My Best Games of 2025

Today is my last post of the year and there isn’t anything more fitting than talking about my 2025 favourites.

As someone who didn’t play the likes of Silksong, Hades II or Expedition 33, I experienced some hesitation before writing this post. The truth is that the huge majority of games I played this year were not released in 2025. But then I thought, heck, I’m sure readers appreciate when these types of recaps are diverse anyway.

This post from Frostilyte Writes also inspired me: Frostilyte said that he would purposefully pick games that didn’t get their flowers to showcase in his Best of 2025 list, and I thought that was a really neat idea.

Now, without further ado, here are my favourite games released in 2025!

Best RPG: Rune Factory: Guardians of Azuma

I’m like a broken record whenever talking about Rune Factory: Guardians of Azuma. This game came in a moment where I needed some escapism and the immersion delivered: it was the right game at the right time.

Anyone who knows me personally can tell that I’ve always loved Japan. It was because of Sailor Moon that I started drawing my own comics as a kid, and kept drawing until adulthood. I’ve had a manga translation website. I’ve been to Japan twice.

All to say that a game like Rune Factory: Guardians of Azuma checks all the boxes for me, not just when it comes to gameplay but also the setting. The traditional Japanese villages, the inspired folklore, a solid story where characters are unique and dodge stereotypes, the town building/management mechanics and having a beautiful open world to explore. It can’t get more “Luna” than that, really.

I played my first Rune Factory game earlier this year, Rune Factory 4 Special, and I fell in love with the careful world building and intricate mechanics from the franchise. Guardians of Azuma does simplify a lot of the crafting mechanics – which is the usual complaint from hardcore fans of the franchise – but introduced new elements such as town management. Not to mention the addition of the spectacular voice acting that brings the game to life.

I can’t wait for the next mainline Rune Factory game to see what mechanics Marvelous will want to incorporate moving forward.

Best Puzzle Game: Is This Seat Taken?

I’m a fan of puzzle games, but I’m not a fan of feeling stupid. Luckily, Is This Seat Taken? is a game that never made me feel that way.

Is This Seat Taken? is a game where you need to place each character according to their (sometimes weird) preferences in different settings (like inside a bus, at a diner, etc). For example, in one of the levels you might have to place someone who’s carrying a boombox, and someone else that hates noise, and they can’t be too close by. The difficulty ramps up as you go, with the individual requirements really piling up and making it harder to solve the puzzle.

I knew from the demo that I would love this game, and my feeling was 100% spot on. I played Is This Seat Taken? on release and I liked that the game had an overarching story connecting each level, which made it even more satisfying when I wrapped it up.

Best Management Game: Two Point Museum 

This was the year that I cemented my love for management games. There’s just something about them that scratches a very specific itch for me, and it usually ends up with me sleeping way past my bed time and dreaming about said game.

I hadn’t played that many management games when I picked up Two Point Museum, but that didn’t matter. The game does such a good job of explaining and unlocking mechanics little by little that I never felt lost. Sometimes I did forget some information, just to be reminded by the lovely radio lady telling me things like: “Staff hasn’t been trained in ages. People are starting to talk”.

I purchased both DLCs – Fantasy Finds and Zooseum – but haven’t played them yet. Mostly for fear of messing up my sleep schedule again.

Best Narrative Game: Many Nights a Whisper

I love short games, even more when they pack a punch, and that’s exactly what Many Nights a Whisper does. I wrote about 3 different experiences playing the game on the blog, but don’t go there if you want to avoid spoilers.

Many Nights a Whisper is described on its Steam page as a “short interactive essay on dreams, pressure, and expectations”. You play as the Dreamer, and every day you practice your archery skills in order to try and light up a distant chalice in a ritual where you’ll have only one (fiery) shot. Landing the shot will determine whether the wishes of your people will be granted, but missing it means that calamity will unfold.

The game kept me at the edge of my seat and it must have been one of the my most immersive experiences this year.

Best Simulation Game: Wanderstop

Wanderstop was the first game that I wrote a deep dive about here on Luna’s Gaming Log. It was another one that made me go through a full range of emotions.

Alta is a fighter dealing with the aftermath of her first defeat in years. She ends up in Wanderstop, a tea shop, where she (reluctantly) starts working at a slow pace while she’s trying to figure out why she can’t carry her sword anymore.

Simply put, Wanderstop is a game that made me fight my productivity instincts and stay mindful while I played. The way the gameplay was designed inseparable from the story was just something else and truly special.

Best Co-op Game: PEAK

I don’t know if the term friendslop is here to stay, due to the derogatory nature, but friendslop as a genre definitely is and I’m here for it. (Recommended read: What Is Friendslop? The Rising Genre That You’ve Already Played by Exploring the Games)

PEAK is a game that I originally picked up to play with a couple of friends when we couldn’t hang out in person, and all of us got hooked. It was also the first time I played together with folks from the Cozy Gaming Club community, which was a totally new (and super fun) experience for me.

I’ve reached the PEAK for the first time recently (as a ghost, but still…) and I’m foreseeing putting many more hours in this game in 2026.

Best Hidden Gem: Fading Serenades

I decided to create this “best hidden gem” category to highlight Fading Serenades, a game with under 100 reviews at this moment that was one of the coziest titles I played this year.

This is a short action-adventure inventory management game where you’re traversing Clifford Island to deliver parcels to the locals. It has many of the elements I appreciate: solid storytelling, fun gameplay, charismatic characters and a soundtrack that ties it all together.

Fading Serenades builds this atmosphere of peaceful melancholy that makes you appreciate simplicity in both games and life itself. (Recommended read: An Interview with Bernie Wick by So Many Games)

Best Demo: Dogpile

When you think about a great demo, what comes to your mind? For me, I think of those ones that made me feel like dropping everything else and picking up the game right away.

Dogpile was a demo that fit that description perfectly. Well, except that the game wasn’t available yet when I first played the demo. But now it is!

You merge small dogs into bigger dogs in this charming roguelike deckbuilder where every run looks different. If you’re a fan of Suika Game and Balatro, you should definitely check it out. And don’t forget to pet the dogs.

Wrapping up

2025 was a great gaming year. I found so many titles that resonated with me and I got to know my gaming taste better and experiment with it a little. I can’t wait to play many more amazing games next year and talk about them here on the blog!

Speaking of which, I’m taking a small writing break for a few weeks. My next post will be on January 13 (with the exception of the January poll that I’ll still publish on the 1st).

Wishing you all a great (and hopefully relaxing) end of the year!

Thank you for reading,

-Luna