We’re about to draw the shroud over 2024 — a complicated year that gave us excellent games but which I fully expect to be remembered as “troubled” by the industry at large. We’ve had over 14,000 layoffs, a withering market for three aging consoles, ballooning subscription costs and the (partial) collapse of the live service genre. But we have the first few weeks of January 2025 to eulogize the year’s events. Instead, it’s that time: Time to talk about our favorite games that we enjoyed the most this year.
Dean’s already revealed his favorite games for the year… so now it’s my turn. Just to be clear, these games are the ones that I personally enjoyed the most and found to be the most sublime overall experiences. Hopefully I’ll be able to do a longer list at some point in 2025 — my list of games played in 2024 isn’t as long as it was last year (though in related news, I’m better rested than I was one year ago), but for now, here are my top 5 games of this year.
5. Lorelei and the Laser Eyes
Every year on these lists, I like to include at least one game that qualifies as a dark horse in my Top 5 — a smaller title whose inclusion satisfies only me. Lorelei and the Laser Eyes may have come out early enough in the year that it’s subsequently been overshadowed, but I never forgot about it. Its surreal, stylized art design would be enough to stick in my memory, but Lorelei is ultimately so much more than this.
Lorelei is the sort of game that challenges the player. The entire time you’re playing, you feel as though the game has you locked in a battle of wits, and while it gives you everything you need to solve its multitude of puzzles, it’s not going to hold your hand. Even the game’s diegetic interface and so-called “clue” systems seem more aimed at putting the player on the backfoot than helping. And matching wits with a game may not be everyone’s cup of tea — it’s not always my cup, either — but sometimes it’s what I need and Lorelei and the Laser Eyes does that so well.
2024 was a decent year for RPGs, all things considered — Baldur’s Gate 3 is a tough act to follow. But we had a surprisingly full year. And one RPG rose to the top with its distinctive, earnest story and fun, fast gameplay: Atlus’s Metaphor: ReFantazio. For me, RPGs live and die by how much they make me feel like I’m truly a part of the world around me, and the world of Metaphor, unpleasant and nasty and fraught with unfair social systems though it was, felt real — the struggles of its people felt important.
Metaphor: ReFantazio manages to avoid a lot of the pacing pitfalls that befell other RPGs this year (not naming any names, but IYKYK) by keeping you tied to an in-game calendar ticking down towards a major world event — a refinement on Atlus’s staple time-management mechanics. In fact, almost every piece of Metaphor feels like a more compelling version of something Atlus has done before, from the art design to the turn-based combat. While the story is a bit more sober and serious, it’s told with such conviction and with such a strong message that it’s never once boring.
3. Indiana Jones and the Great Circle
Well, look who we have here. MachineGames’ licensed adventure game starring everyone’s favorite whip-wielding archaeologist has come in on the last month of the year and risen almost to the very top of the list. Indiana Jones and the Great Circle is one of the best adventure games — and, surprisingly, one of the best stealth games — I’ve played in not just 2024, but the last five years. Troy Baker’s performance as Dr. Jones goes so far beyond mere mimicry that it elevates the whole game into my Top 3.
Great Circle near-perfectly imitates the charm of the original Indiana Jones films (note that I say “original” with specific intentions) while also paying homage to the classic point-and-click adventure games that precede it. MachineGames has managed to capture the series’ humor and swashbuckling fun, its sense that its not taking itself too seriously, and the satisfaction of beating the crap out of Nazis (a subject with which they should be very familiar after the Wolfenstein titles). Also, one of the villains is played by the late Tony Todd, and it’s just good to see him again.
2. Astro Bot
As someone who plays games professionally, it’s tempting sometimes to overexplain or overcomplicate my own opinion. So while I could give a long, drawn-out explanation for why Astro Bot’s platforming feels so rewarding, or how its story is compelling despite its simplistic nature … let’s put it in fewer words: Astro Bot is on this list because it’s fun. It’s fun and entertaining and well-made and gives the player precisely what they’re expecting.
Okay, to sprinkle in a little more complexity into my opinion: Astro Bot is a platformer polished to a diamond sheen with heart and a sense of humor. The variety of gameplay keeps it fresh, and the game does not wear out its welcome by overstretching its levels or overplaying any of its gimmicks. It’s also just the right length to keep its PlayStation-ness from seeming too much like an advertisement (though admittedly it does come close one or two times). Many are the games that I play and love as an adult gamer — few are the ones that I play and know I would have loved as a child.
1. Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown
Being honest, my top game this year surprised even me. Until the final moments I was writing this, I was going to give it to Astro Bot. But then I seriously looked at the dozens of games I’ve played so far this year, and thought about which game it was that actually brought me the most happiness while playing. And perhaps it’s been long enough — almost a year now — that my memory has gone rosy, but I remember my playthrough of Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown with a warmth I’ve felt for little else this year.
The Lost Crown has everything I want in a game: It has solid gameplay that evolves as the game progresses, excellent pacing, platforming variety, story and art design that pay homage to history and real-world mythology while blending in fantasy, a diverse and interesting cast of characters and so much beauty that just playing it sometimes leaves me breathless. There have been so many games between its January launch and now, and yet it still managed to stay with me all the way to the end of the year.
