Despite the global pandemic, I had even less time to play games in 2020 than in 2019 — and a significant amount of the time I did have was spent playing old JRPGs. There were a lot of games with the potential to have made this list if only I’d had time to play them, including: Ghost of Tsushima, The Last of Us Part II and Hades.

All that said, here are my top 5 for 2020:

  1. Death Stranding (PC)
  2. Half-Life: Alyx (PC)
  3. Final Fantasy VII: Remake (PS4)
  4. Cyberpunk 2077 (PC)
  5. Star Renegades (Xbox Game Pass for PC)

Death Stranding

Although Death Stranding released on PS4 at the end of 2019, a PC version released on Steam in 2020. Waiting for the PC release brought two unexpected extras: 1) Half-Life tie-in quests; and 2) the pandemic. There was something extra special about making deliveries to folks who are sheltering in place because of an invisible threat that may wipe out humanity…

Hideo Kojima has said that this game is the first of a new “strand” genre, which I think is a bit of a stretch. The game’s cooperative elements — like building roads and bridges, or making deliveries on behalf of other players — are an evolution of the blood stains and notes you might find in a Souls game, and everything else we’ve seen before in Metal Gear. But the fact that all these old mechanics can be weaved together so expertly to create something that nonetheless feels new is worthy of praise.

Half-Life: Alyx

Half-Life: Alyx is the only game I have played that justifies owning a VR headset. It’s also the only VR game that I’ve found so engrossing that I’ve punched the ceiling, tripped over my cat, and employed my wife as an “Am I still facing the TV?” sensor. Coincidence?

Unlike other games where VR feels like a gimmick, it’s clear from the outset (and reinforced by the brilliant developer commentary) that everything in Alyx has been carefully designed around VR to enhance the experience. Reloading, for example, often requires several manual steps: 1) eject the magazine; 2) reach over your back to get a new magazine; 3) insert the magazine into your gun; and finally, 4) chamber a round by pulling back the slide. The decision to make this more complicated than a single button press really pays off, and fumbling around trying to reload when zombies are charging for you proves a highly effective way to increase tension.

I had several technical problems while playing the game, which made some sections frustrating. But none of these issues are really Valve’s fault: my rig is too old, my space is too small and the tracking on my Rift breaks if I turn around. I suspect that if I’d been using a more modern VR setup (such as a Valve Index), Alyx may have taken the number 1 spot this year.

Final Fantasy VII: Remake

I’ve played the original Final Fantasy VII dozens of times (including without using materia), so it was highly likely that the remake would show up somewhere on this year’s list. I’m as surprised as anybody that it only made number 3.

More a reimagining than a remake, the result is… confusing. Expanding the Midgar section of the original into a full-length game is mostly achieved through new fetch quests and mini-games, with some unexpected narrative changes thrown in. The fact that a remake of a 20 year old game can still surprise is truly impressive, but I’m scared for the series’ future — the stories of Final Fantasy XV and Kingdom Hearts III are completely incomprehensible, and if Tetsuya Nomura has proven anything lately it’s that he loves retroactive continuity.

There are two things that save Final Fantasy VII: Remake, and earn it a spot on this list. First, it’s genuinely a lot of fun to play. The battle system combines elements of the old turn-based active-time-battle (ATB) system with a more modern action RPG system, and each of the playable characters now has their own skills in addition to materia-derived abilities. Second, it’s beautiful, and I’d underestimated just how much enjoyment I’d derive simply from wandering around Midgar and spending more time with Aerith.

Cyberpunk 2077

An unwritten rule for my GOTY is that I must have finished it. For Cyberpunk 2077, I’m willing to make an exception. Is it buggy? Yes. Can it be frustrating? Yes. Are most of the missions people trying to sell you cars? Definitely. But since its release a few weeks ago I haven’t been able to stop playing it.

Comparisons to The Witcher 3 are inevitable, but perhaps unfair. It feels and plays much more like a combination of Deus Ex and Fallout: everything is first-person, there are multiple ways to meet objectives (guarded by skill checks, of course), and the game is littered with junk for you to collect and carry around for no reason. The main difference is that 2077 has a more interesting story, and side quests featuring characters you might care about.

The state of the game on previous generation consoles is embarrassing, but beyond that I get the impression that many people just want to jump on the “It’s so bad I want my money back” bandwagon. I’m confident that Projekt Red can fix the issues (given sufficient time) and that people will eventually realize that the game is actually very good.

In the meantime, I’m about 30 hours in and enjoying the flexibility of the character attributes and perks system. If you need a ninja with cybernetic blades in his arms, who is also a dab hand at hacking and shooting through walls — I’m your man.

Star Renegades

Finally, we come to Star Renegades, another game that I haven’t finished (but almost did once).

Renegades is a roguelite based around a deterministic turn-based battle system — you can see your opponents’ actions before you select yours, and can predict things like turn order and exactly how much damage each combatant will deal or take. This makes every battle strategic (and stressful); simply mashing “Attack” won’t get you anywhere, but agonizing over every turn will.

My only issue with Renegades is that in my experience, the default party seems to be the best one. I made it to the final boss on my very first run, and haven’t been able to replicate that success using any other combination of party members and equipment. The developers have added some new classes and planets since then, though — and have promised that more updates are coming — so I expect to drop into the game a few more times in 2021.