Apologies to the following games that I didn't have enough time to play. You're all tied for 11th until I win the lottery and quit my job to have time to play you.
Griftlands officially came out of early access this year and I was finally able to get around to playing it. And thank god I did. It's not just Slay the Spire with a story, it's Slay the Spire with a good story. I know the game got a lot of praise when it first hit early access in 2019 but it seems to have been completely forgotten by the wider press this year which is disappointing.
I went in to Psychonauts 2 expecting it to be a fun throwback that I wouldn't think about much after playing it. Instead it quickly became one of my favorite single-player experiences of the last few years. It's just such a complete package - fun gameplay, gorgeous art direction, and the writing is on another level when it comes to the game industry.
Playground Games can keep putting out a new Horizon every couple of years and I will keep playing the hell out of them. Even some frustrating server issues couldn't keep me from driving down every road (and field, river, and even roof) in Mexico. Is it basically the same game as the last two iterations? Yes, and I don't care. Why mess with perfection?
There was a point that I thought Infinite would be at the top of this list. Unfortunately, the campaign didn't quite stick the landing. It's still the best Halo since Reach, especially the multiplayer. 343 finally found the perfect mix of the old school Halo feel within a modern shooter, even with the eyeroll-inducing tap-strafing mouse/keyboard players. It's a console shooter!
Inscryption seems like it was designed specifically for me. A deckbuilding roguelike with a bizarre metalayer with a throwback to games like the Pokemon Trading Card game on the Game Boy? FMV found footage horror movie style interludes with some sort of government conspiracy coverup? Sign me up. I loved all of the style and story reveals the game threw at me, but the actual card game didn't quite land with me which is why it's 5th instead of 1st.
