2022 was the most eclectic year in recent gaming memory, a year full of big hits and some big misses. Before we look to 2023, it’s time to reflect and award the best games the metaphorical title of game of the year without being interrupted by a Bill Clinton joke.
Surprise Game Of The Year
FRESHLY FROSTED (Quantum Astrophysics Guild)
The quality of indie games continues to inch closer to the level of big blockbusters like God Of War. Freshly Frosted is a game that still embodies the spirit of indie. This welcoming and serene puzzle game about chaining conveyer belts to make donuts is every bit a treat as an actual donut. While it doesn’t tell a story that puts it in anyone’s impact category, there’s a big dopamine drop released by the rhythmic visual of donut making combined with an audio design that can soothe even the most unrelenting kid refusing to sleep. It’s a substantial sized game for its tiny price tag but in a world where games of this size are automatically exclusively mobile releases, it’s great to see an option like this one available on consoles.
Sports Game Of The Year
NHL 23 (EA)
In a year where quality WWE games made a comeback, the annual release of NHL takes the prize by a razor thin margin. Madden, FIFA, and even The Show; nearly all annual sports game releases have been lackluster in the past few years. NHL 23 is the first annual release in a long time to feel fresher than just the usual roster updates. Graphically on PS5 and Xbox X, it’s incredibly gorgeous and slick, but it adds the little touches real life hockey is best known for. The ability to still control your actions even after being knocked down is a huge thing in terms of bringing the virtual game closer to the grit of the sport. There’s such an adrenaline raising feeling when you’re skating up the crease with Kopitar as you get knocked forward by the opposition and still using the stick to know the puck past the goalie to light the lamp. It really might be the first video game to feel like a true 1:1 simulation of its sport.
Shooter/Action Game Of The Year
Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands (Gearbox Software)
Borderlands has a big year ahead of it with the upcoming movie hitting theaters. Fans of the action shooter got a treat this year with Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands. Gearbox took the frame of intense action alien combat Borderlands is known for and told a great story about self-acceptance that was as hilarious as it is poignant. The small touches of Tina’s D&D campaign world form such a uniquely vibrant-looking setting for this Borderlands spin-off. Princess Buttstallion is also the most random word generator name for a character that made 12-year-old me chuckle every time I saw it on screen. What it nailed soo hard is combining Borderland’s unconventional armory with fantasy role-playing game fantasy weaponry. Every gun in the game felt like firing elemental spells or changing opponents into other things, but more than novelty the game’s assortment of weapons kept you changing battle strategies based on the opposition. Months later and this game is still in my rotation. From great performances to fun end gameplay TTW is one of the all-around most enjoyable games of the year.
RPG Of The Year
Elden Ring (Bandai Namco)
A dash of souls, a pinch of Witcher, and a slice of DNA from Game Of Thrones. Elden Ring is a hybrid love letter to fantasy storytelling where action defines this world as much as the mystic. It had the best storytelling and gaming pedigree behind it with George R.R. Martin and Hidetaka Miyazaki writing the game. The game’s RPG elements are top notch with dozens of different ways to develop and grow your character. Elden Ring not only lives up to its potential but redefined how good stories in action focused challenge games like Dark Souls and Bloodborne can be.
Nintendo Switch Game Of The Year
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Shredder’s Revenge (Tribute Games)
A case could have been made for Kirby Throat Goat or Bayonetta 3, but the best experience on the Nintendo Switch was a game that matched the versatility of the Nintendo Switch. TMNT Shredder’s Revenge was a true return to form for the arcade beat ’em up game genre. Featuring classic animated 90’s versions of the turtles and a new story, the game jabbed with punch after punch of nostalgia as it subtly showed how the forgotten genre could evolve. Though it was available for many different consoles and PC, the true potential is on Nintendo Switch where it was as much fun to play waiting at the airport as it was on the couch with four friends.
Xbox Game Of The Year
Game Pass Ultimate
Xbox has a mountain of games to look forward to in the near future, but it’s hard not to argue that 2022 was not the year of the box. For those who subscribe to game pass, chances are you leaned on it more than paying for individual games. Whether you subscribed just to finally play Gears 5 or play through the Fable series again Game Pass gave you an entire library of great games to discover that you may not have given a chance to otherwise. Power Wash Simulator, Vampire Survivor, even the narrative-driven As Dusk Falls contributed to one of the best supporting cast of games in a long time.
PC Game Of The Year
Dune: Spice Wars (Shiro Games)
Set in Frank Herbert’s iconic science fiction universe of Dune: Spice Wars puts you in charge of your own mining faction. Choose from House Atreides, House Harkonnen, House Corrino, Smugglers or Fremen, then recruit agents, build your first defenses, and start exploiting the territory around you before launching more dangerous expeditions in areas beyond your control. The game is the most layered and clever real-time strategy experience of 2022. Spice Wars went into early access on STEAM in 2022 with eyes toward a full release in 2023.
PlayStation Game Of The Year
God Of War Ragnarok (Santa Monica Studio)
The challenge of the sequel is to surpass the chapter before it in terms of scale and impact. Perhaps one of the biggest challenges in all of gaming was following up on 2018’s God Of War. A game that turned Kratos from a one-dimensional snarling beast of a character into a fully formed emotionally complex dad the audience empathized with. That one game moved the series from junk food action to Hollywood level blockbuster. Its sequel God Of War Ragnarok managed to feel like a generational leap to the game’s universe. It did what many PlayStation sequels do and put you, at least partially, in the shoes of a different character in order to tell a more rounded story that by the time you roll credits left you emotionally shook. Yet along the way, it didn’t lose the meaty feeling of hurling Krato’s leviathan axe through enemies or those moments of ripping monsters in half with your bare hands. God Of War Ragnarok’s exceptional skill and high-quality craft makes it the new blueprint of what a sequel needs to do.
Game Of The Year
Marvel Snap (Second Dinner)
The most addictive, most fun, most attention demanding game of the year came to our phones and portable devices. Marvel Snap had been on a lot of people’s radars for its use of incredible comic book style art. What we got at launch was a competitive card battle game that tore down the high fences around games like Magic The Gathering and Heartstone. As you play to win 2-out-of-3 battle locations using cards themed around a galaxy of characters in the Marvel universe you’ll find yourself immersed in a challenging strategy session that never feels frustrating or stagnant. It’s a game that anyone can become good enough to be competitive in but just complex enough to have a level of achievable mastery. Character combinations like Devil Dinosaur’s power gain based on the number of cards in your hand go well with its comic counterpart Moon Girl’s ability to duplicate the cards in your hand. These touches show how much love the developer has for the vast comics world of Marvel and the end result is a true love letter to collecting Marvel cards in the 90s.
Stay tuned for our best of streaming in 2022…
