Thoughts About Games

Big Walks, Taken and Not

Novelty, Patience, and Travel Games

Digging Deep in Mina the Hollower

007 First Light and the Politics of Violence

Crimes and Clownery in Titanium Court

Backtracking: Resident Evil 4 (2005)

The Unanswerable Question of Cairn

Unbeatable - Beautiful Distractions

Delusion of Choice - Player Choice in Dread Delusion

Guns, Whips, and Fists in Indiana Jones and the Great Circle

Expedition 33 and Refusing to Let Go

Pacing and Progression in Roguelites

Hades II - The Safety of Sequels

An Ill-Advised Dip in the Poison Swamp

On Silksong and Savoring

PAX West 2025 Recap

The Bananza Never Ends

Best Video Games of 2025

Backtracking: The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape From Butcher Bay (2004)

Backtracking: Billy Hatcher and the Giant Egg (2003)

Backtracking: Fatal Frame (2002)

Backtracking: Max Payne (2001)

Backtracking: Shenmue (2000)

2024 in Review — Video Games

Backtracking: Age of Empires II (1999)

Backtracking: Baldur's Gate (1998)

Backtracking: PaRappa the Rapper (1997)

Backtracking: Tomb Raider (1996)

Backtracking: EarthBound (1995)

Backtracking: System Shock (1994)

Backtracking: Myst (1993)

Backtracking: A Link to the Past (1992)

Game of the Year 2023

GOTY 2023 — #1 Lies of P

GOTY 2023 — #2 Venba

GOTY 2023 — #3 Wildfrost

GOTY 2023 — #4 Hi-Fi Rush

GOTY 2023 — #5 Alan Wake 2

GOTY 2023 — #6 Chants of Sennaar

GOTY 2023 — #7 Infinite Guitars

GOTY 2023 — #8 Metroid Prime Remastered

GOTY 2023 — #9 The Talos Principle 2

GOTY 2023 — #10 COCOON

GOTY 2023 Kickoff

Game of the Year 2022

GOTY 2022 - #1 Citizen Sleeper

GOTY 2022 - #2 Elden Ring

GOTY 2022 - #3 Signalis

GOTY 2022 - #4 Teardown

GOTY 2022 - #5 Norco

GOTY 2022 - #6 Last Call BBS

GOTY 2022 - #7 Tunic

GOTY 2022 - #8 Tinykin

GOTY 2022 - #9 Sephonie

GOTY 2022 - #10 Marvel Snap

GOTY 2022 - Kickoff

Game Of The Year 2021

GOTY 2021: Best Mechanical Gimmick

GOTY 2021: Most Breathtaking Vistas

GOTY 2021: Most Interesting Nostalgic Experience

GOTY 2021: Best Attention Grabber

GOTY 2021: Kickoff

UNSIGHTED is Greater Than the Sum of its Parts

'Sable' Imagines a Different Kind of Open World

Top 5 Games of 2020

GOTY 2020 #1. Umurangi Generation

GOTY 2020 #2. Paradise Killer

GOTY 2020 #3. Blaseball

GOTY 2020 #4. Signs of the Sojourner

GOTY 2020 #5. Hades

Top 5 Games of 2020 - Backlog Edition

Backlog #1. ECHO

Backlog #2. Pathlogic 2

Backlog #3. Disco Elysium

Backlog #4. Diaries of a Spaceport Janitor

Backlog #5. Dragon's Dogma

GOTY 2020 Kickoff

Top 10 Games 2019 - Wrapping Up

Top 10 Games 2019 - #1: Outer Wilds

Top 10 Games 2019 - #2: Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice

Top 10 Games 2019 - #3: Eliza

Top 10 Games 2019 - #4: Control

Top 10 Games 2019 - #6: Untitled Goose Game

Top 10 Games 2019 - #7: A Short Hike

Top 10 Games 2019 - #8: Life is Strange 2

Top 10 Games 2019 – #9: Vision: Soft Reset

Top 10 Games 2019 - #10: Baba is You

Top 10 Games of 2019: Kickoff

The Months Between - Life is Strange 2 and Episodic Content

Humble Beginnings - April 2019

Ashen and the Anatomy of a Soulslike

Paul's Top 10 Games of 2018

The Messenger is a Retro Love Letter with a Modern Touch

Guacamelee! 2 is Too Outrageous for its Own Good

Death's Gambit is an Intriguing 2D Soulslike

Dead Cells Brings Metroidvania Elements to a Roguelike

Chasm is Interesting, but Inconsistent

Into the Breach: Combining Mechanics I Dislike into a Game I Adore

Horizon's DLC Has a Very Good Side Quest

Where the Champions' Ballad DLC Falls Short