Hello, fellow gamers. It is I, permanent (?) Bee Week Champion Bailey Meyers. Now that I’ve conquered spelling (as a concept), it’s time to move on to the other thing I’m good at: being right about video games. Ignore all the other Top Ten lists; this is the only one you need to get a real sense of what was good in gaming this year.
10. Fortnite
Okay, so here’s the thing: according to Mr. Sony himself, I played nearly 300 hours of Fortnite this year. When? How did this happen? And will getting killed that many times by that many 12-year-olds have any negative impact on my sense of self-worth? Who’s to say? What I do know is this: Simpsons season rocked, KPop Demon Hunters skins rock, and sidekicks rock. If you ever see a Rumi running around with a hotdog back bling (mustard only), hit that Dance Monkey emote to let me know you liked my list.
9. Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
Listen, it was Game of the Year for a reason. Are there games I personally enjoyed more this year? Yes. That’s what this list is for. But is it visually stunning, with phenomenal voice acting, compelling gameplay, and a truly devastating story? Mais oui, mes amis.
8. Skull
Okay, so this isn’t a video game. I’m sorry, I’ve been branching out this year (shout out to my new home, Good Time Society, which you can check out on YouTube) – and you’re NOT ALLOWED TO BE MAD AT ME ABOUT IT. Skull is a phenomenally fun party game that’s all about tricking your friends before they can win anything. It’s super simple, great in a group, and easy to learn (so the “learning the board game” part that a lot of people dislike is, like, super short). It’s a fun game to play while out drinking with friends (if you’re into that sort of thing), but it’s just as much fun on a quieter night in. Now gather your people and see who’s bad at lying–go!!
Wait. Read the rest of my list first.
7. CloverPit
I played a lot of roguelikes this year, but there’s only one that I started playing, blinked, and then realized eight hours had passed–CloverPit. I know, I know: famously addicted-to-Balatro Bailey Meyers has gotten way too invested in yet another gambling-inspired game. Yeah. You got me. It’s 100% true. But it’s different, okay? It’s slot machines, okay? And it makes the rat in my brain super happy when the number go up, OKAY?
6. Blood on the Clocktower
Once again, not a video game. Once again, you’re not allowed to be mad at me. Blood on the Clocktower is a social deduction game in which a group of townsfolk must find and execute the demon hiding amongst their ranks, before more innocent people die. Everyone’s got unique abilities, there’s nonstop chaos and confusion, and once again, you get to figure out which of your friends are good at lying, which is honestly just pretty handy to know. Oh, coincidentally, Good Time Society just released the first episode of their Good Time on the Clocktower series, which is super good and which I helped produce. (No big deal.)
5. Ball X Pit
Yes, it’s another roguelike based on simple arcade mechanics (a blockbreaker, in this case, a la Pong or Bubble Bobble). However, consider how many ball jokes you can make if you play this thing. And there are so many kinds of balls, too! Lightning balls, earthquake balls, laser balls, poison balls—it’s balls-to-the-wall fun. See? The ball jokes are already starting, and you haven’t even played yet.
4. Donkey Kong Bananza
Ooooh… banana. Donkey Kong Bananza was such a joy to play this year. It brought sunshine into my life. It watered my crops. It fixed my potassium deficiency–I may never get a cramp again, all thanks to the healing power of banana. And, okay, here’s my confession: I went into the game skeptical. I was told it was on par with the likes of Breath of the Wild. “How could that even be possible?” I thought to myself. “It’s a fucking Donkey Kong game.” Well, pardon me, Mr. Kong, because I was a fool. This game is all that and more–a game so well-constructed, so supremely fun to play, that I attempted to 100% it even though that is absolutely not the kind of gamer I typically am. I just wanted to keep enjoying the game!
3. Magic: The Gathering
Have you guys heard of this game? It’s a little on the newer side, so you may be unfamiliar with it. Okay, so maybe it was just new to me this year, but man did I get into it. I got my first commander deck in February (shoutout to my trash-boy Bello), and from there the obsession was pretty immediate. And, yes, I know it’s also not a video game–but it CAN BE. If you play Magic: the Gathering Arena (like I do every night in bed before I fall asleep, which is actually very good for me and good for my brain), it absolutely 100% counts as a video game–no cardboard required. (But if you see me IRL and want to play, I usually have my decks nearby.)
2. Blue Prince
Okay, have you guys heard of this game? You know the one–a roguelike where you build a big, stupid house every single day? Should have won Best Indie Game at the Game Awards? That one? Well, if you haven’t heard of it, I sincerely don’t know which Giant Bomb you’ve been watching, but let me add my voice to the many people before me who have talked about how great this thing is. This thing is great. The only game that beat this for me, hours-wise, was Fortnite. (Blue Prince is a lot of things, but it has yet to do a Simpsons collab.)
1. Hades II
Look how they’ve yassified my boy. He’s a girl now, and he rocks. Hades is one of my favorite games of all time, so I’m not surprised that its sequel is just as good, if not better. Hades II (which should have won Best Score and Music at the Game Awards, do not @ me unless you’re agreeing with me) is a fucking banger. It takes everything that made its predecessor good and multiplies it. It builds on what came before, offering a gameplay experience both familiar and totally fresh, and upping the difficulty in a way that makes me feel super duper good at games anytime I succeed. My one complaint is that they should have let me smooch more people, but that isn’t enough to knock this bad boy from my top spot.
Death to Chronos, and happy new year.