2022 - Best to Worst
Includes every game I've finished for the first time in the year 2022.
Doesn't include smaller DLCs.
Doesn't include smaller DLCs.
83 Games
The perfect remake. Everything was treated with so much care and thought in this one, making an already amazing JRPG into one of the best games of all time. They expanded the game and incorporated some of the amazing system from Wild Arms 3, while still respecting the original game. Many things are just better: the text, visuals, OST that will grow on you, the already classic opening, and all the new extras, making this a joy to play and explore. Wild Arms is so great and this is the peak of JRPGs.
1
It was everything I thought it would be and more. Finally, a FromSoft game I love as much as Demon's Souls. Elden Ring has it all - the atmosphere, setting, exploration, and lore. It's a special masterpiece and every second of it was pure bliss. FromSoft has outdone themselves. The art direction and sense of wonder in this game are the absolute peak of the medium. It lived up to the hype this time and I already want a sequel or DLC so much. It's top 5 material for me.
2
Yeah, the plot and villain could be better and the character designs are a miss for most of the time, but I loved Lost Odyssey so much. Everything else is amazing - the themes, systems, cities, dungeons, gameplay, beautiful OST, and short story snippets which are probably my favorite storytelling of any game I've ever played. This game has Legend of Dragoon, Shadow Hearts, and oldschool FF DNA, and I'm so glad something like this exists. What a journey. Sakaguchi's swan song.
3
People always say that FTNW is not as good as Covenant but no one talks about how freaking good FTNW is. Great pacing, amazing dungeon design, creative scenarios and a pretty good party, it's lovable how memorable all of them are. Even have the best OST of the trilogy and the game flows so well between a humoristic approach to a more serious tone in their narrative. The system is a bit complex at the start but feels good the get the hang of it as time goes by in the game. Amazing achievement.
4
Beautiful sequel. I think I'm more attached to the first one but I can see it changing when I play Nioh 2 more and eventually 100% it. Many of smaller things are just better on the sequel, Yokai Shift is better than Living Weapon and you having access to buy elixirs and other consumables through the shrines is something really good. It felt a little bit harder than the first one too, not as broken on the NG. Now, onto the DLCs.
5
Amazing game, all around. It does the all 'time travelling' thing as well as ever. The cast is cool, the plot is pretty nice and the game structure is amazing and really well realized. The tone is just perfect. If it wasn't for visuals that are somewhat repetitive and not up to par with the rest of the game and the small dungeons it would be a perfect game. Still, one of the best JRPGs I've ever played. And one of the most and rewarding to complete.
6
A total volte-face compared to Xenoblade 2 and I'm really glad about it. Great cast of characters, best pace ever seen in a Xeno game and a good OST really makes this a great return to form for Xenoblade. Gone are all the problems I had with 2: Excessive fanservice, gacha mechanics and really bad pacing. The system could be a liitle bit better and more streamlined and the villains aren't as good as past entries but still an amazing game with a nice plot, obligatory for fans of the series.
7
Best Kirby game, no question about. It's impressive how much of the things they did extremely well in their first 3D game. The way they interacted with the powerups was some of the highlights of the game, the bosses are all cool and varied, the level design is great and charm is over the charts. So cute. Now, how Nintendo continues from that? This is something I am quite eager to see. I just hope it doesn't take that much time as from Star Allies to this
8
A love letter to one of my favorite genres of all time. This game is amazing, it combines the best of the classic Silent Hill and Resident Evil games. It have the opressive atmosphere of the original SH games and the level design of og RE. And the puzzles of both. It is hard to find faults in this, the UI could be better (and it's the weak link of the game) and the voice acting is lacking (like the OGs). But visuals and OSTs are impressive for a indie game. I hope the team have success.
9
What a great game. I loved the changes like more missiles and checkpoint implementation that makes the bigger missions just more enjoyable to play They should made this way back after the PS1 games as we have these longer missions since 04. The dog fights are amazing in AC6, the new IA systems pretty good and responsive and even the ground missions were made way more tolerable. The plot is a bit of a mess though but the cutscenes are still very nice and mission 9 a highlight of the series.
10
Amazing game. In some ways it's the best survival horror since the heyday of the genre on PS1 and PS2. Visually impecable, excelent atmosphere and masterfully crafted to be cryptic and minimalist in it's story it's really amazing what the team achieved here. Sadly, you can see the budget of a indie game in some parts, like many, many doors and rooms you will never access only existing for window dressing. Even with it, the backtracking is pretty competent too. Pretty unique too.
11
Even if it's pretty different compared with the original, Soul Hackers 2 have a great cast a a nice plot and a really good rhythm like it. Ringo is one of the best chars from Atlus games and the rest of the cast just as good. Of course some can find the dungeon crawling a bit tedious but it's just more Megaten and I love it. The gameplay balance felt pretty good, although I would change some aspects of it, like increasing the quantity of demon skills. The OST is the weak point, sadly.
12
Brilliant metroidvania. Beautiful, plays like a dream, good OST, great bosses, mechanically rich with a pretty nice weapon variety. But to be a perfect one should be a bit more dense in its areas, have more backtracking, felt less linear, have more enemies. I really want to see the next game from this team though.
13
Pretty great even if it feels really budget constrained. Level design could definitely be better but the chapters structure doesn't help. More fun than Fatal Frame 3 though and more focused. The parts were you play with Yuri are great, highlight of the entire series, the parts with Ren (and his camera) not so much.
14
This is the first game from Vanillaware I beaten. And it was a really good start, the game is so gorgeous to look at and with lots of charm. The OST is pleasant and the rhythm is perfect, the game doesn't last more than it should. Not much I would change on it. Would maybe change the teleports to when you encountered a shrine and not as it is (all of them opens after you finish the game the first time). More weapon styles would be nicer too.
15
Playing this I've had two realizations: Kirby is one of the most consistently good series out there and it's somehow peaking in these last years/decade. Robobot is a really good game, the new gimmick is really well used and I really hope we use robots again in a future game. It's visually good to look at and consistent with it's thematic during all the game, something I really appreciate.
16
I'm happy because I was wrong about it. It's so much more better than I thought it would. Gameplay good, the mission structure is not bad and yeah, the plot is convoluted and kind of a mess but was expected and the characters are a mixed bag (huey SUCKS!). MGS as a series have many elements already. But at the very end I really love Kojima idiosyncrasies. The ending was less unfulfilling thaN people made me believe too. But Ch. 2 should be it's own game. And a Ch. 3 with a "true" MGS5 of sorts.
17
My favorite from PS2. It scales back a lot of the problems I had with AC5 being a smaller but more concisive game. The plot didn't reach the heights of AC4 but it is the better game and I really enjoyed the last twist and final boss. The cutscenes are somewhat of a highlight too, many of them pretty memorable and the styles are a pretty nice addition.
It just feels better to have only one team partner to equip too.
It just feels better to have only one team partner to equip too.
18
Even better than the original, if that is even possible. Even if it is by a little.
19
Amazing game. One of the best shmups I've played, for sure. Everything in this game is really top-notch. Beautiful and creative visuals, different from all the other bullet hell games, a great and soothing OST, smooth controls, nice and varied but still thematically consistent bosses. This is everything a game like this should strive to be, in my opinion. I really like the approach "easy to play and learn, hard to master" in all the Cave games I've played so far
20
Beautiful, beautiful effort from what is shaping up to be my favorite indie studio. I really love the visuals in all Team Ladybug games, and Drainus is no exception. Gameplay-wise, it is top-notch, as with all their other efforts. The game makes you replay it back to back, but with gameplay as satisfying as that and these great collection of stages and bosses, it's simply a joy. Probably their best
21
Really addictive formula and easy to play but with a nice depth on gameplay, the 30min clock seems like a good point to end a run too. The assets bordering plagiarism is a bit funny as it's from Castlevania games. It's probably a 8/10 with better (and more original) visuals and more content, we will see how it turns out when it leaves Early Access but I really interested to keep playing it.
22
Deathsmiles I
If not for the trash character design, this would probably be my favorite game of them. Most impressive set of stages, great visual identity that gets away from the military visuals of most shmup games, great stage obstacles, and the simple but great idea of attacking front and back coupled with a nice power-up mechanic make for the most enjoyable Cave game to play.
If not for the trash character design, this would probably be my favorite game of them. Most impressive set of stages, great visual identity that gets away from the military visuals of most shmup games, great stage obstacles, and the simple but great idea of attacking front and back coupled with a nice power-up mechanic make for the most enjoyable Cave game to play.
23
Emotionally on point and perfect as being a direct sequel of the first game. The pacing suffers a lot in the last third with the need to explore the same places again and again but everything have so much more gravitas and importance this time. The gameplay is as good as the first one and the OST is better this time. The party is great all around, Estelle development for her new Bracer days is just amazing. I can see I'm enjoying this game more as I play the rest of Trails games.
24
It's clunky, outdated and really slow but I just really liked it. A large reason it's because it is a combination of my two favorite game genres: Survival Horror and JRPGs. And it leans more on the JRPG side of things than Parasite Eve for example. The enviroments are pretty nice too and the dub is probably the best of the time (not that it's hard to be). Also, it made me like the first Shadow Hearts even more in retrospect.
25
Way better than I expected and probably my favorite modern beat-em-up. Streets of Rage 1 and 2 are my favorite 90's beat-em-ups so it's just following suit. The new mechanics were really well thought I think and loved how you can recover a part of HP after using the specials. Essential. Worthy of being a sequel.
26
It's just more of what makes Kirby so enjoyable and cute. One of the better Kirby games, with the hypernova mode and some of the bosses being the highlight. I just would prefer if the sunshine items counted overall and not in area to area basis to unlock the bosses. Something like the Mario 3D games generally does.
27
Pretty big upgrade if compared with the first one. Got many of the trophies but sadly this time we have multiplayer-coop trophies so I will probably will never 100% it like I did with the first one. Not rating it yet, also (will wait until it gets off the early access) but it's already better than the first one.
28
Amazing game. Beautiful artwork and sprites, great variety, and one of the most satisfying Cave games to play yet (which means something). I loved how well balanced the game is - it doesn't have infinite continues like other of their games, but it is so well balanced around the lives you get. Essential shmup.
29
Another charming game, with nice level design (the non-linear levels are pretty good) and nice bosses. The story is somewhat of a surprise too for a cute platformer game like this. The precision platform of the last stages and the lives system that doesn't work well with the saves stops this one from being pretty good to great but still it's pretty recommended.
30
Charm visuals and cool writing but sometimes the backtracking can be really boring and somewhat frustrating. Probably would be even better if it was a little shorter, many moments like getting to know White Bomb is just feels like unnecessary padding. 3 characters instead of 2 in battle would probably be nicer too. Even more with the characters being so different from each other. The final boss is quite though, maybe a little bit too much.
31
Not much to see if you aren't a DBZ fan but if you are there's lots of things to enjoy in this game. The structure felt pretty faithful if you compare with the manga/anime but with a good part of the filler removed. The Boo saga suffers a little bit with lack of budget but it felt advantageous to me as I think Boo saga goes for too long. Definitely one of the best DBZ games.
32
Wild Arms ended with a bang but not flawlessly. The gameplay is pretty creative, one of the most creative I've saw on a SRPG, XF have a good integration with elements from the series and the OST was pretty good too (as the rest of the series). The plot though is a bit uninteresting and the pace of the game suffers a lot because of it, should be way more shorter. The game also doesn't know when to put a character to rest. Visually could be better too, at least it's better than WA4.
33
What a shame and a waste. This game made me realize that even if the game is excellent I can't put up with the greediness of Games as a Service and their desire to induce FOMO on people. Gameplay-wise it was everything I would hope for a new GT overall and the campaign was good although it could be longer but all the problems with it really soured my opinion on it and my desire to play it more. Online only for a single player is a joke, worst roulette I've ever saw in a game.
34
The biggest problem with AC5 for me was how excessive in everything the game was. So many stages, so many aircrafts to buy... In many moments the missions are excessive with it's size and the lack of checkpoints made the game a little bit cheap with the quantity of missiles feeling undertuned. I liked the more minimalistic plot of AC4 more too but besides that the game is still the good old AC gameplay. It definitely feels the weaker of the trilogy on PS2 though but still interesting enough.
35
Slow start but Grandia has an incredible sense of adventure. The clear highlight is the main duo, Feena and Justin, which makes the game bigger than the sum of its parts. The dungeons and maps are great, the soundtrack is pleasant, and the pace of the game is not bad, it's a shame that the gameplay system is still quite immature compared to the two sequels. The last third also loses a little bit of steam but it is still worth playing.
36
Beautiful scenarios, art direction and writing by Matsuno didn't save Vagrant Story to be a really clunky game. It's good and pretty different than the rest of JRPGs but it feels incomplete and with a really disjointed narrative. This should be in production for a little more time, it felt like it really needed it. And the box system it's a pain to get around. Also, too many systems at play at the same time. Still, it's a impressive achievement for PS1.
37
Cave is doing really interesting games with mechanics in this one. The way the ships have an HP bar and a shield feels so obvious that it's bizarre to not see more games doing it this way. It's visually impressive too, as all of their games are. Apparently it's more story-focused? Although I don't really pay attention to the stories in these games.
38
I can see why this is so hyped. Beautiful game with one of the most impressive stage obstacles I've seen so far in a bullet hell. The color switch mechanic is so iconic that it was used in many other games, like Outland. The way the game gives you a continue every hour looks like a nice way to increase longevity and make you learn how to play the game. Recommended, but you already knew that anyway.
39
As someone who the first MH was World this feels a stepdown in so many aspects. The enviroments and sense of wonder of world are totally gone and the progression is not as enjoyable (even more with being stingy on the drops). The setting is also not as well realized. And the multi feels a bit dead? At least on PC. Still the gameplay loop makes it fun and I think that wyvern riding is just more fun than the clutch claw.
40
Nice atmosphere and characters, Nemissa in special is a highlight but all the new systems are bad. The personality system in particular is something that makes the game so clunky to play sometimes and Magnetite in this game is a bigger problem compared to other Megatens with it. Still it's a enjoyable game and the pacing is one of the best in the series, nice level design, just a bit of a opportunity wasted as it could be a little closer to more modern SMTs in gameplay.
41
It's inferior than 6 and some other games on the series but it isn't a bad game. Visually it's stunning, the weather system is pretty nice (although obnoxious sometimes) and the gameplay feels great. I disliked how the upgrades system works this time though, too many options and removing the option to sell older airships felt cheap in a 'publisher wanting you to do mtx' kinda way.Here's hoping AC8 is better or on par with 6.
42
Deathsmiles II:
All the bad things from the first one are back, but one good thing is not - the visuals got a really big downgrade compared to the first Deathsmiles. Still, the gameplay loop is as satisfying.
All the bad things from the first one are back, but one good thing is not - the visuals got a really big downgrade compared to the first Deathsmiles. Still, the gameplay loop is as satisfying.
43
This game made me really conflicted on how I feel about it. Gameplay-wise is really amazing with some moments that felt pretty magical, everything works so well and it's so competent of what it wants to do. But the story is bad, the writing horrible and the ending pretty unsatisfying all things considered. The protagonists were unlikable past the point of no return too. What bad parents they can be sometimes.
44
Nice visuals as expected from a Drinkbox Studios game and nice progression overall. The controls are a bit irritating after the novelty wears off and made me wonder if the game wouldn't be better if something more traditional were implemented. I really liked the way the little plot is told though and winning a chaotic battle is so rewarding.
45
I just like the gameplay loop on this one, it's pretty chill and it tries the Suikoden thing of improving the castle and throws a nice twist at that. Of course the plot is really simple too being a side game for the main event that is Hundred Heroes next year. Somewhat the sidequests are a bit too much filler though but the nice gameplay makes up for it overall. And beautiful game, I loved the visuals all the way through. Both the scenarios and character models are simply gorgeous.
46
It's pretty decent, although the story isn't as interesting as BW1. Gameplay-wise is somewhat more of the same too, with the nice expansion of the Regional Dex. Don't have much to talk about this one. Playing this after the more modern pokémon games I really miss the spriteworks of the Gen 5 though.
47
Short but really nice beat'em up that shows the madness that Brazil lived during the pandemic in a really sarcastic way. Probably will only have full effect if you are brazilian but as a game it's pretty decent and functional all things considered.
48
Despite how dark and gloomy the game can be at times, and how real some of the text can be, it was pretty fun in co-op. I played it twice and had a lot of fun both times. It's so enjoyable to be able to destroy everything in your sight. The big dinosaurs are quite cute, even if they are killing machines. The dramatic tones of the OST also make the experience quite funny, if you have that kind of sense of humor. Clearly leftist political tones with this one, which I like.
49
Beautiful artwork, nice OST and great pacing. It improves in pretty much everything compared to the first game. The variety is bosses is pretty commendable although some of them are really annoying to defeat. Pretty nice ranking system too making the game pretty forgivable if all you want is to finish it.
50
Nice visuals and variety of enemies and levels. TMNT is always something pretty nostalgic. Not much to talk about it it's a pretty straightforward beat em up, at least it doesn't have any big flaws and there's a nice Story Mode with level ups. As always, dibs on Leonardo.
51
Beautiful even on the low resolution screen of 3DS and I liked the addition of powerups in this version. Impossibly chill game, so relaxing all the time. The bosses could be a bit better telegraphed but are all fun too and the callbacks to the old games in the last world are really appreciated.
52
Quite a nice change of pace for Pokémon overall although the new 1v2 battles can be somewhat... cheap on the player? Not hard, but just cheap. And the Ultra beast battle, yeah, probably one of the harder Pokémon fights. I just liked all the new ideas even if many of them were not as well realized. The game can look really good too, I miss the style of the 3DS games as I think everything on Switch so far is a big miss visually. It seems the story is a mess but honestly I didn't pay attention.
53
Pretty good and a obvious improvement compared to the last one. Although I think some of the RPG elements really ruins a bit of the experience, the grinding can be really frustrating for example. I liked all the dungeons though, expect for the underwater one that was really boring. The game is beautiful, with lot of charm, sadly we will never see a third one
54
If not for the focus on multiplayer and post-game this game have I would enjoy it even more. Still it's a pretty good DQ, that simplifies the vocation system of VI and VII and combines with the progression system on VIII. Having all the DQ charm, of course, nice dungeons, nice character and monster design, good QoLs. A joy to play.
55
It have many things I wanted on XC2 like a better tone, cast, char design and atmosphere but being a DLC it doesn't have the sense of magnitude and structure of the original one. The gameplay is pretty toned down compared to the original too. Jin is even better than the base game here and it's best character by far, visually it's pretty good but afterall it makes to me clearer that I just didn't like Xenoblade Chronicles 2 that much and that's it. 7
56
So chaotic and visceral, and so good. It's insane how hard this game goes. I always like the exclusive mechanics in these games, and the lock-on/buster one in Crimzon Clover feels so good. I hope for more games with things like this.
57
Better than the original. The best improvement is the boss's HP bar, something that has become the standard in the next Cave games.
58
Great collection of minigames and very varied cast of characters. The co-op campaign was really fun and made me interested in other WarioWare games. Some scenarios are really chaotic what makes it more fun. The NintendoClassics stage is peak Nintendo nostalgia.
59
Pretty good game and the strongest of the trilogy. Although it has some of the worst minigames of the trilogy the structure of the levels were the best in the series. And visually continues to be pretty cute and charming. Probably a pain to 100% though, with all these minigames
60
Better than expected overall. Found many of the cities quite good-looking and I liked the gyms being stadiums. Dynamax are kinda lame though compared to Megas and Z-moves but still it was a decent game. Just hope we had more wild areas, clearly the best part of the game. Could be so much better of course, but it was not as bad as I was expecting.
61
It is somewhat slow and longer than it should be and this is the biggest flaw on it. Besides that, it's a pretty good game as all Drinkbox Studios games. And will probably grow more on me with time and a replay on NG+. Some of the forms are pretty creative and the game is really out there with some of its ideas.
62
I wanted to enjoy this so much more. I really liked the overwhelming majority of characters, the tone is pretty much like the other Suikoden games but the game is slow and the backtracking is excruciating. The game have really bad design decisions like teleporting being accesible only after 60hrs. There's so much fat that could just be trimmed. The three points of view makes the plot kinda messy too and the OST is nothing to write home either, way worse compared to Suiko1/2.
63
Visually, it is not as impressive as other Cave games that came later, nor does it have as strong an identity either, but gameplay-wise it already shows how competent the studio is. The PS1 version is also quite decent.
64
Decent and creative co-op game with many different minigames. Somewhat gets kinda repetitive by the end but still there's fun to be had with it
65
I've never played a Zachtronics game before so when they announced a solitaire collection I knew it will be the time. This is a good collection of variants but I was hoping for something more meatier with better QoL than Microsoft Solitaire Collection. Still it's a good way to pass the time and some variants like the chinese and soviet one are pretty fun. The tarot-one although really difficulty is beautiful visually.
66
Honestly didn't felt it was the revolution the series deserved. The capturing gameplay loop got old quite fast for me. But the QoL and speedups are quite welcomed to return on the next main line game. Visually it's really poor although many of the Pokémon models are pretty cute. As with Sun/Moon 1vs3 battles are just lame.
67
Really simple but really charming platformer. Some of the levels are really hard (level 6, particularly) but the continue systems are forgiving enough. A sequel expanding some of the elements would be nice as this game already have a pretty good foundation for what it is. The co-op is really enjoyable too.
68
The most effort put in a game like this. I liked how it have a short fun story and have a clear ending, something that’s lacking on the genre of incremental games. It’s pretty cheap and a pretty good past time. I liked how well balanced it is too, even when everything gets really expensive.
69
Hard to talk about this one. On the other hand it removes many of the grips I had with original gen 4: HMs are streamlined, the game is much faster and the regional dex is better with the addition of the Grand Underground but otherwise it looks insanely cheap. The visuals sometimes looks good but most of the time it just looks cheap. And I don't like the Grand Underground implementation at the end. Feels so annoying tryind to find the rarer pkms. And TMs being finite again is bad.
70
Pretty charming PS1 game and somewhat a predecessor for the games like WarioWare and Rhythm Heaven. The OST is pretty good too, the biggest problem with the game is that the minigames wildly vary in quality and there aren't many of them. Still a pretty unique game from PS1.
71
Cute one, and really short. Pretty nice idea too, the map should be bigger though. The way cards bounces on another can be really annoying though.
72
Soldier Blade does a nice thing with the power-ups found in every shmup game and the OST is quite pleasant, but, as with many of these games, the final stages feel quite cheap overall. The final boss takes forever to die.
73
Shorter than I was expecting. Still fun co-op.
74
Ugly as hell, but at least it was pretty fun. It feels quite cheap sometimes, and the "bombs" system in this one is not that interesting. Still, there's fun to be had with this one.
75
It's a pretty by-the-numbers game, where there isn't much to talk about. At least it doesn't have anything that bad either, well, except for the blatant and unnecessary sexualization. At least it only lasts a few screens.
76
A pretty impressive incremental game at the start, but it gets really slow. The pay-to-win mechanics are really enforced if you don't want to play this for months. However, it's an interesting way to learn a thing or two about astronomy and biology.
77
Old but gold PS1 jank. Pretty nice structure for a beat-em-up too.
78
Nice one, visuals can look a bit bland sometimes but really cute in other. The enemies are a bit infuriating with some irritating pattern sometimes but the game is enjoyable and the two last worlds are probably the best the game can offer. Good platforming overall too and collectables if you are into it.
79
Just a short but really psychedelic and enjoyable kart racing game. It's funny to think that the same studio and director that made this game would go and make Gran Turismo.
80
Just a nice, incremental game design here. It could be a bit more interactive but I'm not gonna complain that much. Big numbers make brain go brr with happy chemicals.
81
Nice controls but the arcadey nature of it kinda spoils the game for me. Would be better with an infinite continues system as the game can be quite punishing and the camera being a late-90s camera is not always precise. But still enjoyable for what it is and the atmosphere of the stages and some of the designs are good.
82
Important for future hack and slash and character action games but this didn't aged well. Controls are really stiff and everything feels really clunky. The sequel is leagues above this one.
83