Inscryption - It is imperfect but I found it incredibly clever, and absolutely nails the ending which is difficult to do in games. Also I don't normally like roguelike deckbuilders.
Unsighted - LttP-like with the best parry since Sekiro, and an interesting time limit mechanic that kills off NPCs.
Valheim - best time sink/dopamine drip machine game
Chicory - best marriage of gameplay and story to take advantage of what makes gaming a unique medium (well, maybe 2nd to Inscryption)
Metroid Dread - Didn't like the EMMI sections but the rest of the game makes up for it.
Psychonauts 2 - Not something I was anticipating but the writing and art design are wonderful.
Forza Horizon 5 - it got its hooks in deep despite some frustrations I had with it.
The Forgotten City - I loved my time with it, but looking back, it hasn't really stuck with me.
Cookie Clicker - this one probably won't count but it came out on Steam in September and I now have 2,880 hours logged.
This game rules. I finished my first playthrough the other day. There is a lot of side content and replayability options that I want to come back to.
I kept the default timer on. I thought it would be too stressful, but I actually liked how it kept me pressing onward. Sometimes in games like this, I bog myself down poking through every corner of every room.
Minor gameplay spoilers: I think the devs designed the timer system well. My concern was that the timer might screw me over and "ruin" my playthrough but that doesn't happen. At least, in my experience. My FOMO was unfounded.
Also: it's worth doing the parry training minigame in the village. Doesn't use up time and it really helped me get a feel for the parries.
You touched on it in this ep with the no sound in space thing, but Sound could be a good topic. I feel like the basics of sound waves are very tangible and easy to relate to things you can see (like a guitar string or a slinky stretched out), and fun to think about.
jbick89's comments