A One Sentence Review of Every Game I Finished in 2025

I Was a Teenage Exocolonist: Beautiful and compelling; I especially enjoyed watching the NPCs change as they grew up and how that affected my PC's relationship with them.

Hades: I love this game so much because it decided what it wants to be, and executed on that vision with an incredible level of polish.

The Quarry: A super fun time, but the "couch co-op" is pretty underwhelming; the same thing could be achieved by passing the controller back and forth.

qualia: Or as I like to call it, speedrunning your existential crisis (in a fun way.)

1000XResist: This game is an absolutely masterful exploration of theme.

Pentiment: A murder mystery game without a canon murderer is a stroke of genuis (as is everything else in Pentiment).

Lost Records: Bloom and Rage: There's nothing I love more than teenage girls encountering supernatural things they don't understand while also dealing with their everyday problems, and HOO BOY this game delivers.

Many Nights a Whisper: I couldn't believe how much emotion and meaning they packed in the both the narrative and gameplay of this one hour game.

The Case of the Golden Idol: Unfortunately I played this on my old, bottom-of-the-line phone, so my experience was incredibly glitchy, but it was worth it!

Creepy Redneck Dinosaur Mansion 3: Honestly just a fun time.

Blue Prince: Fascinating game design, but like many, there came a point when I became frustrated with the RNG aspect.

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33: Absolutely fascinated with the story, but the combat started to wear on me after a while.

Gone Home: It's the classic walking sim for a reason!

PEAK: Fantastic multiplayer game, but on my first few runs I was definitely craving more story (as I am wont to do.)

End of Lines: A deeply moving visual novel with resource management following climate refugees in the late 21st century.

Tell Me Why: I can't believe this game didn't blow up like Life is Strange did (I can believe it) (It's transphobia).

Her Story: Kind of the perfect puzzle game, in my opinion.

Venba: So charming but so short; I want MORE!

Cyberpunk 2077: Deeply beloved to me and I will probably make a whole blog post about it eventually.

Sunderfolk: Gameplay and mechanics are SO captivating and innovative, but I wished the story would've had more nuance.

Dispatch: My 2025 game of the year! Sharp writing and addicting gameplay; now I just need them to make Robert bisexual in season two and it'll be perfect.

Tiny Bookshop: So charming I wrote a blog post about how I wish Animal Crossing, my favorite franchise, was more like it.

Killer Frequency: Loved the premise but the whole thing felt waaaay too low stakes for a serial killer story.

The Excavation of Hob's Barrow: Fresh, captivating, and heartfelt; a lovely end to my 2025.