XboxEra Community Game of the Year 2022 - VOTING THREAD!

My top 10 for 2022 -

  1. God of War Ragnarok - 9.5/10
  2. Dying Light 2: Stay Human - 9.0/10
  3. Horizon Forbidden West - 9.0/10
  4. A Plague Tale Requiem - 8.5/10
  5. Steel Rising - 8.5/10
  6. Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands - 8.0/10
  7. The Callisto Protocol - 8.0/10
  8. Evil West - 7.5/10
  9. Gotham Knights - 7.0/10
  10. Saints Row - 7.0/10

Excluding God of War Ragnarok and Horizon Forbidden West which were played and completed on PlayStation 5, all the other games were played and completed on Xbox Series X.

EDIT: Forgot the ongoing/live service games -

  1. Tom Clancy’s The Division 2 - 9.0/10
  2. Dying Light 2: Stay Human - 9.0/10
  3. Outriders - 8.5/10
4 Likes

Does Persona 5 Royale count ? Cause that would be my #1 lol.

1 Like
  1. Sniper Elite 5: For my money the Sniper Elite series continue to be one of the most underappreciated franchises out there. I love the stealthy sandboxy gameplay, how it rewards you for being patient, and the fact that it’s one of the few series that continues to allow you to play through the campaign in co-op mode. It also doesn’t hurt that it’s beautiful to look at, or as I wrote back in July:

Just started the last mission, Rubble and Ruin, and let me just say, this level is breathtaking. Just the ambiance created by the smoke, darkness, bombed out buildings, and atmospheric music is enough to make you realize you’re playing something special.

But then when you reach the trees on fire, with glowing embers blowing in the wind… Hands down the most beautiful game I’ve played this year.

After spending 72 hours completing the campaign in single player, and another dozen messing around in co-op, I don’t hesitate even a little bit in declaring this my Game of the Year.

  1. Return to Monkey Island: This is a fantastic return to form for this series. I loved every minute of it. It’s basically a case study in the perfect way to pull off a satisfying legasequel. By doing some fanservice to longtime players, and keeping the mood and feel the same as the originals, but also by creating a new engaging story with some gameplay innovations thrown in for good measure. Excellent stuff.

  2. Tinykin: Puzzle platforming done right. The only game this year I got 1000 achievement points in, even though some of them are a bit grindy. It’s just so much fun that the grind didn’t matter.

  3. Norco

  4. Pentiment

  5. Deathloop

  6. High on Life

  7. Turnip Boy Commits Tax Evasion

  8. Tunic

  9. Immortality

Ongoing:

  1. No Man’s Sky
6 Likes

Nope.

2 Likes

Top Ten

  1. Elden Ring - 10.0 /10.0 - I know the game isn’t perfect. The UI isn’t great and some of the graphics (faces) look straight out of the Xbox 360 era. But no other game has grabbed me like this one in a long time. Between the art design, the exploration, the atmosphere, and the combat this was just an incredible experience. This was also my first Souls-like, so that may be affecting my perception a bit.
  2. Vampire Survivors - 9.75/10.0 - Pure gaming crack. I only docked it a quarter point so it would come in second, but this game is basically perfect for what it is.
  3. Chained Echoes - 9.25/10.0 - Excellent throw back turn based rpg with some cool new mechanics.
  4. Pentiment - 9.0/10.0 - Josh Sawyer don’t miss…
  5. A Plague Tale Requiem - 8.75/10.0 - The Rats of Us Part 2.
  6. God of War Ragnarok - 8.5/10.0 - Great game, but lots of little (and a couple of big) issues knocked it out of my top 5.
  7. Tinykin - 8.25/10.0
  8. Nobody Saves the World - 8.25/10
  9. Horizon: Forbidden West - 8.0/10.0
  10. As Dusk Falls - 8.0/10.0

Best Ongoing Games:

  1. Forza Horizon 5
  2. Sea of Thieves
  3. Halo Infinite
4 Likes
  1. Sniper Elite 5 - playing through the dlc levels the last couple days and really remembering how great this was. Absolutely had some things that I wish they had done more like the previous game, but overall it’s a great package and reminds me of the Hitman games in some ways as well. Having a vehicle explode right next to me made me jump a bit, and while I see some stuff like rain splashing across a tree texture that’s out of place or people walking and warping through trucks, there’s nothing else like this.
  2. Plague Tale Requiem - I absolutely love this game, which is odd because I couldn’t get past the first few minutes of the original. Great story and made me care about the characters. Had a few rough issues with camera angles, not allowing you to do certain things that seemed obvious and a fight toward the end and class of enemy that felt very unfair, but still was a great experience.
  3. Tinykin - wasn’t planning to play this one but checked it out after seeing some of the comments from others here, and it didn’t disappoint. Great fun little world, and it just hit the spot.
  4. As Dusk Falls - my biggest complaint with this game is how hard it is to get my other players together to play it. It’s a great first title from a talented studio and I’m excited to see what else they do. Also great seeing that the director and I think studio head was at the game awards sitting next to Phil S and Sarah B.
  5. Lego Star Wars - I had this pre-ordered for 2? years and it was worth the wait.
  6. Pentiment - the reason this is not higher on the list is because I haven’t had more time to play it. But can tell it’s a favorite experience for me so far, if anything it might have a little bit too much going on, too many places to see and conversations to have since I know I’m going to probably play it a few times.
  7. Nobody Saves the World - not really something that I was expecting but had a great time with this and need to get around to the dlc.
  8. Tunic
  9. Two Point Campus
  10. Vampire Survivors

Best ongoing:

  1. Forza Horizon 5 - new content every month, new story stuff every couple or three, and adding songs from the old games was awesome as well. If they’d bump the garage limit I’d be happier but still great. Forza Horizon 1 and Forza 4 are why I got into Xbox in the first place, and I still love this even now that the creative director is working on Fable.
  2. Halo Infinite - for all the hate this gets, I’ve had a blast. They’re working on more consistent content drops which is my biggest comment on it, so I don’t have any real gripes.
  3. Minecraft - this game just keeps getting new stuff, it always deserves a place on the list!

Honorable Mentions (aka ports)

  • Deathloop - wasn’t expecting to like this much, but it’s been great.
  • Turnip Boy Commits Tax Evasion - this pc port was awesome, had a ton of random pokes at real world stuff and just was off the walls. Can’t wait for the sequel!
  • The Pedestrian - really cool game with a lot more to it than I expected
  • Zero Escape: The Nonary Games - I had to be talked into this but really enjoyed it. Still need to finish up VLR.
5 Likes

1.Elden Ring

2.Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles SR

3.God Of War Ragnarok

4.Gotham Knights

5.Nobody Saves the World

6.Horizon FW

7.Grounded

8.Stranger Of Paradise Final Fantasy Origin

9.Thymesia

10.Tinykin

1 Like

I’ll see if I can knock out a few more games from 2022 first before I put my list in.

I didn’t play many new games last year.

  1. As Dusk Falls
  2. Kirby and the Forgotten Land
  3. Overwatch 2

Ongoing games

  1. Halo Infinite
  2. Sea of Thieves

I would put CSGO and Rocket league as 1 & 2 but I imagine they wouldn’t count as having “significant updates”

2 Likes
  1. Return to Monkey Island - I waited 25 years for the next entry in one of my favorite video game series, a long time to get disappointed. But i got everything i wanted. Thanks Ron Gilbert and Co.
  2. Tunic
  3. Pentiment
  4. Norco
  5. A Plague Tale: Requiem
  6. Kirby and the Forgotten Land
  7. Turnip Boy Commits Tax Evasion
  8. Signalis
  9. Vampire Survivors
  10. Paradise Killer

Ongoing Game 1: Forza Horizon 5

2 Likes

I think there should be a rule change to ports since these games are new to the Xbox ecosystem. Every year I can’t include so many games in my Xboxera GOTY list because of this rule. In fact my real GOTY are never mentioned because of this rule and i end up choosing games I liked but didn’t love for my top 5-10. For example. 2020 I’d pick Yakuza 0, 2021 Dragon Quest Builders 2 and 2022 Persona 5 Royal.

This year the only 2022 game i played and beat and loved was Elden Ring so I can’t really contribute since so many games that i played and loved this year were ports that came to Xbox for the first time in 2022, Danganronpa, nonary games, persona 5 and so on.

5 Likes
  1. Elden Ring

  2. Tunic

  3. Vampire Survivors

  4. Pentiment

  5. Citizen Sleeper

  6. OlliOlli World

  7. Tinykin

  8. As Dusk Falls

  9. Nobody Saves the World

  10. Beacon Pines

  11. TMNT Shredder’s Revenge

  12. Rogue Legacy 2

  13. Arcade Paradise

  14. God of War: Ragnarok

  15. Xenoblade Chronicles 3

***13 Sentinels Aegis Rim would be high up if ports were ok.

1 Like
  1. Marvel Midnight Suns
  2. Vampire Survivors
  3. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2
  4. Need for Speed Unbound
  5. Sniper Elite 5
  6. Football Manager 23
  7. MLB The Show 22

Ongoing game : Slay The Spire

Noticed earlier that SotS again was my most played game of the year with 200+ hours.

Guess 2022 was not a great gaming year for me as I couldn’t even think of 10 games I liked. The other 22 releases I played have too many issues to be in a GOTY list.

3 Likes

Agreed. Especially since Deathloop is included in the Staff Top 10 list, and several staff also included older games in their individual picks. Even 1997’s Blade Runner made one list.

I’m assuming those lists aren’t included in this community award, so I guess in that sense it doesn’t matter, but I just don’t understand this discrepancy of logic.

4 Likes

I think the message is clear. Let’s allow ports.

9 Likes

1. Elden Ring - Really not much more I can say about Elden Ring that already hasn’t been said a million times before. It’s just spectacular. Dark Souls in an open world, filled to the brim with secrets/mystery and has the most Satisfying combat. It’s how I imagined a gritty Zelda game would look like when I was younger

2. Persona 5 - I’ve literally been asking for Persona on Xbox for multiple years and now we can all experience it. Live your teenage fantasy of chasing cake and becoming a master thief to destroy the demented minds of Tokyo. Steal treasure and change hearts.

3. Grounded - Most underrated survival game. Tiny people in a big world combined with scavenging for resources and bug parts… It’s the perfect combination and I’m surprised no one else thought about it before.

4. Tiny Kin - Hands down the best platformer I’ve played in decades. I’m starting to realise I’m a big fan of Tiny people in a big world concept. Very unique art style combining 3D world with 2D characters that just works. Platforming that feels buttery smooth that allows you to actually enjoy finding every little collectible.

5. Shadowrun Trilogy - I love the cyberpunk theme and tried for years to pull myself away from Xbox and go and play Shadowrun on Steam. Never happened. So I was chuffed when they announced the trilogy for Xbox. Oh boy! Did I get hooked on these. Amazing world and lore. Each game having its own take on a futuristic beaten down city. Simple but effective Turn-based tactical RPG combat that had me looking for more games that play similarly.

6. Vampire Survivors - Kill demons. Collect gems. Become a god. Old school arcade gaming where you’re the bullet hell. Proves gameplay is king no matter how simple it is. Lizard brain active!

7. Signalis - As someone who grew up with PS1 and playing every Survival horror game I could get my hands on (even though I was probably too young) I find myself with a real nostalgia thirst for the PS1. Signalis kinda has a mash of 3 big titles from that gen. The perspective of MGS, The enemies of Silent Hill, And the game play of Resident Evil.

8. High On Life - A Very polarising game as most comedy is hit or miss depending on your taste. I’ve only ever watched one episode of Rick & Morty but ever since they unveiled the trailer for High On Life, I knew it would be my jam. Funny, really eye popping art style and gameplay that is reminiscent of old school shooters without all the fat of an open world game.

9. Dying Light 2 - Honestly, it’s more of the same. But that isn’t always a bad thing when the game play loop is still as fun as the original. Looks stunning too.

10. Tunic - When I first played Tunic it really didn’t click with me and I was so disappointed since action adventure games are one of my favourite genres. It finally clicked when I started playing it in small chunks on my Steam Deck. A good mix between FEZ with its obtuse puzzles and game play of a Zelda game. Collecting the pages from the game manual to figure out what was going on was very unique.

Ongoing game: Halo Infinite.

4 Likes

I didn’t play many new games this year as evidenced by all of my posts to the “What are you playing?” thread. So here is my top 3:

  1. Shovel Knight Dig

    • I never played the original Shovel Knight game (nor will I), so I took this game as an opportunity to try out this beloved franchise. Dig is a very hard game that I haven’t beaten yet. I’m not even sure that I can beat it, but I’m glad to now understand why people love Shovel Knight. For whatever reason, I cannot overcome 2D games that are very difficult (the only exceptions being Metroid Dread and Hades).
  2. Mario Rabbids Sparks of Hope

    • I’m still conflicted on whether or not the first game is better than this sequel, but it’s still great. The open-area world design is weaker than the first game’s more linear design. I also think the grid system may have been better than the new free-form movement for a number of reasons that I won’t bother typing out now. Still, the gameplay is fantastic.
  3. Kirby and The Forgotten Land

    • I do think a lot of Nintendo fans are overrating this game, but it’s still a charming and engaging experience. People praise the endgame, but I really disliked it. For those who don’t know, the endgame has you repeat a bunch of segments from old levels with a terrible colored filter overlaid on your screen. For a game that encourages you to replay levels during your regular playthrough, having the endgame make me replay parts of these levels again was terrible.

I also played a good chuck of Horizon FW, but I really disliked it. It’s way better than HZD but still pretty boring. I truly don’t understand the love for these games (and yeah I realize I’m being very negative about a PS game on an Xbox forum…). Therefore, I am not including HFW in my list.

I have nothing for best ongoing game since I am struggling to find any motivation to play Halo Infinite. I loved Forge and the Custom Games Browser in Halo 5, so maybe I’ll make a real effort to get back into Halo this year.

2 Likes

What’s the justification for Slay the Spire being an “ongoing” game? I absolutely love the game, so I also want to vote for it if it’s eligible.

Hmmm, might be me misreading it. Ongoing game for me is an older game that I still play. Think I said SotS last year too. :slight_smile:

1 Like

Honestly this year was one of the weakest years in gaming. For several reasons in fact. I did way more social activities and played a tone board games.

But during my exam phase I played a game the stuck in my mind very heavily.

  1. Far Changing Tides

I played the first part before and was intrigued. I saw that the second part is in gamepass and it was the perfect chill and small game I needed that time. First of all stellar soundtrack. It immediately landed in my study :arrow_forward: list and I still listen to it. I absolutely loved the setting. Post environmental changed world and water in a post apocalypse. Interesting gameplay. Gorgeous artstyle and lovely effects and 2D camera work makes this my goty.

  1. Xenoblade Chronicles 3

While a disappointment still a great game but the story for me was a total failure and I am sad my most anticipated game of the year was such a disappointment.

  1. Danganronpa

Completed it with my girlfriend was a neat experience we had a lot fun finding the clues and solving the mystery

  1. Vampire Survivors

Yeah that is my list…

I suspect Grounded and High on Life would’ve been on here but neither I completed in time and A plague tale requiem is another disappointment :disappointed:

Ongoing:

  1. Sea of Thieves

Favorite game of all time nothing to add.

  1. Halo Infinite

Still a very fun shooter I wish the br would get nerved rank is not fun. Game needs desperately new/more weapons.

Instead here is a list of my favorite board games of the year I played last year :stuck_out_tongue:

  1. Terraforming Mars

  2. Barrage

  3. The Crew

  4. Feed the Kraken

  5. Everdell

  6. Underwater Cities

Yes Elden Ring is missing I literally had not the patience to complete it but played about 20 hours was great! On the other side this year looks very very promising!

4 Likes