Cactus (Bluesky edition)

Overall, I feel like this year was mostly games that I enjoyed, but didn't leave a super lasting impact on me. The few exceptions were really good tho. See ya in 2026

And finally, my game of the year is...

DELTARUNE (Chapters 3 & 4)

Toby Fox just knows how to make games, man. I adored every second of these and I am SO excited to see where chapter 5 is gonna take the story. 10/10

HM: New Pokemon Snap

Taking pictures of pokemon is fun, but I'd like to see a few more environments later on. We'll see

HM: Clair Obscur: Expedition 33

I like the parry system but nothing about this game keeps me coming back, like I have to will myself to keep playing, but I have a fun time while doing so. Unsure if it deserved all those awards so far

HM: Octopath Traveler 0

I've only just started this game, but it's very *different* and I'm not sure I like it yet. The townbuilding seems fun so far tho

Before I talk about my game of the year, I have a few honorable mentions, which are mostly games I'm actively playing and haven't finished yet.

Pokemon Ultra Moon

I enjoyed a lot of this game but it really feels like playing older pokemon games without mods forces you to miss out on the whole experience due to the playerbase moving on/end of online services. Game itself was great tho 8.5/10

Dispatch

Fun and interesting concept, and I'd love to see more of it. I hope if they actually do a season 2 the story is a little more cohesive and less reliant on romance. If they are relying on romance, they should lean more into it 8/10

Mario Kart World

I'm not really a huge mario kart diehard but I feel like this game has gotten a lot more hate online than it deserves. Very fun and feels like the first time the series has really tried to revolutionize its mechanics 8.5/10

Donkey Kong Bananza

The people at Nintendo EPD just know how to make fun games, man. You're doing yourself a disservice if you choose not to play this game just bc it doesn't have "Mario" in the title. 9.5/10

Pokemon Legends: Z-A

Did a whole review on this game as well, and i'll attach it here. TLDR: redeemed mega pokemon as a concept in my eyes with solid character writing but was desperately lacking in voice acting and a coherent plot, especially near the end. 7.5/10
bsky.app/profile/mano...

Cuphead (and the DLC)

Absolutely adored this game while playing it. The aesthetic is simply unmatched and the gameplay feels fair and balanced. Big recommend for anyone who wants a unique, high quality game with no modern BS 10/10

Grounded 2

So far, I really like the *promise* of this game, but as it stands currently I think they have a long way to go before I can give it a full review. Like p5x, when things change significantly I'll probably do another review but for now i will wait for updates 7/10

Persona 5 The Phantom X

The first (and likely only) gacha game I'll ever play. It honestly took a bit for me to adjust to the gacha mechanics but after that it wasnt too bad. This game does some things better than base p5 and some things worse but I'll keep reviewing it until the story is over 7/10

Wanderstop

I felt like this game had just enough mechanics in it to feel comprehensive without feeling overwhelming. The story probably won't resonate with everyone but it hit me hard and will probably live in my brain for years. Would recommend 8/10

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time

Some people call this the greatest game of all time. I don't necessarily agree, but I do think it ages really well, which is a huge compliment for a 5th gen game. I might play the rest of the series, we'll see 9/10

Pikmin

Very stressful, but very rewarding. I wish this game had a little more breathing room to learn the game mechanics. Like I only feel like I beat the game on my first run bc I played pikmin 4 first. I wouldn't say the game felt super unfair tho 8/10

Pikmin 4

My introduction to the pikmin series, and the low-stakes vibe felt like a smooth way to ease me into understanding the mechanics of the different pikmin. I felt the plot was a bit lacking but this game was really fun and I'd probably replay it at some point 9/10

PEAK

Fun to play through literally 1 time, and likely more interesting the more people you have. I only played with one other person and had a fun time, but I couldn't imagine playing it more than occasionally 7/10

R.E.P.O.

I quite enjoyed the aspect of carefully moving items through doorways and stuff, but I felt like the game didn't have much to it at the time, and a few updates later, I still feel that way 8/10

Octopath Traveler 2

This one also has a whole review attached to it, but I felt like it was a huge improvement over the first and felt like the concept of the series was realized. 9/10
bsky.app/profile/mano...

Octopath Traveler

I made a whole review on this game already, and my thoughts on it are very complex. TLDR: I really wanted to like it more than I did, but I couldn't due to some flaws I couldn't forgive. 6/10
bsky.app/profile/mano...

It's that time of year, here's Mr CactusMan's review of EVERY GAME HE PLAYED THIS YEAR (2025)!

This thread is probably gonna be a little shorter than last year's bc I honestly didn't play as much this year.

RULES:
-must have played > 60% of the game
-must have started it this year

Currently in a rush to finish as many games as possible so I can do another big review thread like I did last year

Overall, extremely solid experience with extremely few hiccups. The mega Pokemon gimmick has been officially redeemed in my eyes and I'm excited to see where they take these game mechanics

8/10 I love you, mega ampharos

-we gotta make these tutorials shorter guys. They genuinely have been getting longer every single game. I promise you the children are smarter than you think they are

-If the next big Pokemon game is going to be a switch 2 exclusive, id like to see game freak try to actually take advantage of the hardware, I don't really prioritize graphics over gameplay but a Pokemon game that looks pretty would be a cool change of pace. Maybe lean into an art style? Idk

-If the entire game is going to be based in lumiose city, I'd love for there to be more buildings I could physically enter. In my opinion that's the whole appeal of a city map, the physical buildings that you can enter and explore. Not a deal breaker but would've gone a long way

Cons:
-Guys. We have to get voice acting. This is honestly so embarrassing at this point. How do we have animated lip-synced cutscenes with no voice work. It just feels so awkward, and takes away from the stories that are being told. Gen 10, make it happen, please.

-I'm not a huge X/Y fan, but I quite enjoyed the expansion on Kalos as a region and all the nods to the games on 3DS. In particular, I loved the part where you go into the ruined Lysandre Labs