We’re hot off the heels of The Game Awards 2025, and BAFTA’s 2026 Games Awards longlist reveal — that means awards season is in full swing! As such, there’s no better time than now to herald the year’s biggest hits from both AAA and independent studios. It’s been a year full of price hike announcements, world premieres, brand showcases, console launches, fumbled fiscal quarters, and unstoppable indie underdogs, among other headlines. Revolutionary new IPs, remasters, remakes, re-releases — gamers around the world have had to keep a keen eye on their jam-packed industry calendars since the year began.
Requesting players to pick their favorite games is a big ask, but some releases did stand out from the rest. Staff at Outrun Gaming put our heads together to name what we believe are the best video games of 2025. Here are our favorite releases from this year, listed in alphabetical order alongside praise from staff:
Absolum
DEVELOPER: Supermonks; Guard Crush
PUBLISHER: Dotemu
RELEASE DATE: October 9, 2025
METACRITIC SCORE: 86 / 100
“Absolum feels like a mix of Hades and Golden Axe in the best way possible. Dotemu once again publishes a brilliant beat-’em-up that feels like part of a broader genre evolution. Play as one of four rebel fighters trying to stop the Sun King Azra as he works to contain and control an interdimensional being known as Absolum. You will punch, slash, and use magic to defeat foes and ultimately make it to the stronghold. With insurmountable odds stacked against you, will the heroes prevail? That’s up to you — and a possible co-op friend — to find out.”
The Alters
DEVELOPER/PUBLISHER: 11 Bit Studios
RELEASE DATE: June 13, 2025
METACRITIC SCORE: 85 / 100
“Do you ever dwell on the past, thinking of a particular moment and what you should’ve done during? Do you wish you were a different version of yourself? In The Alters, you get to see just how that would’ve played out — for better or worse. To survive being vaporized by an alien sun, you have to create new versions of yourself, called “Alters.” Fight for survival in space, but sometimes, it’s YOU who’s the enemy.” Check out our review for The Alters here.
BALL x PIT
DEVELOPER: Kenny Sun and Friends
PUBLISHER: Devolver Digital
RELEASE DATE: October 15, 2025
METACRITIC SCORE: 84 / 100
“2025 was already a big year for roguelites, and Ball x Pit‘s no exception. Forget what you know about your parents’ brick-breakers from the 70s, like Breakout. Ball x Pit incorporates base-building and survival elements that turn the classic genre upside-down.”
Blue Prince
DEVELOPER: Dogubomb
PUBLISHER: Raw Fury
RELEASE DATE: April 10, 2025
METACRITIC SCORE: 92 / 100
“You inherit Mt. Holly Estate after your uncle passes, but you must locate and enter the hidden 46th room,” OG writer Mikey Yaden explains. “That’s hard enough, but at Mt. Holly, the internal layout changes every day. Map the building’s layout using random blueprints to make it to the 46th room, but who knows what other mysteries you will discover along the way…” Read our Blue Prince review here.
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
DEVELOPER: Sandfall Interactive
PUBLISHER: Kepler Interactive
RELEASE DATE: April 24, 2025
METACRITIC SCORE: 92 / 100
“More than just the game of the year,” writes OG’s Jake Valentine, “Expedition 33 is the game of an era. It fires on all cylinders: gameplay, visuals, story, characters, soundtrack, you name it. In an era where turn-based combat is getting left behind, Expedition 33 not only proves it belongs, but that it can thrive. It exceeds the hype.”
Date Everything!
DEVELOPER: Sassy Chap Games
PUBLISHER: Team17
RELEASE DATE: June 17, 2025
METACRITIC SCORE: 78 / 100
“Possibly the best dating sim ever made,” says graphic designer Kayla Yaden. “My friends have to hide their lamps and record players when I come over, or I might leave with a new boo!” Read our full review of Date Everything! here.
Death Stranding 2: On The Beach
DEVELOPER: Kojima Productions
PUBLISHER: Sony Interactive Entertainment
RELEASE DATE: June 26, 2025
METACRITIC SCORE: 89 / 100
“Walking sim wisecracks aside, Death Stranding 2: On The Beach is an ambitious cinematic experience that competes with — and sometimes eclipses — its predecessor.”
Digimon Story: Time Stranger
DEVELOPER: Media.Vision
PUBLISHER: Bandai Namco Entertainment
RELEASE DATE: October 2, 2025
METACRITIC SCORE: 78 / 100
“Digimon Story: Time Stranger is the Pokémon game you’ve always wanted. Players are sent back in time to uncover the cause of a disaster, and with over 450 Digimon to help you dominate 3v3 turn-based battles, players can tailor their party of digital monsters to their liking. Raise and digivolve your Digimon into stronger ones with new looks and improved moves. Enter the past and the digital world, where you’ll discover new mysteries and friends along the way. Saving the past is the key to saving your future!”
Dispatch
DEVELOPER/PUBLISHER: AdHoc Studio
RELEASE DATE: October 22, 2025
METACRITIC SCORE: 89 / 100
“Impossible to put down! I haven’t grown to love a gang of unlikely heroes this quickly since the first Guardians of the Galaxy movie. I would do unspeakable things to get my hands on the next chapters.” Read our Dispatch review here.
Donkey Kong Bananza
DEVELOPER/PUBLISHER: Nintendo
RELEASE DATE: July 17, 2025
METACRITIC SCORE: 91 / 100
“A masterclass in 3D platforming, worldbuilding, and storytelling,” says staffer Stephanie Valentine. “Explosive demolition mechanics, heartstring-tugging character arcs, vast multifaceted stages, a user-friendly Photo Mode —DK and Pauline can monkey around with the best of ’em. Bananza is the Nintendo Switch 2 killer app, NOT Mario Kart World.”
Expelled!
DEVELOPER/PUBLISHER: Inkle
RELEASE DATE: March 12, 2025
METACRITIC SCORE: 82 / 100
“Expelled!, a visual novel-slash-whodunnit, is perfect for players who’ve savescummed just to do something wild and see what happens. You’re a young learner from a working-class family attending a snooty boarding school. When a peer falls from a window, all eyes are on YOU. Can you prove your innocence? Should you? Do you even want to?” Check out our review for Expelled! here
Hades II
DEVELOPER/PUBLISHER: Supergiant Games
RELEASE DATE: September 25, 2025
METACRITIC SCORE: 95 / 100 🏆
“A truly tremendous tour de force in roguelike role-playing from Supergiant Games. Hades II‘s complex combat and replayability will bring you back for more time and time again.”
Hollow Knight: Silksong
DEVELOPER/PUBLISHER: Team Cherry
RELEASE DATE: September 4, 2025
METACRITIC SCORE: 90 / 100
“Hollow Knight: Silksong already had one of the most-hyped game releases of the 21st century, but it’s also a prime example of how human creativity and craftsmanship will never go out of style.”
Is This Seat Taken?
DEVELOPER: Poti Poti Studio
PUBLISHER: Wholesome Games
RELEASE DATE: February 10, 2025
METACRITIC SCORE: 79 / 100
“One of the best puzzle games I’ve played in years. A shape-sorting game doesn’t seem like much of a thinker, but even the most strategic, seasoned puzzle pros may need a second try. Is This Seat Taken? is adorable and non-committal, but that doesn’t mean these tricky stages pull any punches. Poti Poti and Wholesome Games did their big one with this bad boy.”
Kingdom Come: Deliverance II
DEVELOPER: Warhorse Studios
PUBLISHER: Deep Silver
RELEASE DATE: February 4, 2025
METACRITIC SCORE: 88 / 100
“2025 was undoubtedly The Year of the Indie Game, but it was also a big year for sequels. Kingdom Come: Deliverance II is a masterful role-playing game that hits all the right notes.”
Kirby Air Riders
DEVELOPER: Masahiro Sakurai, BANDAI NAMCO Studios, Sora Ltd., HAL Laboratory
PUBLISHER: Nintendo
RELEASE DATE: November 20, 2025
METACRITIC SCORE: 80 / 100
“I didn’t expect the return of a classic GameCube game to become the year’s best racing game. Then again, I shouldn’t have doubted Masahiro Sakurai. I expected the chaos and fun that the original Kirby Air Ride delivers, but Riders‘ depth blew me away. There’s so much to collect, every game mode is a blast, and its online features have us playing this over Mario Kart World.”
Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii
DEVELOPER: Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio
PUBLISHER: SEGA
RELEASE DATE: February 21. 2025
METACRITIC SCORE: 79 / 100
“Franchise antihero Goro Majima is already a wild card, but in Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii, the Mad Dog of Shimano gets his sea legs and goes full swashbuckler. Spectacular localization, witty writing, and zany side quests make Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii a worthwhile extension of the Like a Dragon universe.” Read our review for Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii here.
Lumines Arise
DEVELOPER: Enhance Games; Monstars Inc.
PUBLISHER: Enhance Games
RELEASE DATE: November 11, 2025
METACRITIC SCORE: 87 / 100
“One of the best puzzle games of all time is now even better. The core gameplay remains the same, but if it ain’t broke, why fix it? Lumines Arise stimulates the mind, body, and soul.”
Marvel Cosmic Invasion
DEVELOPER: Tribute Games
PUBLISHER: Dotemu; Gamera Games
RELEASE DATE: December 1, 2025
METACRITIC SCORE: 81 / 100
“Marvel Cosmic Invasion is pixel-art perfection, the kind we’ve come to expect from Tribute Games. Recognizable faces and vivid visuals pull you in, but the game’s ability to fuse nostalgic arcade-y elements with contemporary mechanics makes Marvel Cosmic Invasion one for the memory banks.”
Megabonk
DEVELOPER/PUBLISHER: Vedinad
RELEASE DATE: February 21, 2025
METACRITIC SCORE: TBD
“It’s easy to dismiss Megabonk as a Vampire Survivors clone, but the truth is far more complex. Combining gameplay reminiscent of 3D platforming with auto-shooter hallmarks we know and love results in one of the most addictive games of the year. Its humor and personality are the icing on the cake.”
Neon Inferno
DEVELOPER: Zenovia Interactive
PUBLISHER: Retroware
RELEASE DATE: November 20, 2025
METACRITIC SCORE: 80 / 100
“Cyberpunk run-‘n-gun sidescroller? Sold. The action doesn’t stop, and neither will you. Up the ante even further by adding a Player 2.” Read our review for Retroware’s Neon Inferno here.
Ninja Gaiden 4
DEVELOPER: Team Ninja; PlatinumGames
PUBLISHER: Xbox Game Studios
RELEASE DATE: October 20, 2025
METACRITIC SCORE: 82 / 100
“The return of the iconic action franchise proves that Ninja Gaiden still holds up in the Soulslike era. Team Ninja and PlatinumGames’ team-up is a match made in heaven. Ninja Gaiden 4 is fast, addictive, and challenging as ever. Here’s to hoping we won’t have to wait over a decade for the next one.”
Once Upon a Katamari
DEVELOPER: RENGAME
PUBLISHER: Bandai Namco Entertainment
RELEASE DATE: October 24, 2025
METACRITIC SCORE: 79 / 100
“Players push and pull their Katamari through time itself inOnce Upon a Katamari. New stages with classic mechanics — it feels like WE’RE being pushed and pulled through time, too.”
Split Fiction
DEVELOPER: Hazelight Studios
PUBLISHER: Electronic Arts
RELEASE DATE: March 6, 2025
METACRITIC SCORE: 91 / 100
“No matter what genre or style of game you love, Split Fiction has something for you. It scratched my ADHD brain just right.”
Silent Hill f
DEVELOPER: NeoBards Entertainment
PUBLISHER: Konami Digital Entertainment
RELEASE DATE: September 25, 2025
METACRITIC SCORE: 86 / 100
“Hinkako is a powerhouse, fearlessly swinging her lead pipe at every grotesque creature in her path to save her friends and the town. We could all learn something from her.”
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