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The Best Game of 2024 - IGN

A year of consistent highs ends with IGN announcing our pick for Game of the Year. From AAA blockbusters to indie sensations, there was ultimately only one choice for the Best Game of 2024.

www.ign.com

Winner: Metaphor: ReFantazio​

For years, Atlus’ cult-RPG Persona went from being a cool underground RPG series from Japan to one of the biggest franchises in modern gaming. But with Metaphor: ReFantazio, it’s clear the developers behind Persona were seeking to push themselves to new heights. Trading in the modern-day Japanese high school setting for a pure fantasy world full of long-eared knights and bat-like ninjas, Atlus’ Studio Zero has created an incredible and timely meditation on political strife and demagoguery.

After the death of the King, the United Kingdom of Euchronia, divided by racial prejudice among its citizens, begins the process of holding its very first popular election that kickstarts a grand, cross-continental adventure. For anyone familiar with the Persona series, you’ll find familiar hallmarks here. Players split their time crawling through difficult dungeons full of horrifying monsters, while spending free moments building up relationships with various party members and inhabitants around the country.

But while the Persona games took these quiet moments to reaffirm the virtues of youthful friendships, Metaphor uses these times to tackle headier questions. What defines a knight’s duty, or the responsibilities of those born into wealth? Can one ever heal from the pains of racism, and is religious tolerance a foolhardy endeavor? These aren’t easy questions to address but are asked plainly throughout Metaphor’s 70-hour playtime.

While Studio Zero refrains from giving clear-cut answers to these questions, it instead acknowledges the virtues of empathy, kindness, and strength in the face of overwhelming fear and hatred that can take root in an uncertain world where leaders promise salvation in exchange for unwavering loyalty. Wrap these philosophical musings in a stylish, turn-based RPG that looks and feels stupendous — complete with beautiful character designs from artist Shigenori Soejima and music from Shoji Meguro – and you’ll quickly understand why Metaphor: ReFantazio is IGN’s pick for Best Game of 2024.

with Black Myth winning their user polls (surprise)

 

[The Cockatrice]

TintoConCasera

 

[R3TRO]

Well deserved.

Great game.

 

[SJRB]

Fucking weebs.

 

[LectureMaster]

Honestly, this is a much better list than many others out there, but, my sweet Veilguard..

 

[James Sawyer Ford]

shouldn’t be. Good game, absolutely not GOTY

 

[joeygreco1985]

Balatro screwed again

 

[Katatonic]

Meh, non offensive pick.

 

[drganon]

Can't complain, its a great game.

 

[GateofD]

its the woke-est, not bad woke game they could have picked

 

[ChorizoPicozo]

IGN.

 

[ULTROS!]

I enjoyed the game but I dunno, I still like Rebirth better. I did platinum Metaphor though but I felt like the latter part was rushed and the dungeons were uneven.

 

[DenchDeckard]

I've bought it and not had chance to play yet. Too many games!

 

[TintoConCasera]

Very good videogame, they deserve it.

 

[stn]

My GOTY is Stellar Blade, at least for now. I still need to beat most of the games up for GOTY consideration. From what I've played of Metaphor, Rebirth, and Wukong so far, all are excellent.

 

[Icymanipulator]

A good pick all things considered.

 

[Zacfoldor]

Excellent pick, well deserved. It might not match up perfectly with my pick, but the game is definitely in the running. The games that made my heart soar this year was actually Erdtree and Wukong but ymmv. It was a hell of a year for jrpg fans, this much I know. Astro is also a great experience. Stellar is awesome and I really want a followup.

In my world, I would hand this award to Unicorn Overlord and sail off into the sunset.

 

[yogaflame]

Stellar blade not specifically mentioned in the choices is a joke. Even in there IGN survey the last time the game was ranking inside top 5. Well who is IGN anyway? There credibility is long gone.

 

[James Sawyer Ford]

I enjoyed the game but I dunno, I still like Rebirth better. I did platinum Metaphor though but I felt like the latter part was rushed and the dungeons were uneven.

Rebirth is better. Far better production values and much better pacing

 

[xenosys]

Great game for the most part.

I'd still have Rebirth a smidgeon ahead but can't say it isn't deserved.

 

[tmlDan]

with Black Myth winning their user polls (surprise)

 

[Kurotri]

Good. I am satisfied.

 

[Chuck Berry]

Ugh, I'm going to have to fucking play this eventually I know it.

 

[Illyria]

A rare moment where I agree with IGN.

 

[adamsapple]

Ugh, I'm going to have to fucking play this eventually I know it.

Set aside a hundred hours and enjoy one of the best JRPG's of the gen.

its the woke-est, not bad woke game they could have picked

the fuck are you on about?

 

[mckmas8808]

its the woke-est, not bad woke game they could have picked

 

[Chuck Berry]

Set aside a hundred hours and enjoy one of the best JRPG's of the gen.

 

[GymWolf]

Remilk 2 still not winning jack shit

 

[Katatonic]

Damn Stellar Blade has to be the most snubbed GOTY ever.

 

[PeteBull]

DA:V got robbed, ign should do 20 push ups as a punishment, pronto!

 

[Pegasus Actual]

Okay since I went to the trouble of making this and we are getting ever closer to Christmas I will post this one last time:

Haven't touched a JRPG in years, consider it every once in a while. Thought about Persona 5 but the high school thing is not for me at this point... so considering either this or Octopath (which as a FFIV and FFVI enjoyer does a lot more for me aesthetically than Metaphor)

 

[James Sawyer Ford]

the fuck are you on about?

Game is the wokest thing I’ve ever played but doesn’t get any backlash for it because it’s Japanese and uses anime characters

 

[FoxMcChief]

TintoConCasera

 

[TintoConCasera]

Game is the wokest thing I’ve ever played but doesn’t get any backlash for it because it’s Japanese and uses anime characters

If you think the game is woke then you haven't played it.

 

[James Sawyer Ford]

If you think the game is woke then you haven't played it.

I have and it’s extremely woke with all the social link commentary

 

[TintoConCasera]

I have and it’s extremely woke with all the social link commentary

Got any examples? Remember, all the happy stuff that is depicted in the book ended up leading to ruin.

 

[James Sawyer Ford]

Got any examples? Remember, all the happy stuff that is depicted in the book ended up leading to ruin.

Pretty much the entire story revolves around embracing diversity

 

[SmokedMeat]

And it lost to Infinity Nikki among their fanbase.

 

[TintoConCasera]

Pretty much the entire story revolves around embracing diversity

I don't think it revolves around that. It has themes like slavery, racism and such but those are very common fantasy themes. And it's not like the game preaches you about this stuff at all.

Imo it's more about the usual SMT stuff of cretaing a new world, and the power of friendship and all that shit so common in japanese media.

 

[adamsapple]

Pretty much the entire story revolves around embracing diversity

Fuck's sake james, just because people are taking the piss out of an upcoming game from a studio you like, doesn't mean you need to make terrible takes like this to compensate.

Amazing game. Some of the best voice acting in a JRPG, localization gave me massive shades of FF12's quality.

 

[TintoConCasera]

Fuck's sake james, just because people are taking the piss out of an upcoming game from a studio you like, doesn't mean you need to make terrible takes like this to compensate.

It all makes sense now lol.

 

[FoxMcChief]

And it lost to Infinity Nikki among their fanbase.

I’m not surprised.

 

[James Sawyer Ford]

I don't think it revolves around that. It has themes like slavery, racism and such but those are very common fantasy themes. And it's not like the game preaches you about this stuff at all.

Imo it's more about the usual SMT stuff of cretaing a new world, and the power of friendship and all that shit so common in japanese media.

It preaches every time you progress the story or improve your social bond

Fuck's sake james, just because people are taking the piss out of an upcoming game from a studio you like, doesn't mean you need to make terrible takes like this to compensate.

Stating facts isn’t a take. It doesn’t takeaway from the game, it’s done tastefully, but it’s the preachiest game I’ve ever played. It would be getting roasted over the coals if it were a western studio with a different art style.

 

[Kacho]

 

[Musashipan]

As long as astroflop doesn't win, all the other ones are deserving

 

[BigBeauford]

Lmao the triple down on Veilguard.

 

[Fake]

Good games get awards. Nothing new.

 

[TintoConCasera]

It preaches every time you progress the story or improve your social bond

Still no examples? Ok.

How about the scene where Heismay tell the cat brothers how much he dislikes them and their race out of prejudice, or how the game basically says that the perfect utopia where everyone is the same is basically impossible to achieve, or how all the highest positions of power are taken by men, among many other things.

You have to learn what woke means. Metaphor talks about issues like racism and equity, sure, many fantasy games have those tropes but the thing is, it never does so in a preachy way. Games like DA Veilguard dream of having the writting this game has.

 

[adamsapple]

It preaches every time you progress the story or improve your social bond

Never played any of the popular recent Atlus RPG's?

If this is your example of the game being woke, you have lost the plot.

 

[MudoSkills]

Lmao. How low is your bar if 'discriminating based on race' is woke nonsense to you?