2025 games tierlist

I was going to do this during a stream but decided to just write about it instead. Behold, my tierlist of games I played/completed in 2025 (okay, so I didn't complete a couple of them but close enough).

S Tier

Outer Wilds + DLC
I think I have to consider Outer Wilds my undisputed game of 2025. I spent several months playing it on stream, my total playtime hovering around 80 hours by the end of the playthrough (including the DLC). I think I started in in August and finished in December? That's a huge chunk of my year dedicated to this game.

The first time I ever heard about it was back when I was working at one of my retail jobs. A friend (who I met through Twitch and got me that job, actually), was giving me game recs and told me Outer Wilds was his favorite game and I had to give it a try (but DON'T buy Outer Worlds, he told me, which I promptly went home and did, misremembering the W-word he had told me was the correct one).

Back then (I think this must have been in 2021 or 2020), I booted up the game and tried to figure out what the heck was going on for a few hours but ultimately gave up until I decided to attempt it on stream several years later. And I'm really glad I did!

Another thing I did (which I don't recommend to anyone) was only play it once a week, since it was my Sunday game during my EU-friendly timeslot on stream. I'd play for around 4-5 hours once a week, using the first hour of that to try and remember what the heck I had been doing the previous week. If you decide to play this game you might not want to take large breaks.

That schedule definitely contributed to what I consider to be an egregiously long playthrough (people tell me it's fine but I can't help but compare my time to the 28 hour average on Howlongtobeat).

Really, though, there's nothing wrong with how I played it. The game itself is an experience, and I honestly don't know if would have ever beaten it if I hadn't streamed it. Chat helped me progress when I was stuck by giving hints that weren't TOO hinty, and celebrated with me at every turn and head-bangingly frustrating puzzle I solved. I have never played a game like it -- because there are none like it -- but I don't have a ton of experience with puzzles games, either, so it was a very novel experience in too many ways to list.

I would recommend this game to everyone, honestly, and if you can't get into it, that's fine. It's not for everyone, but if you manage to get into it, I think it might be one of the most rewarding and unique gaming experiences you'll ever have.

Kirby's Dream Land 2

I had this game for my Gameboy as a kid and remember never getting past the 2nd-or-so world. This June 2025 playthrough was much more enjoyable, what with my adult platforming (and ex-speedrunner) skills. I think it took an afternoon or two to play through and it was immensely enjoyable. Really, the most fun I've had platforming in a long time, I want to say? I played it directly after Kirby's Adventure, and while that game is also really really good, I did rate Kirby's Dream Land 2 slightly higher. The inclusion of the animal buddies (I think everyone knows I'm obsessed with Rick) was an ingenius addition to the series. They help you get past certain obstacles and obtain 100% through special items in every level. You have to use specific animals in specific levels if you want to get the secret items so it was fun figuring all of that out. It's also just interesting to feel how differently the levels play if you go in with a different animal.

Overall it was just a lot of FUN! And the music was cute, and I was really glad to have finally beat (100%ed, no less) one of my childhood games. Nothing not to love.

Donkey Kong 64

Another childhood game I had never beaten. This was my comeback game, the game I rolled back to Twitch for, an itch I had been wanting to scratch for many years. My return to N64 collectathons didn't disappoint. I stil need to 100% it eventaully (I swear I will!), but I managed to get through the K Rool fight (and Lanky phase, most importantly) to the credits, which is good enough for now. Oh yeah, and I beat the stupid DK arcade game, which took forever. I had no idea you HAD to beat that in order to beat the game. God, those were good times, though. Fun streams. The game gets a lot of crap, I feel, but it's a crowd favorite and on a lot of people's favorite childhood games for a reason.

Resident Evil 3

The first RE game I've played with tank controls! I was obsessed with the aesthetic of this game (really, the run-down city vibe was what made me want to play it, also because Jill's a badass but I digress) and the fact that the titular character hunts you down so mercilessly. Really added to the spookiness of the game, which was my Halloween-season stream pick this year. Not sure where I'd rate it compared to other RE games -- I've played RE4 original, RE1R and RE2R. I think it's way up there, maybe even #1. I really liked the tank controls and graphics. Like, the remakes are great, but there's just something about playing an old game like this that really makes me nostalgic, even if I've never played it before. I just really like old games maybe. I really want to play the other OG RE games!

Oh yeah, there were plenty of hilarious moments in these streams, which helped make it such a standout in my mind. I'm not the brightest and when I finally figure something out (or if I just get insanely lucky and oneshot a puzzle without even trying), it's super memorable and enjoyable.

A Tier

Kirby's Adventure

I decided last year that I wanted to play through every Kirby game in the franchise... in order. I only got up to Kirby's Dream Land 2, but whatever. I have time. The second game in the series, Kirby's Adventure, is an NES game I had never played. Thanks to switch online it's very accessible now. I wasn't sure what to expect from this game, having no exposure to anything about it. It was cool seeing the abilities get introduced (they were absent from Kirby's Dream Land, which is more like a demo than anything else). This is where it all started, and it was fun discovering where some of my favorite Kirby abilities originated and how they functioned at the beginning. Really cute and fun game, although in my opinion less cool platforming than Kirby's Dream Land 2. It IS in color, though, which adds a lot... the backgrounds and art design were beautiful for a NES game. Maybe the best looking NES game I've seen. Anyway, it's definitely worth a play. Short and sweet.

Peak