Here we are - 2025's Game of the Year according to our team here at Chalgyr's Game Room. We've talked about so many elements that make gaming worthwhile from memorable moments, to finding hidden gems we didn't expect to and showing our deep appreciation for visuals, music, characters and stories that touched us. It's an incredibly subjective thing, when you're talking about a Game of the Year, because we all interact with this media in our own unique ways. Still, when you're talking about the best of the best, there tend to be some common threads and excellence can be found in every team member's entry here.
Thank you, our readers, for being a part of our video game journey in 2025. Here at CGR, we look forward to sharing our thoughts about this medium we all love next year in 2026 as well, and welcome any thoughts you've had about our entries this year in the comments section. We hope that you agree that it's been a fun ride in 2025, and we're appreciative that you made us a part of it.
Nick: Clair Obscur Expedition 33
I mean, this game is probably my favorite in years. Years and years. The visual style is stunning, the music is beyond fantastic (the soundtrack has been a frequent flyer in my Spotify playlists and I have a reservation for the vinyl record release in early 2026) and the characters and narrative made me feel all sorts of things along the way. Also, and perhaps most importantly – the game was just a lot of fun to play. The mix of turn-based combat and timing combined with a rich world filled with reasons to explore, and this right here is my perfect mix for a Game of the Year. It's impressive really, that Clair Obscur is still landing in my social feeds this late in the year, given that it came out quite early in 2025. However, it's emotional impact and brilliant creativity can't be denied, which is why I believe no video game did it better in 2025.
PY: Clair Obscur Expedition 33
I don’t think by this point there is anyone who hasn’t heard of Clair Obscur: Expedition 33.
This was an odd one for me personally. Having seen the game cover alone I pre-ordered it. Life being life, I cancelled it for the time being regretting it more because of FOMO than anything else. Then my brother messaged me saying PLAY THIS NOW. My brother plus single player games doesn’t happen often, so I booted it up out of Steam Family Share and promptly bought it on the PS5.
Is it perfect? No, but it could damn near be considered as such. The exploration gameplay is smooth and while mechanically is nothing new, each area comes with its own visuals, exploration music AND battle music. Lorien Testard deserves a memorable music article to him alone.
Then there was the actual combat that keeps you engaged like The Legend of Dragoon and Lost Odyssey where you have to hit at the right times to make a difference in your attack power. Upping the mechanics to not just be another feather in that cap, you also need to dodge, parry or jump to avoid or block enemy attacks.
Finally there was the writing and the supporting voice acting that just sold the entire experience. Never taking the easy way out and being “cheesy”, everything felt just right alongside the music in which both live rent free in my head.
Susan: Blue Prince
Unlike everyone else on the planet, I didn't get a chance to play Clair Obscur and likely won't be able to do so until 2026. (Don't worry, I will play it!) Anyways, I made a rule a long time ago that I would only list games that I have actually played on my annual GOTY list. This year's game is 100,000,000% Blue Prince (which is interesting because it's also the game Alanah Pearce chose for GOTY :D ).
So, we all know how much I love puzzle games and how they will always make it to the top of my list depending on what it does. Blue Prince knocked it out of the park and over the water into another continent. There are so many layers to this game that don't become obvious until you get into certain rooms or see something you didn't catch the first time. The amount of times someone said something so completely innocuous that tipped off another player to a solution is WILD. Imagine the phrase, "there are numbers" giving someone the push they need to solving a puzzle. Trust me, this game is just fantastic. And right from the start I knew there was something with the pictures in every room and I wasn't wrong. With each day you can uncover more and more information about what happened. I especially love the puzzle within the puzzle within the puzzle.
Blue Prince floored me in so many ways. At first you think the game is just like an updated 7th Guest where there are puzzles to each room, but overall they don't seem to fit together. They are puzzles that are meant to be solved which leads to a key for another puzzle, but that's all they are - puzzles for the sake of being puzzles. In Blue Prince, each piece of information you find leads you to uncovering the story being told. People are missing, but why? You see? So many questions to be answered! I live for this kind of game.
Anyways, I have finished the game in terms of reaching the elusive room, but I still have a ton of puzzles to solve! The amount of gameplay time you get without staring at one puzzle for 6 hours is fantastic. (Although, I did stare at one puzzle for many hours. To heck with that damn room!) Anyways, each day is a new challenge and you can work on puzzles at your own pace.
What I'm saying is, this is hands down one of the most brilliant puzzle games next to Antichamber or The Witness or Talos Principle. All of them make you rethink your puzzle solving approach, and I love it. So, I can't talk about this game enough and yet I don't want to so that I don't accidently spoil anything! Do yourselves a favor and play Blue Prince. Trust me, it's worth it if you are a puzzle aficionado.
Valerie: Blue Prince
Blue Prince made my GotY because of many factors and also many thanks to the friend who gifted it to me! You've heard above that it is reminiscent of 7th Guest, but the similarities definitely stop there. This game tops the list of puzzle games for the many factors of puzzles within puzzles, red herrings, obvious shots, and many 'back rooms' LOL (pun intended!).
I have yet to find that elusive 46th room, but everytime I pop back into the game a new clue presents itself. I have definitely invested tons of time in the screenshot taking just to keep a clue for the next time I run into a puzzle I have yet to solve. So many and sometimes so little time to play. I will keep coming back and I will up my count of puzzles solved as the new year rolls around!
The story in this game is slowly being revealed as I go along and I can't wait to get all the information needed to discover it all!
If you love puzzle games as much as I do, get this one! You won't regret it!
Richard: Ender Magnolia: Bloom in the Mist
Sequel to Ender Lilies and a hell of a good metroidvania title, Ender Magnolia was a pleasure to play from start to 100% finish. I loved the gameplay, the art style, the soundtrack, the characters. Beautifully well done, and out of the titles I’ve reviewed so far this year, Ender Magnolia definitely takes it. Check out my review here!
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