It was destined to be a year where everything was overshadowed by the launch of Grand Theft Auto 6. What we instead got was a watershed year for gaming, with some of the best titles we’ve seen in over a decade.
If I had to pick one word that really defines the best of what this year has to offer, it would be storytelling. This year’s top titles were defined by their ability to convey meaningful, emotional stories to players. And for my money, that’s a great trend for the industry to follow with future games.
Yes, games have been telling incredible stories for decades now. I’m sure many shed a tear when Aerith met her end to Sephiroth back in Final Fantasy VII in 1997. But I still find instances where stronger writing — or at least a greater focus on it — could have taken a title from being ordinary to exceptional.
As more studios dabble with AI experimentation in 2026, I think there’s going to be a real motivation to outsource plot writing to the bots as a non-essential aspect of building a game. The same goes for voice acting too.
But that would be a mistake. As this year’s best games show, if anything, developers should be over-indexing on writing and world-building.
Anyway, let’s get into it. Here are my top three best games for the year. I’ve also gone unlocked all my reviews for my top three as summer reads, if you’ve missed them.
1) Ghost of Yotei
If you were ever searching for an argument that PlayStation game exclusivity is hurting Sony, look no further than Ghost of Yotei.
This game is outstanding and, dare I say it, a sleeper hit for this year, that shouldn’t be one. Despite very favourable reviews and scores, it nary registered a mention at The Game Awards, winning no prizes.
As I wrote in my review at the time, Ghost of Yotei doesn’t really reinvent the wheel, but it streamlines and hones many of the mechanics seen in the original game. That’s all layered on top of a really meaningful and well-told vengeance story, with a very strong artistic direction to boot.
It’s slated for a PC release next year, broadening out the number of people who can play it. I can’t help but feel the game will get its due when that happens.
2) Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
You don’t need me to tell you to go play this game. Given all the accolades it’s received, in all likelihood, if you regularly play video games, you’ve already picked it up. Or maybe not, given the game’s stance on AI.
But let me instead tell you why I personally think it’s special. This game grapples with grief in a way that perhaps no other game to date has really managed. Incredible writing, storytelling and voice acting come together in a package that will set the bar for gaming for years to come. Regardless of the size of the production and development team, that’s ultimately what I think makes it special.
My only mark against the game: I still think the general clumsiness of the third act is somewhat overlooked by a lot of critical reviews. There’s just no clear indication on how to tackle it, and I’d still strongly recommend looking up a guide if you are playing through. Still, I’m heartened to hear anecdotally that despite the game being somewhat difficult, many casual players are picking it up and making it to the very climatic ending.
3) Donkey Kong Bananza
A distant third on my list, but possibly the Nintendo Switch 2’s best game to-date. This is another case of hardware exclusivity hampering the overall success of the title. We’re all used to Nintendo games only releasing on Nintendo devices, but this was a Switch 2 exclusive, meaning only the most devoted early adopters of the new console have likely played it.
This is a game that ends stronger than it starts, especially if you are a fan of the original Donkey Kong Country series. But it also breaks new ground for 3D platformers. Literally. Almost every surface is destructible in this game, leading to a lot of unique and interesting design choices.
Anecdotally, this game also plays really well as a co-op title, so if you have a partner or child who is gaming curious, be sure to give that a go.
What came close?
Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 — I played this game on the recommendation of a friend, and what a suggestion it was. If not for wanting to feature a more accessible Nintendo game in my top three, I’d easily swap this for Donkey Kong: Bananza. It’s a really robust role-playing game that’s tricky at first, but gets incredibly satisfying as you master its systems. I was really hot on this when it first came out, and I stand by my call. If you are into role-playing games and haven’t given this a go, look it up during the holiday break.
Hollow Knight: Silksong — The long-awaited sequel is such an excellent game, and I want to bat for the home team here, given it’s Australian! But its sharp difficulty curve and, at times, mean game design—especially early on—make it hard to broadly recommend. You’ve already played this game if you loved the original. If you are new to the series, it’s still a fantastic entry point. Be ready for a challenge, but the experience itself is incredibly rewarding.
Blue Prince — Almost a year on and accounts still vary for this game. I loved my time with it, but its randomness can absolutely frustrate players, especially early on. It seems the players that got the most joy out of this game kept playing after the first ending. But I stopped there, really feeling like I’d had my fill. I agree with Al Thumm’s take in my recent predictions piece: games like Blue Prince are ushering in a return to form for puzzle titles, and that’s only a good thing.
Mario Kart World — Great game. The most technical, difficult-to-master, Mario Kart to date. But Nintendo has absolutely dropped the ball on the long-tail management of it. This could have been the first truly online Mario Kart, with continuous updates and reasons to keep playing. Once you finish all of the cups, there’s just very little to do. A missed opportunity.
Letdowns:
Metroid Prime 4: Beyond — I’m still stinging from this one. Great shooter, not a great Metroidvania. Crushing, given this series has a strong fan base that waited years for this game. Don’t let me stop you if your a big fan of this series. It’s just not as good as it could be.
Pokémon Legends Z-A — Why is Nintendo tolerating such corner cutting for one of its marquee franchises? Still fun, but we can do more with the world’s most valuable intellectual property. Its fans absolutely deserve better!
Assassin’s Creed: Shadows — Still a good game, just wish the map was smaller and denser, and the story wasn’t primarily told through the last two character missions.
My most played game?
Final Fantasy XIV Online — The game I play when I have nothing to play, and despite all of the amazing games on offer in 2025, it’s still my most-played game this year. That’s highly likely due to savage raiding, where this year I cleared my fifth raiding tier. Not sure if I’ll go for my sixth in the New Year.
This game strongly rewards those who stick with it, as some of the recent patch content has been excellent. A standout: one of the new raids has an absolute ear-worm of a track written by Rage Against The Machine’s Tom Morello.
There’s some renewed momentum here ahead of the next major expansion, which will likely come out late 2026 at the earliest. Though, there’s been little in the way of teasers or new information for it.
Yet, despite its marketing slogan than there’s “no better time to play”, I’m a bit reluctant to suggest this game to brand new players. On my count it takes over 100 hours to get up to date with the new content and play through all prior patches, just to get to the stuff everyone is talking about or streaming. You can pay to skip content, but that’s ill-advised, as there’s a skill hurdle that older content helps you surpass.
There have been moves to make this easier and playable without needing to engage with the multiplayer aspect of the game. That includes making the first two expansions and the base game free to play. But that doesn’t address the fact that it remains a major time sink for those who are new to get to current content.
I’ll be keeping an eye on Final Fantasy XIV as well as the other ‘forever games’ next year. Can a game really last forever? I think within the next few years, we’re going to find out.
Other notable games in 2025
Age of Mythology: Retold — I love a good real-time strategy game, and this is one of the best. You can typically only play these games using a mouse and keyboard, but this game reboot has absolutely nailed controller play. With a steady supply of DLC, it’s definitely worth a look if you like this genre—even if you only own a gaming console.
Hades 2 — Did you miss this game? I snuck in a play through just as it came out, but ran out of time to review it. It’s missing some of the soul of the original game, but is a strong rogue-like all the same that really expands on the ideas of the original game. A great holiday game!
Elden Ring Nightreign — After a month of false starts and several calls to my internet provider earlier this year, I finally got this working. It’s heaps of fun slogging through it with a pair of friends. But there’s no real on-ramp for new players, and an expectation from the existing player base that you know what you’re doing from the get-go. So I’d watch some YouTube explainers ahead of diving in. You’ve been warned.
Disclosure: I typically purchase all of my games I review or mention in Infinite Lives. However, I accepted two 60-day game-time codes for Final Fantasy XIV this year from the game’s publicist, but purchased the expansion back in 2024.
I’ve missed so many games in this piece. Including many indie titles that I’m looking to play over the holiday break. What are your standout games of the year? Also any suggestions for what to play over the Australian summer?
