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The platforming is simple to understand but has a remarkably high skill-ceiling, the puzzles are varied and challenging, the graphic style is emotive and clear, the story is heartfelt and touches on universal themes, the music is fantastic, and the game doesn't overstay its welcome.
Really, it's rare for a game to be so perfect at everything.
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Rain World feels like the opposite of Celeste in a lot of ways: the movement is clumsy, the scale is ambitiously large, there are only scant bits of plotting, and deaths are both punishing and horrifying. After all, you're just above the bottom of the food chain in a merciless ecosystem.
But all that just pushed me onwards, determined to poke at the edges of the world and learns its secrets. That's probably because there's a surprising level of depth to its systems--enough that if you think of an out-of-the-box solution, it will probably work. Stealth and evasion are useful for most hostile creatures (each with their own senses and place in the food chain), but you can also grab that fly to increase your jumping distance, or make an ally of a creature with the right offerings.
It probably also helped that the first time I was devoured by a Pole Plant, I was too unsettled to continue for the night. Seriously, there's some primally weird stuff in this game, and it's fascinating enough that you'll want to experience it.
While release wasn't in 2018, the 1.5 update got me interested enough to give it a fair shot. After finishing, I really hope people give this game a chance: it's far more elaborate than meets the eye, and has a beautiful flare for the strange.
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To me, Subnautica pulled off a delicate balancing act with gusto. It's a survival game that doesn't skimp on interesting plot beats and a sense of urgency. It's a horror game that still manages to make the player feel empowered. The mysteries of its depths seem nearly infinite, but you'll get there in time.
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This game is enchanting and hands-down the best version of Tetris I've ever played. So much so that the decision to lose multiplayer doesn't even matter to me—when I hand off the controller, I can actually pay attention to the detail of the stage designs, and it's always impressive. Effects Mode and Weekly Rituals give this game good legs, too.
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Clever and well-balanced (interestingly, I also found it quite taut despite running around in the end-game). The boss fights are legit some of the best 2D bosses I've seen.
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I followed Dead Cells from the start and it topped my GOTY 2017 list. The release version is comprehensive, and although build variety is in a weird place right now, it's some of the most satisfying hack-and-slash platforming ever.
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Lonesome, atmospheric worldbuilding is my jam, what can I say? This evokes Playdead's offerings in its darker moments, but still brings a hefty dose of placidity to the table. The bond you'll develop with your vessel is pretty nice, too.
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What's that? Puzzles relying on game-spanning lore and close attention to detail? Tremendously hard bosses? Straight-up sadistic level design with plentiful insta-death traps?
Sign me up!
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Hey, it's more Hitman. It's pretty telling that I'm still willing to run Bangkok five times over to get the Krugermeier.
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I suck at pinball but this is such a creative little genre mashup that I can't not include it. It helps that it's absolutely beautiful.
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Special shoutout to Lucas Pope. Some of the deduction on display here is really clever, even if it's all-in-all a simple story without too many twists.
(Comically, I overthought the first three deaths and assumed that the captain would have died earlier in the story, but nope.)
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