Jason's Top Five Games of 2025

It's hard to believe, but 2025 is nearly behind us, and it deserves to go down as one of the greatest years in video game history, packed from start to finish with legitimate Game of the Year contenders. I’ve been writing for Gaming Nexus since 2022, and until this year, I had never scored a game a 10/10. I handed out two this year alone to Death Stranding 2: On the Beach and Split Fiction, if that gives you any indication of just how good 2025 has been. And I was on a generational run for a video game critic this year, with a list of reviewed games that includes not only Death Stranding 2 and Split Fiction, but ARC Raiders, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, Sektori, Ghost of Yotei, Battlefield 6, RoadCraft, and Kingdom Come: Deliverance II.

Perhaps needless to say, but I’ve had a hell of a time this year. We all have, in fact. But with all these bangers that 2025 has blessed us with, I’d like to distill it down to my top five games of the year, which goes a little something like this:

1) Death Stranding 2: On the Beach

Gaming Nexus Review: 10/10

"I can’t wait to see the online conversations, the videos, and the articles that dive deep into the tar of what the meaning of Death Stranding 2 is. In the end, I was left in awe, flabbergasted by the totality of the experience. The effortless way that various features create a gameplay system no other game has even tried to replicate. The absurd, supernatural story about the end of the world and humanity’s role in it. The mysterious characters and the incredible performances behind them. The art direction. The haunting original music that I can’t get out of my head. The entire final act. The ending—oh my word, the ending. It’s one of the most memorable video game endings and final boss encounters that I’ve ever experienced. I will never forget it. Put simply, Death Stranding 2: On the Beach is a journey that should not be missed."

2) Split Fiction

Gaming Nexus Review: 10/10

"There are tons of moments that I wish we could talk about, especially with a game as good as Split Fiction, but everyone should and must discover those moments on their own. It’s one of those gaming experiences that I will never forget, one that everyone is going to be talking about, and one that no studio, except perhaps Hazelight themselves, will be able to top. I know that I’ve been gassing up Split Fiction and Hazelight a lot in this review, but I don’t know how else to impress upon our readers that this is a truly exceptional video game, and perhaps one of the best games ever made. At the very least, it is one my all-time favorite games because of how it reaches a level of craftsmanship rarely seen in the medium. I know Grand Theft Auto VI is scheduled to be released this year, but even if it makes it out, I don’t know that it can topple Split Fiction for Game of the Year. I’ll put it this way – I’ve been writing for Gaming Nexus since August of 2022, and I’ve yet to award a game a 10/10 review score. That changes with Split Fiction."

3) Sektori

Gaming Nexus Review: 9.5/10

"Sektori came nearly out of nowhere and blew me away. It went from not being on my radar, to being one of my favorite games of the year. Now I am here to tell you that it should, without a doubt, be on your radar, and probably in your game library as well. I know it’s earned a permanent place in mine. It is a breathless blend of music, art, and exquisite twin-stick shooting that is hard to walk away from. It will totally ensnare you with its pulsating techno soundtrack and visual spectacle of exploding enemies. I’m not sure if the difficulty is tuned incorrectly, or if I’m just getting that bad at video games, but regardless, I still think Sektori is something special."

4) ARC Raiders

Gaming Nexus Review: 9.5/10

"Ultimately, ARC Raiders is a revelation. It has brought the extraction shooter genre to a more mainstream audience with aplomb. This is not a game that asks for your life but still manages to snatch it from you anyway thanks to excellent gameplay design, punchy gunplay, meticulous world-building, and immaculate sound design. It is a watercooler game that you can either play with friends or play solo and then swap war stories with friends later. There is nothing quite like it, which is no surprise coming from the studio behind THE FINALS. Embark Studios has cemented itself as one of the best in the world at developing multiplayer shooters."

5) Kingdom Come: Deliverance II

Gaming Nexus Review: 9/10

"Ultimately, the more I played Kingdom Come: Deliverance II, the more I fell in love with it. Systematically, the sequel is a more streamlined version of the first game that does not sacrifice its vision of being an immersive medieval RPG. Being back in Henry’s shoes has been an absolute treat as a fan of the original, but even newcomers can easily enjoy part two. It is a massive RPG that you can spend dozens of hours with, but at nearly every turn, there are payoffs both large and small, which make it a hard game to put down. Mix in great writing, great voice acting, and an incredible level of immersion, and Kingdom Come: Deliverance II makes an early case for RPG of the Year, if not more than that."

Honorable Mention: Dispatch

Gaming Nexus Review: 9/10

"Dispatch is possibly the greatest narrative game ever made, if only they could smooth out the actual dispatching. I absolutely love this world, this story, and these characters. I just don't like the parts where I am scripted to fail, and I further don't like that those parts ultimately don't matter. Whatever, ignore my whining. This is a great game."