Favorite Games From Previous Years we Enjoyed in 2025

Following our tradition from last year, the writers of Netto's Game Room have once again looked back on all the games they've played in 2025, and chosen their favorite "Games of the Year." However, not every game we played released in 2025, so we wanted to once again give a little shout-out to our favorites from years gone by, that we actually took the time to play through this year—be that for the first time, or simply a return to an old favorite. 

Here is what everyone had to say.

Ben: FUGA: Melodies of Steel

FUGA: Melodies of Steel is a title I completely ignored when it first came out. Being a fan of CyberConnect2’s work, I was aware of the Little Tail Bronx series—which began on the original PlayStation—but I never truly gave it a chance. For me, it was more about .hack, and eventually Naruto Ultimate Ninja Storm. Well, this year, between playing games to review for the site, I decided to take a little break to do something else. FUGA was on sale, I had an extra long Holiday weekend, and I figured it was as good of a time as any to finally check it out.

And I do not regret it one bit!

FUGA was not just an enjoyable tactical RPG experience from start to finish, but it has actually become one of my all time favorite games in general. The story was interesting and had me hooked, the threat of losing a party member at any time due to my own incompetence kept tensions high, and trying out different combinations of party members and skills helped keep things fresh. No one single strategy would work the entire time, so you constantly have to adapt to make it through to the end. The game also presented multiple routes, with the more challenging ones offering better rewards, but sometimes you had to make the call to take the safer path simply because you won't survive the other.

By the end I found myself restarting and going through the game a second time—something I rarely do with titles I finish. I had actually managed to achieve the best ending the first time through, so I didn’t have too much of a reason to restart, but I enjoyed my time so much I simply had to go back and get the Platinum Trophy—and that is exactly what I did.

I already said this in my own review (a review I never planned on writing), but it is a title I really feel everyone should at least give a chance, and I’m still looking forward to the day I have the chance to play the (currently) two sequels.

Jonsku: Kingdom Hearts Final Mix

For the past few years now the triple A scene for gaming has been . . . Let’s say “shaky” at best, fairly unoptimised games, too many of them trying to squeeze every single penny out of you with battle passes and microtransactions even in single player games, and trying to preach American politics to you instead of telling a story. It has become the norm in quite a few triple A’s to undervalue the players actual experience vs profit or ideology.

So I decided to go back to much simpler times and replay a childhood game called Kingdom Hearts, that not too long ago got a proper release on Steam (which has allowed me to play through it using my Steamdeck). 

I am honestly very surprised how well the game holds up in the modern era of gaming in pretty much every aspect. The game looks and sounds great, the gameplay is addictive, it runs well, it has an all star voice cast, and lot’s of hidden depth that makes it fun to master.

What KH1 reminded us is that THIS used to be the standard for triple A gaming back in the day, fully finished games with a lot of passion and time put into them. To some it may be a bit clunky to play, however, it’s a fairly kind learning curve and doesn’t take that long to get used to the controls and movement.

It truly is a shame that Triple A gaming has gone so much backwards in these aspects (obviously not everyone), however, I am glad that we can easily experience this all time classic alongside its more famous sequel. If you enjoy action RPG’s with a bit of a goofy but entertaining story (pun intended), you really should give the series a chance and go in with an open mind, you might find a new and fairly cheap obsession for a good while.

Jeremy: Elden Ring

Jeremy's chosen game is none other than Elden Ring, which he previously reviewed for the site. To quote his final thoughts:

Elden Ring is a fantastic experience from beginning to end. I feel that it is the ideal jumping on point for anyone intrigued by the Souls genre. This game feels like what FromSoftware has been working toward and striving to achieve. While the game doesn't hold your hand, there are vast amounts of resources online for people that are confused or needing assistance. The game itself also tries to provide some features like summons or co-op to give struggling players a leg up. While I don't think Souls games are for everyone, Elden Ring comes the closest to being a Souls game that I think anyone could find some real enjoyment with.

Sagi: Void Stranger

Ah, yes. The ‘deep’ YouTuber’s favorite game of 2023. I finally got to play it this year, and… I honestly have no idea how I am going to talk about it here, because everything I can say about it will be a spoiler.

A spoiler to a game which is best experienced blind, at least on a first playthrough.

Thanks to that, this section will be quite short.

I started playing this game at the tail end of July, right after my dog of thirteen years had to be put down. While I was a crybaby as a kid, I have never cried so much and so hard in my entire life. Void Stranger, a game that tells the story of a chain of tragedies, at its core, is a game about learning to deal with, and accepting, the loss of a loved one.

Void Stranger is cryptic. It’s hard. It asks for some mind-boggling decisions from the player. It’s one where I’m honestly still not sure I’ve gotten everything out of its story.

And it met me at a perfect time in my life, where it was something I needed in order to start healing.

Cat: Rimworld

You can get much more detail on this game in Jonsku’s excellent review of it, but Rimworld has been a favorite of mine since way back in 2017 when I picked it up during early access at a friend’s recommendation. It’s my third most played game ever, and this year didn’t have any shortage of my time put into it.

I was drawn back in with the release of the game’s new Odyssey DLC this July, and as with most of their DLCs, it expands the game in ways that I just cannot do without once I’ve experienced it. Odyssey in particular provides new endgame content, as well as allowing you to build your own ship for your colony.

These DLCs have been coming every year or two for a long time now, and every single one has been great. On top of that, the base game gets massive updates released alongside every DLC, so there’s never a shortage of new content and improvements to existing content. 

It brings me a great deal of joy to see a game I love so much continuing to get so much love from its developer, and I’m sure I’ll be playing it for many, many years to come.