somnambulance

@DennisReynolds I’d say they run pretty similarly, though my eye isn’t as good as DF. Shadows wasn’t my favorite game this year, but I’ll definitely say it’s one of the most impressive games I’ve ever seen visually. Surprisingly enough, I wouldn’t even say Yotei is that much better of a game than Shadows.

Actually agree that AC Shadows looks and runs better than Yotei. I’d pick Death Stranding over Doom, but this is a solid top 10 for performance and visuals and it’s hard to argue with it. Glad to see Earthion get a shout.

@Rattustheratt @DennyCrane The nice thing about the green crystals is that more and more of them appear on the map the further you get. I’ve filled up the green crystal almost halfway and I’m not really trying to. I expect I’ll have to do a little grind. I’m sure I’ve got to go back to the snow biome for “retraversal” as Nintendo called it back in the day, but really, I was a little nervous about it too, and it seems like my nerves were nothing more than unnecessary fear… at least I think so at this point! I think people that are upset with the level design must have a lot more free time than I do because I agree that I think the level and world design feels very strong, very Nintendo.

And yeah, the internet is absolutely negative right now. I started posting on here rather than lurking because I felt I needed to say things about games, hopefully in a positive manner (though not always). Prime 4 deserved better than the internet gave it. At least Happy Console Gamer gave a genuine review. Watched the MattyPlays review last week though and he almost seemed nervous to say the game was good because his fanbase probably wanted a hit piece. Lol

Shame about Metroid Prime 4. I’m 4 keys in now and I’m absolutely loving the game. I’d even go so far as to say I think it might be better than Prime 2 so far. Sure, it doesn’t top the original, but honestly… what does? It’s the best first party game this year, outside Bananza, of course.

I hope the game has legs and grows in reputation over time.

The North America one. It’s the first game I ever personally picked to purchase in a store. How could I pick a different cover?

Probably a mix of Metroid Prime 4, Öoo, Level Devil, maybe Arc Raiders as I race to complete games just in time for a year end list. I’ve got Seance of Blake Manor to fire up too, but I’m not certain if I’ll squeeze that one in for end of year or not. I’m prioritizing Prime 4 and loving it.

Also, maybe SimCity 3000. On a whim, I played it a bit last night and it’s sort of deeply relaxing. I’m going to try my best NOT to play anything else retro as well, but it’s sort of comfort food this time of the year.

@Pat_trick Yeah, I mean, I loved Astro Bot and Death Stranding, but I’m not so big on Marvel and that feels like it’s as integral as live service shooters to Sony’s plan. It’s such a disconnect for me. With Square shifting away from exclusivizing their games too, it feels like Sony’s losing value for me. I can’t think of a single game that I want next year that is “Only on PlayStation.”

See, I don’t care about it being underpowered because I largely enjoy the first party output and buy the third party games on PS5. Switch 2 seems to be running games far better than the Switch 1 did though.

You and I want the same thing out of Pragmata. Been a while since I’ve been so interested in a brand new IP. I hope it’s technically solid and has been worth the wait.

@Pat_trick I tend to buy third party games on Playstation myself because they do seem best optimized there. I’m most likely getting Requiem on there, even though now I’m in a contemplation mode with Switch 2 and Steamdeck. Arc Raiders ran far better on the Deck than I anticipated. I can understand your frustration with PC, which is why I haven’t been a PC gamer for 20 years, but I just felt like now might be the time to jump. See, I’m more an indies kind of guy. I would say, like you, that I love first party PlayStation, but this generation hasn’t hit the way the last few have for me, you know? Totally understand the viewpoint though because I use my PS5 for the high horsepower games still… just wish there were more of them. I’m going to try the Pragmata demo on both platforms in the near future and looking forward to comparing.

Megaman getting an announcement was my showstopper moment for this year’s show. After waiting for a release date for five-ish years, getting a release date for Pragmata also felt really cool. There is some irony that the game that sold me on the PS5 most during its initial showcase might be a game I pick up on Switch 2 instead too…

Outside that, Control 2, RE Requiem, and Orbitals looked fantastic. And I’m more interested in 007 and Tomb Raider than I was before the show, but still not sold on either of them.

This was absolutely one of the best looking games announced for TGA. Love the 80’s aesthetic on this one, reminds me of the anime I grew up with.

Hoping for an upset tonight! Go DK! (or Silksong or Death Stranding)

Where’s AVGN when you need him? This seems tailored to be assaulted by an older iteration of him.

@Pat_trick Look at that! I think we’ve proved the old adage that you can’t get somewhere from discussing opposing viewpoints on the internet quite wrong.

I think that honestly it’s good that we’re at a point where we can discuss that everything has flaws and strengths and regardless of what is said, there is enjoyment to be had. I’m sure you had a rough time convincing others to play Veilguard, as that game basically received the Pokemon reception, but without the “other fanbase” to support it. It’s sort of interesting with Forspoken. At launch, everyone thought I was crazy, but then the game was a PS+ game and I noticed opinions change on it since the game was “free.” Once people that wanted to try it, but didn’t want to spend $70 on it gave it a chance, it seemed like a lot of people enjoyed it.

If you don’t mind my asking, what’s pulling you to PlayStation these days? For me, I’d say over the course of my gaming, I’d probably say in my adult life I’d been mostly PS first, but I’m drifting now. I’m even buying a Steam Deck today too, and I haven’t been on Steam in 15, 20 years or so.

@Pat_trick Thank you very much for having a real conversation about these things. I appreciate it. I don’t believe that everyone that believes those things are trend followers either, but I’ve argued with enough of them that I feel I need to check sometimes. I can respect your point of view, surely, despite us disagreeing on things. I mean, I felt Expedition 33 was rather average and would rank Z-A and Prime 4 above it this year. I’m not saying that to argue over it, but rather to highlight our different points of view.

There are certainly the Nintendo die hards too, which I feel myself sharing more common ground with that group lately, though it hasn’t always been the case. I abandoned Nintendo at one point in the Wii/DS era after all because I felt Nintendo had lost their quality marker and became a shovelware platform.

I’m sort of at a place right now where I feel myself drifting from Playstation and Xbox and honestly the Switch 2’s line-up was some of the most fun gaming I’ve had this year (though Death Stranding 2 would be my pick for GotY), and as a result I’ve felt the negative opinions circulating in gaming culture this year were sort of shocking. It’s the spice of life to have differing opinions though. And maybe I tend to champion games that don’t get respect in the mainstream. I liked Forspoken, after all! 😂

@AussieMcBucket @Randomarcadedude It’s definitely YouTube culture that’s swaying these types of things. It’s been an echo chamber in 2025. I get that these awards are “a joke,” but it’s a tasteless chase for clicks, as many of the YouTubers that complained about these experiences didn’t even play them… If GameStop had a bit more courage, would’ve been nice for them to give the award to Black Ops 7, which actually cut corners with AI and was clearly the worst game yet in a storied series. If there’s a game for us to point our fingers and laugh (all six of them), it’s BLOps7. Halo 3 is a solid choice for GotY though and better than many of the game nominated for GotY this year! 😂

@Pat_trick I can’t argue with you that Welcome Tour should have been free, but I can say that the experience for Welcome Tour is relatively solid and smooth and certainly worth the price of admission since there is a price. Again, it’s tacky there’s a price, but it is a solid experience for a couple hours of play. If it would’ve been free, I’m sure the narrative around the game would’ve been completely different.

Have you played Prime 4 or Z-A yet? As others have posted, the desert in Prime 4 is allegedly supposed to be silent and the radio is an unlock. Honestly, it’s better silent. It feels more Metroid that way. I’m probably a little more than halfway through Prime 4 and I’d disagree completely with most of the negativity towards the game. It feels like a fine vintage to me, and honestly, if the game keeps going the way it’s going, for me, it’s not going to even end up being the worst Prime game. Does it beat Prime 1? No, but neither did Prime 2 or 3.

As far as Z-A goes, it’s got some of the best gameplay in the series and better visuals than one would expect. Are they a generational leap? No, but no Pokemon game ever has been. Could Gamefreak put more budget into these games? Yes, but it doesn’t detract from the fact that what they put out is a solid game with some curiously aged details. As a complete package though, it’s honestly one of the better Pokemon games. It’s no Arceus, but it’s certainly better than Sword and Shield, and honestly it’s probably slightly better as a game than X and Y.

That said, I do have high standards in gaming. I’m critical of many trends in the industry, but still purchase a couple dozen games a year, play through 20-30 games a year. I’ve played all the GotY nominees except for Peak, got opinions on all of them. Beat almost all of them too. I’ll admit that I’ve not completed Hades 2, though I’m pretty close to it. I just form my own opinion from playing games. I do listen to YouTube too with regards to gaming, but it’s impossible not to notice that it feels like a lot of people nowadays are just saying what other videos are saying. I enjoyed MattyPlays’s video on Prime 4 yesterday though, but it sort of seemed like he was nervous to praise Prime 4 because he was aware of how his base feels about the game… though most likely based on other videos and a Metacritic score rather than from actual experience. My belief is that people should form their own opinion based on actual interaction with a media and be open minded before dismissing something because the crowd says to.

The ire over Welcome Tour, Pokemon Z-A, and even Metroid now is sort of ludicrous. There’s been actual junk released this year instead, you know?

I sort of like the more recent villains better, but think there should be some background about who is actually creating these problems nowadays. They don’t need to be the focal point though. VII and VIII are the best games in the series for me.

@Greenspark Appreciate the insightful necro-response.

An 8 or 9 so far from me. I’m maybe four hours into it and it’s really nice having that feeling about being excited to play something.

You see, I was in a place just prior to Prime 4, where I wanted to play something I didn’t have, but wasn’t sure what. I was struggling to play Yotei and Silent Hill F and Prime 4 just feels right. It’s just good. I like that vintage FPS feel to the game. Love that I can’t sprint too.

This was a Nothing November for me. Gotta be honest and say I’m glad this November was so barren, so I could catch up or drop things to make space for Metroid.

This is a weird year where December actually has some interesting releases too.

He deserves one for that research article! That’s incredible. I know I always felt like Christmas was my time of the year for consoles and hoarding games. My parents liked games but they were casuals, so I was always a mid to late gen adopter. I mean, I got an SNES in 1997, but a 64 in 1999 (though I bought that one with Christmas money I saved starting in 1996…), which feels sort of goofy to think about these days. I really hope you guys get a Switch 2 because getting a console on Christmas is the best feeling.

I voted for Japan because it looks more lively, even though I prefer the layout of NA’s box art.

I honestly think “Switch 2 editions” of Switch 1 games should be omitted unless they released on both consoles simultaneously. I mean, BotW and TotK are so obviously fantastic, of course, but do either of them really need the nod just because they’re already better performing versions of two of the best games ever made? It’s not like I want to downvote either of them either because they’re both so perfect.

But seriously, on Switch, my personal pick is Silksong with an honorable mention to Donkey Kong Bananza. Two absolutely incredible games. Curious how I’ll feel about Prime 4 as I complete it.

Metroid Prime 4

I’ve been very happy with the console so far. I’ve not loved a console so much to start since the Switch 1. It does everything the Switch 1 does, but does it better and it feels better too. It’s been my primary console since release when I expected it to be secondary as my Switch 1 was for most of its life. I’m picking up a Steamdeck next week, so I’m excited to compare them, but, as things stand right now, my Switch 2 is my current favorite piece of gaming hardware in spite of the controversies.

I also think most of the Switch exclusives have been great this year. I can’t comment much on Metroid Prime 4 yet, but I’d say most of the releases hit very strongly for me. Kirby Air Riders is probably the only one that didn’t hit for me (outside Zelda Musuo, but I was never getting that one anyway).

Dread should be much higher. The game’s flawless. Top 5 games in the Switch 1 era for sure. Personally was my GotY in 2021.

Just started Prime 4, but it being so close to Other M feels… wrong. It sort of feels like review culture has changed a lot in the last 10 years, let alone the 20+ years since Prime 1. I think we’ve all grown more critical in our voices over that timeframe.

Interesting list. Can’t say I agree with it much though, even if half of this list is the same as mine with the games picked.

Also, because I’m that guy….

Mario Kart World > Clair Obscur

Oh, and it’s sorta sad we won’t see Metroid Prime 4 (or any of the other releases from a atypically solid looking December) in many of these lists.

@Dr_Awkward @sketchturner It’s December and doesn’t have a release date. This is a big game. It’ll have a release date announcement. Unless it’s a shadow drop at TGA, it’ll launch next year.

And I know it’ll be good because the demo was fantastic! Yacht Club hasn’t missed yet.

List it and I’ll buy it. Now that it’s a 2026 game, it’s got a real shot at GotY, given the current release schedule. I mean, this year it had a shot, based on the demo, but next year it REALLY has a shot.

Love Cerny’s picks. Those are definitely some of my favorite games of all time as well.

For my picks, I’ll just say the five games I would never delete from my consoles:
1. Galaga
2. Megaman 6
3. Castlevania
4. Balatro
5. Donkey Kong Country 2

Not necessarily my absolute favorite of favorite games, but games I can play endlessly and always return to no matter what.

Well, looks like Kirby’s a flop in the west (as is the new Zelda musuo). Really surprised to see them both bombing out of the top 40 so fast, but honestly… I’m still wondering if there was much a strategy for them to be hits by Nintendo at all either. Hopefully Metroid sticks the landing…

Tomb Raider is more a relic of its time now than an actually great game, in my opinion. The first two games are fun to go back to, but they don’t hold up like many other games from the era do. There’s charm, but the gameplay doesn’t feel as good as it once did.

Tomb Raider 2013, on the other hand, was a solid reboot for the series back in 2013. Hopefully Rise and Shadow make their way to the Switch at some point, as I’d say Rise is the best game in the series.

And honestly the game topping the list doesn’t even make sense right now…

If you want more content for this game, I think it just needs to hit proper sales and engagement metrics to generate Nintendo’s attention.

Honestly, I really want to play something new, but I feel bad about buying anything new right now, given that Metroid is coming this week and I’m about to buy a Steamdeck and will be sinking some money into starting a Steam library very soon. I have to work today, but it’s snow storm weather, so I sort of want to just curl up and play some games. Realistically though, I think I’m just going to plan my early Steam library and play Arc Raiders… but I keep thinking about The Outer Worlds 2 at random too…

I should go back to Yotei and finish that though, shouldn’t I? Or Silent Hill F? Or Hades 2? For some reason, as good as those games are, man, I’m struggling getting back to them.

It’s definitely something my kids will love, so I did order one! Didn’t realize it was out today, but I ordered it today, so weird coincidence I thought about it today.

@Oldstalk I’ll try that out. I was sort of surprised at how little I liked it. It’s weirdly both very beginner friendly and absolutely not at the same time. As someone that has a distaste for how meta gaming has grown, I feel a little weird about how meta this one seems to be.

I’ve still got enough time to return the game to try a couple different things though, so I’m not done with it yet. I’m really curious how this one will sell and am still mystified by how this one is having such a positive reception in comparison to MKW.

I’m thinking a 5/10, but I feel like I’m being harsh, so maybe a 6/10, but that also feels wrong. I just… don’t like it. The single button control scheme just doesn’t do it for me. There’s a lot of depth for what it is, but I just don’t enjoy playing it, sad to say. I thought the kids might like it, but they don’t like it either. It’s well made, but what can you say if you don’t like it, you know? It’s the Pokken Tournament of the Switch 2 launch line-up for me.

Glad a lot of people on this site seem to like it though. Always happy when something totally different has success even if it’s not for me.

I played through Portal yesterday with my son. That was fun. It’s always interesting to share an ancient artifact with him and see what he thinks. He could see the influence in other games he likes such as The Stanley Parable, Superliminal, and The Witness. Not bad observing that for an 8 year old.

Outside that, I’m contemplating jumping on a Black Friday sale for something. While, yes, I still have Yotei and Silent Hill F to complete, I sort of feel like I’m having a hard time pushing myself to play either of them and Portal felt like a breath of fresh air. A friend of mine really wants me to start playing Arc Raiders too, so maybe that’s the answer. I didn’t have time for games for a while, but I think that’ll change a bit this week. Just not sure how yet.

Love this game on PS5, still play it pretty regularly just for a round or two here and there.

@Tayrailbridge I played through E33 at launch, but I’ve grown a facetious about the game, given the ludicrous amount of hype the game generated over the year. For me, the game’s a 7/10. It’s got solid music and art direction, but some baffling world map decisions, the combat grows tedious in later sections, and I never really grew any type of attachment to the characters. I can see where and how many people could enjoy the game more than I, but I can’t resist commenting on it. I mean, I was at a grocery store one time, wearing a Final Fantasy shirt and someone wearing an E33 shirt talked to me about what a great game the game is and how it’s better than Final Fantasy, so… I feel like the universe is weirdly pointing me into arguing against the game! Lol.

Most people that I know in real life rather than the internet tend to agree that it’s a 7/10 tier game too though. It’s not a bad game, so don’t get me wrong about it. I’m partly trolling, but also trying to be honest that the game is overrated in an over the top way.

It’s a fantastic game, honestly, and I think the game reviewed fairly well and would’ve reviewed even better had it not been Pokemon. Personally, I think it’s better than some of the GotY contenders this year.

@Tayrailbridge You pulled me from under my rock to troll on Expedition 33. It IS, in fact, sorta bland. It’s also far more divisive than the internet will have you believe.

I am now rooting for DKB to win The Geoff Awards.

It’s a shame Fortnite doesn’t play anything like this trailer.

I’m genuinely curious about what the sales figures will be with this one. This is certainly the oddest launch year title for the Switch 2 without a doubt.

After the beta test, I found this one to be incredibly niche, which is a great thing. I didn’t like it at all, but I’m glad it exists because I am happy that such a niche gaming experience got such a big opportunity.

To be honest, I’m surprised Nintendo’s still peddling these musuo games. Admittedly, Age of Imprisonment does look like one of the better ones, but between Zelda and Fire Emblem, there’s just been so many of them. I think the novelty’s worn off.

Nope, tried the beta and I think I got enough out of the game with that. The positive sentiment towards this one and negative sentiment towards Mario Kart World is one of the most baffling things to me this year in gaming.

I’m rooting for Death Stranding, Silksong, and Donkey Kong.

I have zero knowledge of the series, so that said I picked the Japanese one, just because it looks like a more exciting game with that box art

I’m going to be playing move furniture back into my living room and my daughter’s room after finishing painting and installing floors. I threw my sofa away, so when I do hook my consoles back up… I have nowhere to sit. I will be playing “search for a new sofa” after that. I’d like to say I’ll be settling down to play Yotei, but I don’t quite know if I’ll have time. All I can guarantee is that, in the absence of having my console games to play while I move stuff, Balatro on my phone will say hi.

RCT2 is better, in my opinion. Sure, it was more limited in some things, but those visuals are timeless. RCT3 is still a fantastic game though. Honestly, it’s better than more modern theme park sims