Hey, hey. I'm Aidan Moher, the Hugo Award-winning author of "Fight, Magic, Items: The History of Final Fantasy, Dragon Quest, and the Rise of Japanese RPGs in the West," and co-host of FunFactor, a podcast where two old gamers review old video game reviews. My work has appeared in WIRED, New York Magazine, Retro Gamer, and many other places, and lately I've been thinking a lot about the past, and how deeply it's informed my favourite games this year.
"Nostalgia can be dangerous when it’s up close," wrote author Stephen King in a recent tribute to Rob Reiner. King has been writing stories filled with childhood and nostalgia for his life in Maine for decades. If anyone knows the strong drug of nostalgia, it's King, and, if there's any word that defines my list of favourite games from 2025, that's the one.
From full-on remasters of classic games, to digging out old relics of the past, or new games that evoke the greatest of bygone eras, 2025 was, for me, a year where my long history with games collided with the present. In the wake of the ongoing trauma and fallout of the Covid-19 pandemic, nostalgia has become an all-consuming langolier consuming our memories, our present, and our future. For as much as these games aim to recapture the comfort of the past, there's a danger in glorifying nostalgia. The safety, warmth, and contentedness we associate with our childhood favorites doesn't necessarily reflect the quality of those games, but memories of being young and feeling cared for.
I take pleasure in recapturing those feelings of my youth—Clair Obscur and Eternal Strands recalling the best of Square Enix on the PlayStation 2, revisiting favourite worlds in the remasters of Lunar, Suikoden, and Final Fantasy Tactics—and revelling in nostalgia for experiences I never had while exploring the American Midwest in Lost Records' apocryphal vision of the 1990s.
These experiences made me happy this year, and were, perhaps, a security blanket, warm and knowable, after a half-decade of unprecedented events becoming normal, daily occurrences. We can savour warmth and security, the feeling of a parent's warm embrace, a scary world outside disappearing outside the hugeness of their arms, but we must not do so at the expense of understanding; we must make tomorrow better than yesterday.
And, so, here are my favourite games of 2025, a year where I looked to the past so I could find the courage for the future.
Honourable Mentions
Some of these were games that didn't quite make the cut, some of these were games I enjoyed, but didn't play enough of to rank. Either way, they're well worth your time.
- Eternal Strands — It's like a long-lost PS2 game, and I mean that in the best possible way.
- Dear Me, I was… — As a card-carrying Hotel Dusk and Last Window fan, I loved seeing Taisuke Kanasaki's beautiful artistic style return.
- Donkey Kong Bananza — Ooh, banana. This one surprised me. Switch 2's first must-play.
- Demonschool—A Persona-like with gorgeous pixel art visuals? Hell yeah.
- Pillars of Eternity (Turn-Based Mode Beta)—One of the best RPGs of all time finally ditches one of the worst RPG systems of all time.
- Quartet—Classic old school console RPG with a modern touch.
- Wordplay—Scrabble + Balatro? What's not to like?
- PowerWash Simulator 2—Wait. Is this how I find out I'm autistic?
- Cast n Chill—Is it basically a semi-interactive screensaver? Sure. Is it my happy place? Damn right.
- The Roottrees Are Dead—I couldn't play enough of this to definitively rank it, but this Obra Dinn-style mystery clicks all the right buttons.
- Lunar Remastered Collection — While they're two of my all-time favourite games, some technical issues and re-recorded vocals bump this down to honourable mention. Glad they restored the difficulty from the Japanese version, though!
- and Roger—Like Dear Me, I was…, this is a short, powerful narrative game that explores memory and love that I enjoyed immensely.
- Ninja Gaiden: Ragebound—Fast, satisfying action, beautiful pixel art. Everything a platformer needs.
Games I Thought Were Going To Make The List
Metroid Prime 4: Beyond
When this was announced, I was sure it was a Game of the Year contender… but then each new trailer planted new seeds of doubt, and, ultimately, I was disappointed by this bloated, disjointed experience. I expected to dislike the desert, motorcycle, and companions—each of which neglects Metroid's core strengths—but I wasn't expecting to be let down by the linear game structure and level design. It's really hurt by the lack of a complex, interconnected game world. Sure is a visual and technical marvel, though.
Mario Kart World
This is another one that I had all the hopes in the world for, but I feel like several intentional design choices had large negative consequences. The actual driving feels great, but the expansion to 24 racers leads to tracks that feel at least twice too wide, which, combined with the open world setting, limits the tight, creative track design I've come to expect from the series. I love the new cast and all the collectable costumes, and racing against my family is fun, but it didn't blow me away the way I expected from a new Mario Kart.
But, Aidan, you forgot about [blank]!
No, I didn't. I just didn't play it, or didn't think it was very good.
Best Old Game I Played For the First Time This Year
Vagrant Story
Despite being a card-carrying Square sicko during the PlayStation-era, I was constrained by being a teenager with little cash, so I often had to make tough choices about which games I wanted to buy and play, hoping my friends might fill in some of the gaps with their purchases that I could borrow. In 2000, I was busy with stuff like Final Fantasy IX (which I borrowed $50 from a friend to buy, and still haven't paid back), and missed out on Vagrant Story, and, in hindsight, that was probably the best thing that could've happened.
After several false starts over the years, I finally played and finished this after being invited to talk about it on the Tales from the Backlog podcast, where we went DEEP on what turned out to be one of my all-time favourite games. I'm sure, however, that I really would've had the stamina, patience, or emotional intelligence to really appreciate the depths of Matsuno's masterpiece way back in 2000. But, at 41 years old, what I found was a gorgeously rendered gothic fantasy world, one of the best game localizations of all time, and a rich story that fits nicely in Matsuno's oeuvre of complex, politically-driven fantasy intrigue. Vagrant Story is a beast, and not for everyone, but 25 years after its initial release, everything clicked into place for me, and I couldn't put it down for its 40-hour run time, and constantly have to fight off the urge to return for a New Game + run.
Top 10 Games of 2025
10. Baby Steps
I played this with my kids, who were beyond pissed at me that I wouldn't turn on "nudity," though nothing I've seen in the game suggests my life would be improved by seeing it naked, and, honestly, I haven't laughed so hard since I was a kid myself. We fired it up at Thanksgiving, and even had my parents laughing. It's stupid, and challenging, and an experience that can only be conveyed through video games.
9. Suikoden I & II HD Remaster: Gate Rune and Dunan Unification Wars
As a card-carrying Suikoden fan (and author of an upcoming book about the games from Boss Fight Books), my expectations for these remasters were sky high. Like the Lunar Remaster in my honourable mentions section, there are some regrettable issues with this remaster—including a missed opportunity for brand new localizations, and a visual style that doesn't always hold up well compared to the pixel art originals—but the core games, especially Suikoden II, are just so dang good. Way ahead of their time in terms of political storytelling, the Suikoden games weave themes of anti-imperialism, post-colonialist fascism, and the efficacy of collective power around engaging Gotta Collect 'Em All RPG gameplay and some truly wonderful music. Decades later, Suikoden's still got it.
8. Consume Me
When it comes to narrative experiences, the major strength of video games over other mediums like novels, film, television, etc., is their ability to provide player agency. With a deceptively comedic bent, Consume Me explores eating disorders, familial trauma, peer pressure, and a whole host of other challenging ideas within a framework that feels like Persona's social elements, but puts the player in charge of managing the anxiety and insecurities of a preteen discovering her body for the first time. Player agency within this context provides a heartbreaking connection to the difficulties of navigating trauma, self-doubt, and body dysmorphia without knowing how or where to find the answers. The themes aren't new, but Consume Me is an experience that only video games can provide.
7. Despelote
Speaking of which, despelote doesn't dig as deeply into trauma as Consume Me, but this autobiographical game digs into the experiences of a young boy growing up in Quito, Ecuador, in the early 2000's during the country's push to qualify for the World Cup. Utilizing player agency in a similar way, despelote puts you directly in the shoes of the young child, half-hearing and seeing a world of adults and a community's burgeoning love of soccer, and exposing the way children must navigate a world as complicated as political violence and as simple as sport. With a distinct 1-bit visual style (reminiscent of Return of the Obra Dinn), strong vocal performances, and its touching narrative, despelote stands out as a clear example of how video games offer beautiful opportunities for storytelling unavailable to other mediums.
6. 1000xResist
But, Aidan, 1000xResist came out in 2024!
Well, sure, but it was also released on PlayStation 5 and other non-Nintendo consoles late this year, which is where I played it, and, man, it's a good one. Like many of the other games on my list, 1000xResist is a narrative experience light on mechanics or traditional gameplay; you're basically just running around triggering dialogue and cutscenes, but I've never played anything like it. Long after you're done, you'll remember its cutting examination of diaspora communities, generational trauma, police states, the appeal and power of religious cults, and the way we insulate ourselves from our failings, no matter what the cost. Hekki Grace, readers.
5. Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
2025's darling is an absolute banger, and it's deservedly winning Game of the Year awards everywhere. Gorgeous visuals and a genuinely memorable world, fun (but flawed) combat mechanics, incredible music, and an all-star voice cast all add up to a winner. Though you wouldn't know it by the way people describe it as the second coming of JRPGs, it doesn't top my list because (like many of the games on my list, to be fair) it doesn't do much new, and anyone claiming it's saved console RPGs, or whatever, probably hasn't played a lot of console RPGs over the past 20 years. It executes its ideas well, but it's basically a reskin of Final Fantasy X, and, as much as I love it for that, I was drawn to a few more games that made me nostalgic in even more impactful ways.
Also, parrying, as always, is awful.
4. Lost Records: Bloom & Rage
Life is Strange bowled me over when I first played it, thanks to the soundtrack, Max, Arcadia Bay, its PNW setting, and the way it played with time travel and the illusion of choice. While I liked Double Exposure more than a lot of others, it didn't quite hit that same level (seeing Max again was nice, though). Don't Nod's follow-up to the Life is Strange series, Lost Records: Bloom & Rage, returns to the supernatural teen drama roots, but fuels its story with almost overwhelming '90s nostalgia. As an avowed Max Caulfield fan who's only sorta liked the other Life is Strange games, I wasn't entirely sure Don't Nod could recapture the magic, but by the end of Lost Records's second tape, I fell in love all over again. It's a gorgeous game, with all the crunchy character depth and unforgettable music I associate with Life is Strange, but this time underpinned by the melancholy of adults struggling with shared trauma. Magical.
3. Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicles
Long overdue for a rerelease, Final Fantasy Tactics is one of Square Enix's greatest games, and its incisive political storytelling remains disturbingly relevant all these decades later. While it falls off narratively after the third part, the first half of the game has so much to say about wealth and imperialism, religion as cult, and the responsibility of inheritance. I was initially dismayed by the game's reveal, hoping for more than up-rezzed and smeary sprites, but I was amazed by how well the refreshed graphics worked for me in the end, and the careful watercolour treatment for the dioramas looks beautiful (as long as you don't look too closely). The gameplay remains as addictive as ever, and I basically had to force myself to beat the game after 50 hours just so I could move on to something else. The polished script and S-tier voice acting only make an already great game even better.
2. Blue Prince
Honestly, I didn't even know what Blue Prince was until about two weeks before its release, when Jason Schreier started hinting at it being one of the best games of the year. I went in absolutely blind, got to the "end" of the game more or less on my own after 15 or so hours, and then spent another 85 plumbing the mansion's secrets while DMing with a bunch of friends and sharing tips, theories, and revelations in a way I hadn't experienced since playing Final Fantasy VII in high school. Blue Prince tells the story of revolution and how family secrets unfold before the eyes of children who are taking those first steps into childhood. It was a reminder of how video games are unmatched at creating community, and blending player agency with traditional narrative techniques to create brand new experiences. Blue Prince is unlike anything I've ever played, and earns its place among the great modern narrative mystery games like Return of the Obra Dinn (which I seem to keep mentioning today) and Outer Wilds—while also being nothing like those games. Months later, I still think about Blue Prince and wonder what stories I missed along the way.
1. Chrono Trigger
What's the best game I played this year? It's Chrono Trigger. It's always Chrono Trigger. Perfect cast, perfect visuals, perfect length, perfect music. Perfect game.
2025, Adieu
What is games journalism if not a blending of introspective cultural analysis and irreverent capitalist list-making?
On my podcast FunFactor, my co-host Ty and I regularly blend irreverent humour and (hopefully) smart criticism and analysis of the way historical games culture shapes modern games culture. Compiling this list made me realize not only how nostalgia shapes the experience I seek out, but how many of today's best game designers were right there with me among the first generation of people who never knew a world without video games.
This was a year of looking backwards—at childhood, at experiences behind me, of trying to recapture lightning in a bottle and package up nostalgia. 2025 was, in many ways, a great year for video games, with a TON of terrific games entering our lives, but it was also dreadfully difficult as so many of the people who create and cover video games lost work, and the environment for great games criticism has contracted year by year. I look forward to 2026. Better days, and better games, lie ahead.