Find all of our "Best of 2025" lists here.
It's been a big year for video games, from couch co-ops to grand, story-driven blockbusters. PBS News Hour's Jeffrey Brown sat down with James Mastromarino, NPR's gaming editor and producer for the show "Here & Now," to talk about the releases that really stood out.
Below, Mastromarino shares his picks.
NARRATIVE DRIVEN GAMES
"Clair Obscur: Expedition 33"
"It's sort of like what you would get if you cross an existentialist novel with a French New Wave film and made it a video game with fantastical characters and this really lovable cast. It really blew me away. It has so many twists and turns and is really trying to tell something that's very heartfelt and compelling."
"Death Stranding 2: On the Beach"
"Its designer, Hideo Kojima, has been making these games that really do feel like playable movies. It even stars Hollywood actors like Norman Reedus and Léa Seydoux and Elle Fanning. So that's a rather ambitious, really far-reaching kind of science fiction game."
MULTIPLAYER / CO-OP GAMES
"Split Fiction"
"A game about two writers that are thrown in this sort of virtual reality space based on their writings, but it's exclusively playable by two people. You have to have a partner. There's no way to play it alone. It's by a studio that specializes in this sort of thing. It blew a lot of people away."
"Mario Kart World"
"As always, Mario Kart's just a great time for families. I can attest to that. I played a ton over the holidays."
PUZZLE / STRATEGY
"Blue Prince"
"So I've really loved a game called 'Blue Prince.' That's like the regal prince, but it's a pun with the sort of draft plans that you'd have for a house because the way it works is that you explore a mansion, building it room by room and exploring its secrets as you go."
"Strange Antiquities"
"And then there's another one called 'Strange Antiquities,' where you run an antiquary shop. And of course there's some sort of occult malfeasance going on behind the scenes. It's great. I can't recommend it enough."