2025 was a very different gaming year for me compared to 2024. I joined RPGFan in 2024, a year absolutely stacked with great RPGs—so much to play and so little time. Going into 2025, the year’s release schedule seemed much lighter in terms of stuff I was keen to play, so I decided it was a great opportunity to spend time getting into games I already owned. For the most part, that was exactly what I did, despite also having much less time for gaming in the latter half of the year. However, I did get my hands on a small number of new releases, so without further ado, here are my favourites.
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
Is there even a GOTY list that Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is not on? I doubt it. Do I need to say much about this game? Probably not! I expect you already know about the insanely good and emotionally impactful story; the beautifully written and deep characters; the gorgeous world, brimming with creativity and sadness; the sublimely composed soundtrack; and the combat that puts a fast-paced, challenging spin on a turn-based system. But I don’t need to tell you about any of that!
I fell in love with this game in its first hour, and was brought to tears by the first major plot point that kicks off our quest to save what remains of humanity, and that love just grew as the hours passed. Also, shout out to Sandfall Interactive for putting in some actually hot swimsuits for the guys as well as the women, finally!
Suikoden I & II HD Remaster
Suikoden II has been one of my all-time favourite games since I played the original version on the PS1, and I’d been excited for the remaster since it was announced a few years ago. I started to fear the worst as news of the remaster package of I & II went very quiet, but when the early 2025 release date was finally revealed, those fears disappeared. I was really pleased to finally play the first game in the series, which I’d somehow missed previously, and was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed it despite it very much feeling like a prototype for a lot of what makes II so good.
Suikoden II is there in all its majesty—revisiting its world and twisty, political story with plot twists galore was an absolute joy. The remaster tweaks just enough to bring new life to the graphics and modernise them without losing the charm of the original.
Tales of Graces f Remastered
In keeping with my theme of revisiting old games I already bought, Tales of Graces f is one I already have a PS3 copy of and is one of the few Tales games I’ve actually played (a problem I’m working on correcting). The PS3 version got a lot of love from me, but I only made it about halfway through before getting distracted by something newer and shinier the first time round. I’d been meaning to give it another try, and 2025’s remaster gave me the perfect opportunity.
My second time with Graces f was just as fun as the first, with me blasting right through to the end. Great combat, a lovely cast of characters who are super fun to play as in battle, and an often heartwarming story all came together in a package which has renewed my effort to play more games in this series.
Game of Another Year — Star Ocean: The Last Hope
In my quest to revisit older games I hadn’t completed, I began by diving back into the Star Ocean series—one of my favourite series in gaming, but one with a couple of entries I’d yet to actually finish. Chief among these was Star Ocean 4. I’d previously played a lot of this game, restarting it many times and usually making it to where Arumat is recruited and then falling off slightly after that. This time, my determination was strong, I pushed right to the end, and had an absolute blast.
Sure, there are elements in this game that are a little irritating (around half of the main cast), but there is also so much to love, and some aspects that are the series’ best. The combat is absolutely brilliant; the graphics hold up pretty well; the universe traversal is good and has you visiting more planets/areas than any other SO game; the item creation system is much less frustrating than other entries; and whilst some characters are dire and a little cliche, there are also some I enjoyed. The hate on SO4 is definitely not deserved, in my opinion.
Non-RPG Game of the Year — Ghost of Yōtei
While I haven’t quite finished Ghost of Yōtei, I have spent a long time with this game and hours upon hours exploring its varied and beautiful open world. I’m a huge fan of Ghost of Tsushima and had been looking forward to Yōtei since it was revealed, and the game turned out just as great to play as I’d hoped. It brings over everything that made Tsushima so good but changes up mechanics just enough to feel fresh, while adding an intriguing new main character in Atsu and a story full of violence, love, and revenge with plot twists aplenty. A fantastic sequel that I can’t wait to see the conclusion of.
2025 games I need to play more of in 2026
There are a small number of other new games from this year that I need to spend more time with, hopefully in 2026. They’ve made a strong first impression and I’m excited to get back to them. Shout outs here to Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicles, Tales of Xillia Remastered, and Trails in the Sky: 1st Chapter.
