There are a lot of games I have loved in 2024. That’s probably the best way to remember it. I don’t think it was a year for the record books (especially not coming down off the high of 2023), and there’s a large drop off between the few I loved and the dozens of others I played, but I will remember 2024 fondly all the same, and that’s enough. That’s always enough.
This is one of the last individual GOTY lists to go live on TheGamer, and you can check out all the ones our other editors have published so far here. Come back tomorrow for the overall list, and join us in January for the second edition of our annual awards, TheGamer Aces.
10
Infinity Nikki
Life in gacha, it’s, uh, fantasta. I wasn’t really sure what I’d make of Infinity Nikki. I have been waiting for a ‘next gen’ dress up game for a long time, but wasn’t sure if the aggressively cosy vibes and slot machine mechanics would put me off. Thankfully, it has a far more adventurous spirit than many games of its ilk, while still keeping the dress-up at its heart. As the newest game here, I’m not sure how long I’ll stick with it the way I’m probably supposed to, but after a dozen hours in the main story, I’m hooked enough to put it amongst 2024’s best.
9
Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth
Basic unmentionable that I am, Final Fantasy 7 is the only Final Fantasy I’ve ever truly loved. The experimental style of remaking it not as a like for like, or even updating its combat and moving on, but reimagining it metatextually across three experiences is fascinating to me.
Rebirth shows the best and worst of that approach. The expansive interpretation of FF7’s middle chapter offers a lot of depth and exploration in the opening hours, but as it grows exponentially it can feel less like enriching and more like stretching. A great game, but an overly ambitious one that the final chapter will hopefully learn from.
8
Dragon Age: The Veilguard
I’ve known what number one on this list would be for months, but that knowledge always came with a caveat. “If Dragon Age is really good, then maybe…”
Languishing in the lower reaches here, that wasn’t the case. Imperfect though it is, I still loved The Veilguard and its Mass Effect-style combat, its smaller character moments, plus its approach to allowing for a transgender Rook. There is a better version of this game buried inside of it, but the one that we got is good enough to make me smile.
Honourable Mentions
7
Mouthwashing
Mouthwashing is a masterpiece in nonlinear storytelling. After the crash, it also becomes their food source. This, plus its surreal imagery and eerie plot twists reminds me of the dread generated by last year’s Slay the Princess. It’s frightening in traditional ways, with jump scares and loud or unsettling music, sure. The name derives from the cargo the ship is transporting, risking their lives for a cheap, mass-produced product.
Set in both the lead up to and aftermath of a spaceship crash, you play as two captains either side of the disaster. But the true power of Mouthwashing is in the psychological. One of the creepiest and cleverest games of the year, it deserves to be celebrated as a cult hit for years to come. It also functions as a satire of corporate life, in a similar vein to the Alien series, or if you inexplicably prefer, Journey to a Savage Planet.
6
Thank Goodness You’re Here
Ey up duckie, and so forth. Comedy is hard to get right consistently in video games, so for Thank Goodness You’re Here to provide raucous laughter throughout is a statement of its genius. Its regional silly humour may stop it from being entirely universal, but Britain has been bringing daft laffs to the world for decades. Who doesn’t love big pies, anyway? It might not be for everyone, but if it’s for you, it’s a gaming experience like no other.
5
Astro Bot
Astro Bot is a magnificent platformer. People call it the best of its genre since Super Mario Odyssey, and I only disagree because I’d argue it’s even better. The platonic ideal of what platform gaming can be, it’s so inventive in its level design and bold in its willingness to throw out concepts before they grow stale.
It has a clean cut simplicity that made awarding it 5/5 at review a relatively easy task, but that simplicity also holds it back slightly in a ranking like this. A fantastic, joyful, energising game – but perhaps not too much of an important one.
On a gameplay level alone, Metaphor: ReFantazio is very good. It builds on the near-perfect Atlus turn-based formula and injects variety by incorporating action combat, while allowing for much greater customisation than the personas of Atlus’ previous high point, Persona 5.
But it’s the narrative that elevates Metaphor. Not just that the story has greater substance, and the characters more personality with fewer tropes than is typical for the studio (both true), but in what it represents for 2024. In a year of political upheaval and endless election cycles, Metaphor is the most relevant game of the year.
3
Balatro
I made my case for Why Balatro Should Win GOTY a few weeks ago (my top two weren’t nominated at The Game Awards), so here’s the gist. Balatro is a game of pure mechanical excellence that shows the variety of creativity within our industry, represents a side of gaming’s future we should embrace, and it’s a card game that’s somehow not a card game.
2
1000xResist
1000xResist is a near indescribable game, which makes this task of describing it in a short paragraph pretty difficult. A narrative adventure game, on the surface it tells the tale of a dystopian society in the future who live in a small, pristine commune underground and are identified only by simple descriptions (Watcher, Fixer) and colours.
However, as a rebellion begins, we see how this dystopia echoes through our own – literally and thematically. The god of this world is a young girl from our era, whose life is ripped apart by a pandemic. It’s a heart shattering story of friendship, religion, identity, purpose, humanity, and betrayal, and must be seen to be believed.
1
Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth
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OpenCritic
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Top Critic Rating:
90/100
- Released
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January 26, 2024
- Developer(s)
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Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio