I try not to give spots too high to games that simply continue character development from previous entries in a saga. But if anyone can make that work, it's Kan Gao. In this particular entry in the long-running To the Moon series, the focus isn't on someone on their death bed. Rather, it's on series co-protagonist Eva Rosaline...and we'll come back to that later.
#4): Indika
The cast of Indika isn't exactly small, but it is filled mainly with characters who show up once or twice and then disappear. Such a structure might naturally make a person worry about the overall quality of the cast, but Indika somehow pulls it off. Even the smallest side characters are memorable, and this is only enhanced by the sheer strength of the game's three main personalities.
#3): Still Wakes the Deep
I'll admit it....my whole family seems to have an inclination to enjoy any character-driven property from England, Ireland, or Scotland...so it's entirely possible that I only enjoyed the cast of characters in this frankly obscenely Scottish game because of that fact. But even though the villain could possibly be considered one-dimensional, I truly feel like this is one of the most realistic-feeling character rosters of this year.
#2): Harold Halibut
Up until the actual winner for this award came out, there was no cast of characters quite as well-developed as that of Harold Halibut. For starters, there's Harold himself, who we'll return to before too long. But how could a cast like this not absolutely shine when they spend every waking moment of the game interrupting and dumping all their problems on our poor unfortunate hero? Everyone from the always-dubious CEO of the corporation that runs the Fedora I to the Little Rascals-style kid gang is excellently written and acted. Even the aliens that Harold and company eventually discover are well-developed....oh.....have I as of yet failed to mention that part of the plot in Harold Halibut revolves around the discovery of alien life? Because that is a part of it, and as I said, even these aliens are treated with care in the script.
Best Character Development of the Year: Mouthwashing
The cast of Mouthwashing is deceptively simple. Each character has a distinct bit of personality that can be pointed to that makes them instantly recognizable. However, there isn't a single person in this limited roster that isn't infinitely more complex (not to mention imperfect) than first impressions would have you believe. To know a character in Mouthwashing isn't necessarily to love them, but it is to know them...as obvious as that may sound. Actually, I might say the opposite: to know a character in Mouthwashing is to think you know them. Just when you think you have a character figured out, something will come out of left field that makes total sense, but that you wouldn't have guessed. I can say with certainty that there hasn't been a game with better character development that Mouthwashing in years.
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Best Voice Actress:
Just like in previous years, rather than go in depth in a blurb, I intend to include links to some voice samples to give you an idea of the performance quality. These were the 5 best performances by actresses in games for 2024!
#4): Pat Garrett as Professor Jeanne Mareaux (Harold Halibut)
Sadly, I couldn't find any isolated voice lines for Garrett's performance. Sorry!
Voice Actress of the Year: Neve McIntosh as Suze MacLeary (Still Wakes the Deep)
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Best Voice Actor:
Same thing as the actresses, these were the best performances by actors!
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Lamest Character:
I always like to start the character lists proper with the one negative category. I could rebrand this award as something like "worst character" or "most disappointing character," but I love the inherent dispassionate tone that comes with just calling these characters "lame." So for 2024, these were the biggest lame-o's of the bunch...and for the first time in many, many years, there's an unfortunate common thread for most of them.
#5): Astrior or whatever the hell her name was (Senua's Saga: Hellblade II)
#4): Nor (Flintlock: The Siege of Dawn)
#3): Lily (Stellar Blade)
#2): Yuffie (Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth)
Lamest Character of the Year: Every Cameo (Dragon Age: The Veilguard)
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Best Animal Character:
First conceived as a way to give Chorizo from Far Cry 6 a top-winning spot, the award for Best Animal Character goes to the characters that are not-anthropomorphic animals. What exactly qualifies as anthropomorphic seems to depend on the year and the offerings therein. So, these were the good boys and girls of 2024.
#5): Assan (Dragon Age: The Veilguard)
#4): Waffles (Moonglow Bay)
#3): Koromaru (Persona 3 Reload)
#2): Frank the Flounder (Harold Halibut)
Animal Character of the Year: Neva (Neva)
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Best Love Interest:
Initially, this particular award existed mainly because female characters weren't nearly as prevalent as they are now back when I started this blog. What's more, a lot of those characters that existed outside of the love interest context just weren't well-written at all. So, this list was ultimately an attempt at giving some attention to women that the game industry couldn't be bothered to. As the years have gone by and inclusivity has gone up, this category has gotten to be more and more simple and expansive. Buuuut it's been kind of bare bones in the most recent years, as you'll see soon. These were the best love interests in 2024.
#5): Princess Atsuko (Rise of the Ronin)
#4): Sunny Soleil (Harold Halibut)
#3): The Emperor (Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine II)
#2): Suze MacLeary (Still Wakes the Deep)
Love Interest of the Year: Aerith Gainsborough (Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth)
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Best Supporting Character:
In most cases, it isn't the protagonist that sticks with us long after a story has concluded, but the cast that supported the protagonist along the way. Think about Mass Effect, for instance. Shepard was a great protagonist, but the characters you remember are mainstays like Garrus or Wrex. For 2024, these were the best supporting cast members.
NOTE: Spots #10-#6 went to: Hank from While We Wait Here, Emmerich Volkarin from Dragon Age: The Veilguard, Dr. Neil Watts from Just a To the Moon Series Beach Episode, Gadriel and Chairon from Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine II, and Roy from Still Wake the Deep
#5): Basilio and Fidelio (Metaphor ReFantazio)
#4): Chris Tinnerbaum (Harold Halibut)
#3): Anya (Mouthwashing)
#2): The Narrator (Indika)
Supporting Character of the Year: Midgar 7th Infantry (Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth)
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Best Antagonist:
If you're anything like me, perhaps the most important character in any story is its villain. And if you're not like that, you probably love marvel movies. But jabs at the bread consumers and circus patrons aside, I've found that if a villain is awful, the story tends to be awful as well. There can be a scumbag or wet blanket protagonist that makes me want to claw my eyes out without the story suffering too much, but a bad villain is the kiss of death. So, here we go: the best of the best in 2024 villainy!
NOTE: Spots #10-#6 went to: Rufus Shinra from Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth, Vela from Dread Delusion, Messmer from Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree, Kendra from Crypt Custodian, and Praya Dubia from Another Crab's Treasure.
#5): The Tyranid Scourge (Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine II)
#4): Davey Rennick (Still Wakes the Deep)
#3): Slippy Schlipmeier (Harold Halibut)
#2): What Solas Should Have Been (Dragon Age: The Veilguard)
Antagonist of the Year: Lord Louis (Metaphor ReFantazio)
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Best Protagonist:
As always, I like to end the character awards with a celebration of the characters that serve as our eyes and ears in their respective games. I tend to find them to be the weakest characters in almost any story, but they are undoubtedly important. This year, I want to make it especially clear that this category is not called "Best Hero." This isn't an award for characters with outstanding philanthropic deeds or feats of strength that would make Hercules blush. Instead, the award for "Best Protagonist" is about the quality of a protagonist's character development (and those philanthropic deeds or heroic feats are just extra icing on the cake). So, here we go!
NOTE: Spots #10-#6 went to: Mara Forest from Crow Country, The Aquarist from Aquarist, The Confessor from Dread Delusion, Demetrian Titus from Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine II, and Eva Rosaline from Just a To the Moon Series Beach Episode.
#5): Kril (Another Crab's Treasure)
#4): Caz MacLeary (Still Wakes the Deep)
#3): The Captains (Mouthwashing)
#2): Indika (Indika)
Protagonist of the Year: Harold Halibut (Harold Halibut)
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The Aspect Awards
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Best Writing:
Writing does entail character development, but because it's more than that, I always use this category as the first post-character-centric award. So, these are the games that had the overall best writing in 2024.
#5): Just a To the Moon Series Beach Episode
I'm getting tired of typing the full name out, and because I'm a big stubborn dumb-dumb, I don't want to just copy and paste. So, Beach Episode makes it on this list because of how well it captures the concept of grief and what specifically makes it suck so much.
#4): Indika
I covered a lot of what I like in the character awards, but I'll say this here: Indika is a great example of how to develop great characters by way of what others say and think about them.
#3): Still Wakes the Deep
Did I understand a single word any given member of this group said throughout the course of the game? Absolutely not. It's like giving a foreign-language game a spot on this list in that I thought the subtitles were well-done. It doesn't even matter that the cast is speaking English! I mean, the subtitles include translations for specifically Scottish-dialect words ("wee-uns" is "children", for instance, and "goddamn feckin' c**ting gobshite" means "good morning"). So, maybe it's the across-the-pond-appreciation in my blood, but I couldn't help but enjoy Still Wakes the Deep's script.
#2): Mouthwashing
It has been a hot minute since I've seen a script that can craft characters as complex as these while telling so little about them. The sheer understated power of the writing in Mouthwashing is part of what has made it the indie hit it has been. To give one example, I'd have to point to the differences between Jimmy and Curly's first segments. Notice the air of authority that radiates from Curly in his section, the respect that he commands in his interactions with people. Then go back to Jimmy and notice all the ways in which he isn't Curly.
Best Writing of the Year: Harold Halibut
Harold Halibut is a god-tier example of how to do an Our Town-style tight-knit town story right. There's this boundlessly rich sense of history present in every corner of the Fedora I and in every denizen dwelling therein. You have the old people who were alive and young when the ship crash-landed in the first place, you have the younger adults for whom the crash is a recent bit of history they weren't around for, and you have the kids for whom their undersea life is just about the only thing they know. You have the people who are endlessly loyal to the All Water Corporation because that corporation runs everything. You have the people who don't feel any particular animosity towards All Water but are annoyed that they keep changing the tube transit credit system. And with all of these people, you have a script with enough belly-laugh-inducing dry humor to make Monty Python blush. I can think of no game this year whose writing had me laughing my head off and whose characters had me falling in love quite as much as Harold Halibut. While Mouthwashing probably has the stronger overall script, Harold Halibut's script just has a bit more to work with, and the results speak for themselves.
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Best Cutscene Direction:
Over the years I've grown less and less impressed by cutscenes. That, along with my sense of integrity, means a future at IGN is out of the picture for me. But anyway, this is largely just because the AAA industry has commandeered the art of the cutscene in order to distract people from the bloat and excess of their games. Be that as it may, it isn't fair to count cutscenes out entirely, as a well-crafted one can serve to enhance the context around a bit of gameplay or further emphasize a narrative moment. These were the games that did cutscenes the best in 2024.
#5): Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth
I know that me qualifying every AAA win in categories like this with a snide comment about their publisher's money going a long way probably gets old. But you need to realize that these are still spot winners, and it was not a hard decision to put Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth here. In terms of the original game, I only played up until the beach part, but those bits and pieces were expertly translated into a more modern coat of paint in Rebirth.
#4): Black Myth: Wukong
Show me a person who doesn't feel pumped to play Black Myth: Wukong after the introductory section, and I'll show you a liar. There's simply no denying that cutscenes in this game know how to impress, but they also have this distinctly one-shot flow to them. I don't fully remember if they are all one-shot or not, but I wouldn't be surprised if you told me they are.
#3): Harold Halibut
Nothing truly epic happens in Harold Halibut, but you wouldn't necessarily realize that just by watching what it does with its cutscenes. Whenever the developers can get away with framing something in an interesting way, they do it. From the slightly blurred silhouette of our hero behind the filter screen as he cleans and sings his Disney Princess "I have big dreams" song to the majestic, overbearing green of the ocean as he banters back and forth with a kid who, like him, feels overlooked and left out on the station, everything that can possibly be framed in a cinematic light is done exactly so. Even when something is only kind of a cutscene, they make it work. Take the "station jog" that Harold can't seem to talk his way out of. Running with Harold's barely ambling jog speed as he quickly gets exhausted and the other members get far ahead of him...only to have the others pass him again on the way back to the starting line a couple moments afterwards? It's comedy gold.
#2): Mouthwashing
Cutscenes in Mouthwashing are few and far between, but their rarity allows Wrong Organ to go ham with their framing and direction. I mean, just look at Swansea's final monologue as an example! Every little detail in every little cutscene has some kind of deeper meaning....even things like camera angles have something to say about the characters and the situations in which these scenes take place.
Best Cutscene Direction of the Year: Indika
For as much as I've talked about the absurdism present in Indika, it's important to note that it's only sometimes a funny game. A lot of the time, it's also a bleak, emotionally charged experience, and this is driven home by its cinematic moments. One scene in particular comes to mind as especially well-done. Towards the start of the game, Indika meets a criminal on the run named Ilya, who is suffering from a gruesome arm injury that is becoming more and more necrotic as time goes on. Nearer towards the end, the two end up in a factory, and the arm suddenly starts to take its toll. As Ilya begins to succumb to his injuries, we see Indika hop to action with slight panic in her voice and tone. Ripping off a strand of clothing, she makes a tourniquet high up on the arm and starts to shush Ilya and tell him it's going to be ok. It's here where the camera changes position to remind us where exactly in the factory they are: A conveyer belt. And before anything happens, we become aware of what Indika's plan is as a giant blade at the end of the belt slams down and resets itself. Several more hushes and reassurances come and go, as well as a long-expected kiss before the screen goes black for obvious reasons. This is but one example of how well Indika handles its cutscenes.
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Best Quest:
As my preferences have shifted further and further away from RPGs over the years, the exact definition of "quest" has gotten broader. These days, it tends to mean anything from an actual honest-to-goodness quest to a particular level. So, just keep that in mind.
#5): Chapter 2 (Pools)
The second chapter of Pools is one that I 100% recognized as a shoe-in for this award as I was playing it. In chapter 1, your mind is trained to see a waterslide and view it as a transitional thing. You'd move from one bit of the level to the next via slides, and with the fear of getting lost being a big part of Pools' horror appeal, this ended up giving slides a sense of security and reassurance that you were making progress. In chapter 2, however, the game does something clever: It shows you a lot of slides, but with no way to access any of them. I legitimately found myself getting more and more upset as I rounded corner after corner seeing slides coming down from out of frame and no way to get to the opening or closing. There aren't any jumpscares or monsters in Pools, just architecture-centric psychological terror. I find things like that fascinating, so to see a developer so cleverly pull the rug out from under players in such a simple way was noteworthy to me.
#4): Progression Quests (Aquarist)
Anyone who knows me knows I'm an aquarium hobbyist, so Aquarist was already right up my alley as a simulation game. Getting to create and design my own aquariums without fear of associated costs or intensive upkeep? Sign me up! But the progression quests were the best ones in my eyes. In these quests, you're given an overall goal from a wealthy client who wants something super specific (like a giant tank in the background of a news station filming area) both in terms of the tank's use case and the livestock inside. These quests always involve marine life you haven't gotten to use before, and it's always cool stuff you get to use! One quest might have you creating a giant sea turtle enclosure where you get to decorate as you see fit, but you also need to put in the work to create an environment that sea turtles will thrive in. While you don't get to design these tanks from the ground up, they're some of the most impressive tanks you'll get to build, and as an avid hobbyist, these little excursions were excellent escapism.
#3): Bubbling Under (Astro Bot)
Nearly every level in Astro Bot is linear, but every now and then there's an exception. "Bubbling Under" is one such level: a 3D Mario-esque open layout with all of its plot points and collectibles available to tackle at your discretion. It's my favorite level in the whole game, and it's not just because it's the one level that takes place under the ocean. There's a wealth of variety in the specific pieces of the level to enjoy, and it bumps up the amount of hidden stuff you find in any of Astro Bot's world to 11. And also....as I've already said, it's the one level that takes place under the ocean....so that's already extra points from me.
#2): The Final Mission (Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine II)
If you told me that all of the budget for Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine II went into the final mission, I'd believe you. It takes place in by far the most visually distinct part of the game, features the biggest hordes of enemies, and is home to almost 100% of the most badass moments from the campaign. We'll be returning to that, but this last mission is exactly the kind of thing I like to see.
Quest of the Year: The Clockwork King (Dread Delusion)
The Clockwork Kingdom is a realm outside the reach of the Apostatic Union, meaning it's untouched by the rest of the world's state-enforced antitheism. In fact, while rebels within Union territory were seeking the blessings of existing gods in secret, the denizens of the Kingdom openly sought to create their own: a god of cold, unflinching reason inherently attuned to the magic syntax that dictates reality. A being referred to as "The Clockwork King." However, something is terribly wrong when you arrive in this artificial god's domain. People have gone missing, there's this overall sense that things are misplaced, and when you arrive, the King summons you and hands you a nonsensical edict. It's after this meeting that you're contacted by an anonymous source with a proposition. Thus the quest in question begins, with you and a band of rebels (some of whom will be familiar at this point in the story) working in the shadows to overthrow the failing god of logic. It's a multi-step, enthralling mission full of espionage and potentially devastating stakes, and it's far and away the best quest of 2024.
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Best Puzzles:
I'm a pretentious little termite, and pretentious little termites like myself like to feel smart. That's really the major appeal of puzzle games for me. They may literally be designed to be solved, but there's still nothing quite like the feeling of having that "a-ha!" moment at the end of an arduous thought exercise. So, these were the games with the best puzzles for this year.
#5): Indika
Mindbender puzzles aren't normally my thing, but something about the way Indika handles them just works for me. None of them are particularly difficult, but they help in establishing the various absurd locales you visit.
#4): Crow Country
Like the old-school survival horror games that inspired it, Crow Country is all about finding key items in the world and using them to open up more passages as you try to do whatever it is you're trying to do. There are, however, some great puzzles besides just opening doors. Just like with Indika, none of them are particularly hard, but they're the kinds that make you feel clever for solving them. For instance, there's one chest with a combination padlock, and atop this chest in an octopus on a scale. Normally this might sound like a bit of set dressing given that this takes place in an ocean-themed part of the amusement park. However, if you hit an octopus in the little gun game a couple rooms away, you can then see a screen full of facts about octopi right next to the game. If you interact with this display, one of the facts you learn is the weight of an average octopus, which is the combination for that padlock. There's a lot of attention to detail involved, and taking little logical leaps of faith like that and being rewarded for it is the essence of a good puzzle.
#3): Lorn's Lure
Every obstacle you encounter in Lorn's Lure is its own puzzle. You're always tasked with somehow getting from point A to point B, and everything you can see is a potential step towards this goal. If you need to get down to a point miles below you, what will your plan be? Are you going to try to take it piece by piece, landing on individual beam after individual beam at risk of getting stuck and needing a hail mary to get back up? Or will you try and tic-tac off of a wall at the last minute of sliding down it to grab a beam much further down, which comes with a higher risk of failure? In rock climbing, they don't call their courses "problems" for nothing: every objective you have is a problem to be solved, as it is here.
#2): Cryptmaster
I'm a simple man: I like getting to flex my vocabulary where I can. This is the essence of Cryptmaster's puzzles. Imagine playing a Wordle RPG, and you have a pretty good idea of what you'll be doing in this game. The more words you type, the greater your chances of guessing the names of (and thereby unlocking) extra skills, for instance. So it behooves you to think outside the box when you're faced with a problem. Add on to this the fact that most of the puzzles you come up against are also riddles, and you have something that's arguably far simpler than the previous spot winners, but it speaks to me a bit more!
Best Puzzle Design of the Year: Animal Well
I've already said it a couple of times but it bears repeating: a good puzzle is the kind that makes you feel clever for having figured it out. But a great puzzle is the kind that makes you feel that way without you being able to tell if it was the intended solution or not. This is the kind of puzzle that Animal Well specializes in. One example in particular comes to mind: I was needed to get into an alcove on the left side of the screen, but to do so I would have to pass through a conveyer belt of columns moving in that direction. All but one spot of the floor was covered in water, so I had only that spot of land to work with. What's more, the columns all passed under a wall that came down to exactly their height, so I couldn't just ride on the top of these columns to get through. I don't know if I described any of that (animal) well, but c'est la vie. Anywho, I struggle on this one for a while before having a thought: maybe if I throw my frisbee at the column that passes by as I fall to that piece of land, then jump back up in time to jump on the frisbee, I can bounce back and forth between that column and the one that comes up behind me until I get into that alcove. To my surprise, this plan went off without a hitch. It's just one example of the kinds of big brain maneuvers that Animal Well will inspire you to come up with if you give it some of your time.
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Best Completionism:
An excellent testament to a game's quality is if I feel the need to reach 100% completion. I'll never forget the first time that desire came to me in a context other than "do multiple playthroughs": Far Cry 3 back in 2012. Since then, I've aimed for completionism everywhere I've had even the slightest inkling to do so, and for 2024, these were the games for which the completionism journey was the most fun.
NOTE: Spots #10-#6 went to Dragon Age: The Veilguard, Aquarist, Cryptmaster, Dread Delusion, and Black Myth: Wukong.
#5): Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth
Both this and the next spot winner are games that I couldn't actually reach 100% on, which should say a lot about how great the incomplete journey is. In the case of Rebirth, a lot of the completionism stems from things like reaching certain ranks in the many minigames, almost all of which are fun. It's never a matter of completing vast campaign-long feats or things that can be missed if you don't act in time, so despite the overwhelming amount of content, it can be taken in as big of a bite size as you want in a given evening.
#4): Animal Well
Show me someone who has actually reached 100% completion in Animal Well and I'll show you a liar. There's simply too much to do, and a lot of it is hidden behind indecipherably dense detail, to say nothing of what may yet remain undiscovered. However, it's undeniable that however far you can make it towards the 100% goal, you'll have a great time doing it.
#3): Another Crab's Treasure
Another Crab's Treasure's biggest selling point is the whole gimmick of being a hermit crab and swapping between different shell types for different armor values and abilities. It also just so happens that a lot of the completionism is centered around this exact system! So you get to aim for that Platinum trophy just by going out and discovering all the wacky new shell types that a new environment might come with.
#2): Astro Bot
Have you ever heard the phrase "Keep it Simple, Stupid"? That's the name of the game with Astro Bot's completion criteria. It's largely just a matter of rescuing all of the bots and finding all of the puzzle pieces in a level. So, much like Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth, it's a series of bite-sized bits of completionism that all feed into one big completionism sandwich.
Most Satisfying Completionism of the Year: Crow Country
There came a pivotal moment in my quest to get the Platinum trophy for Crow Country that made me realize just how much of a shoe-in for this award it was: I was in a playthrough where I aimed to find all of the secrets before the credits rolled. About halfway through the game, I flipped a switch that cut me off from a secret I hadn't gone to collect yet. It turns out this could be easily reversed, but I didn't realize it at the time, so at that point I was going to have to start all over again. And you know what? I didn't give it a second thought. I just quit to the menu and started the game from the beginning, vowing to once again find all the secrets but just be a bit more careful about it this time. I would then go on to reach completion in further playthroughs as well. Yeah, I hardly think I need to elaborate more!
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Best Enemies:
You know, one of these days I ought to alter this category to celebrate the games with the best enemies in them, not the best enemy types within a given game...and I was going to follow that up with "but it is not this day," but as I was writing that line, it suddenly sounded like a progressively better and better idea to me, so, surpriiiiise! This category will likely be different from now on unless 2025 is totally different from this year. Whether because a game's enemies force the player to think, whether they're designed exceptionally well, or whether they're just fun to fight, these were the games with the best enemy rosters!
#5): Stellar Blade
#4): Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine II
#3): Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth
#2): Black Myth: Wukong
Enemy Roster of the Year: Another Crab's Treasure
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Best Boss:
A good boss can be the x-factor that makes an otherwise snoozeworthy game memorable or drops an otherwise excellent game down a point for me. In many cases, a good boss is the thing that causes me to look forward to a second or third playthrough. Whether because they're a satisfying challenge, a true cinematic experience, or a variety of any other reasons, these were the bosses that stuck with me the most.
#10): Ghost Slaughter 3 (Crypt Custodian)
#9): Captain Spaventa the Great (Enotria: The Last Song)
#8): Space Bully Nebulax (Astro Bot)
#7): Imurah (Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine II)
#6): The Lost Gods (Cryptmaster)
#5): Bayle the Dread (Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree)
#4): Rufus Shinra (Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth)
#3): Abaddon (Stellar Blade)
#2): Praya Dubia, the Ocean's Agony/Praya Dubia, the Final Scream (Another Crab's Treasure)
Boss of the Year: Great Sage's Broken Shell (Black Myth: Wukong)
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Best Weapon:
A solid gameplay loop, solid enemies, and solid bosses are all important aspects of a game, but only in rare cases can these things hold a game up without excellent tools to tackle these aspects with. In their simplest iterations, weapons are as simple as a sword and shield. On the opposite side of the spectrum, some can be entire systems of magic. Whatever way you slice it or whatever wizardry you use to describe it, these were the weapons that clicked with me the most in 2024.
NOTE: Spots #10-#6 went to: The Fork from Another Crab's Treasure, Frog Arms from Astro Bot, The Handgun from Crow Country, Synthesis from Metaphor ReFantazio, and "Immobilize" from Black Myth: Wukong.
#5): Spaventa's Polearm (Enotria: The Last Song)
Polearms aren't the most useful weapon type in Enotria once act 2 and beyond rolls around, but for some reason, they're the weapon type that looks the best. My weapon of choice for the first playthrough was Captain Spaventa's candlestick trident thing simply because I thought it was the coolest of the bunch (and the fact that just about any weapon can be upgraded to relevant stats didn't hurt).
#4): Bayonets (Rise of the Ronin)
On paper, bayonets aren't a person's first choice of weapon. I mean, really, in a feudal Japanese setting, you aren't firing the associated gun very often, so at the end of the day, it's just a small knife on the edge of a stick. I know all that. But I found myself using bayonets as my main weapon throughout Rise of the Ronin since it never got old to perform finishers where I would jab a guy, sling the gun around once, then finish him off with a single shot. In a setting full of odachis and katanas, bayonets are a bit of a roundabout way of solving problems, but I enjoyed using them!
#3): Technomancy (Bleak Faith: Forsaken)
I am fascinated by technomancy as a concept. One part magic, one part technology, something about it just piques my interest like nothing else. So, Bleak Faith already had that going for it since the game's sorcerer class uses that particular form of magic. However, it's also the biggest damage-dealing force in the game, so it's actually useful (unlike magic in a lot of soulslikes).
#2): Messmer's Spear (Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree)
Despite the fact that this is the second spear to earn a spot on this list, I'm really not a spear person. For my Elden Ring character, I was using the bloodhound greatsword because I'm a dirty pleb. However, Messmer's Spear looked really cool, had great weapon arts, and scaled well with my build, so at well over 200 hours with this character, I switched weapons and never looked back.
Weapon of the Year: Melee Weapons (Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine II)
If there's one negative I tend to hear about Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine II, it's that the co-op/multiplayer aspect is more than a little grindy. But you know what? Despite only using bots as teammates, I did some of that grind. Why? Because it meant I got to play as a class that used the game's suite of melee weapons regularly. They're that fun to use. Whether it's the power sword cleaving through hordes of enemies like Sauron with his mace at the start of Fellowship of the Ring or the titular warhammer getting whipped around to take a tyranid's head off, the melee weapons reign supreme in a game that really should have been about the guns.
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Best Setting:
I can think of few people who would enjoy an excellent gameplay loop that takes place in a white void. In fact, one of the major complaints people had about the original Assassin's Creed was that there was a prolonged training sequence in exactly that: a white void. But don't get this confused with a previous award. This has nothing to do with level design or how well an area compliments gameplay. Rather, this is an award that celebrates settings that are interesting from a conceptual or lore standpoint. So, these were the best settings of 2024.
#10): Unrealistic Aquarium World (Aquarist)
In the world of Aquarist, you don't have to worry about things like ammonia, nitrates, and nitrites. You don't have to worry about realistic stocking parameters. You just have to worry about a small range of things, and as long as you manage these things well, you can create just about any kind of aquarium you like. What a wonderful world that would be.
#9): The 40k Universe (Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine II)
I'll say this right up front: the only reason the 40k Universe is down this low is because it's well-established. Otherwise there'd be no contest. The lore is the big draw of Warhammer 40,000. How could it not be the biggest draw when there's enough of it to fill several physical book volumes?
#8): Realm of Shadows (Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree)
Take the already excellent Lands Between that make up Elden Ring and somehow improve upon it: you now have the Realm of Shadows. Everything from the black and yellow ambiance of the whole map to the sunflower-filled fields of the starting area is brimming with the kind of twisted personality you expect from From Software at this point.
#7): The Animal Well (Animal Well)
I wish I could say more about this entry, but all it really takes is a look at the aesthetic to understand how it could get such a high spot.
#6): 20th Century Russia (Indika)
Indika's take on 20th Century Russia is something more akin to an elseworld story than historical fiction. It has all the hallmarks we know and love: snow, vodka, depression, etc, but it also has this dreamlike quality to it where everyone seems to be in their own little worlds. And despite nothing making sense, there's this thin veneer of logic that runs through the veins of this world. It's fascinating to experience.
#5): The Tulpar (Mouthwashing)
The Tulpar is a cargo freighter delivering a hefty package across the solar system as part of "The Pony Express": an Amazon-style corporation with an Amazon-level disregard for human life. The ship itself is held together with hopes and dreams, with only solidifying foam as a countermeasure for any holes the hull takes on. And yet, in a dark way, it's perfectly suited to sustaining life for an extended period of time. With only specific codes, nutrient packets can be created, and a special mixing apparatus can be used to turn these packets into more human-recognizable forms (like a cake or a cocktail). And that's before we get to the truly detestable corporate shortcuts that are discovered throughout the game's runtime.
#4): The Colony (Bleak Faith: Forsaken)
Towering, bleak, slavic apartment buildings with gigantic wires. Barely-lit concrete subdivisions made up of sheer drops and slim stairways nicknamed the "Rain District" because of its perpetual downpour. A treacherous industrial seaside wherein buildings crumble for miles upon miles into the cyborg sea-monster-infested depths below. A chilled desert below an artificial planet in the night sky. These vistas and more are the kinds of things you'll experience as you explore the colony in which Bleak Faith: Forsaken takes place.
#3): The Ocean (Another Crab's Treasure)
I say it time and time again: I'm a simple man: give me the ocean or a tropical setting and you'll likely make a fan out of me. However, Another Crab's Treasure goes the extra mile with this setting in a way that takes an unfortunate situation and gives it a charming coat of paint. The ocean in Another Crab's Treasure is a lot like the ocean in real life these days: filled with trash. In this game, the problem is bad enough that undersea society has almost entirely changed to revolve around trash. Cities are built up based on the cereal boxes and milk cartons on the ocean floor, microplastics are currency, etc. In lesser hands, this would feel heavy-handed, but in Aggro Crab's hands, it makes what would otherwise be a little too Spongebob-coded feel like its own thing.
#2): Fedora I (Harold Halibut)
First conceived as a potential last bastion for humanity at the height of the cold war, the Fedora I served as home for a couple generations of people as it traveled through space towards a potential new planet for the species. It would've been easy for the denizens of this vessel to fall to pieces after it eventually crashed into the ocean of an alien planet, but life finds a way. So, the Fedora I, once a spacefaring ship, was converted into a more permanent home and repurposed to meet the new challenges faced by living underseas. All this plus the attention to detail I've discussed in previous blurbs make it easily one of my favorite settings from any game this year. And it would've been the overall winner were it not for...
Setting of the Year: The Archipelago (Dread Delusion)
The archipelago upon which the events of Dread Delusion takes place is a land of ancient, malevolent gods. It's a land inhabited by the Wikkans, who pay blood tributes to these gods in exchange for good harvests...at least, that's what the arrangement was until the Apostatic Union conquered the land. Under the Union, all god worship was outlawed on pain of death and torment, and every known god was hunted down. With one fell swoop, the denizens of the archipelago no longer had to sacrifice their children and could spit on the gods that subjugated them without fear of retaliation...but it became difficult to ignore how much worse the harvests got. But for as much land as the Apostatic Union conquered, they didn't conquer everything. There's also the Undying Land, which is made up of undead people and dark angels. Then there's the clockwork kingdom, which is ruled over by a cruel, failing artificial god of logic. If all of that didn't already sound cool enough, the Union uses a special scale to weigh people, and they can tell if a person has fallen victim to god worship of any kind because the "weight of superstition" has a tangible impact on the measurement. It's been a long time since I've encountered an original IP that puts as much care and creativity into the worldbuilding as I saw in just the Archipelago.
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Biggest Disappointment:
To my great dismay, I've never experienced a year without some kind of disappointment. When I was first starting out as a critic, I didn't branch out much, so an award recognizing disappointments was a rare, usually single-slot affair. But as the years have gone by, I've both branched out more and gotten less tolerant at the same time. So whether they're full games or just bits and pieces of them, these were the 10 biggest disappointments in gaming for this year.
#10): Aquarist Technical Issues (Aquarist)
Last year, I first gave Baldur's Gate 3 a try on PC, then re-purchased it on PS5 when it launched on that platform because it was so littered with technical issues on PC. With Aquarist, the story is reversed. I first bought it on PS5 but it was unplayable past the prologue, so I got it again on PC. Aquarist is, to nobody's surprise, not quite on the same life-changing level as Baldur's Gate 3. So it's a crying shame that I shelled out money twice for this, but I am still glad I did.
#9): Poor Weapon Variety (Enotria: The Last Song)
While Enotria is objectively not a very good game, it is overhated. One point of criticism that is completely fair, however, is its lack of weapon variety. There are a small handful of weapon types, and each individual weapon in that type handles exactly the same way. Furthermore, before a somewhat-recent patch, any weapon other than longswords became much less useful after Act 1 because of some poor attack pattern balancing and a lack of hyper armor or poise.
#8): Animal Well Cat Boss
Animal Well could've been a perfect game, but there was one massive flaw that brought my "goddamnit" count up farther than I'd like: the ghost cat boss. Your goal is to Indiana Jones-style take a disc from a pedestal, run across the map, and place the disc in a different pedestal while this ghost cat chases you, and it's really just a game of chance. The cat can spread itself the entire length of a room if it wants to, and it'll always enter a new room at exactly the same time no matter how far behind you it was when you entered that room in the first place. I legitimately hated every second of this "boss," and it dragged an otherwise excellent experience through the dirt.
#7): Metaphor ReFantazio Twists
I've long said that anime games enter the market with a comically large amount of insecurity about their plots. It's as if they realize that everyone knows it's all about the power of friendship, so they try to act like they can sit at the big boy table by throwing out as many pointless, nonsensical plot twists as humanly possible. Metaphor ReFantazio is the latest victim of anime game insecurity. Plot twist after plot twist. Oooh, this guy is actually responsible for the thing, oh wait, no he isn't, someone was actually controlling him, ooooh the original guy was the one controlling him but oh wait the king had this secret thing and you're actually the chosen one and the real world is a fantasy story except no it isn't....it's infuriating to see a story like this lavished with praise from half the known world when it's so clearly creatively bankrupt.
#6): Lorn's Lure Final Level
"Rage Quitting" isn't a thing I typically do. At most I tend to rage "take a break" or rage "win." It just isn't often that you see me drop something for good out of anger. The only other thing in recent memory that had that effect was Ghostrunner, and for the exact same reasons that I ended up dropping Lorn's Lure in the final level. In this last level, the usually caution-centric gameplay loop is thrown to the dogs in favor of a time trial requiring constant movement without any time to get your bearings, all with a brand new tool that you've had all of 5 minutes to get used to. This was unfortunately paired with the most grating dubstep track known to man and equally grating sound effects in the surrounding environs, making the whole thing a sensory nightmare. I was getting so angry that I eventually decided it was time to call it quits. I'd completed all the actual challenges from when the gameplay loop was consistent, I didn't need to prove anything to myself or anyone else by humoring this last level any longer.
#5): Dragon's Dogma 2
I can't really say that I had much in the way of positive expectations going into Dragon's Dogma 2. By the time I got my hands on it, reports had already started to come out about all the negatives, and all the preview events leading up to release were kind of lame. But I enjoyed the original game, so I figured I'd still enjoy this sequel. Definitely one of the biggest disappointments of this year, but we're not done with it quite yet.
#4): Stellar Blade
For all of the sometimes unfair hate that game journalists get, they really do it to themselves some times. Leading up to Stellar Blade's release, they were all clutching their pearls and summoning the war council for an "open dialogue" about the design of the game's protagonist: Eve. She's just a lady with big bazongas. That's it. That's literally the only thing they were fainting in the kitchen about. Then came the gooners for obvious reasons, treating Stellar Blade like it was the risen christ for no reason other than big bazongas. All of that back and forth in service of one of the most amateur hour boring slogs I've had to sit through in recent memory.
#3): Chapter 6 (Black Myth: Wukong)
Black Myth: Wukong already would've been overrated to some degree without it, but its final chapter is what makes me seriously question its wild success. Up until this point, Wukong boasted some excellent level design. But in chapter 6, it just becomes one bland, empty, ugly open world. Up until this point, Wukong didn't suffer too much on the performance front. But in chapter 6, you'd be lucky to get a frame rate in the double digits. Up until this point, Wukong had some of this year's best bosses...there were some that were complete BS for sure, but in general, it was a top-shelf-roster. In chapter 6, however, that great boss design gets traded in for a BS-peddling rhino, a hyper-aggressive praying mantis with the longest unskippable cutscene known to man, and a hard stat check (with no skill involved). Before chapter 6 rolled around, you'd be hard-pressed to say that Black Myth: Wukong was anything other than excellent (somewhat overrated, but excellent)...but it becomes far too clear that the team stopped caring after a while, and the result is that this game stumbles hard right at the finish line. It's largely because the final boss is so great that chapter 6 hasn't retroactively made me come to count Wukong itself among the most disappointing games of the year.
#2): Senua's Saga: Hellblade II
I liked Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice quite a bit, so while I wasn't exactly chomping at the bit for a sequel, I was on board with it when it was announced. Then it was revealed that Heilung, a hyperfixation band of mine, would be doing the soundtrack to give its Icelandic setting the most realistic soundscape imaginable. Lo and behold, the game didn't really have much in the way of a soundtrack....or story......or gameplay....or characters.....or redeeming qualities. Yes, it's safe to say that no other game this year could've possibly been more of a disappointment for me......well, except for...
Disappointment of the Year: Dragon Age: The Veilguard
It would be one thing if it were EA's fault that Veilguard sucks so badly...but it isn't. It's EA's fault that there was a pivot to a multiplayer live-service model early on, but they backpedaled on that and gave Bioware full reign to do whatever they wanted. And now that we have the results, it's clear that Jason Schreier's expose on Anthem is still relevant: Bioware management is beset on all sides by arrogance, lack of care, and now a clear lack of talent. The result is a narrative-driven game with a narrative that makes the MCU look good, a gameplay loop that could've been great were it not for literally every decision made in terms of structure and context, and an overwhelming sense that Bioware just wants this thing dead and buried as fast as possible so they can move on to the next Mass Effect in earnest. But having seen what this talentless new Bioware has done with Dragon Age, I officially don't want another Mass Effect. The time has come to close the doors on Bioware and to let the properties they're known for either die or go to other hands...after all, Baldur's Gate used to be a Bioware property, and look how that turned out when Larian got the rights!
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Most Rewarding:
It can be easy to get this category mixed up with the completionism award (lord knows I have to correct my thought process every year), but this award really is its own thing. This particular category is all about the minute-to-minute gameplay loop and how it rewards you for engaging with it. This can be as simple as a pleasing sound effect as you pick up a collectible, or it can be as complicated as training you to unconsciously engage in a roleplaying aspect (like the teaching part of Fire Emblem: Three Houses). These were the games that were the most rewarding in 2024.
NOTE: Spots #10-#6 went to: Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth, Bleak Faith: Forsaken, Animal Well, Another Crab's Treasure, and Black Myth: Wukong.
#5): Dread Delusion
In most open world fantasy RPGs, leveling up is a matter of engaging with content, so in that way, Dread Delusion isn't unique. In the Elder Scrolls games, it's all about training individual skills in combat or by engaging with specific systems such as lockpicking. In most other RPGs, it's about completing quests or simply coming out of combat encounters alive. In Dread Delusion, however, it's a matter of engaging with the world itself. You level up by finding hidden items called "delusions," which require turning over every rock and looting every shack you see in the distance. This also requires completing certain quests, but the majority of your levels will be gained through finding as much as possible. That possibly sounds not all that special, but have you ever gone to a building at the top of a mountain in Skyrim only to find about 10 gold pieces? I rest my case!
#4): Cryptmaster
Cryptmaster is the rare case of a game that rewards you for literally anything you do. Since every little thing from fishing to combat consists of wordle-style puzzles, any word you type will show you what letters are relevant to the next skill you need to unlock. If there weren't so many doggoned x-z letters in combat, this would be a shoe-in for the top spot in this category!
#3): Crow Country
I haven't done any hard research on this, but if I had to guess, I'd say you maybe have to enter about half of the possible rooms in Crow Country in order to reach the end credits. But nothing you do is a waste of time. If you go through every possible room, you'll always find something useful like ammo (which is always a blessing in a survival horror context where resources are limited)...but you'll sometimes find something special. This can come in the form of new weapons (none of which are required, strictly speaking), weapon upgrades, ammo for your strongest weapon, etc. And the more secrets you find, the more likely you are to unlock bonus items when the credits roll. The most basic of these rewards is a crowbar (get it?) that prevents you from having to spend a bullet to open containers in subsequent playthroughs, so it's always worthwhile to engage with the game wherever possible.
#2): Aquarist
I'll come right out and say that this one is due to nothing other than my personal biases. The experience of coming up with an aquarium idea, executing on it, and making money off of it is rewarding enough on its own. But by doing this, you unlock extra stuff with which to create more interesting tanks. By continuing to do this, you eventually get to open up your own oceanarium, which would be a dream beyond all dreams for me.
Most Rewarding Game of the Year: Astro Bot
Just about anything you can think to do in Astro Bot is rewarded in some way. Usually it's in the form of coins, but you also get positive repercussions for rescuing bots in levels or finding puzzle pieces. With the coins you uncover, you can use the game's gacha lab to unlock extra little tidbits for the hub world. These can be props for the bots you rescue, different coats of paint for your controller speeder, or different outfits for you to wear. The more bots you rescue, the more extra stuff you can unlock in the hub world outside of the gacha lab. As you collect puzzle pieces, more facilities become available to make use of those other rewards. Yes, it's safe to say that every little thing you do benefits you in some small way.
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Best Moment:
Remember what I said about expecting spoilers for everything in the introductory blurb? Well, that goes double for this category. This one is almost certainly all about spoiler moments, so be warned. Regardless, the "Best Moment" category is my favorite of the bunch strictly because I get to talk about the parts of games this year that truly stuck with me. Whether it's because a moment brought me to tears, made me feel like a badass, or any number of other reasons, these moments are the ones I'm going to remember for years to come. And although this year was a bit on the lame side when it came to finding moments to put on this short list, the best ones are still exceptional. So, without further ado, the best moments in gaming for 2024.
It's hardly a spoiler to say that fan-favorite character and love interest Aerith Gainsborough dies at Sephiroth's hands during the events of Final Fantasy VII. It's one of the most infamous moments in gaming history, with many an Evanescence AMV set to that scene back in the early 2000's (when people were still wondering if Youtube would give your computer a virus). But with this remake saga, fans were concerned about one thing: that the new Kingdom Hearts timey-wimey elements would mean the new director intended to retcon Aerith's death. Some were ecstatic for that possibility, but most were concerned about the impact that would cost the story. Well, with Rebirth, the second in this remake saga, that pivotal moment finally came, and it did the unthinkable.........starting with a painful buildup wherein Cloud struggles against the forces of fate to try and reach Aerith as she prays in the same position she was praying in before her death in the original title, all with a panic-inducing score. Finally, the camera pans up, and just like back in the day, we see Sephiroth plunging from the sky, katana in hand, ready to impale Aerith as the score suddenly cuts out. But just before the killing blow lands, Cloud breaks free from the forces of fate with a war cry and sheer force of will to parry Sephiroth's attack as the score once again picks up. The katana flies through the air, landing on the ground far away from the current cast, this once iconic story now changed for good.......only to reveal that the timey-wimey elements people were so concerned about actually erase this possibility. As the camera pans to Aerith's kneeling position, then to the bare ground before her, the screen glitches out to show the tip of a sword and the ground suddenly filling with blood. Just when the whole world believed they had saved Aerith, the whole multiverse aspect of this remake kills her all the same. It's fully possible that in the final chapter of this saga, the death will be retconned....in fact, I'd put good money on it. But for now, I can't help but admire such a tremendous fakeout. Were it not for the fact that this riffs off an existing moment, it would be higher up on this list.
Pluto, the protagonist of Crypt Custodian, is a recently-deceased cat trying to find a magic mirror said to be able to grant deceased animals the ability to return to the land of the living one last time to handle unfinished business. It therefore shouldn't be much of a spoiler to say that he succeeds in this pursuit. But once he goes through the mirror, nothing truly grand happens. He just appears in front of his owners' house, sees that it's the middle of the night and that his people are fast asleep, then curls up on top of their bed with them to give them one last bit of comfort. I'm not going to re-iterate the personal tragedies I've faced this year, but I think it's pretty obvious why this one stuck with me.
#8): Treasure Discovery (Another Crab's Treasure)
After a box of cereal floats down to the ocean floor, the deep sea denizens realize that there's a treasure map on the back. A land-lubber like you or me can tell that it's one of those little mazes on the back of kid cereal boxes, but to these characters, it's a potential life of ease on a silver platter. Amazingly, the clues on the map all turn out to be true, so protagonist Kril risks life and limb to find the treasure so as to be able to buy his shell back and return to his previous life of solitude. However, at the story's low point, the cast of characters ends up in this game's equivalent of Rock Bottom, with no light for miles on end. What's worse, they finally find the treasure...only to find that it's filled with millions upon millions of dollars. Kril is berated by negativity on all sides for this, as they all wasted their time for nothing. After all, there isn't a single microplastic amidst all those useless dollars. Despite the fact that this is the story's low point, I couldn't help but laugh at that.
#7): Cart Chase (Indika)
Continuing the trend of comedic moments, there comes a point where Indika has to flee from the police with Ilya, despite Ilya being too ill to move at the time. So, our heroine takes her first option: a janky bicycle with a big cart on the back. After loading Ilya on the cart, she takes off and as high-speed a chase as a high-speed chase can be under these circumstances ensues. The officer chasing them is on foot, and a janky bicycle with a big cart on the back weighed down by a second human being is still just barely faster than a runner. So, what actually ensues is a comically low-speed chase where the officer is always tailing just behind Indika and growing progressively more out of breath as he screams at them to stop immediately. It, of course, goes on for far longer than one might expect. Absurdist humor can be hit or miss, but this one was a hit for me.
[this is not one of the gory sections, so fret not]
This is as close as I intend to get to spoiling things for Mouthwashing, so be warned. Up until this point in the story, there's this implied tension between Anya and protagonist Jimmy, with Captain Curly serving as the go-between in certain situations. A day or two before the crash, during the scheduled "nighttime" for the ship, Curly finds Anya in the lounge, looking at the moon and night sky display on the big TV. I'd encourage you to watch the fan animation I've linked in the title card for this blurb, as it does a great job of showing subtle nuances in the scene through facial expressions and voice that the game, lacking some of these things, doesn't communicate as well. That's also where I'm going to leave the specific event descriptions. I, like many others, didn't notice what this sequence revealed about that aforementioned tension right away...but when the implications became clear later on it actually gave me goosebumps. Seeing the scene again in a fully-voiced context gave me goosebumps a second time. The little back and forth about the dead pixel (and, unsaid, how. it relates to the proverbial forest vs trees on this ship), Curly's unfortunate optimistic naivety...Anya's desperate cry for help beneath the words, and the terror at realizing that cry for help has been missed because of that unfortunate optimistic naivety....holy moly. It's a testament to what I've already referred to as the sheer understated power of this script that a scene that dances around the issue can say so much in such an effective way.
There comes a point in Return of the King where Elrond dramatically brandishes Aragorn's sword to show that it's fixed. Whenever my family watches the Lord of the Rings trilogy, my mom always says "that has to just be a man thing" to describe how she doesn't find that moment all that awesome. This is an example of another thing I think she'd say that about. During the final mission, protagonist Titus and his squadmates come across a group of other Ultra Marines who are pinned down by enemy fire and notices that their chapter standard (meaning the flag that rallies them) has fallen. In response to this, he steps up on the mountain of corpses the standard sits atop, plants his foot firmly on the ground, and raises the standard like he's leading the Marine Corps War Memorial statue, screaming "IF WE DIE, WE DIE WITH VENGEANCE ON OUR LIPS." The game then cuts to a sequence where the Ultra Marines take up a dramatic stance around the standard, shooting into a veritable army of Chaos Forces, spouting ultra-macho threats even as their limbs get blown off and their brothers fall. The whole time, Titus holds the standard steady and fires using only his sidearm. They, of course, win the day, but it's one of the most badass sequences in any game in recent memory, and it exists for literally no reason other than to be badass.
If you've ever watched The Andy Griffith Show, you may remember how you felt when Gomer Pyle first opened his big dumb hick mouth to sing. There's surprise, and then there's that. Well, something similar happens early on in Harold Halibut. Harold is called in to clean one of the station filters for the millionth time, and as he laments his lot in life, he recognizes that it could be worse...but that there must be something more. In his own world as always, Harold begins to sing his own little broadway song about how underappreciated he is and how much greater things could be. This was clearly a one-take thing, but he has a Gomer Pyle-level disconnect between his look and his voice. As his daydreaming starts to come to an end, the depressing reality of his existence once again sinks in just a little as he ends the song: "maybe this is my destiny, trouble and strife?/and perhaps that's ok/at the end of the day/what more could there be to life?" There's a reason the start to this moment is used in all the trailers. As a classic broadway "I want it/when will things change?" song, it marks a strong start to a strong story.
#3): Solas' Memories (Dragon Age: The Veilguard)
In my review of Dragon Age: The Veilguard, I mentioned that there were flashes of brilliance that undoubtedly come from notes left behind by series writer David Gaider before he left Bioware. Many of those flashes of brilliance come in the form of Solas' memories from the beginning of time. As a lore buff, these moments were the ones I'd been waiting for. The elves being spirits who decided to take on physical form. The dwarves being unable to perform magic because Solas locked away the dreams of their ancestors. Things like that.
#2): The Twist (Neva)
At the beginning of Neva, we see the game's conflict take shape. The protagonist walks with a giant deer-wolf creature and this wolf's pup, when a crawling force of nondescript corruption appears and tries to kill the lot of them. In this struggle, the protagonist is knocked out and awakens to find that the mother dog gave her life to kill this patch of corruption and allow her puppy to live. So, the two set out on a quest to remove the corruption from the land. This process takes time, and as the game goes on, Neva (the pup) gradually grows up until they finally (presumably) defeat the villain behind the dark forces plaguing this world. After that, Neva has a pup of her own, and this happy family lives in peace. But then the beginning of that opening cutscene begins to play again...and in my own case, my heart started to sink as I realized the truth of this moment. What we saw at the beginning wasn't the beginning, it was the end. And because we already saw the cutscene, we know exactly what's coming from the moment it starts. Neva herself was the mother wolf, and she sacrificed herself in order to kill the last batch of corruption in the world so her pup could live without fear. For me, it was one of the most devastating moments in gaming this year, as the already tearjerking soundtrack piece took on new meaning...to say nothing of the obvious events of this year.
Moment of the Year: Just a Little Longer (Just a To the Moon Series Beach Episode)
But as devastating as that last spot winner was, it's nothing compared to what Kan Gao managed to do with Beach Episode. Throughout the episode's runtime, we consistently see protagonist Eva react strangely to the things that used to irritate her. We see her feel a little bit charmed as her coworker and friend Neil jumps out to protect her from perceived threats. We see her not roll her eyes and demand that they focus when Neil goes off on tangents. And then the truth is revealed: Neil actually passed away before this episode, and all of these events are just Eva trying to come to terms with her grief. Before knowing this, one could be forgiven for thinking that these changes in Eva's character were the start of a love story. But in reality, the things that used to irritate her about her friend are now things she misses more than anything. As she starts to realize the truth of her situation, she finally confronts the personality construct that has passed for Neil all this time to admit that he isn't real. This version of Neil eventually asks how he was at the end, remarking that he probably cracked a couple good jokes, but he's met with silence. "...that bad, huh?", he asks. The two have an earnest conversation about how they really felt before: how Neil had been crushing on Eva but couldn't stand the thought of her having to suffer while he slowly died of the same disease that claimed his mother. Eventually, the two go out on the town in this simulation one last time before finally retiring to the beach side to have one last chat. Eva reflects on the day that we, the player, have had. "You jumped out to protect me...that's totally something you would do," things like that to prolong the inevitable. As the episode comes to a close, Eva makes one request of Neil before saying goodbye for good: "Just a little longer." And so, the two sit in silence for a little bit, with a prompt floating overhead: "press {esc} to leave." We get to sit there for as long as we wish, until we're ready to, just like Eva, finally say goodbye to a character we've known for 13 years now. Kan Gao couldn't possibly have known that he would be releasing this episode the weekend after my own tragedy, but in this episode, I felt my grief embodied perfectly. How much Eva missed every little thing Neil did, how unwilling she was to let go, the eventual acceptance of her situation no matter how much she wanted to live in denial, all of it felt like I was directly being addressed and told it would be ok. The best gaming moment in a given year isn't always a happy one, just like the most pivotal moments in our lives aren't, but sometimes the moments in fiction that are hard to sit through are the ones that give us comfort in the hardest real moments. So, congratulations, Mr. Gao. And thank you.
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Big Picture Awards:
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Best DLC:
Are you taking notes, Geoff Keighley? DLC should be its own award category, because no matter how good a DLC is, it should never be a GOTY nominee! Anyway, I normally don't play enough DLC to warrant an award. In fact, me playing DLC tends to be a bit of a rare occurrence. However, this year was just sparse enough that I ended up going back to old things fairly regularly. I considered just doing an Honorable Mention for this category, but if I were to do that, the winner would be obvious...and it wouldn't give a spotlight to any of the other add-ons I went through this year. So, while most of these games didn't come out this year, these were the best add-ons released within the last 365(ish) days.
#5): Astro Bot: Stellar Speedway
#4): Power Wash Simulator: Warhammer 40,000
#3): Dredge: The Iron Rig
#2): Pokemon Scarlet/Violet: The Indigo Disc
DLC of the Year: Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree
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Most Unique:
As I've grown sicker and sicker of seeing the same old crap in AAA games (and even Indie games at times), I've also grown more fond of games that try to do something different. This year wasn't a great year for that, so I'm having to really reach deep into the barrel to justify this category, but I did manage to come up with a list. So, these were the games of 2024 that did something new in some way.
NOTE: Spots #10-#6 went to: Bleak Faith: Forsaken, While We Wait Here, Another Crab's Treasure, Aquarist, and Animal Well.
#5): Lorn's Lure
Typically, when you see a game all about climbing and nothing else, it'll tend to be an experience centered around difficulty so Youtubers will get angry and scream at it. Not so with Lorn's Lure. Rather, this game is a climbing and descending simulation that gets about as realistic as something like that can get without losing the fun factor.
#4): Dread Delusion
We see plenty of soulslikes and metroidvanias, but one thing we don't typically see a lot of is games in the same vein as an Elder Scrolls title. Early next year we have Avowed releasing from Obsidian, but for now, the closest thing we have is Dread Delusion, which clearly takes notes from Morrowind. What Dread Delusion has going for it is its stat-based exploration system and unusually laissez-fair attitude for a modern title.
#3): Harold Halibut
Here comes that elbow grease rearing its head again. Harold Halibut is but one narrative game in a (literal) sea of narrative games, but at this point you likely know what sets it apart: the stop-motion art style.
#2): Indika
One could be forgiven for writing Indika off upon first hearing about it. After all, it sports a whole hodgepodge of different gameplay styles from walking simulator to kart racer, and that's before we get to the whole absurdist aspect. But Indika manages to pull all of these things off without ever feeling schizophrenic or unfocused.
Most Unique Game of the Year: Cryptmaster
Back in the day, typing games were fairly common. It was as if a large amount of developers thought that inserting their intellectual property into typing tutorials would help adults adjusting to a newly digital world (such as in the case of Mario's typing game) or simply adjusting to adulthood (such as in the case of the Walking Dead typing game) learn faster. But Cryptmaster, as far as I can tell, is the first and only such title to take the whole typing concept and try to make it feel fun. Witty black humor, puzzles that make you feel clever, all of these things come together to create an experience that decidedly wins this category for 2024. Here's hoping that 2025 can offer up some more truly unique experiences.
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Best Developer:
Despite what human pond scum samples like Phil Spencer seem to believe, shareholders aren't talented enough to make good games. Good games cannot happen without good developers. The people responsible for the development of the year's best games deserve all the credit in the world. A developer can be noteworthy for promoting pro-consumer policies, for completing their projects in spite of impossible odds, or just based on game quality alone. Whatever the reason, these developers were, in my estimation, the best ones in 2024. I realize that cutting the list short for time likely feels more than a little bit contradictory, but the fact of the matter is that there just isn't that much to say for some of these other than "they put out good stuff." So, with that settled, here were 2024's best developers.
NOTE: Spots #10-#6 went to: Rubeki for Lorn's Lure, Bad Vice Games for While We Wait Here, SFB Games for Crow Country, Aggro Crab for Another Crab's Treasure, and Kan Gao for Just a To the Moon Series Beach Episode.
#5): Lee Williams/Paul Hart (Cryptmaster)
#4): Odd Meter (Indika)
#3): Slow Bros. (Harold Halibut)
#2): Lovely Hellplace (Dread Delusion)
Developer of the Year: Billy Basso (Animal Well)
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Best Story:
When I was but a wee younger critic, story was the most important aspect of any given game to me. After all, my favorite game of all time is Dragon Age: Origins, so when I was just starting out, why wouldn't have narrative been a big factor for me? But then Doom 2016 came along and stole away everything I thought I knew about myself, like a krabby patty slithering down Squidward's throat or a goth girl walking through a group of mormons. Since then (and especially since the death of Telltale Games), it seems like the industry as a whole has put less emphasis on story, with each year proving progressively more difficult to fill this award category for. Still, a good narrative, while not 100% necessary, is one of the most important things a game can do right. We're coming close to the end of this article...well, in the same sense as a pastor means when he says "in conclusion"...but this is one of the final categories, so here goes: the best stories in games for 2024.
#10): Black Myth: Wukong
#9): Cryptmaster
#8): While We Wait Here
#7): Another Crab's Treasure
#6): Still Wakes the Deep
#5): Dread Delusion
#4): Just a To the Moon Series Beach Episode
#3): Indika
#2): Mouthwashing
Story of the Year: Harold Halibut
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Best Gameplay:
This final category is obviously the most important of the bunch. Excellent gameplay isn't required for a game to be good, but the odds aren't great for games that rely only on other factors. Regardless, this category is a celebration of fun, but it's also a celebration of craftsmanship. It's all about a well-crafted gameplay loop strong in several objective ways that also just so happens to be a blast to experience. It's pretty rare to find an example of a game that fails at one of these while succeeding at another, but it happens. So, these were the 10 gameplay models from 2024 that most hit me where I lived.
#10): Cryptmaster
#9): Crow Country
#8): Stellar Blade
#7): Dread Delusion
#6): Enotria: The Last Song
#5): Lorn's Lure
#4): Another Crab's Treasure
#3): Black Myth: Wukong
#2): Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine II
Gameplay of the Year: Astro Bot
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Honorable Mentions
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As always, I like to go through some smaller, single-winner categories before we get to the list proper. Unlike most cases, these Honorable Mentions are more about categories that I couldn't (or wouldn't because of tradition) fill up...not games that won't be going on the top 10 list. These awards also don't factor into placements on the top 10 list, so they're really just a bit of fun I like to have in terms of having/eating my cake, and they let me give special attention to game aspects or miscellaneous things I wouldn't otherwise get to talk about. This year I have a handful of new ones, and it's also with a heavy heart that I have to announce the retirement of an Honorable Mention that has been a staple of this blog since I started the Honorable Mention tradition: the Samus Aran Award for Strongest Female Character. Back in the day, people just didn't know how to write female characters, and so several casts were beset by lame-o women who would get kidnapped as quickly as any damsel all while spouting the corporate-approved line: "I can handle myself." But in recent years, the award has become more and more redundant and unnecessary. So, this year, I've decided to retire the award until it's once again needed. So, thank you, Samus Aran Award, for your many years of service. Now, let's get into it!
Gears of War Award for Most Raw Fun
You may recall that the "Best Gameplay" category deals with the design of a gameplay loop, with fun factor being only an aspect of the judging. It's here that I eschew all of that and talk about the game for which the fun factor was the highest. It is, of course, a throwback to the original Gears of War, which I absolutely loved at the time despite the fact that it had no worthwhile story to speak of. With that in mind, the Gears of War Award for Most Raw Fun goes to...
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Undertale Award for Biggest Surprise
Despite how much I might posture myself to the contrary, I am not omniscient. I can be hyped for a game only to be disappointed, and I can go into something I have few expectations for only to be blown away. Take this award's namesake, Undertale, for instance. Little bleep-bloop pixelated indie games are a dime a dozen, and the art style normally belies a great deal of laziness...but as we all know, Undertale was something special. So, every year I like to give out an award to the game that most exceeded my expectations. And for 2024, the recipient of the Undertale Award for Biggest Surprise is...
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Spec Ops: The Line Award for Most Important Game
The Spec Ops: The Line Award for Most Important Game is one of the original Honorable Mentions from way back in the day, when this section was more of a traditional Honorable Mention section meant for games that wouldn't see a spot in the top 10. It's crafted in the image of Spec Ops: The Line, which challenged the concept of nationalism in the face of crimes against humanity, and thus it celebrates the games that have something to say or that are otherwise "important" to the industry (such as pro-consumer practices). The reasons for a game winning this award are always slightly different, but for this year, it's...
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Halo 3 Award for Most Replayed Older Game of the Year
Moving right along, how about a brand new Honorable Mention? This is pretty much the only award I have that isn't restricted to the current year, so it's a chance to branch out a bit. Named after the one game that I've probably played more than any other, the Halo 3 Award for Most Replayed Older Game of the Year is meant to celebrate what older stuff I've come back to the most in the time between new releases. Normally there isn't really much to report, but this year was clearly different. For 2024, the first ever Halo 3 Award for Most Replayed Older Game of the Year goes to...
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Gwent Award for Best Minigame
Ever since Gwent came into being in The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, it seems like every big fantasy game wants a piece of that pie. And as with all copycat game mechanics that AAA companies try and fail to replicate, the success rate is not high. However, every once in a while, something good comes along. Normally this Honorable Mention is its own category, but this year there just wasn't enough to create a full list. So, only one winner for 2024, and that is...
Queen's Blood (Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth)
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Ubisoft Award for Dumbest Publisher
Game publishers are complete idiots. They are the dumbest mongoloid drooling mouth breathing knuckle dragging idiots you can possibly imagine, and they never get punished for it. When they make bad decisions, their CEOs fire all their staff and give themselves their next unearned $200trillion raise for doing nothing, then they fail upward into an even higher position at some other company. And 2024 has seemed to be a race to the bottom for all the publishers to see who can be the biggest idiots. How about Ubisoft (for whom this award is named) continuing their whole "get used to not owning your games" racket, selling a traumatic piece of Japanese history as a paid extra for Assassin's Creed: Shadows, calling Skull and Bones a "AAAA" experience, and lying through their teeth about XDefiant being around for the long haul? How about Phil Spencer at Xbox firing the developers of last year's excellent sleeper hit (and #2 spot winner on my GOTY list) Hi-Fi Rush, crying like a little baby about how he has to please shareholders when people called him mean things because of that, then gearing up to spend yet another $200trillion purchasing another big studio that he just intends to kill after one game? How about Bigmode head Jason Gastrow still refusing to apologize for only paying Silverbeard like $3.17 for passage aboard the S.S. Scooper Dungus? I'm probably forgetting several. Needless to say, this was a year of stiff competition, but even so, there's a clear winner. So, step right up...
But it's not just Concord that lands them in this award, though that alone would've been enough. They also shot themselves in the foot several times with their insistence on forcing players to have PSN accounts on PC. Helldivers 2 was an unprecedented multiplayer success in 2024, and it suffered massively when Sony retroactively forced players to have a PSN account after already buying it...despite the fact that the PSN isn't even available in several countries. This meant that thousands upon thousands of people could no longer play what they'd purchased anymore, and Sony had to backpedal like mad to get out of that hot water....then they did the same thing when they finally released God of War: Ragnarok for the PC.
And then, as if all that weren't enough, they actually put out an extremely high-profile game that resulted in even less players than Concord. So convinced without evidence is Sony that the Horizon series is a money-making machine, they decided to partner with Lego to make a Lego Horizon game that literally nobody wanted. It's the least well-received Lego game, and as I already stated, it has less concurrent players than the biggest flop in all of entertainment history.
And still speaking of Horizon, Sony also put out a handful of remasters that nobody asked for at truly extortionate price points. They remastered Until Dawn, which in no way required a remaster of any kind. Then they remastered Horizon: Zero Dawn, which already looked better than most modern games back when it came out in 2017! Sony just can't seem to stop stepping in it, and if you can somehow win this award by a country mile in a year as packed with boneheaded corporate mistakes as 2024 was, you need to re-evaluate your business ideas....
That means you had better keep your grimy mitts OFF of From Software, Sony. You won't get the Dark Souls money if you have them working on Concord 2 or Horizon: Forbidden West: Remastered.
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Kingdoms of Amalur Award for Worst Writing:
Good writing does not a good game make, but the two do tend to go hand-in-hand in a lot of cases. I've already said that, but the inverse is also true: bad writing does not a bad game make. So, this award isn't really about game quality. Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning, after all, was an excellent game with laughable writing. Hell, games from Arkane Studios (a branch of which Phil Spencer shut down this year) almost always land this award, but they're almost always good. It just so happens that this year, the winner also blows a fat one. The Kingdoms of Amalur Award for Worst Writing goes to...
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Borderlands Award for Most Yawn-Inducing Game:
While a game can be great if it has bad writing, a game can absolutely not be great if it bores me to tears. There are perhaps some things I can like about a boring game, or some things I can recognize are objectively good, but there's no way in hell I'm going to enjoy it if I'm bored. People don't want to hear it, but that was the original Borderlands for me: a one-note, dull wasteland with little-to-no personality until the second installment. This year, the Borderlands Award for Most Yawn-Inducing Game goes to...
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Brink Award for Worst Game of the Year:
Even in a lackluster year, it's always a good sign if I can't create a full list of titles for a "Worst Games" list. 2024 was a year where I could fill up maybe half a list in good conscience, but that's thankfully as bad as it gets. So...what's the worst game of 2024? Well, it won't be a surprise if the navbar looks the same when you're reading as it does when I'm writing this, but without a doubt, this year's own Brink is...
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ACTUAL Honorable Mentions
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Normally I have an Honorable Mention category that actually works how people expect, but this year there were simply too many contenders for that award...so, I decided to just list out all of the actual honorable mentions in no particular order. These are games that will not be on the GOTY list you're about to read for reasons that will be made clear in each blurb, but they're all games that you've seen on some of these previous categories. So, before we get to the best games of 2024, let's discuss some honorable mentions as honorable mentions are traditionally understood
Now for the main event!
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Top 10 Games
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Well folks, the time has come for the ultimate category, the culmination of not just this whole article but of 2024 as a whole. Before I start giving some opening remarks, here's a quick reminder about how I generally handle this:
When I finish reviewing a game, I take the score I gave it and plug it in with a couple of other factors throughout the year. These factors are things like replayability (with 10 points being given for each time...in most cases), whether or not I reached 100% completion, things like that. As I implied, this gets updated throughout the year, and when it comes time to start making decisions about individual list placements, this process gives me a preliminary order for the final GOTY list. I call this first conglomeration of factors and point values the "raw" score. The raw score doesn't determine hardly anything (Mass Effect Andromeda had the highest raw score in its year by a long shot, but there was no way I was letting that affect anything), but it generally gives me a good retrospective picture of where my mind has been, and if nothing else, it gives me a first draft of the list that just gets altered when I start considering categories.
Once the raw score is calculated, I start taking a look at what my placements on individual category lists have been. No one category is weighted any differently than any other, so the process is as follows: a game wins points equal to its highest scoring entry on a given list. So, in a list with 10 entries, spot #10 gets 1 extra point, while the winner of that category gets 10 extra points. In a list with 5 entries, simply take that concept and up the scale so that spot #5 wins 2 points and the winner gets the usual 10, with each spot between 4 and 2 granting 2 more points each. If a game wins more than one spot on a list (which I've tried not to let happen, but I'm not always successful at it), it only wins points for its highest spot, not a combination of all spot points. Once I have the total category points for each game, I add those onto the raw scores, and a new top 10 list is born. Usually I'm at least somewhat satisfied with this order, but it's here where I get to exercise supreme authority.
For example, remember how I said Mass Effect: Andromeda had the highest raw score in its year? Well, it was so high (just from amount of times played) that it was GOTY by point value alone, and there was no way I was going to allow that. For some slightly more relevant examples: Just a To the Moon Series Beach Episode ended up in the top 10 by point value alone, and I took that off on principle. So, my system is not a perfect measure of a year, but it helps me to get another draft of the top 10 list that is true to opinions I've cultivated as time has passed. So, after I get finished switching things around, we have our list!
I've been a little wishy-washy on 2024 as a year for gaming.
However, it was borderline impossible to be satisfied with the top 10 only because there was so much else I wanted to include. The indecision got so bad that I considered doing a top 15, but I decided against it. I also considered doing a three way split GOTY between an Indie, a AA, and a AAA one....and the three way split plus a three way runner-up split with the same parameters. That's how hard it was this year. It absolutely pained me to not do any of those things. What's more, when you read the list, I want you to keep in mind that literally everything you see has been in at least 3 different spots as the writing for this list has gone on. I was editing literally everything down to the last possible minute, so difficult was my task this year. Part of this is because for some reason, I have a tendency to view spots #10-#6 on this list as inferior in some way. That shouldn't be the case, because these are the cream of the crop for the year, but this little flaw of mine causes me to second-guess some placements. However, I think I did a decent job of curbing that this year.
I also want you to be aware that the top 10 list is going to be a complete mess for these reasons. So if you see something a little out of place or if I reference something that I don't seem to have said, it's because of the significant edits that have happened. It isn't as simple as process as it might seem to rearrange things.
Finally, since I'm well over 10 GOTY lists at this point, I'd like to take a minute to list out the top 5 from previous years in order to chart how this list has grown and evolved as time has gone on. Just like last year, these will be in order, with GOTY bold-styled.
2012: Halo 4, Journey, The Walking Dead, Far Cry 3, Mass Effect 3
2013: Crysis 3, Rain, The Wolf Among Us, Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag, The Last of Us
2014: Assassin's Creed: Rogue, Transistor, Far Cry 4, Dark Souls II, Dragon Age: Inquisition
2015: Everybody's Gone to the Rapture, Soma, Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, Undertale
2016: Pokemon Sun/Moon, Deus Ex: Mankind Divided, Final Fantasy XV, Inside, Doom
2017: Finding Paradise, Horizon: Zero Dawn, Last Day of June, Nier: Automata, Yakuza 0/Persona 5
2018: Pokemon Let's Go Eevee/Pikachu, Assassin's Creed: Odyssey, Celeste, Spider-Man, God of War
2019: Pokemon Sword/Shield, Jedi: Fallen Order, Code Vein, Fire Emblem: Three Houses, Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice
2020: Man-Eater, Journey to the Savage Planet, Final Fantasy VII: Remake, Ghost of Tsushima, Doom Eternal
2021: Ender Lillies: Quietus of the Knights, Death's Door, Impostor Factory, Demon Turf, The Forgotten City
2022: Olli-Olli World, Tunic, Elden Ring, God of War: Ragnarok, Neon White
2023: Dredge, Clash: Artifacts of Chaos, Baldur's Gate 3, Hi-Fi Rush, Lies of P
So, for all that I've said, remember that all of these are games I'd recommend fully for various reasons. These were the best games (and one runner-up) of 2024 [with trailers attached to the numbering in case you want something a bit more visual]!
So....remember how I was talking about wanting to split the GOTY award 3-ways in the introduction? Obviously I didn't end up going with that...but I came this close to doing a two-way split between the final two. Like so many other things in this article, I was switching things around until the last moment, and this was the tenth time I flip-flopped on that. Why was it so hard? Well, while the actual GOTY position has passed hands between Astro Bot, Harold Halibut, and one more thing, this last thing has been the reigning champion for as long as the writing had been done...until some...extenuating circumstances. I wanted to split the award because the original winner got thoroughly dethroned at the last minute, but I'd already written a full GOTY blurb for the existing winner and it felt really unfair to take it down a notch. But in the end, I figured it would be ok if I kept the existing writing and just made it clear up front how things were. So, these are the top two, but just remember that for 90% of this article's lifecycle from outlining to final edits, the #2 spot winner WAS my Game of the Year...and in case you're somewhat confused, yes: I wanted to split the award 3 ways initially, but there were 4 games that ended up passing through the top spot by the time all was said and done. That's the kind of year this has been.
Also, you may think I've been somewhat repeating myself by mistake throughout the honorable mentions and this final list...in reality, I've been being coy for dramatic effect.
Now, without further ado, the original GOTY winner and then the ultimate winner that claimed the prize in the end.
Keeping in mind that Crow Country was the original GOTY for 2024, here's what I wrote:
"As I've been coyly saying, horror and horror-adjacent games don't generally end up in this discussion (much less anywhere near the top)...but 2024 is an exception. I don't play a lot of horror, so take my word with a grain of salt...but to say that Crow Country is the best survival horror game I've ever played would be a colossal understatement. I imagine that the Crow Country experience is tantamount to what people who played Silent Hill 2 (and not this year's rather underwhelming remake) experienced: a horror title that proved you don't need excessive gore or jumpscares to create an unnerving atmosphere...and that an unnerving atmosphere need not feel so oppressive as to make the player feel discouraged from turning over every rock in the world. The titular theme park is easily the worst kid's amusement park that has ever existed, with death traps just about everywhere, including one in which a fake shotgun is pointed at the participant (this does take place in the early 90's, though). But as a game map, much like Astro Bot, it's small and sweet. The park is littered with secrets and clever puzzles to solve, and it rewards rising to these challenges in the way all survival horror games ought to. Combat is tense and challenging, but engaging with the world results in more tools with which to fight, and consistently fighting, in turn, makes seeking out these bonuses easier to do. There's this perfectly symbiotic relationship between engagement in combat and engagement with the world itself, and because you're made to feel clever for solving puzzles or finding resources, the act of doing so is rewarding even if there were no tangible benefits (as is sometimes the case in the harder "murder of crows" difficulty).
The feeling is so good, in fact, that I can say this: remember how I mentioned 100%-ing Astro Bot 3 times? Well, I can safely say I did the same for Crow Country, but between 5 and 10 times (I kind of lost count). Crow Country doesn't overstay its welcome, and as such, I consistently felt compelled to dive back in, and just about every time I did, I did everything. I haven't had that kind of experience since Doom Eternal back in 2020. Even after unlocking all the bonus items from having completed the game with an S-rank, I only ever used the Crow Bar in later playthroughs. And though I never quite managed to reach an S-rank again (it's pretty involved), I don't think I ever landed with less than an A+ after the first time.
Beyond this, I'm always able to tell if a game is really clicking with me if I go for various self-imposed challenge runs. I've tried out pistol-only runs, crow bar-only runs (which never last long), no breakable crate/bottle resource runs, no combat at all runs (save for the final boss), the list goes on. Compared to other games, there aren't that many challenge run concepts that can be carried out here, but I tried out several. And while very few of them ended up working out, it's the fact that I consistently felt compelled to try that sticks with me the most.
One complaint that I've seen from people is that it's perhaps a bit on the easy side. There are indeed an uncharacteristically large amount of resources to be found outside of "murder of crows" mode, and I wouldn't say Crow Country is overly punishing, but "easy" isn't the right word in my mind. The map grows more hostile the further into the plot you get, so you'll rarely come back to find an area exactly how you left it. Whether it's a greater number of enemies, stronger enemy varieties, or more of the game's many environmental hazards, carelessness is punished, and you can only take around 3 hits (less if you get poisoned) before dying. So, being mindful of your surroundings and your resources is perhaps a better path forward than veterans of the genre expect...but again, easy isn't the right word. I can also say that I've beaten "murder of crows" mode, and for those who want a bit more of a challenge, you'll get your money's worth there. With far fewer resources, more aggressive enemies, and little quirks like an inability to run when you're on your last bit of health, "murder of crows" makes for a ruthless survival experience that ought to be satisfying for people who are a bit more accustomed to this kind of thing than I am.
So, difficulty isn't a complaint for me like it is for some people. In fact, if you read my review, you'll know that I could find no fault big enough to warrant even one point off the score for, netting Crow Country one of this year's few 10/10 scores from me. It's certainly true that in smaller games like this, there's less that can go wrong...but that rarely means things don't go wrong. I have an entirely separate scale I use for games like this specifically to take that kind of thing into account, but Crow Country just doesn't stumble anywhere. Do you know what the only other 10/10 experiences this year were? They were Astro Bot and Just a To the Moon Series Beach Episode. Crow Country is in quite the exclusive club for 2024, and it earns that VIP spot through nothing more than the hard work of a pair of brothers, whatever funding they could provide with no publisher, and the survival horror concept they dreamed of.
Survival horror games aren't a new concept, and survival horror games with an old school aesthetic are especially not new, but every aspect of this game feels iconic: the individual aesthetics of each section, the soundtrack, the audio design (hearing the little sounds that play when you pick up a resource and when you find a secret trigger dopamine hits in my brain), the overbearingly sinister feel of the theme park, all of it. If you played me a gunshot sound from most games these days, I wouldn't be able to tell you which game it came from just off the sound...but I could tell you if it came from Crow Country. The same goes for just about any aspect of this game. Would it be different if I played more horror (and especially older horror)? Oh, almost undoubtably! But I haven't, so here we are!
Folks, Crow Country does a lot, but there's also a lot it doesn't do. It didn't change my entire outlook on gaming like Doom did. It didn't make me fall in love with a full cast of characters like Persona 5 or The Forgotten City did. It didn't introduce me to a love of speedrunning, a thing I used to hate, like Neon White did.
But here's the thing: a game doesn't need to do those kinds of things in order to be the best in its year. As 2024 has gone on, it's been easy for me to lament that it wasn't a groundbreaking year and end up missing the proverbial forest for the trees. But I suppose when all is said and done, it has been a good year for this hobby even if all it really brought to the table was safe, comfortable fun. I've been conflicted about just about every spot placement on this top 10 list to the point of nearly breaking with my own traditions in big ways, but you know what has never waned? My decision to put Crow Country at the top. It pained me to move Harold Halibut and Astro Bot down a peg and rob them of some of the acclaim they would otherwise have gotten, but never once during that process did I doubt that I was making the right choice in the end by leaving Crow Country here. So, congratulations, SFB Games."
In that original blurb, I mentioned that I never doubted that I was making the right choice in the end, and at the time, that was true...until a different horror game came along and handily knocked it out of that top spot.
For the second time in my years as a critic, I've said the words "{game} won't be my GOTY" in a review only to have {game} take home the gold in the end. First it was 2018's reboot of God of War, and now it's Mouthwashing. I guess I'm my own worst enemy when it comes to making these kinds of predictions. But this is a truly unique case. Unless something is a clear, clear winner, it's hard for me to justify putting the very last thing I played in a given year on this list (to say nothing of the top spot) just because it can't have had as much time to stew in my head as everything else. Recency bias is a very real thing, and it's especially real in a case like this, where I played the game close to when I finished the first draft of this whole thing. But Mouthwashing is that good.
It only sits at around 3-4 hours, but in that short span of time, it subjects the player to an unforgettable, deeply unsettling story full of complex characters, resulting in the single best narrative experience of 2024. What's more, it started out at #10 on this list (because of that accounting for recency bias)...but in the days since finishing it, I've watched several more full playthroughs of the game from various content creators to get other perspectives and see if I missed anything (I did).
Ever since finishing the game for the first time, I've gone to watch content about it every single night. Each time I do this, I find some other small thing that makes the experience all the richer. Every other playthrough, every story analysis, and even several comments have shown just how much even the smallest detail says. To look at a board game's pieces in the middle of an abandoned game, for instance, might just be a meaningless background detail in lesser hands...but in Mouthwashing, you can deduce who is what color and what their current positions on the game board mean for their characters...and you can infer certain things about another character, given that this board game only has 4 players on a ship with 5 members. Characters resorting to a desperate measure to accomplish a goal, in most cases, isn't the kind of thing you need to think too deeply about...but in Mouthwashing, the fact that a character knows exactly how to do that desperate measure in the first place is a haunting realization (and one that I didn't pick up on until I saw a comment about it).
From what I understand, this game is starting to get the same kind of contrarian distaste that Undertale got to enjoy. Having taken a brief look at the fandom, I do, in fact, get some cringe vibes (I feel like "the cake is a lie" or "took an arrow to the knee" could still be alive and well there). If Black Myth: Wukong has an annoying brigade of White Knights, Mouthwashing has a veritable Pale Legion. There are some *interesting* bits of fan art, they'll go as far as to censor the antagonist's name as some kind of weird soap box thing, things like that. There are also some top-tier memes...but it's undeniable that the, as the Jimquisition puts it, "enthusiasm" of the fanbase shines through in ways that can be offputting. And while I haven't seen any evidence of this next assertion, I wouldn't be the least bit surprised if a person not "getting" the plot was met with accusations of being the antichrist. As a result, it seems like many would-be players are turned off either because the fandom is cringe or because they've been actively pushed away. I get it, trust me on that. So I'm not here to tell you that this game is the second coming and it'll help you earn a million dollars or anything like that. But it may become a new hyper-fixation you didn't know you needed. [I also really don't want to oversell the experience, so if you aren't averse to some pretty extreme violence and every content warning under the sun, maybe log off here and play it before I accidentally convince you it's the second coming?]
After all, from what I've seen, this appears to be a bit of a Krabby Patty situation. You remember the line? "The only people who hate Krabby Patties have never eaten one"? As I've said, I've seen plenty of other people experience this game: people of all different types. Nobody walks away from this feeling unaffected or like their time was wasted. I've seen people who normally have absolutely nothing to say about certain themes start to get emotional. Sometimes it's an uber-macho dude only getting as vulnerable as an out of character "awww man...that, that just sucks, dude". Sometimes it's somebody completely missing the point until like 90% of the way through the game, suddenly having everything click in their head right then and there, and feeling all the anger and upsetness they would've felt earlier right at the end. And in my personal favorite cases, it's your standard "Let's Play" Youtubers being humbled. There are so many folks I've seen play this that start out laughing and joking and ultimately not taking things seriously, and by the end they've become somber and sign off of the video seriously discussing the themes and whether certain fates were justified or not. The amount of TikTok brainrot jargon I've seen gradually transform into legitimate reflections on things like responsibility (just with about a hundred more "bra/bro"s than there would be otherwise) is unprecedented. Yes, the fanbase can be cringe...but I suppose what I'm saying is that sometimes where there's smoke, there's fire.
I mentioned earlier that this game started out at #10. Since completing it, it has bumped itself up to #5, then to #4, then all the way to spot #2, then in a split-GOTY spot with Crow Country, and now, finally, here at the highest rung...and while the thought of putting something I'd spent such little time with in the top spot didn't sit right with me at first, there just hasn't been anything else this year that I've been as obsessed with. I've already said that I've taken to watching other people's playthroughs every night to experience the story from a new perspective...but I failed to mention that it isn't a decision I make lightly or "just because". I'll often put on something else to watch while I wind down for the evening, but not one day has gone by where I've been able to resist the overwhelming urge to go back to either a playthrough or an analysis of this story.
Ever since 2020, an obsession with a game has been the driving force behind placement on this list. In 2020, Doom Eternal ruled the roost with an unprecedented capital-G gameplay loop. In 2021, The Forgotten City had me looking around every nook and cranny for secrets, testing out my imagination in every way I could. In 2022, Neon White had me playing levels over and over again and never moving on to the next level until I'd gotten the platinum ribbon. And in 2023, Lies of P racked up about 13-15 playthroughs (the most of any soulslike).
When I was writing about Crow Country, I mentioned that it didn't have that kind of effect on me. As I said there, a game doesn't need to become an obsession to be worthy of the top spot...but then this game came around and took over my life. Do you know how much work this article is? Do you know how much work goes into changing up all of the little lists at the last moment? It's not a small task...and yet I had no choice but to bear the weight of that work because there simply was no other choice. I don't practice Santeria, I ain't got no crystal ball, I don't have a million dollars to spend, but I don't have to relate to any of those things to be able to tell that I'm never going to forget this experience.
Mouthwashing is, like the dental hygiene act from which it gets its name, a gift that keeps on giving. It's the kind of story that will reward you every time you experience it no matter what format you experience it in, and if you're anything like me, you'll enjoy it all the more for this. But do take that with this caveat: the game is, as I've been saying, deeply unsettling.
There's the obvious violence and gore factor, of course, but there's also the stress inherent in watching a downward spiral play out. Some of you will definitely need to pass on this one for these reasons. But there's also the uncomfortable ways in which it has a tendency to make a person look inward. We don't want to think that a well-intentioned person can fail in ways that result in extreme harm. We don't want to think that we can be looking evil in the face and not know it. We don't want to think that we could be that well-intentioned person failing someone who desperately needs our help. And nobody can really say this of themselves, but we most definitely don't want to see pieces of ourselves in that evil we don't yet recognize. I have...many, many thoughts about this game. And if I don't stop myself here, we're going to be here for the next century.
Nothing this year has inspired me like this, nothing has stuck with me like this, and there's nothing else I could possibly recommend more than this (with those aforementioned caveats). I have infinitely more to say, but this article has taken about half a month longer to finish than normal because of this game in the first place. There's no question about it: Mouthwashing, by a considerable margin in spite of its short tenure in my head, is my Game of the Year for 2024!
Thanks, and I'll see you all next year!
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