The Rogueies: Not Technically Eligible, But

Games have a long shelf-life and stick around for a long time these days. Just because a game didn't come out in the last calendar year doesn't mean we're not still playing it. 

Against the Storm

The roguelike city-builder from Eremite Games and Hooded Horse, Against the Storm originally launched back in 2023, but has continued to receive regular updates and DLC expanding on the already intoxicating experience. This year, we got the Nightwatchers DLC which added a new species to the game and new environments which was enough to pull me back into a city-builder that I thought I’d be done with a long time ago. I’m not sure if Eremite ever plans to stop supporting this awesome title, but as long as they keep making DLC like this, I’ll keep playing.  

— AJ

Helldivers 2

Helldivers 2 has had something of a mixed reception in 2025, but regardless of your current feelings surrounding the co-op PvE shooter, its concurrent players have remained fairly consistent, and more importantly, its developers have remained open and communicative about the game’s issues. My playtime in Helldivers 2 has ebbed and flowed as I’ve turned my attention to other titles, but few titles have managed to consistently draw my interest the way HD2 has. I may not log in every day the way I used to, but as the game approaches its first birthday, I can’t think of a multiplayer experience that I’ve had more fun with, despite its ups and downs.     

— AJ

Metroid Prime: Remastered and Donkey Kong 64

I went on a bit of a Nintendo adventure this year. And by that I mean, I played some good and not so good new games on my Nintendo Switch (Donkey Kong Bananza being the good, and Metroid Prime 4 being the not so good) that prompted me to revisit some classics.

After finishing Donkey Kong Bananza and collecting literally everything I could, I booted up Donkey Kong 64, thinking that I’d probably get sick of it after a few levels. And then I 100%’d the entire thing. Was that a waste of my time? Oh, colossally. But it did also serve as a reminder that that game, for all of its many faults, is really creative and fun. I have such great memories of it as a kid, and despite how tedious the game feels at times, it also does a good job reminding you why so many of us 90s kids view it so highly. There is some absolute bullshit in there, to be sure, but I have excellent news: The King K. Rool boss fight holds up just as well as you’d hope.

Metroid Prime: Remastered was something I had to hold out on for months. I didn’t want to play it before Prime 4 (I did Dread instead) because I didn’t want to burn myself out before the new game. But then Prime 4 showed up and was … fine in some ways and pretty disappointing in others – mainly the painful linearity. Once I rolled credits there, I immediately swapped over to Prime Remastered and was reminded of just how incredible that game (and that update) is. I’ve beaten Prime at least 4 times, and I still found myself more lost on this playthrough than I ever was in Prime 4.

I love revisiting the previous games or the original inspirations before or after a sequel or spiritual successor hits the scene. I’m grateful to say that both of this year’s Nintendo-inspired retro journeys were an absolute blast from the past.

— RG

Not Technically Eligible But winner — Warhammer 40K: Darktide

Darktide was a great game at launch, but it was also one where Fatshark seemed afraid of its core fanbase’s reception. I let the game fall to the wayside as Fatshark tweaked talent trees, adjusted the classes, and introduced a crafting system. I would return here and there, but it wasn’t until the release of the Arbites class in June that I got back into the game in earnest. Darktide always had incredible core gameplay – it has some of the best and most visceral melee in the genre, along with guns that feel absolutely fantastic to fire – but its grown into a tightly tuned co-op shooter I can’t put down.

Granted, there are technical issues, and I’ve logged out after a few too many crashes here and there. But when Darktide works, it’s transcendent. The roar of bolter fire, the banter between comrades, the pounding synth soundtrack by Jesper Kyd … it’s enough to lure me into a trance. My lizard brain fully engages, and all I care about is smashing heretic skulls and downing corpse starch ... and I’m all out of corpse starch. The Hive Scum class, launched on Dec. 2, only makes the chaos even sweeter by adding a new set of big personalities to the mix.

— CM