1)
SOMA ; SOMA sheds Amnesia's Lovecraftian trappings in favor of a research station on the ocean floor, but the horror and the oppressive atmosphere remains, anchored by a compelling and thought-provoking story influenced by the works of Harlan Ellison and Philip K. Dick. The horror in SOMA comes less from its terrifying creatures and more from the atmosphere, the themes, the sound design and setting. Every moment is fraught with tension, enhanced by the music and the groaning of metal being crushed by the immense ocean pressure. The game is a slow-burn experience, letting the unnerving uneasy implications of grotesque sights and of your actions stew in your mind.
2)
Ori and the Blind Forest ; Ori doesn't reinvent the wheel, or innovate the platformer. But what it does do is deliver what is easily the most gorgeous, most fluidly-animated, vibrant platformer in years. From mist-choked forest to caverns strangled by thorny vines, from crystal clear lakes to flaming ruins, every location in Ori is flush with color and life. The exploration, acrobatic combat, challenging platforming, and excellent music are all satisfying icing on a beautiful cake.
3)
Besiege ; Besiege takes the vehicle construction you love from games like Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts and injects it with a dose of physics, blood, and medieval destruction, as you build powerful siege engines to level castles and lay waste to armies. It's the little details that stand out: wood beams snap in half when broken, blood stains your blades and the ground, your structure collapses and falls apart realistically when aflame, buildings crumble under the might of your cannon fire or swinging maces
4)
Invisible Inc ; Klei proved themselves to be masters of the stealth genre with Mark of the Ninja, but Invisible Inc is not only a fantastic stealth game, but an innovative one, combining the strategic, methodical nature of turn-based gameplay with cautious desperate sneaking. A wealth of agents and skills opens the door for a plethora of tactics, but at its core, Invisible Inc is all about careful sneaking around sight cones, avoiding patrols, stealing important data, and infiltrating secure facilities. A masterpiece of stealth gameplay
5)
Elite Dangerous ; Elite Dangerous was my first space sim, and it was an awe-inspiring introduction to the genre. Elite is like having your own personal Interstellar at your fingertips, each moment featuring glorious space vistas, looming suns and planets, a scale that never ceases to amaze. Every docking at a gargantuan station, every thrilling frame-shift jump, every fast-paced yet strategic encounter adds to the experience, and the immersive UI only makes the exploration more compelling
6)
Infinifactory ; At a glance, Infinifactory looks like SpaceChem in 3D. And in a sense, it is, featuring the same style of building elaborate assembly lines that always make you feel like an engineering genius when it all finally works. But at the same time, it isn't. The addition of a Z-axis changes everything, allowing for brain-breaking new challenges and building techniques that were never possible before, and the aspect of building tangible items rather than abstract elements made the construction even more satisfying.
7)
Mushroom 11 ; Mushroom 11 is a challenging physics-based puzzle platformer that turns the typical genre gameplay on its head by putting you in control of an amorphous fungus that can mold and shift into any shape. Each chapter introduces new mechanics and dangers, always exploring new uses of the mushroom's amorphous design. The unique gameplay was Mushroom 11's initial hook, but discovering what new hazards and puzzle elements the developers would introduce next was what keep me intrigued throughout my six-hour playthrough.
8)
Subnautica ; Subnautica adds a new depth to the explore/craft/survive genre, quite literally, as you explore and survive in the sprawling depths of an alien ocean. What a world awaits you: kelp forests swaying in the current, bio-luminescent growths along the walls of dark deep caves, swarms of weird fish twisting through the water, coral tunnels and reefs, floating islands, and more.
9)
Crypt of the Necrodancer ; Crypt of the Necrodancer's blend of rhythm game and roguelike coalesced to form the most addictive game I've played since One Finger Death Punch. Simple complexity is where the gameplay shines. The controls are so simple, but the game is complex and deep. Learning how enemies move and react to the beat. Lining up your attacks depending on what enemies you're dealing with and the weapon you have equipped. Timing. Adapting your strategy on the fly when some mini-boss barges in or you acquire an special item. Learning the rhythm of the game's excellent soundtrack
10)
Duskers ; The universe is dead. You are alone. Supplies are dwindling. As the lone survivor in a galaxy gone silent, you travel from ship to ship, derelict barges and stations and outposts now drifting through space, staving off starvation or certain death by sending drones onto those empty vessels. You can control these drones through command lines; a method that may sound archaic and clunky, but is actually what makes Duskers so brilliant and immersive. Every command must be planned and carefully considered, because if something goes wrong - and it will - you must adapt and improvise on the fly.
Honorable Mention
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Exanima ; Exanima is not the most complex game, offering only a grim low-fantasy dungeon crawler and an arena mode to test your skills. But the game's combat is a game-changer, delivering the weightiest, most intense melee you'll find in an action RPG. Each swing and stab feels desperate and realistic. Attacks have weight and force behind them, and blows and misses throw you off balance. Bodies and blades get tangled up and pushed around. Size, weight, and reach matter. It's Demons Souls' "Don't use broadswords or pole-arms in a narrow corridor" logic expanded with realistic physics.
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Dark Echo ; Dark Echo boasts the most minimalist of visuals, conjuring horror from the unknown and unseen and an atmospheric soundscape. The game's unique aesthetic and sound design turns each moment into a tense game of cat and mouse where sound is your only means of sight. Your footsteps, hollow against stone and squishing against undergrowth. The guttural growls of those things lurking in the dark. Water splashing and sloshing, or dripping overhead. Flies buzzing in agitated swarms, croaking frogs. Heavy locks and groaning doors.
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Broforce ; Broforce is not the most sophisticated game. A story is non-existent and there's not much motivation beyond rescue the hostages and kill the bad guys. But that's not much of a negative at all, because the gameplay blows away any wishes for a story or deeper motives. Broforce set out to be an ode to 80's and 90's action movies, the Expendables in video game form, and it succeeds on every possible level.
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Rocket League ; Rocket League is the multiplayer game everyone can enjoy. No leveling or perks to worry about, no game-changing unlocks. It's 100% skill-based, as you fly gracefully through the air, drive up the walls, make glorious last-minute goals and amazing interceptions. Fast, fun, colorful, and easy to pick up and play, Rocket League is the best multiplayer experience of the year
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Stasis ; Stasis is a tense isometric horror advemnture game that delivers the kind of industrial atmosphere and gruesome visuals that would make Ridley Scott and David Cronenberg proud. Eschewing combat in favor of exploration and puzzles, Stasis crafts terror through its constantly uneasy atmosphere, fantastic sound design, and some incredibly disturbing visuals and situations. The grimy and blood-soaked industrial corridors of the Groomlake feel claustrophobic and eerie; the echoing screams and other ambient noises only add to the atmosphere.
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Darkest Dungeon ; Darkest Dungeon is perhaps most aptly described as "The Road" of dungeon crawlers. The bleak Lovecraftian game explores the human angle of dungeon crawling, delving into what would happen to the mind and body as you bled, toiled, and endured the dank darkness filled with unearthly horrors. Stylized visuals, gruesome beasts, deep tactical combat, and an atmosphere anchored by the compelling tones of narrator Wayne June makes Darkest Dungeon a gripping experience
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Hand of Fate ; Hand of Fate combines card game, dungeon crawler, and action RPG/brawler to deliver a brilliant and incredibly addictive hybrid of an experience. Other games may have more complex card mechanics or better combat, but Hand of Fate combines hefty combat and the unknown exploration of a text adventure with engaging deck-building, the varied locations, and the excellent voice acting from the mysterious Dealer, creating a compelling experience that's easy to dive back into again and again.
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Downwell ; Downwell is no simple mindless shooter. Carefully leaping around enemies to get in the best positions to fire, jumping on enemies to converse ammo, deftly avoiding hazards, is all necessary to survive. Downwell shines due to its subtle depth and challenging action. Like games such as Spelunky or Vlambeer's titles, it nails that amorphous element of "game feel", gameplay design that just feels satisfying and addicting and powerful.
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Her Story ; Whether you classify it as a game, a visual novel, interactive fiction, or something else, one thing remains constant: Her Story offers a mature and gripping experience. Her Story distills the adventure game to its purest form. Your items you gather are the parts of a story, and you're trying to discover the truth. Through deduction and learning more details, you gather new keywords and phrases to unlock more of Her Story's narrative puzzle box. Her Story strips all out those extraneous elements since in other detective game and places the onus on the player to piece together the mystery
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Snakebird ; Beneath Snakebird's colorful friendly aesthetic lies one devious puzzle game. Snakebird never evolves beyond moving and twisting those colorful birds, but uses that seemingly simple mechanic to deliver an incredibly tricky puzzler. A single puzzle could take an hour or more, but it's always satisfying to figure out the game's spatial challenges. Don't be fooled by its cutesy facade; this is an amazing gem of a puzzler
