It's a masocore game with a heart of gold, that focuses on fun mechanics and a joyful sense of motion rather than punishment. Yes, the mountain you climb is a heavy handed metaphor. But somehow this metaphor that would bother me in a novel doesn't bother me even a little bit in this game. This is a kind hearted story about coming to terms with the parts of yourself you don't like or that you feel ashamed of, and it’s good at being that. It's about overcoming that feeling that nothing you do is right or ever will be. It's also a game that I started playing at a time when I needed something like that, so that does factor into its placement, which I think is entirely valid because this is my 100% subjective list of video games. There are so many dark narratives about ruined worlds, despair, fear and evil, that sometimes a story with an optimistic message is preferable. It's not dreary or navel gaze-y when dealing with its topics, it's bright and emotive and colorful. Did I mention it’s a very, very pretty game? The art and color palettes are vibrant and lovely like a breath of fresh mountain air, and the character portraits are expressive and sweet. The pixels are satisfyingly chunky without being a retro pastiche.

If you've ever been a depressed and aimless 20 year old overwhelmed by a life that isn't what you expected or wanted, you can probably relate to Mae Borowski.

I have a fondness for the idea of games that are more like places where you can hang out (I think it’s Animal Crossing’s best idea), and this game feels that way. The town of Possum Springs feels genuinely inhabited, and Mae's relationships to her friends feel as real, loving, difficult and damaged as real friendships are. The writing deftly handles the way that relationships drift and decay and can never return to what they were, but importantly, they retain the potential to blossom in different and possibly better ways. People can’t stay the same forever, so it’s nearly impossible for their relationships to.

One thing I love about this game is how gently and unexpectedly it approaches difficult subjects. It's a game about decay and loss, but it's just as much a game about hope and community. Ultimately it's about the necessity of hope and community in the face of despair, anxiety, fear, and a world that often seems terminally ill. It's also one of the only games I know of that's overtly about the damage caused by capitalism, the way it makes everything homogenous as it crushes individuals under its heel. The nihilism of capitalism has infected the town, as it infects everywhere, and the environment it creates affects everyone in one way or another.

But, also, the strengths of Night in the Woods don't stop at the narrative. Just in terms of play, this game is really fun! So many things are satisfyingly interactive. Leaves blow in your path as you frolic in autumnal delight. Telephone wires bow and twang in an incredibly pleasing manner as you balance upon them in the fresh morning air. You can jump up and down on your neighbor's car for no reason, and you’ll want to, because everything in this game feels so good. There are fun little minigames about moving furniture or smashing light bulbs or looking at stars with a cool old dude or hanging out with your mom. I’d also be remiss not to mention it’s the funniest game I’ve played other than Butterfly Soup. Night in the Woods proves that a charming and generous sense of play is no less engaging than dense mechanics.

This is a game I fully expect to return to occasionally for the rest of my life.

Throw a bug in a lake! This is somehow simultaneously the best strategy game and best puzzle game ever. It strips strategy games down to their bare essentials, yet miraculously is never as dry or boring as that sounds. The variety in mech squads, stages and enemies is consistently clever and imaginative, and the random elements that are present were perfectly crafted to keep the game feeling fresh to me over 100 hours later. It was a stroke of genius to realize that creating the best strategy game experience is not about eliminating luck entirely, but about directing luck in the right way. One thing I really like about this game is that it feels timeless, like it could have been released in 1996, 2005, or 2020. This game probably could've been released on SNES and it would be just as much of an all time classic.