Must Play
Explore the classics. These titles have either shaped the videogame landscape, or just left a lasting impression on me personally.
Games
Shadow of the Colossus
A timeless masterpiece gets a modern, tasteful cosmetic uplift. Shadow of the Colossus is understated, beautiful, charming and inspired. It’s an adventure you’ll never forget - must play.
Super Mario Odyssey
Quite likely the best 3D platformer ever. The perfected, foundational movement is creatively explored and tested through several worlds brimming with ideas which constantly surprise and delight. Masterpiece.
Bastion
Supergiant's debut game, and what a game it is. A 2D isometric RPG which is tonnes of fun, has gorgeous visuals, a great soundtrack and famously brilliant narration. Must play.
Cookie Clicker
The genre-defining browser classic comes to Steam, bringing all its apocalyptic Grandma madness along with it. If you didn't dedicate a browser tab to this for thousands of hours, you didn't live.
Castle Crashers
One of, if not the best couch co-op games around. Classic beat-em-up sidescrolling action with great design and super fun combat.
The Stanley Parable
Extremely funny and clever - a 'must play' that elevated meta content in video games to still unmatched heights.
Fortnite
After bouncing off Fortnite the week it launched, I wrote it off for years. It was polished and fun, but I was frustratingly bad. Once they introduced Zero Build I tried again, and it's fun as hell.
Papers, Please
An intriguing, nihilistic, funny and depressing paperwork simulator. A simple concept thoughtfully & creatively explored. 𝙶𝙻𝙾𝚁𝚈 𝚃𝙾 𝙰𝚁𝚂𝚃𝙾𝚃𝚉𝙺𝙰
Dota 2
One of the best games ever made. Dauntingly complex, but mindblowingly considered and exceedingly well executed. It's hard to overstate the brilliance of Dota 2, a game beyond compare.
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
It's Skyrim. For its time, raised the bar for the genre. I have many, many fond memories of the hundreds of hours lost to this game. Hugely influential for better or worse.
Minecraft
A seminal masterpiece that took the world by storm with good reason. I spent thousands of hours in Minecraft; a game for me about exploring creativity within tight restriction. Must play.
Warframe
The amazing devs and team at Digital Extremes have set the bar for online grindy shooters. Warframe is, for a F2P game, amazingly well-crafted and dangerously deep.
The Last of Us
Not the most mechanically engaging game, but is elevated to sublime heights by its characters and writing. Moment-to-moment gameplay is visceral & satisfying, sound design is fantastic. Must play.
The Last of Us Part II
Harrowing and emotionally challenging, a game has never left me feeling the way I did as I stared through tears at the credits of The Last of Us Part II. This is a masterpiece I love so much, but may never play again.
Balatro
Balatro absolutely rules. And this is coming from someone with abject disdain of poker... Traditional poker hands are your basic tools, but that's about as far as the connection goes. The rest of Balatro is a wickedly clever, psychedelic, insta-classic roguelike through which you'll devise cunning ways to break the game. Cards and modifiers are tightly designed, crisply defined and delightfully synergistic. Again, Balatro just rules. Play it.
Diablo II
The coolest Diablo game. Genre defining. Unmatched atmosphere and immersion for the franchise. You’d likely only go back for nostalgia nowadays, but it’s a remarkable achievement and pretty much perfect. 𖤐
Hotline Miami
A fresh, visceral and addictive hyperactive trip of ultraviolence, strategy and style. Finds its rhythm immediately and sticks the landing. Hell of a soundtrack too.
The Binding of Isaac
Arguably the grand-daddy of modern rogue-likes. Ed McMillen hones his tradmarked style of absurd, funny darkness in this virtually infinitely replayable & deep, fucked up world. Must play.
The Last Guardian
Technical niggles are easy to overlook when a game is this lovingly crafted, heart-warming and - at the time - unique. An absorbing and emotional triumph from Ueda and team. Masterpiece.
Super Meat Boy
The new benchmark for smooth, responsive controls for skilful platformers. Funny art direction, great music and awesome level design which is super rewarding to overcome. A must-play for the genre.
SUPERHOT
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Super Mario Bros. Wonder
The hint is in the name: this game (and Nintendo when they're in this form) is indeed a wonder. Constantly surprising, funny, delightful, and endlessly creative. The best 2D Mario has been in a long time. Vibrant and refreshed, but still underpinned by decades of perfecting tight controls and a seemingly endless supply of not just ideas, but the talent to execute them. Love.
Uncharted 4: A Thief's End
Thrilling combat punctuates a fun, well-told, gripping adventure. Naughty Dog throw down the gauntlet on set pieces, and deliver a wild ride through glorious vistas alongside great characters and writing.
Megabonk
Megabonk is dangerously moreish. Risk of Rain meets Vampire Survivors in chaotic 3D. When a run clicks, it's glorious, sending you bunnyhopping through swarms in a storm of bonks. Not as well balanced as its inspirations, and it's qUirKy ChUnGus writing can be a bit on the nose, but still a riot worth sinking hours into.
Portal
Short and sweet, Portal has a simple concept which lends itself to all levels of complex puzzles. Nowadays it lives in the shadow of it's unbelievably good sequel, but the concepts started here.
Portal 2
A perfect sequel expanding massively on an already brilliant puzzle mechanic. The puzzles are challenging and well designed, but the centrepiece is the plot and specifically the characters.
Cult of the Lamb
A really fun balance of roguelike dungeon crawling and Animal Crossing colony sim inside a slick package of stunning art and great music. Bit buggy at launch, but still great and ripe for expansion.
LIMBO
A tense 2D puzzle platformer with a gorgeous art style. LIMBO was one of the more inspirational indie games that changed the game at the time, and deserves a playthrough.
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
It happened! I've had trouble getting into this type of game, but they've done it. Clair Obscur's haunting beauty is very cleverly combined with slick turn-based combat, which is punched up with realtime mechanics like parrying and dodging. Diverse and satisfying buildcrafting, a great story, an intriguing world, compelling characters and excellent VA - and all atop an unforgettable soundtrack. It's focused, emotional, confident, and it all works. A rare gem that proves a vision and creative freedom can trump budget and team size. Ripper game.
Left 4 Dead 2
More of the same but better. Tremendous fun with friends, especially if you can get in the same room. Valve struck on something simply fun and perfected it here.
Hearthstone
A nostalgic but fresh and seemingly-casual approach to card games. Early on it was approachable, diverse and very fun. As time went on, P2W became more present, and complexity-creep sucked a lot of the fun.
NieR: Automata
To be clear, this is a very good game. I couldn't get into it, however. The design is clever and 'endings' very cool. But the setting, characters, movement & navigation frustrated me to a distracting degree.
Blue Prince
I cannot overstate how much I love Blue Prince. It's an absolute masterclass in design, and oozes thoughtful passion. Every mechanic interlocks with intent, it rewards curiosity without ever hand-holding, exquisitely links story and gameplay, and its puzzles are a seemingly endless cascade of satisfying eureka moments. Smart, stylish, deep - Blue Prince instantly joins the ranks of the best puzzle games of all-time. Go in blind, bring a notebook.
Half-Life
The one that changed the game. The impact of Half-Life is immeasurable, but I'll always look back and be thankful for that intro train sequence, knowing that all the new games I like learned from it.
Half-Life 2
An instant classic that dared to expand the lore of its predecessor to intriguing depths and flex how physics can be fun in videogames. Virtually flawless game design.
Half-Life: Alyx
Valve (finally) throw down the gauntlet. Alyx changes the VR landscape and is truly a masterpiece; sound, level, visual, game design and story are all top notch. Will not be surpassed for some time.
Fez
The first and likely last masterpiece by Phil Fish. The amount of attention to detail and care that went into this game is crazy. A simple mechanic well explored and executed - a must play.
Animal Crossing: New Horizons
Perfectly distilled and refined Animal Crossing. Absolutely love the art style, world and music. Loved getting creative, making friends and making the island my own. Could have done with some UX love.
Far Cry 3
This in my opinion is the best Far Cry. Best world, best characters (even if the protagonist and his crew are a bit cringey), best moments, best plot.
Ghost of Tsushima
A visually spectacular and bloody journey through 13th Century Japan. Complimented by great characters, passable story and, more than anything, combat so satisfying you’ll ignore its standard openworld stuff.
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
I have no idea how Nintendo did this. It takes mechanics and gamedesign inspiration from all over the industry, and improves on basically all of them. Constantly impressive and gratifying - one of the best games ever made.
Borderlands
The gunplay, loot and world design and graphics are all excellent (and still stand-up in 2018), but the characters, bosses and story leave a little to be desired. Worth a buy, especially the sequel.
BioShock
A fresh and lastingly influential take on the broadly tired shooter genre. Decent gunplay is offset by the audio/visual and narrative masterpiece that surround it.
BioShock Infinite
A beautiful, dark and immersive alternate reality with characters you'll be sad to leave behind. A brave successor that pulls it off and has genuinely jaw-dropping moments.
The Witness
A beautiful, puzzling and incredibly well crafted work of art. This game does not hold your hand and does not give you an explicit pat on the back. Discovery, learning and rumination are your rewards.
ARC Raiders
I've wanted to get into an extraction shooter for ages, but nothing has landed in my sweet spot of complexity: they're either exhausting in how convoluted they are, or so watered down they feel pointless. ARC Raiders finally hits the middle ground. Its world is genuinely absorbing, with visual and sound design that's freakishly immersive, and a sandbox allowing for endless emergent moments that make it hard to put down. I'm too old for competitive shooters, but the balance, pacing, economy, and community (so far) here give this one a feel I can actually settle into - and it's turning out to be something pretty special.
Darkest Dungeon
Dark, varied, complex, addictive and unforgiving. If you like turnbased RPGs, just get it - no question. When I first played I could not stop myself from saying aloud "this game is so fucking good."
Firewatch
Beautiful, immersive, intriguing and clever - Firewatch is a relaxing, and at times both hilarious and emotional game driven almost entirely by characters and conversation.
Cuphead
While it's not "the Dark Souls of platformers" (because that's stupid), it is quite challenging and famously gorgeous. This is a true labor of love and is absolutely more than the sum of its parts.
Hollow Knight
Best in class 2D metroidvania with crisp controls and challenging but fair combat. Unforgettable music, characters and world - Hollow Knight is one of the most well executed games ever made.
Hollow Knight: Silksong
After so long, Silksong somehow feels both inevitable and unbelievable. Hornet moves like a dream, every dash and dive tight, every fight a dance that's punishing but (mostly) fair. The world of Pharloom is staggering in scope: it just keeps expanding, full of new enemies, lavish art, secrets around every corner - all underscored by beautiful music and crisp sound design. Items and builds feel meaningful, not filler, and the variety on offer is impressive even for a game of this scale. It's everything I hoped for: familiar yet transformed, reverent of its predecessor but confidently its own. After all the memes, the silkposts, the endless patience - Silksong was worth it. Anyone grumbling about difficulty, especially if their point of reference is Hunter's March, might want to remember Hornet’s famous line from the first game. Loved it.
Getting Over It with Bennett Foddy
An artistic exercise in persistence and hopefully eventual triumph.
Ring of Pain
Fresh & clever, Ring of Pain's simplistic inputs bely its depth and difficulty. Absolutely stunning art, haunting music and great sound are underpinned by a fun and addictive gameplay loop. Love it.
SpyParty
SpyParty has been around a long time and is still has at its core one of the most interesting gameplay concepts ever explored. Challenging, fun, utterly unique and hilarious with friends.
Don't Starve
Don't Starve is exceedingly well designed, from its core gameplay to the aesthetics, music and sound. It's very challenging, but absolutely full to the brim with content from a great team. Must play.
What Remains of Edith Finch
I didn't know what to expect and I suggest you go in blind too. Unique, heartfelt and wildly compelling, this story and the way it is told is nothing short of a masterpiece.
N++
I recently revisited N++, and it's still awesome. Truly an OG, its fast-paced, minimalist platforming with smooth controls and addictive, challenging levels require precision and foster mastery. Its sleek, uncompromising design, tight gameplay and community focus make for an all-time classic.
Dark Souls
A project handed to a junior employee, who then crafted it into an uncompromising lesson in perseverance that rewards exploration and subverts expectations. Bleak, brutal and beautiful. Pretty much perfect - Dark Souls legacy & impact cannot be overstated.
Dark Souls II
A good game, but not a great Souls game. While there are some mechanical improvements, Dark Souls II is the buffet to it's predecessors fine dining: lots of content, but none of it very good.
Bloodborne
Takes all the best foundations from Souls and dials up the speed & aggression. Absolutely inspired and masterfully pulled off. Incredible setting, world design, story and of course combat. Masterpiece, close to perfection.
Dark Souls III
All of the learnings from DS through BB are here, and as a final instalment to the franchise is a remarkably rounded love letter to its fans. Almost certainly the most accessible Souls game.
Demon's Souls
A loving and faithful return to Boletaria, now rendered in spectacular modern tech. It’s clear to see FROM ’s approach was unrefined back then, but it’s still a fantastic, brutal, important game.
Dead Cells
As far as Steam releases go, Dead Cells is GOTY 2018. Absolutely the most buttery smooth controls amongst its ilk, amazing music, challenging mechanics and immense innate replayability.
Return of the Obra Dinn
From the maker (one person) of Papers, Please comes this brilliant shortish deduction whodunnit with terrific music, great voice acting and uniquely cool art direction. An awesome understated gem of 2018.
Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes
Simple but ingenious concept which will either highlight the strength in you & your partners communication, or potentially start an argument. Either way, hilarious couch/party game.
Hyper Demon
Devil Daggers with your third eye open. At first utterly incomprehensible and overwhelming, but given some time, reveals itself to be incredibly tight, elegant and intensely masterful. A special game.
Braid
An almost flawless explosion onto the scene by Jon Blow. Simple mechanics that grow increasingly complicated, making way for some challenging puzzles inside a beautiful and sombre world. Must play.
FTL: Faster Than Light
A classic modern and hugely influential roguelike which will make you love/hate RNG like almost no other. Strikes a great balance of simplicity and underlying complexity. Almost certainly a classic.
DOOM
A brutal and fun return to form for the juggernaut OG of the genre. Couldn't have come at a better time when shooters were all starting to homogenise again. Great soundtrack too.
Thirty Flights of Loving
The seventh entry in the 'Citizen Abel' series of games, and probably my favourite. It's very short (10-15 minutes) but absolutely worth it. I wish there were more games like Thirty Flights.
Disco Elysium: The Final Cut
A band of Estonian painters and writers with zero games-industry experience set out to build an RPG, and somehow produced the most beautiful one ever made. Every line of its half-million words is hand-crafted, the whole astonishingly hand-painted city of Revachol aching with the kind of political fury, grief and humour that games rarely reach for and almost never land. It is funny, filthy, devastatingly sad, and more honest about failure and regret than most novels manage. Nothing else has the texture of Disco, and nothing since has come close. Truly an extraordinary game - absolutely a must play.
Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice
The latest game by FROM is just as challenging as its predecessors, while taking things in a different direction: combat is more demanding, the world is more vertical & platformy. Extremely good.
Subnautica
Early access survival game, but it's... actually really good? Smooth movement, gorgeous visuals and lots of depth (no pun intended). Can be a bit overwhelming at first, but stick with it.
Overcooked!
Great co-op game requiring concise communication. Cute aesthetic. Good for couples.
Slay the Spire
Breathes creative new life into rogue-likes by way of deckbuilding and card/turn-based combat. Deep and satisfying, STS was an instant classic and has proved wildly influential (for better or worse).
Umurangi Generation
Unbelievably cool. Vibrant, evocative and just dripping in style. Seeing the dystopian Māori culture in a game was cool enough, but the exploration of disaffection and other themes is *chef's kiss*.
Baba is You
Baba is clever. Painfully clever. Really simple concept taken to really inventive heights. Music is great too. If you like puzzle games, this is a must-play.
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
I had to install this and try to like it five times. I'm sure theres a good game somewhere among the dotted line GPS, braindead quests and interruptions at every turn, but I kinda can't be bothered finding it.
Undertale
An extraordinary game that breaks most if not all conventions and will constantly surprise and challenge you. A seminal must-play. Best to go in blind.
Super Auto Pets
Well put-together and crazy addictive autobattler slot machine. Obviously hugely RNG dependent, but fun enough to keep coming back.
Beat Saber
Slick, responsive and addictive - an absolute must-have for VR. Check out BeastSaber for mods, namely custom songs.
Hades
I'm almost getting tired of saying " Supergiant does it again" but it's true. They turn their incredible skill toward roguelikes here, while maintaining all their patented quality, and absolutely nail it.
Hades II
All of the Hades fundamentals are still here, but Melinoë definitely has her own identity which makes for a slightly more deliberate flow of combat, which is great. There are a bunch of new systems, all of which are interesting and interplay well. What can one say about Supergiant? Jen Zee's art is incredible as always, Logan Cunningham and Darren Korb have absolutely killed the VO and music. The writing is heartfelt, engaging, funny. And of course, above all, the gameplay loop is tight, satisfying and addictive. Truly the best way to kill Time.
Loop Hero
Deckbuilding... reverse-tower-defence... strategic... dungeoncrawler... roguelite? Hard to describe but wickedly clever. Polished, fun, challenging & very addictive. Set to be a classic - play it.
Mirror's Edge
Probably peak EA. For its time, a very unique and interesting take on what fast, first person games could be - but great controls and even better mapdesign seemingly stop it from aging at all.
The Walking Dead: Season One
The very influential testbed for 'The Telltale Way'. A wonderful example of storytelling in games and in retrospect, remarkably accomplished. Its characters, and decision making ensure its a classic.
Ape Out
A fast and ridiculously satisfying, simple beat-em-up. Aesthetic is gorgeous - music is even better. Short game, but worth the price of entry.
Dishonored
A game ahead of its time. Gritty steampunk setting and a gorgeous art style. Primarily a stealth game but the level design coupled with the player abilities make for lots of creative approaches.
Ori and the Blind Forest
Incredibly well designed and delivers on everything it sets out to do: emotional story, a focus on exploration and discovery, and basic combat.
Outer Wilds
One of the best adventure games I've played. Outer Wilds is a temporal, mysterious and unique exploration game with super charming visuals providing unique emergent experiences for those up for it.
Journey
An influential masterclass in the application of atmosphere and subtlety. Beautiful, powerful, surprising and mesmerising - Journey is a must play.
Inscryption
Deckbuilding roguelite escape room ARG. An inspiring masterpiece & wonderfully executed ode to card/videogames. If you're into that kind of thing, it's a must play. So, so impressive. Mullins is nuts.
Her Story
FMV investigation game in which one can become completely absorbed. A unique and compelling experience helped along by good writing and acting. Definitely worth a playthrough.
God of War
One of the best games of its generation and a shining example of how to do reboots creatively and exceedingly well. Great characters, story, combat and world. Super ambitious and pulls it all off.
Untitled Goose Game
You know what it is: the much memed third-person honk-'em-up starring a horrible goose. All the press it got was deserved, it's fun and funny as hell. Also, great to see games from my home town!
Red Dead Redemption 2
Obviously gorgeous, and voice acting and music also great. World is large without being empty. Story is solid, if a little repetitive and drawn-out at times. So, so much to do. Remarkably polished.
Enter the Gungeon
Roguelike classic. Awesome styling and tonnes of replayability. Lots of depth, enough RNG to keep you coming back, and cool secrets. Hard at first, but if you like roguelikes, you know the drill.
My Exercise
As simple as they come, but strangely hypnotic and addictive. Love it. Sadly I am still fat IRL.
No Man's Sky
This would have been a thumbs down upon release. Hello Games have since weathered the storm and managed to turn this into a good game. It worries me what other studios will learn from this however.
Grand Theft Auto V
Rockstar have absolutely mastered this format of game, and GTA5 is the jewel in their crown. It's extremely well designed and the singleplayer is good, albeit suffering from restrictive ways to play.
Sifu
Visceral, satisfying combat, sublime art, great sound/music and a good challenge. Relatively unforgiving but ultimately very rewarding. An extraordinarily cinematic, violently masterful blast.
Celeste
Celeste is challenging, smart and exceedingly well designed. Its movement is some of the most satisfying ever in a platformer. The great soundtrack supports a surprisingly fresh exploration of mental health, which has traditionally proved difficult in videogames.
Hyper Light Drifter
Hauntingly beautiful, tight controls and an atmospheric world. Hyper Light Drifter is a great example of how to do top-down adventure standing on the shoulders of giants like Zelda and Dark Souls.
Noita
Fascinating and complex systemic game design, executed extremely well. The systems allow for virtually endless emergent scenarios amongst the rewarding exploration and fun, chaotic combat.
Kentucky Route Zero
A masterclass in narrative point and click adventure/exploration. KRZ is dripping in mood and aesthetic, but doesn't sacrifice its core design which is truly captivating and thought provoking.
Vampire Survivors
Absolute gem and insane value. Despite its mechanical simplicity, Vampire Survivors allows for tonnes of variety and replayability. Fun, satisfying and addictive - stop reading and play it.
Elden Ring
So masterfully crafted, creative, confident and bold that it immediately makes the rest of the openworld genre feel dated and uninspired. A landmark achievement and a very special game. Masterpiece.
The Case of the Golden Idol
Cleverly expands on what Obra Dinn did with the genre while painting a gripping story. Doesn't waste your time or rely on gamey logic. Extremely hard to pull off, but it's been done wonderfully here.
Death Stranding 2: On the Beach
What can one even say about a game like this? In short: I loved it. I was at 201 hours (and 1.7M Likes) when the credits rolled, and every minute was soaked in serene Australia-inspired ambience, poignant atmosphere, engaging storytelling, the usual Kojima absurdity, and most importantly, an intensely satisfying gameplay loop. It might not hit quite as hard as its predecessor, perhaps just by virtue of no longer being completely novel, but it makes up for that in what it does differently. Death Stranding continues to be a rare experience that invites even the most cynical players into a quietly moving form of connection - where travelling alone becomes a shared and strangely emotional act of collaboration.
Baldur's Gate 3
I was ready to bounce off, intimidated by its depth and pacing, but this game is truly something else. Great writing, VA, world design and more than anything, an obscene level of player agency.
Armored Core VI: Fires of Rubicon
FROM reinvigorate mecha gaming with their masterfully honed pedigree, elevating the genre to new supreme heights. The world is enthralling, the garage deep and addictive, and the combat tight and impactful. What can one say - they've done it again.
Animal Well
If you love when a game tells you nothing, has exploration, puzzles and secrets - all your Christmases have come at once with Animal Well. Its intricate art and wordless storytelling make for a unique and immersive atmosphere. The puzzles are varied and rewarding. Crafting and sustaining this level of intrigue in a metroidvania without combat is an impressive feat. Above all, Animal Well is full of surprises, and the fact that it was all created by one person is remarkable.
Astro Bot
A triumph for platforming fans, blending nostalgia with fresh and ridiculously creative mechanics. Team Asobi's clever level design and charming PlayStation callbacks make for smile after smile. A polished, joyous, heartwarming adventure that's hard to put down.