Here it is, the big show. The heart stopper. The apex of lists. Every game I played this year, in a completely unordered list. To appear on this list, the games needed to fulfill a very strict set of rules.

The game had to be released in the year 2018
I had to remember that I played the game. If I don’t remember playing it, how good could it really have been?

That’s it. I also included this little tag “ - * - “ at the end of some games. This indicates a game that I played through to the end credits. Also, I added a cheat section at the bottom of the list for a couple items I wanted to mention, but didn’t really work within my tough as nails rules. Anyhow, here’s the list:

Subnautica - Underwater survival with a hint of Minecraft, sort of, but not. Genuinely terrifying and has a real sense of wonder in its exploration. The base building part of the game unfolds a little too slowly for me though. Let me build my sea lab.

Celeste - An absolutely perfect platformer. Lovely music and a great aesthetic. Challenging and then even more challenging. Controls are tight and gameplay is divine. There’s even a sweet little story at its core. Probably my game of the year? - * -

Shadow of the Colossus - A beautiful remake that I didn’t finish playing. This game is a classic and will probably evoke some real wonder if you’ve never played it before. Turns out, this would have been my millionth play through and I didn’t need to experience it again.

Bayonetta (Switch Version) - A fun game that is pretty throwback-ish in its take on game mechanics and everything. Fun, but not world altering. - * -

Bayonetta 2 (Switch Version) - A more fun game than the first. Better style and combat. If you were going to play one, I’d probably make it this one. They’re both fun games, but this one is the better one. - * -

Into the Breach - A challenging but fair tactical game. You are robots that punch aliens. Save the city, save the human race, save time itself. Or something like that. Fun, but didn’t quite light my fire. For what it’s worth the critics loved it.

Valkyria Chronicles 4 - It is exactly like the first game, which is kind of perfect because that’s what everyone wanted out of the other sequels. It’s fun and still challenging. Storytelling has evolved though, and VC4 struggles a bit in this department.

A Way Out - A genuinely fun co-op adventure. Some people didn’t like the ending, but I think it was clever. - * -

Far Cry 5 - Speaking of endings. An unsatisfying ending didn’t sour the experience of Far Cry 5 for me, but it didn’t exactly leave the impact I was hoping for. The gameplay in this game is as tight as ever. Will the stories ever achieve something more meaningful though? - * -

Minit - A game where you live in 60 second bursts. A very fun, very clever game. I wish I had the idea first. - * -

God of War - A beautiful game. This game series has had ups and downs and this is its pinnacle. Visceral combat, excellent acting and compelling storytelling. A must play and easily one of the year’s best. - * -

Ikaruga (Switch Version) - An old classic. You’re a ship shooting other ships. It’s a hard game where you can flip between black and white and absorb black or white bullets. Yeah, it’s weird.

Yoku’s Island Express - You’re a beetle postmaster who must deliver mail over a multi-biome island. Also, you push a giant ball around and the traversal mechanic is pinball. Also, the art is all hand drawn. An overlooked hidden gem of 2018.

Cultist Simulator - This is a game where you flip cards on a giant board and slowly lose your mind. It’s kind of card game, but also kind of a meter filling game? Really lovely, but maybe a little too loosely explained for me to wrap my head around.

Hollow Knight (Switch Version) - Somehow 2 people more or less made this lovely and tense metroidvania game where you play as a little bug knight. Tight controls and a great hand drawn look. Also, really cheap for some reason.

Lumines Remastered - Lumines is a game that I have fond memories of. It’s a very different puzzle game. Its mashup of music and shapes makes it a distinctly fun experience even today. - * -

Octopath Traveler - Most interesting visual style of the year. Mashup of 3D and 16bit era graphics wrapped around a vintage JRPG battle system. Fun, but I wanted more from the story.

Sonic Mania Plus - The most convincing Sonic game in a decade or two. Great visual style that perfectly captures all the charm of the classic era of Sega.

Guacamelee! 2 - Another great game in the year of the metroidvania. Very similar game to the original, but successful in its own right. The Mexican art style is really cool and something not often seen in gaming.

Spider-Man - One of the best superhero games in ages. Great visuals and excellent controls that have you flying around New York city in no time. Probably the most polished game of the year. - * -

Shadow of the Tomb Raider - This is probably the best of the rebooted series. Fantastic visuals and fun gameplay. The series continues to struggle with creating an engaging narrative though.

Assassin’s Creed Odyssey - I love this franchise, but I would struggle to accurately express why. I have barely touched this one, but if critics are to be believed, it’s another good entry.

Red Dead Redemption 2 - A worthy sequel to one of the all time open world greats. This is a huge game that will devour your time. The controls are so-so and the combat leaves something to be desired. However, you will not play a game that is as fully realized as this one for a long time. Shocking in its detail. - * -

Circle Empires - A weird, simple RTS game that I played a surprising amount of this year. You just mass giant armies and then dump them into enemy territory. Fun, but you’re not missing anything special.

Tetris Effect - What if my favourite game, was remade by one of my favourite creators? You would end up with an incredible blend of sounds and shapes. Tetris Effect is a fever dream of joy. If you like Tetris you need to play this. If you don’t like Tetris, I am sad for you. - * -

Battlefield V - Battlefield is a very good FPS that plays differently from its brethren. If you like them, you’ll like this one. The visuals are mind-blowing.

Florence - A charming little game that explores first love. A beautiful soundtrack and a genuinely touching story. - * -

Minesweeper Genius - Minesweeper + Sudoku. Very good. - * -

The Red Strings Club - A cyberpunk adventure game where you bartend and make pottery. That’s a descriptor that should have anyone hooked.

Super Smash Bros Ultimate - Everyone is here. Every character ever from this classic franchise is back. I will never play one of these games as much as I played the original and the Gamecube version, but this one is still fun.

Return of the Obra Dinn - A murder mystery insurance game on a 19th century ship. I enjoyed what I played, but it eventually lost me. I think I need to give it another try.

Detroit: Become Human - I barely gave this one a shot. I played it, but then I stopped. The visuals are neat, but maybe I’m done with David Cage games.

EXAPUNKS - A really cool game if you’re into the niche of playing computer programming games. You hack into things, including the human body! Comes with printable zines. Zachtronics is a cool developer making things for the fans.

Alto’s Odyssey - The lovely sequel to the ultimate llama snowboarding simulation. A charming simple game that will burn away hours of free time you’ll never miss.

The Room: Old Sins - I’ve really enjoyed this series of puzzle games. They’re a little strange and not especially challenging, but they do keep me engaged from start to finish. Spoopy too. - * -

Holedown - A brick breaking game where you attempt to mine down to centre of objects. A great time killer that really captures the “one more game” feeling. - * -

- Special Shoutouts for games that didn’t make the list or qualify for some reason -

Heroes of the Storm - This remains my daily driver. What a great game. The team continued to update it at an awesome speed in 2018 and it was, for me, a genuinely interesting professional scene to follow. Seems like Blizzard is winding down support, which is a real shame. This might be my most played game of all time.

Xenoblade Chronicles 2 - Came out in December of 2017, so it didn’t make that list. To be truthful, I don’t like this game at all. The art direction and music is okay, but that’s kind of it. The combat is tedious and the audio design is frightful. I hope you enjoy characters shouting the same 3-4 lines for endless hours. I’m 10-15 hours into the game and story is either bad or taking too long to get going. It would be a miracle if I got back into this one.