Feature Sub-Page Archives

RPGFan Games of the Year 2025: Best Music

Posted by Patrick Gann on April 21, 2026

Winner: Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 Writeup by Patrick Gann In the weeks leading up to the 2025 Game Awards, where Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 took home a record nine awards, I observed plenty of… discourse on social media. Many gamers who hadn’t played the game, or hadn’t found themselves impressed… Read More »

RPGFan Games of the Year 2025: Best Story

Posted by Paul Skevington on April 21, 2026

Winner: Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 Writeup by Paul Skevington If, like me, you are an enthusiast for fantasy novels, you will know the great breadth and range of narratives available to us nowadays—it’s not all dragons and elves anymore. There is still a place for those tropes, as there is a… Read More »

RPGFan Games of the Year 2025: Best Protagonist

Posted by Rob White on April 21, 2026

Winner: Maelle (Clair Obscur: Expedition 33) Writeup by Rob White My first impression of Maelle was that she was just the “childhood friend” for Gustave, but how wrong I was. Her relevance to Clair Obscur: Expedition 33’s plot becomes more apparent as the hours pass, gradually revealing herself to b… Read More »

RPGFan Games of the Year 2025: Best Supporting Character

Posted by Hilary Andreff on April 21, 2026

Winner: Monoco (Clair Obscur: Expedition 33) Writeup by Hilary Andreff Monoco has the most fun character theme in all of Clair Obscur: Expedition 33. Full stop. And that music only represents one facet of the characterization that makes him such a wonderful supporting cast member. He carries a sort… Read More »

RPGFan Games of the Year 2025: Best Animal or Mascot Character

Posted by Matt Wardell on April 21, 2026

Winner: Esquie (Clair Obscur: Expedition 33) Writeup by Matt Wardell It may surprise you to learn of Esquie’s reputation as the most powerful being in the world of Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, especially when you discover he’s basically a French Winnie the Pooh to Verso’s Christopher Robin. Esquie q… Read More »

RPGFan Games of the Year 2025: Game of the Year

Posted by Zek Lu on April 21, 2026

Winner: Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 Writeup by Zek Lu Could this be the most inevitable result ever? In my review of Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, I made what felt like a bold claim, calling it the most impressive debut RPG I have ever played. Looking back, I am not sure even that statement goes far… Read More »

RPGFan Games of the Year 2025: Best Voice Performance

Posted by Paul Skevington on April 21, 2026

Winner: Jennifer English as Maelle (Clair Obscur: Expedition 33) Writeup by Paul Skevington Familiar to many from her role as Shadowheart in the critically acclaimed Baldur’s Gate 3, the casting of Jennifer English as Maelle in Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 could have been dismissed as a safe ch… Read More »

RPGFan Games of the Year 2025: Best Combat

Posted by Aleks Franiczek on April 21, 2026

Winner: Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 Writeup by Aleks Franiczek “Good artists borrow; great artists steal.” And Clair Obscur: Expedition 33’s designers stole and synthesized several appealing influences to craft a turn-based combat system that feels comfortably familiar and fresh at the same time. Th… Read More »

RPGFan Games of the Year 2025: Best Traditional RPG

Posted by Audra Bowling on April 21, 2026

Winner: Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 Writeup by Audra Bowling Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 hooks you from the very beginning with a heartbreakingly creative prologue setting a powerful tone for what follows. Its traditional RPG aspects are up front and center as you-as-Gustave and the tragic Sophie na… Read More »

RPGFan Games of the Year 2025: Best Remake or Re-Release

Posted by Ben Love on April 21, 2026

Winner: Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicles Writeup by Ben Love Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicles marks the long-awaited return of Yasumi Matsuno’s tactical tour de force, now on modern platforms and with all the bells and whistles. While the changes don’t go quite as far as Ta… Read More »

RPGFan Games of the Year 2025: Best Action RPG

Posted by Zek Lu on April 21, 2026

Winner: Hades II Writeup by Zek Lu Hades II had to follow one of the most celebrated roguelites ever made, and yet here we are. Playing it for the first time in its full release, I quickly realized I couldn’t put it down. Its gameplay and personality come together in ways few games of this kind ever… Read More »

RPGFan Games of the Year 2025: Best Localization

Posted by Jonathan Logan on April 21, 2026

Winner: Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii Writeup by Jono Logan Have you ever heard the infamous, overly edgy English dub of the original Yakuza? It’s… not great. In fact, it was so bad that subsequent Yakuza games only included the original Japanese performances. This changed with 2020’s Yak… Read More »

RPGFan Games of the Year 2025: Best Graphic Adventure or Visual Novel

Posted by Mike Salbato on April 21, 2026

Winner: Blue Prince Writeup by Mike Salbato No game in 2025 grabbed my attention and stuck with me—both in my waking hours and my dreams—like Blue Prince. Every day was a fresh chance to uncover more mysteries. I’d ponder over puzzles while working, then share them with my fiancée when she got home… Read More »

RPGFan Games of the Year 2025: Best Antagonist

Posted by Zach Wilkerson on April 21, 2026

Winner: Renoir (Clair Obscur: Expedition 33) Writeup by Zach Wilkerson “Renoir was right.” That was all I said to my wife before she started Clair Obscur: Expedition 33. Three playthroughs later, I stand by it. Renoir is a man of principles. A man who makes tough choices and sacrifices. Will you alw… Read More »

RPGFan Games of the Year 2025: Best Strategy RPG

Posted by Jerry Williams on April 21, 2026

Winner: Demonschool Writeup by Jerry Williams Demonschool’s puzzle-like combat design uses its several systems incredibly well to make even the most innocuous battles engaging. Combined with the stylish visuals and gore-flick fountains of blood, think of it like an Italian horror Yoshi’s Cookie meet… Read More »

RPGFan Games of the Year 2025: Best Ongoing Game

Posted by Mike Salbato on April 21, 2026

Winner: Final Fantasy XIV: Dawntrail Writeup by Mike Salbato I know, who saw this coming? While the fan reaction to Final Fantasy XIV: Dawntrail has certainly been more mixed than the last couple expansions, it was always meant to be a reset and start of a new journey. Still, Dawntrail’s major patch… Read More »

RPGFan Games of the Year 2025: Best Unconventional or Hybrid RPG

Posted by Ben Love on April 21, 2026

Winner: Rune Factory: Guardians of Azuma Writeup by Ben Love Guardians of Azuma represents a bold new direction for the Rune Factory series. The previous installment in the series, Rune Factory 5, was a game that faltered under the weight of its ambitions to deliver a fully explorable 3D world, with… Read More »

RPGFan Games of the Year 2025: Best Sleeper Hit

Posted by Zach Wilkerson on April 21, 2026

Winner: Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 Writeup by Zach Wilkerson It seems strange now to call Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 a “Sleeper Hit.” After all, I can still remember watching the trailer in my hotel room at Summer Game Fest 2024; I knew this game was my jam. That music! That combat! Oh, and look a… Read More »

RPGFan Games of the Year 2025: Best DLC

Posted by Matt Wardell on April 21, 2026

Winner: Lies of P: Overture Writeup by Matt Wardell In the tradition of Souls-like DLCs, Lies of P: Overture turns back time to fill in the many mysteries surrounding Lies of P’s Pinocchio-inspired cast and the city of Krat before it fell to murderous puppets and the Petrification Disease. Overture’… Read More »

RPGFan Games of the Year 2025: Best Visuals

Posted by Aleks Franiczek on April 21, 2026

Winner: Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 Writeup by Aleks Franiczek You’d hope a game where painting is such an important narrative motif comes through in the visual department. Fortunately, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33’s art team showed up for the assignment. Each of the game’s environments are dre… Read More »

RPGFan Games of the Year 2025 ~ Editors’ Awards: Pete Leavitt

Posted by Pete Leavitt on April 20, 2026

I almost never play games the year they release. For every new game I play, I tend to play ten old ones. However, in a strange turn of events, this year I played (count ’em) eight. Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 Yes, I’m deep into Clair Obscur. Yes, it has its claws in me. Yes, it’s very moving a… Read More »

RPGFan Games of the Year 2025 ~ Editors’ Awards: Mark Roddison

Posted by Mark Roddison on April 20, 2026

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 It’s difficult to add further praise or discourse to an experience that has already captured the gaming and wider public zeitgeist and won a host of awards to boot, but let me put it this way: Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 has one of the most self-assured openings of any ga… Read More »

RPGFan Games of the Year 2025 ~ Editors’ Awards: Aleks Franiczek

Posted by Aleks Franiczek on April 20, 2026

It can be fun to discuss and rank videogames in the scope of a year’s releases, but also a bit arbitrary. After all, the reality is that I’m never able to play (let alone finish) every new release that I’d like to in one year. Rather, I’m usually balancing old games from my backlog and unfinished re… Read More »

RPGFan Games of the Year 2025 ~ Editors’ Awards: Paul Skevington

Posted by Paul Skevington on April 20, 2026

Most thought-provoking experience: Urban Myth Dissolution Center I am so thankful that RPGFan brought this game across my path. In Urban Myth Dissolution Center, you play Azami as she investigates various cases linked to urban myths drawn from Japanese and other folklore. Although essentially a… Read More »

RPGFan Games of the Year 2025 ~ Editors’ Awards: Patrick Gann

Posted by Patrick Gann on April 20, 2026

It’s been a great year for gamers. Whether you’ve yearned for new franchises, stellar remasters, predictably enjoyable sequels, or some quirky genre-blending indie titles, 2025 scratched many an itch. As for me, I played through precious little of my 2025 backlog, but here’s what I can say with cert… Read More »

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