I love reading these lists especially from NPR because I think they always pick games that the general public missed. Wanderstop is one of my favorite games this year, I really wish it got more...
I love reading these lists especially from NPR because I think they always pick games that the general public missed.
Wanderstop is one of my favorite games this year, I really wish it got more recognition from other GOTY lists.
I played a couple of sessions of Sunderfolk with some friends and it's such a fun idea.
Drop Dutchy is really good!
I'm probably gonna have to try Diatoms and Molly House eventually.
You weren't kidding. That is a very comprehensive list! Lots of great games in there, and way more variety than you would see in typical GOTY lists. Good to see lots of smaller studios and...
You weren't kidding. That is a very comprehensive list!
Lots of great games in there, and way more variety than you would see in typical GOTY lists. Good to see lots of smaller studios and less-popular genres get recognition.
Thanks! It is a real dream house, I'd share it if I wasn't doxxing myself doing so. We've got a lovely patch of nature. We don't even have furniture to fill half of it though lol. But once we get...
Thanks! It is a real dream house, I'd share it if I wasn't doxxing myself doing so. We've got a lovely patch of nature.
We don't even have furniture to fill half of it though lol. But once we get a good shelf for the board games, it is gonna look awful bare...
But yeah it is great to see a list that has board games too, thanks for sharing!
Alternatively: buy hundreds of board games so you can stack the boxes to make furniture. Why buy a game shelf when you can make one out of board game boxes and wooden boards? :D
Alternatively: buy hundreds of board games so you can stack the boxes to make furniture. Why buy a game shelf when you can make one out of board game boxes and wooden boards? :D
I'm very much within NPR's target demographic but I always find myself skeptical of their year-end game lists. Simply renaming it something other than "best" would probably go a long way to get me...
I'm very much within NPR's target demographic but I always find myself skeptical of their year-end game lists. Simply renaming it something other than "best" would probably go a long way to get me onboard, but it's also kinda hard to take an 80-odd long list seriously... where's the cutoff point? I know it's about trying to cater to everyone across platforms, genres, and whatnot, but a list that long surely comes with a compromise on quality. Having said that, they usually show some deserved love to indie titles that flew under the radar, so it's nice to see them get some recognition. I haven't paid as much attention to gaming releases this past year as I used to, but I am surprised (and pleased) to see Despelote listed - I'd have thought it much too niche to show up here.
I only know about a dozen of the other picks, most of which are big-name releases that have had the hype machine behind them pre-release. If I could have my own pick, though, it would be Road To Empress, a game totally outside my wheelhouse, yet I've been waiting for years for someone to get it into their head to make it! It's essentially a full-FMV visual novel/C-drama centered on Tang Dynasty court intrigue rather than strictly the typical romance polygons. IMO the trailers online don't really do it justice, as it has amazing production values, top-notch plot twists, and better translation than what's shown here. It's the kind of game I would have pointed to as the answer back when companies were first trying to figure out how they could diversify games and attract a console demographic beyond males aged 15-40: instead of simply reskinning male power fantasy games and risking backlash for wokebaiting, lean into the competitive social dynamics girls and women already engage in. The results speak for themselves! If you still decide you're not up for purchasing it, though, these highlights from Northernlion's playthrough make a fantastic substitute.
thank you for the recommendation for Road To Empress! I've been kinda afraid that I'm losing my Mandarin because I don't talk to anyone in Chinese anymore so this might be good practice for me lol.
thank you for the recommendation for Road To Empress! I've been kinda afraid that I'm losing my Mandarin because I don't talk to anyone in Chinese anymore so this might be good practice for me lol.
Sultan's Game being on here is interesting; I have really conflicting feelings about that game. It was really intriguing and I kept wanting to play more to discover more, but a lot of the things...
Sultan's Game being on here is interesting; I have really conflicting feelings about that game. It was really intriguing and I kept wanting to play more to discover more, but a lot of the things you can do are immoral to the point of making me feel seriously uncomfortable playing it at all.
That's more or less the point of the narrative, I think - the Sultan is trying to force you to commit horrifying acts, and just carrying out said acts while you're trying to figure out your escape route is always the easiest path. So the challenge of the game really comes from the moral lines you refuse to cross, when you refuse to take the easy path. And the fact the game goes so far with what it tries to make you do is what makes that effective... but it also feels like the game itself crosses a line on certain topics.
Anyway, long ramble - I'm surprised to see it recommended in a list like this, although I think it's a good game. There are a lot of other games on this list I haven't heard of that look super interesting - thank you for sharing!
I think that's why it got recommended. I haven't played it or even heard of it before this article, but the concept seems like the type of game that makes people really introspective and examine...
I think that's why it got recommended. I haven't played it or even heard of it before this article, but the concept seems like the type of game that makes people really introspective and examine their morals. Not many forms of media, games or otherwise, can do that, but a game forcing you to choose only bad options as you struggle for an ultimately "good" ending? Yeah, that's going to leave a mark and may very well lead to some people having epiphanies about their own moral lines.
I love reading these lists especially from NPR because I think they always pick games that the general public missed.
Wanderstop is one of my favorite games this year, I really wish it got more recognition from other GOTY lists.
I played a couple of sessions of Sunderfolk with some friends and it's such a fun idea.
Drop Dutchy is really good!
I'm probably gonna have to try Diatoms and Molly House eventually.
You weren't kidding. That is a very comprehensive list!
Lots of great games in there, and way more variety than you would see in typical GOTY lists. Good to see lots of smaller studios and less-popular genres get recognition.
yeah, of all the lists i usually look at, this one is the most comprehensive Games list as a whole haha. I wish there were more board games in lists.
Oh, it's nifty that The Drifter made the list! That's a pretty obscure (but very good) game made by a friend of my partner's.
oh nice!! small world haha i didn't add it to my wishlist initially because i'm not a point and click game fan but i just added it! did you play it?
I just bought a house, I can't afford a longer wishlist! And they have the gall to tempt me with tabletop games too.
Congrats on the new home! You need more tabletop games to utilize that new home just saying
Thanks! It is a real dream house, I'd share it if I wasn't doxxing myself doing so. We've got a lovely patch of nature.
We don't even have furniture to fill half of it though lol. But once we get a good shelf for the board games, it is gonna look awful bare...
But yeah it is great to see a list that has board games too, thanks for sharing!
Alternatively: buy hundreds of board games so you can stack the boxes to make furniture. Why buy a game shelf when you can make one out of board game boxes and wooden boards? :D
I'm very much within NPR's target demographic but I always find myself skeptical of their year-end game lists. Simply renaming it something other than "best" would probably go a long way to get me onboard, but it's also kinda hard to take an 80-odd long list seriously... where's the cutoff point? I know it's about trying to cater to everyone across platforms, genres, and whatnot, but a list that long surely comes with a compromise on quality. Having said that, they usually show some deserved love to indie titles that flew under the radar, so it's nice to see them get some recognition. I haven't paid as much attention to gaming releases this past year as I used to, but I am surprised (and pleased) to see Despelote listed - I'd have thought it much too niche to show up here.
I only know about a dozen of the other picks, most of which are big-name releases that have had the hype machine behind them pre-release. If I could have my own pick, though, it would be Road To Empress, a game totally outside my wheelhouse, yet I've been waiting for years for someone to get it into their head to make it! It's essentially a full-FMV visual novel/C-drama centered on Tang Dynasty court intrigue rather than strictly the typical romance polygons. IMO the trailers online don't really do it justice, as it has amazing production values, top-notch plot twists, and better translation than what's shown here. It's the kind of game I would have pointed to as the answer back when companies were first trying to figure out how they could diversify games and attract a console demographic beyond males aged 15-40: instead of simply reskinning male power fantasy games and risking backlash for wokebaiting, lean into the competitive social dynamics girls and women already engage in. The results speak for themselves! If you still decide you're not up for purchasing it, though, these highlights from Northernlion's playthrough make a fantastic substitute.
thank you for the recommendation for Road To Empress! I've been kinda afraid that I'm losing my Mandarin because I don't talk to anyone in Chinese anymore so this might be good practice for me lol.
Sultan's Game being on here is interesting; I have really conflicting feelings about that game. It was really intriguing and I kept wanting to play more to discover more, but a lot of the things you can do are immoral to the point of making me feel seriously uncomfortable playing it at all.
That's more or less the point of the narrative, I think - the Sultan is trying to force you to commit horrifying acts, and just carrying out said acts while you're trying to figure out your escape route is always the easiest path. So the challenge of the game really comes from the moral lines you refuse to cross, when you refuse to take the easy path. And the fact the game goes so far with what it tries to make you do is what makes that effective... but it also feels like the game itself crosses a line on certain topics.
Anyway, long ramble - I'm surprised to see it recommended in a list like this, although I think it's a good game. There are a lot of other games on this list I haven't heard of that look super interesting - thank you for sharing!
I think that's why it got recommended. I haven't played it or even heard of it before this article, but the concept seems like the type of game that makes people really introspective and examine their morals. Not many forms of media, games or otherwise, can do that, but a game forcing you to choose only bad options as you struggle for an ultimately "good" ending? Yeah, that's going to leave a mark and may very well lead to some people having epiphanies about their own moral lines.
I have it on my list right now but i'm kinda afraid to play it, not gonna lie. I might have to try it when I'm more mentally stable haha.