The Games That Got Me Through 2025

[00:00] 2025 has been another year, and luckily I was 

[00:05] it. As it has become tradition, that means 

[00:09] ways they had an effect on my life. In last year’s 

[00:14] play anything that meant all that much to me. I 

[00:19] with any in the way I often do. While I largely 

[00:23] games and also being in a weird headspace as I was 

[00:29] making it hard to process much of anything, a 

[00:33] with games had fundamentally shifted. That this 

[00:38] becoming less capable of finding experiences 

[00:44] And 2025 has proven that this was not the case.

[01:02] I don’t know that there’s been a single year of 

[01:07] a profound impact on me than I did in this past 

[01:12] played them in 2024, they probably would have been 

[01:17] get lost in the shuffle when put next to the many 

[01:23] of the most enjoyable years of playing games I've 

[01:29] So, I’m going to start where I always do,  

[01:31] with the first game I played last year, 

[01:43] Hypnospace Outlaw is the type of game where what 

[01:48] is just a vehicle to get you to engage with lore. 

[01:55] and webpages that feel straight out of the 1990s, 

[02:00] to scour every page for potential infractions. 

[02:06] of deduction, making them satisfying to discover, 

[02:11] Hypnospace Outlaw a game I reflect on often and 

[02:16] of the Old Internet; an era that I know is overly 

[02:24] same. One of community, of sharing passion, 

[02:29] hand and financial incentive that defines the 

[02:35] much personality and explores the stories of the 

[02:39] authentic. There is no shortage of media that 

[02:45] feels like a hollow imitation, one that coasts on 

[02:50] the pattern on the side of those disposable cups 

[02:55] humanity behind everything. There’s a sincerity to 

[03:02] feel like the kind of digital space people would 

[03:07] display is on another level; whether it be 

[03:12] together to make these webpages feel like an 

[03:16] parts shaved away—even the art that is meant 

[03:24] They pulled off a nearly impossible feat, and 

[03:30] 90s kid, it's no real surprise that this game 

[03:34] that’s not really why I enjoyed it. It did more 

[03:45] I had this same feeling with a couple other 

[03:49] being Burggeist; it’s a game that feels like 

[03:54] but has design philosophies that are decidedly 

[03:58] have come out on the PS2. To my knowledge the 

[04:04] games influenced Burggeist, instead pointing 

[04:08] numerical sequence and oddly shaped rocks, 

[04:14] it feels like it takes cues from stuff like 

[04:18] Brutal Legend, leading to something entirely 

[04:23] finds ways to meld these ideas that seem like they 

[04:28] The other game was Angeline Era.

[04:31] Through a chunky ps1/n64 aesthetic, it takes what 

[04:38] that being bumping into enemies to attack, and 

[04:43] encounters around it that brings far more depth 

[04:49] The design is just so thoughtful. For instance, 

[04:53] rooms where you need to clear the encounter 

[04:58] especially so if you’re on a higher difficulty, 

[05:03] you back to the start of the level, and making you 

[05:08] know people have opinions on, but what works about 

[05:13] can come from this type of setup is that unlocking 

[05:18] every single enemy—instead each encounter has 

[05:23] taking out a much smaller fraction of the enemies. 

[05:28] how to better position yourself in order to not 

[05:33] unlock the way forward. It adds a new layer of 

[05:40] from becoming tedious. Not to mention, once you’ve 

[05:45] themes and patterns, making it possible to predict 

[05:50] do this on a first time through a level, it feels 

[05:55] and failure as it tests both the player’s skill as 

[06:00] to replay some sections feels far more palatable 

[06:05] success almost always comes from an increase 

[06:11] Angeline Era is filled with playful design like 

[06:17] As Giovanni Colantonio put it in his piece on 

[06:21] game that actually plays the way I remember old 

[06:26] at all.” In my experience this felt true with 

[06:31] Each of them harnesses an aesthetic from the past 

[06:37] design ideas that do not draw specifically from 

[06:42] many, many titles, and many, many ideas where you 

[06:47] but would struggle to really say it is just like 

[06:53] games to look like retro games or even feel 

[06:58] it is rare for them to make you feel the way you 

[07:04] times. It is the familiar inside of something 

[07:14] games. Not just playing them, but thinking 

[07:20] ideas that prove that we are really just at the 

[07:24] these three games were made by relatively small 

[07:29] demonize games with far bigger ones, but to point 

[07:33] and that a team with a strong creative 

[07:38] and iterate in unexpected ways can create 

[07:43] Throughout 2025, I continued the trend 

[07:47] more into multiplayer games as playing stuff 

[07:52] I finally got around to It Takes Two with my 

[07:58] but at the very least it was just fun to watch 

[08:02] game. I established a game night with a couple 

[08:07] and it has been such a welcome routine in my life. 

[08:12] playing melee in my parent’s basement, we 

[08:16] some version of that nearly 25 years later, and 

[08:22] with the wide spread of games I’ve played with 

[08:27] one title that really defines my multiplayer 

[08:32] Nightreign is a weird kind of good. In a lot of 

[08:39] it smashes together a bunch of stuff from older 

[08:44] tie it all together. It’s a testament to how 

[08:49] in Elden Ring that Nightreign stays as enjoyable 

[08:55] I figured I’d play it until beating all the bosses 

[08:59] however, at this point I got all of the 

[09:04] and have put in 70 hours since then, and frankly 

[09:11] And of course, a big part of it is the 

[09:15] a ton of interest in it from people in my 

[09:21] so along with my game night group, I played with 

[09:26] play stuff with all the time to folks I’ve long 

[09:30] with before to friends of friends, and I loved 

[09:36] different circles merge brought me a ton of joy. 

[09:42] and really that has been a big motivating factor 

[09:48] all the bosses with. There’s something about 

[09:53] them go from being overwhelmed by the scope and 

[09:59] It’s been a special game to learn and teach, and 

[10:04] make. While hanging out with friends and meeting 

[10:09] of playing a game, having something to rally 

[10:14] and it’s been awhile since I’ve played something 

[10:19] One thing that’s been interesting for me is given 

[10:24] as other titles that roughly could be described 

[10:29] had to admit to myself that despite always saying 

[10:34] a pretty huge fan of roguelites. Ravenswatch 

[10:39] of cool synergies to experiment with. Absolum 

[10:44] which honestly just makes too much sense, and 

[10:48] use this combination. Blue Prince created an 

[10:53] will ever be able to fully solve, but a part of 

[10:57] every system from the first game and found a way 

[11:03] a bit messier than its predecessor especially in 

[11:08] buzzing for dozens of hours. I know that the 

[11:14] but in doing so, developers have found tons 

[11:19] concepts and combine them with other established 

[11:24] I have been able to connect with more than 

[11:28] this kind of was the year of connecting to genres 

[11:34] example can be seen with how much I fell in 

[11:42] I’ll be honest, I am still a bit surprised that I 

[11:49] that comes from expectations—for the longest 

[11:54] terrible it was. That it was broken beyond just 

[12:00] the conversation around it began to shift, a part 

[12:06] so rare to bring a game back from the brink like 

[12:11] one I’m all that interested in, so it was easy 

[12:18] But then it was. Something about Night City felt 

[12:24] before. The density, the detail, the depth—it felt 

[12:31] of video games, plenty of which have impressive 

[12:37] but none of them have felt real to me in the 

[12:42] has a strict adherence to realism—plenty 

[12:47] It’s more that it is so overwhelming in scope, 

[12:53] to the number of pedestrians to the limits of 

[12:59] illusion it aims to set up. One of it being a real 

[13:06] this illusion is bolstered in some surprising 

[13:11] be scaled and parkoured across; they are not just 

[13:23] you’re at the top or the bottom, so much of it 

[13:29] far from perfect, but there is a solidity to the 

[13:35] I talked about it in a video earlier this year, 

[13:40] is relying too much on mechanical motivation. 

[13:45] that don’t necessarily build to something 

[13:49] mechanics all that cleanly, but with 2077, I 

[13:56] need any convincing to be in this world. To 

[14:02] time being in it. I didn’t fast travel a single 

[14:07] weaving between traffic as the lights of the 

[14:12] help pass the time on longer trips. I found the 

[14:24] that I couldn’t help but appreciate every minute I 

[14:29] that normally pull me out of an experience—the 

[14:34] despite that urgency not actually mattering. But 

[14:40] To even try to headcanon my way of it—if these 

[14:47] I was going to live them deliberately. I 

[14:53] that much easier to connect to everything within 

[14:58] assumed I would never care about. I not only fell 

[15:04] but I also love it for reasons I never expected 

[15:09] having a real sense of place to be an important 

[15:14] not the primary one, and so it was refreshing to 

[15:20] things that are often dealbreakers for me due to 

[15:26] After finishing Cyberpunk 2077, I planned 

[15:31] my palette a bit as the idea of jumping 

[15:36] especially another RPG seemed like it’d be 

[15:41] game called Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 came 

[15:50] About a month before playing Clair Obscur: 

[15:56] I began the game and the gommage claimed everyone 

[16:02] this moment, as well as the wider concept acted 

[16:07] seen in a game. The initial question Clair Obscur 

[16:13] in a world that is fading away is one that makes 

[16:20] day there will not be a tomorrow for us, but 

[16:25] we live on through those we love, through the 

[16:30] but what if all of that is slowly ticking away as 

[16:36] as well as those of expeditions past, the answer 

[16:41] successors. To bring them a step closer 

[16:46] a future they can’t even really envision but 

[16:51] I found this energy to be irresistible. 

[16:57] Come After or Tomorrow Comes, I couldn’t help but 

[17:02] I figured that one way or another this would 

[17:07] it all with the hope of bringing about 

[17:12] Of course, Clair Obscur ends up 

[17:15] It explores purpose and existence from many 

[17:20] the initial conceit, and while those explorations 

[17:25] the ideas introduced at the start are 

[17:30] As I’ve gotten older, the way I view the future 

[17:36] would inherit, and in some ways I still do. 34 

[17:42] and with any luck there is significantly more 

[17:47] but also I now see the future as something 

[17:53] after. I’ve felt this way for awhile, but 

[17:58] new levels. Clair Obscur is compelling on so 

[18:03] this dedication to making sure Tomorrow Comes 

[18:09] Because sometimes the only way to overcome 

[18:14] of consistent actions that add up until 

[18:20] Speaking of which, on September 4th, 

[18:25] Given the amount of time that has passed since 

[18:30] any sort of expectations for the game. I pretty 

[18:35] might be like and instead only thought about it 

[18:40] it was reposting my Pain of Waiting thumbnail, 

[18:44] with some variation of “here’s to hoping Silksong 

[18:50] when I said it in the last video, I did not 

[18:55] would largely be more Hollow Knight, and in some 

[19:02] and it differs in surprising and welcome ways. 

[19:07] took Hornet, adapted her to make sense as a 

[19:16] And so it walks this line of both feeling like a 

[19:20] general approach to aesthetics and world design, 

[19:25] at a completely different speed than Hollow 

[19:30] once I did, I never looked back. Regardless of 

[19:36] thought I wanted, it ended up being the one that 

[19:41] its predecessor, but more than almost any other 

[19:47] that the shine of recency will wear off and my 

[19:52] in that top 5 zone. I relished every opportunity I 

[19:58] which is to say I was always relishing as the 

[20:04] in getting truly and utterly lost, refusing to use 

[20:09] through Pharloom, and by the end I did; I found 

[20:14] her insistence on imposing her will on the 

[20:19] world may be, and refusing to let it happen the 

[20:25] one that surprised me the most. Hollow Knight’s 

[20:30] but Silksong’s stands in the forefront. Hornet 

[20:36] her and her observations, the game explores the 

[20:41] or individuals, and I never thought I’d be so 

[20:47] never thought I would need to be so inspired by 

[20:56] Over this past year, I’ve dabbled a bit 

[21:02] but it regularly seeps into my thoughts. 

[21:07] more pieces of news where it was hard to 

[21:12] To be clear, I don’t really think that it 

[21:17] is because…I just can’t. However, we are in the 

[21:23] economically, and technologically, 

[21:26] those that have the most power to dictate how 

[21:31] trust the least to act in the collective us’s 

[21:37] And so maybe it isn’t a surprise that the 

[21:41] explored what it takes to survive within an 

[21:46] stage, what we are left with when each passing 

[21:51] and how the stubborn and careless use of absolute 

[21:57] It’s sometimes good to be seen by 

[22:00] about games as a form of escapism, and 

[22:05] what it always seems to come back to with 

[22:08] is that the ones that bring me the most relief 

[22:12] they’re the ones that help me process it 

[22:16] In a way that doesn’t feel as impossible. In 

[22:22] Because thinking that it’s over is useless. 

[22:28] and those who wield it as a weapon know 

[22:32] like an impossible machine for any individual 

[22:37] any individual doing everything; it’s 

[22:42] It is about community, and reminders of this are 

[22:48] from watching my kids grow up, and witnessing the 

[22:53] but by family and friends and teachers, all of 

[22:58] now and who they will be one day. Or from seeing 

[23:03] who have engaged not just in protest and 

[23:08] mutual aid unlike anything I’ve seen before in my 

[23:14] that despite there being no quick and clean way to 

[23:19] is and will always be helping those who need 

[23:25] There are many reasons to want to despair, and 

[23:31] I can to find even more reasons to not. It 

[23:36] matters that they do. That instead of feeling 

[23:41] I have the clarity to focus on 

[23:45] I needed games in 2025 in a way that I don’t 

[23:53] surprised me is that they met the moment. Frankly, 

[24:00] them and talking about them made me feel human. 

[24:06] me from the pervasive sense of existential dread 

[24:11] refocus; they made tackling everything else feel 

[24:19] Like, always, I do not know 

[24:22] I have my hopes and I have my fears, 

[24:27] does matter is that it isn’t over. It’s 

[24:35] and remembering that Hollow Knight: Silksong 

[24:43] Reflecting on my year in gaming is something I 

[24:49] forward to hearing other people’s thoughts on the 

[24:53] With that in mind, I thought it’d be fun to have 

[24:57] talk about games with the most, Iron Pineapple 

[25:03] gaming in 2025. We talked about our games of 

[25:08] more granular stuff like favorite mechanics and 

[25:12] our hater take of the year. If you’re interested 

[25:17] over on Nebula. I’ve talked about it before and 

[25:22] to do the things I do. It supports the work of 

[25:27] the gaming space like Jacob Geller, Game Maker’s 

[25:32] provides various opportunities for those 

[25:36] KingK’s series Masterful Mimicry where he 

[25:42] influences of various games. He’s covered Okami, 

[25:49] there is a ton of exclusive content over on 

[25:55] with the conversation I had with Pine and Yakko, 

[26:00] watch over there, so if you’d like to check them 

[26:05] link in the description to get 50% off for the 

[26:09] If you really love the idea of Nebula, right 

[26:13] is normally a one-time payment of $500 for just 

[26:19] or lifetime memberships. Nebula is a massive 

[26:26] creators on there so I appreciate you all for 

[26:30] go check out my conversation with Pine 

[26:33] and everything else the site has to offer. 

[26:38] For all of you still here, hi. Hello. 

[26:43] possible. It makes all this easier. It makes 

[26:47] I don't know. Have a good day and 

[26:50] hope your New Year is going okay.