The startmenu Awards 2025 | Winter Spectacular 2025
What a season, what a season. Hi folks, Lex Luddy here, startmenu EiC and general layabout nuisance. It’s been quite a year for video games [POSTIVE], and it's been quite a year for the video game industry [NEGATIVE]. Everything is a bit weird these days, and trying to capture all that in a simple Top Ten list or standard awards seems futile, so we here at startmenu are continuing our tradition of making our site-wide awards a bit flexible. Some of these categories are new, some old, some are reworked, and for the first time ever, we did a Discord vote for an OVERALL startmenu Game of the Year.
Basically, things are changing in video games, and these awards are designed to reflect that. They are also designed to reflect that startmenu itself is changing. This year was the first full year of our Patreon running, and we brought the amazing KM Nelson aboard as our Managing Editor and anyone that has worked with her can tell you that she instantly became a fundamental cog in the running of this machine.
We will continue to change and evolve going into the coming year (👀), but that is something to be saved for a different post. For now, enjoy the awards, check out some of the winners and nominees, and here’s to a better 2026.
Best Music - Awarded By KM Nelson
Nominees: Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, Death Stranding 2: On the Beach, Deltarune Chapters 3+4, Donkey Kong Bananza, Fantasy Maiden Wars: DREAM OF THE STRAY DREAMER, Herdling, Hollow Knight: Silksong, Lumines Arise, Mafia: The Old Country, Lost Records: Bloom & Rage, Mario Kart World, Promise Mascot Agency, Skin Deep, South of Midnight, Sword of The Sea, to a T, Unbeatable, Wheel World
It was over for me as soon as I heard the 3:2 polyrhythm trotting along with my herd’s stampede. The rhythm, which crops up periodically throughout Herdling’s soundtrack, defined my experience of the game. The tracks that pair with your runs don’t take speedy tempos — you canter at a comfortable allegro, rather than sprint with abandon — but they moved me all the same.
Herdling’s music has much more to offer than rhythmic momentum. Its orchestration is warm and inviting, prominently featuring instruments like the hulusi, fujara, and kantele. A string orchestra fills wide vistas with stirring melodies. In a game with no dialogue, voiced only by the gentle, guiding whistles of its young protagonist and grunts of the Calicorn herd, the musical performances make an indelible impression, one that I won’t soon forget.
Runners-Up: Hollow Knight: Silksong, Skin Deep
Winner: Herdling
Use Your Brain, Dummy Award - Awarded By Brandon Craw
Nominees: Axyz, Blue Prince, Escape Simulator 2, Horses, Is This Seat Taken, Kinophobia, Lego Voyagers, Lumines Arise, Mind Over Magnet, Silent Hill f, The Séance of Blake Manor, Strange Antiquities
When I think of puzzle games, I imagine staring intensely at a screen to figure out the logic required to unlock a “secret” door that has been taunting me for far too long. Most of the time, what is required to solve an in-game puzzle can be found not too far from the puzzle itself. Maybe every once in a while, I’ll put in some extra thought to connect the dots. Never before did I have to dedicate an entire notebook to a puzzle game, with some puzzles requiring multiple completely filled pages.
Blue Prince, developed by Dogubomb, was the clear winner here. The game was built for this award. Nearly every moment while playing, I thought to myself, “Am I too dumb for this game?” The short answer is: yes, I was too dumb for this game. I made it to Room 46 once, but only encountered a fraction of what Blue Prince had to offer. I had to fight every urge to look up the answer and use every ounce of brainpower just to make it that far. While the game had some repetitive tasks that I could do without, it continuously left me surprised and challenged me every minute I walked through (and outside of) Mount Holly Estate. This game, indeed, made me — a dummy — use my brain.
Runners-up: The Séance of Blake Manor, Escape Simulator 2
Winner: Blue Prince
Best Virtual Hiking - Awarded By Lex Luddy
Nominees: The Alters, Arc Raiders, Assassin’s Creed Shadows, Baby Steps, Death Stranding 2: On the Beach, Ghost of Yōtei, Hollow Knight: Silksong, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild - Nintendo Switch 2 Edition, Peak
This award was going to Death Stranding 2, a game with maybe my favourite “walkin’ around” in any video game, but then I remembered that my big problem with that game (which I scored 5/10), is how little “walkin’ around” you actually do, because you get a truck early on that is objectively just the best way to transport everything.
With that in mind, it left the other games on this list that really gamify movement, Peak and Baby Steps, and while Peak gets points for the systemic story you can end up telling with friends, it's the way that Baby Steps folds in its mechanics into its scripted narrative that gives it the top slot. Rarely does a game that presents so silly, end up having so much to say about perseverance, growing as a person, and just getting up off the floor and going again. The hiking in Baby Steps may be the most frustrating movement in any of these games, and falling off the side of a sheer cliff face may leave you feeling hollow, but that’s the whole point. You, like Nate, need to learn to get up and go again.
Runners-up: Death Stranding 2: On the Beach, Peak
Winner: Baby Steps
Funniest Game - Awarded By Simon Estey
Nominees: Absolum, Avowed, Baby Steps, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, Consume Me, Death Stranding 2: On the Beach, Deltarune Chapters 3+4, Dispatch, Duck Detective: The Ghost of Glamping, Kingdom Come: Deliverance II, Lego Party!, Like A Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii, Once Upon A Katamari, The Outer Worlds 2, Peak, Promise Mascot Agency, Skin Deep, to a T, Wanderstop
While I am far from the epitome of masculinity, media has never really been able to bring me to tears. When it has, it is usually less about the content and more likely is due to a long-running television show or comic forcing me to say goodbye to characters I had grown to love over the years. That’s what makes Clair Obscur: Expedition 33’s ability to make me cry within the first hour or so impressive. Not make me misty-eyed. Not slightly teary. Full on waterworks. So what could be a better choice for startmenu’s funniest game of the year than this 30-hour metaphor for grief?
Expedition 33 plays it fairly straight at first, but once the second act of the game begins, it introduces characters like Esquie, Verso, and Monoco, who bring with them some incredible interactions. Whether it’s the latter two arguing over who’s stronger, or the former talking about his best friend, who is a rock named Francois, the game will constantly have you chuckling, but it does so with a purpose. It’s not just that the game is funny, it’s how that humour ties into the game’s central themes. Those heartwarming moments that will make you smile, if not laugh out loud, show why the human spirit will continue to persevere in those moments of hopelessness. They show that life is always worth living, even when it doesn’t feel like it. Or maybe I just really like Francois.
Runners-up: Promise Mascot Agency, Like A Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii
Winner: Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
Biggest Disappointment - Awarded By Hiero de Lima
Nominees: Dead Take, Goodnight Universe, Hades II, Hotel Barcelona, Infinity Series Remastered Editions, Let it Die: Inferno, Lost Soul Aside, Mario Kart World, Metroid Prime 4: Beyond, MindsEye, Monster Hunter Wilds, Puyo Puyo Tetris 2S, Persona 5: The Phantom X, Plants vs. Zombies: Replanted, Sid Meier’s Civilization VII, skate., Super Mario Party Jamboree: Nintendo Switch 2 Edition + Jamboree TV, Wreckreation, Yakuza 0: Director’s Cut
As of late, the Yakuza series seems addicted to failure. Having started off the year with a controversial spinoff that, depending on who you ask, is either a spirited goof-off sesh packed full of Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio’s immaculate gameplay flourishes or an embarrassing flanderisation conga line for a beloved character the team openly refuses to face on his own terms, the most cynical fans might have thought that was the lowest the IP could go since the bafflingly bad Amazon Prime adaptation of the first game last year. If only.
Even before longtime producer Masayoshi Yokoyama hinted at the fact he consciously ignored Teruyuki Kagawa’s publicised sexual harassment of a hostess when casting him as Goh Hamazaki for Yakuza Kiwami 3 (a decision that was already upsetting and misconceived without any of the extra baggage), there was Yakuza 0: Director’s Cut. Released in June as a Nintendo Switch 2 launch title and promptly moving on to cannibalising the original on Steam, PlayStation, and Xbox in December, it is touted as the “definitive edition” of the series’ most accessible and acclaimed entry. If. Only.
What Director’s Cut does for Yakuza 0 — aside from actually very welcome expanded language support (including an English dub and text in my native Brazilian Portuguese) — amounts to an unneeded graphic update, a milquetoast side mode, and a handful of new cutscenes that synthesise all of the late-stage games’ worst writing quirks. You’ve got three (count ‘em, 3) unnecessary death retcons that just feel superfluous at best and actively undermine great past emotional beats at worst; annoying “self-aware” bathos-type comedic bits, completely devoid of respect for the rule of cool that’s the heart and soul of Yakuza; and, most damning of all, all-fluff sequences determined only to yell out the meaning of character arcs and “foreshadow” moments that originally derived their strength precisely from respecting the viewer’s intelligence.
In 2025, it’s harder to continue supporting this franchise than ever, and harder still when the powers that be at SEGA and RGG Studio keep emptying clip after clip in their own feet. It is a miracle of good timing that series creator Toshihiro Nagoshi announced his own new IP, another yakuza story set in Kabukicho, when he did; right when everybody wants Yokoyama’s head on a stake. As a terribly weary fan, I might just jump ship.
Runners-Up: Plants vs. Zombies: Replanted, Hotel Barcelona, Infinity Series Remastered Editions
Winner: Yakuza 0: Director’s Cut
Most Immaculate Vibes - Awarded By Joe Chivers
Nominees: Afterlove EP, Axyz, Baby Steps, Citizen Sleeper 2, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, Death Stranding 2: On the Beach, Demonschool, Despelote, Karma: The Dark World, Keeper, Lost Records: Bloom And Rage, Mafia: The Old Country, Mario Kart World, PowerWash Simulator 2, Shinobi: Art of Vengeance, Sektori, Silent Hill f, Silly Polly Beast, Skate Story, Skin Deep, Sword of The Sea, to a T, Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3 + 4, Tron: Catalyst, Unbeatable, Wanderstop
I had the pleasure of reviewing Skin Deep for GamesRadar+ (plug plug), and its vibes and peerless style have really stuck with me. Everything from how you, Nina Pasadena, get frozen and shipped as a living insurance policy to ship crews being talking cats is just stupendous. There's a real sense of capitalism in decay, floating its way into the deepest reaches of the universe. Ships are, in the grand tradition of Space Truckers, effectively just a job, like a whimsical version of Mouthwashing. I cannot stress how much of a joyous, silly, stylish experience this game is.
Runners-up: Despelote, Demonschool
Winner: Skin Deep
Most Egregious Use of AI Slop - Awarded By Lex Luddy
Nominees: The Alters, Arc Raiders, Call of Duty: Black Ops 7, Candy Crush Saga, Darth Vader in Fortnite, inZOI, Krafton goes “AI-first”, Level-5 CEO defends using AI as a tool, Larian’s use of AI for art references and internal slideshows, Microsoft's big push for AI use internally and the Muse generative AI model for gameplay
Oh, decisions, decisions. I have written at length about some of these — Call of Duty: Black Ops 7’s general soullessness, especially — but it really is hard to single just one of these out as worse than another. Be it Krafton’s CEO allegedly asking ChatGPT how he could get out of paying the newly acquired Unknown Worlds Entertainment the bonus it was entitled to for getting Subnautica 2 out before the end of year, or Larian CEO Sven Vincke’s admission to using the technology followed by, what can only be described as, his social media hissy fit in the wake of getting pushback, all of these uses of AI run the gamut in terms of embarrassing-ness, avoidability, and shittiness. However, they all share one thing in common: they harm humans. Humans create art and create value, while generative AI detracts from that very real work with hallucinations of estimations drawn from an aggregation of others’ artistic endeavours.
So congrats. You all win. Every dumb asshole who used AI this year. Be it for sending an email, generating placeholder art, or creating shareholder value. You all caused harm. You fucking rubes.
Runners-up: None
Winner: EVERYONE WHO USED AI
This One Goes Out to the Sickos Award - Awarded By Adam W
Nominees: Analogue 3D, Connect the Dots (u-b-u.itch.io), Evil Egg, Fire Emblem: The Hag in White, Horses, The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy, Legend of Door: Gale Wings, Marisa of Liartop Mountain, Sektori, Shinsetsu Mahou Shoujo, Tetris: The Grand Master 4 -Absolute Eye-, White Knuckle
First released in 2007, Tobira no Densetsu is a massive freeware RPG about a young woman who leaves home to earn a livelihood so that she can provide for her sick sister. It overflows with quests, riddles, missable party members, bad jokes, bloodthirsty villains and countless little details regarding the world and its history that the developer chose to flesh out rather than take for granted. Now, it has finally been translated into English by the circle Patchy Illusion Team as Legend of Door: Gale Wings. There is no deeper hole into which you can descend this year.
Runners-up: The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy, Fire Emblem: The Hag in White
Winner: Legend of Door: Gale Wings
Most Acceptable (Deserved, Even) Rerelease - Awarded By Eoghan Watters
Nominees: Capcom Fighting Collection 2, Dragon Quest I & II HD-2D Remake, Fantasy Life i: The Girl That Steals Time, Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicles, Freedom Wars Remastered, I Have No Mouth, And I Must Scream, Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater, Ninja Five-O, Patapon 1+2 Replay, Soul Calibur II (Gamecube Edition), Star Wars Episode 1: Jedi Power Battles, Suikoden I & II HD Remastered, Super Mario Galaxy 2, System Shock 2: 25th Anniversary Remaster, The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild - Nintendo Switch 2 Edition, Tokimeki Memorial: forever with you Emotional, Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3 + 4, Trails in the Sky 1st Chapter, Virtua Fighter 5 R.E.V.O. World Stage
The remake/remaster/rerelease is becoming an all-too-familiar trend in games. Once a tool to make older titles playable on modern hardware, the rerelease has become an attempt by companies to bolster their yearly lineups with unnecessary additions to a previous release… that is, unless I like that game.
2025 saw the return of many classics, from Power Stone to Ninja Five-O. Some of these proved deeply unnecessary, like the brilliant but benign remake of Metal Gear Solid 3, to the latest edition of Virtua Fighter 5, a game from 2006.
Some of these, however, proved better than others. It was wonderful to see games like Freedom Wars and Patapon return, reaching platforms that never received them in the first place. Arguably, the best rerelease of the year was the critically acclaimed Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicles. Final Fantasy Tactics has seemingly held up in terms of gameplay, and its narrative appears to be more relevant in 2025 than it was in 1997. That being said, I cannot in good faith give it the award, for I have not played it.
No, I’m giving the award to the Nintendo Switch rerelease of the 2010 Game of the Year, Super Mario Galaxy 2. Super Mario Galaxy 2, on Nintendo Switch 2, runs at a sleek 4K 60fps. Bundled alongside the original Super Mario Galaxy (also a contender for best game of all-time), Super Mario Galaxy 2 offers a more streamlined experience, introducing new gameplay concepts at a staggering pace. The addition of all-time Mario power-up, Cloud Mario (insert “One-Winged Angel”), and the return of the goodest dino, Yoshi, gives Super Mario Galaxy 2 enough new mechanics to create countless new ideas. Super Mario Galaxy 2 also features a soundtrack that’s only rivaled by the original Super Mario Galaxy. It’s a true masterpiece.
Super Mario Galaxy 2 doesn’t win this award because it’s the most improved on the list, but because it’s the most deserving of being brought to modern audiences. Now go listen to that OST, it rules.
Runners-Up: Patapon 1+2 Replay, Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicles
Winner: Super Mario Galaxy 2
Best New Character - Awarded By Brandon Craw
Nominees: Alta (Wanderstop), Atsu (Ghost of Yōtei), Beef (Dispatch), Blonde Blazer (Dispatch), Boro (Wanderstop), Eito Aotsuki (The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy), Enzo Favara (Mafia: The Old Country), Esquie (Clair Obscur: Expedition 33), Evangeline Morgan (of the Devil), Hazel Flood (South of Midnight), Hina Tsukiyono (No Sleep For Kaname Date — From AI: THE SOMNIUM FILES), Hinako Shimizu (Silent Hill f), Icarus (Hades 2), Invisigal (Dispatch), Jan Dolski (The Alters), Jenny (Consume Me), Kai (Avowed), Maelle (Clair Obscur: Expedition 33), Melinoe (Hades 2), The Mouse (Éalú), Noah Rich (Like A Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii), Pinky (Promise Mascot Agency), Quaver (Unbeatable), Robert Robertson III (Dispatch), Sherma (Hollow Knight: Silksong), Swann Holloway (Lost Records: Bloom And Rage), Teen (to a T), Verso (Clair Obscur: Expedition 33)
Does “best new character” mean the character with the coolest looks? Maybe it’s the character that had the greatest impact on the story? Okay, how about the character that emerged triumphant against the most adversity? Nope, that alone doesn’t feel quite right either. How about a little bit of all of the above, plus “lovable character that helped everyone out and was always there for the crew”? Yep, that’s got to be it!
Esquie from Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 saved the crew OVER and OVER again. Hell, he’s the reason Expedition 33 even made it as far as they did. He was abandoned, enfeebled, and feared, and still decided to stand up to the Paintress terrorizing the world. A giant, fluffy, walking, talking part-marshmallow part-stuffed-animal that defies all laws of physics is my, and many others’, favourite new character.
Esquie is regarded as the most powerful creature in this world, who just happened to have lost his powers. This becomes apparent with every magic rock returned to him that restores one of his game-changing abilities. He selflessly allows the crew to ride on his back as he floats on the ocean or soars through the skies, helping them travel with ease. Esquie has come to the rescue of the crew countless times, even throwing himself in harm’s way to defend the resilient Expedition 33.
Esquie's greatness not only lies in his physical ability to help the crew, but also in his unwavering support for all of the Expedition 33 members (whom he quickly calls friends). We later find out that Esquie saved the life of a crew member before the events of the game. During any cutscene with Esquie, you’ll find him swiftly jumping into action without hesitation, or showing his compassionate side with life advice that can only be given by a true wise, old friend.
Esquie had his time to shine in internet culture at some point, not long after this game’s release. I couldn’t go a day without seeing people clamouring for this adorable, fluffy rock creature. As I write this, I see posts of people trying to purchase a plushie version of him despite a ridiculous $100 shipping fee in some regions. All of this to say: Esquie has floated his way into the hearts of thousands (dare I say, millions) of players and is the poster marshmallow rock for this award.
So with that, I leave you with my favourite Esquie quote that perfectly encapsulates his personal philosophy: “I too am ‘Whooo’. But I’m also ‘Wheee’! So the ‘Wheee’ balances the ‘Whooo’.”
Runners-up: Sherma (Hollow Knight: Silksong), Hinako Shimizu (Silent Hill f), Beef (Dispatch) (winner of the best boy award in my heart)
Winner: Esquie (Clair Obscur: Expedition 33)
Best Visual Novel - Awarded By Adam W
Nominees: and Roger, The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy, of the Devil, Ten Metre Tide, Z.A.T.O. // I Love the World and Everything in It
Ten Metre Tide is a beautiful aesthetic object. Its setting of Fort Colwyn is depicted via coloured photographs, piles of yarn, and paper-cut-out heroines. Even the interface buttons are embroidered. Every one of these choices, when seen in the light of the game's themes, was intentional. This is a physical tribute to a home long gone, a love letter to an island refuge that brought three women nothing but pain, and a desperate attempt to shape a narrative long after the wrong choices were made. The mixed media is the point.
Even so, the writing is dry, and the nonlinear structure (which varies in not just time but also interface and delivery) demands rereads to piece it all together. There's a fussiness to this game that I think will turn some people away. Even so, I admire it a lot. While this year saw developers strive to revive the medium's past or update concerns of past masterpieces for the present, Ten Metre Tide and its peers offer another way forward: making whatever weird game you want, convention be damned.
Runners-Up: of the Devil, Z.A.T.O. // I Love the World and Everything in It
Winner: Ten Metre Tide
Best Moment or Sequence - Awarded By Lex Luddy
Nominees: Assassination of your character in Avowed, Attempting to deliver the ice cream trophy for the tenth time in Baby Steps, Both musical numbers in Like A Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii, Charlie’s musical number in Death Stranding 2: On the Beach, Conquering The Manbreaker in Baby Steps, Driving home in Death Stranding 2: On the Beach, Every time you punch the ground in Donkey Kong Bananza, Final chapter of Consume Me, Final fight in Donkey Kong Bananza, Final level of Split Fiction, Final sequence in Dispatch, First Abyss escape in Hollow Knight: Silksong, First hour of Silent Hill f, First musical number in to a T, Guitar duel in Death Stranding 2: On the Beach, A high-score run in Sektori, The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy Second Scenario ending sequence, Intro to Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, Lightners Live in Deltarune, Rainbow Road in Mario Kart World, Rainy’s backstory in Death Stranding 2: On the Beach, Reaching the peak in Peak, Saving your bacon in Lumines Arise, Saying goodbye to your friends in Silent Hill f, Sitting with Boro in Wanderstop, Sleepover in the cabin in Lost Records: Bloom & Rage, The song “Waiting” at the end of Episode 2 in Unbeatable, [Spoiler] character’s appearance in Donkey Kong Bananza, TITLE CARD in The Alters, Trap Dorian in Date Everything!
I have written in other places about how I was enamoured by how Consume Me toyed with my knowledge and expectations as someone who has lived through having an eating disorder (keep an eye out for Giant Bomb Game of the Year list coming soon), and I genuinely think that the bombast of setpieces in Death Stranding 2: On the Beach are the best parts of that game, however, there is one moment that will stick with from this year above all other and it happened to me at Gamescom.
On the Thursday of the show, I had a four-hour appointment to just play as far as I could in Silent Hill f, and boy, those opening 30 or so minutes leading up to you getting your first weapon feel like a statement of intent unlike any other. Wandering through the foggy streets of Ebisugaoka as Hinako, interacting with her slightly off friends, before things explode into life, feels like a recommitment to reinvigorating the once-dormant series. And even on a loud show floor with bright industrial lights shining down on me, I could feel that in those opening minutes.
Silent Hill (as a franchise) died less than ten years ago — think back, do you remember how dead it was? Konami killed a game 80% of the way through production that was being worked on by Kojima and Guillermo del Toro, like, think about that. It was buried in a way franchises very rarely are, and yet here we are, with Silent Hill f inarguably being one of the best games of the year, and all that is summed up by an opening that both sets the tone and develops more and more meaning with each subsequent playthrough as the narrative and Hinako’s mental state unfurl. It's really quite something.
Runners-up: Final chapter of Consume Me, Guitar duel in Death Stranding 2: On the Beach
Winner: First hour of Silent Hill f
Performance of the Year - Awarded By Brandon Craw
Nominees: Aaron Paul (Robert Robertson III in Dispatch), Alex Jordan (Jan Dolski in The Alters), Ben Starr (Verso in Clair Obscur: Expedition 33), Konatsu Kato (Hinako Shimizu in Silent Hill f), Jay Rincon (Takumi Sumino in The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy), Jennifer English (Maelle in Clair Obscur: Expedition 33), Jenny Kidd (Pauline in Donkey Kong Bananza), Johnny Santiago (Don Bernardo Torrisi in Mafia: The Old Country), Kimberly Woods (Alta in Wanderstop), Laura Bailey (Invisigal in Dispatch), Neil Newbon (Drysdale in Date Everything!), Norman Reedus (Sam Porter Bridges in Death Stranding 2: On the Beach), Riccardo Frascari (Enzo Favara in Mafia: The Old Country), Shioli Kutsuna (Rainy in Death Stranding 2: On the Beach), Troy Baker (Higgs in Death Stranding 2: On the Beach)
Whenever I hear a character speak, I have a hard time not imagining just a person in a sound booth saying their lines into a microphone. Voice acting can be quite challenging. All of the expression needs to be conveyed by a voice that must find a balance between being overly-expressive and so dull that every line sounds the same. One person’s performance stood out to me this year, and that is Jennifer English as Maelle in Clair Obscur: Expedition 33.
Honestly, every character in Clair Obscur could have been nominated for this category, but alas, we have only one trophy to hand out today. I initially looked up videos of Verso’s greatest moments (since he was the first person I had in mind for this award), but realised that Maelle was the one stealing my attention whenever I’d hear her speak.
Jennifer instantly convinced me that Maelle was a real person from the start of the game. With every line read, I could hear all of the determination, despair, and hope to be found in someone who is trying to save their world. I heard the sorrow in her voice when speaking about people she's lost throughout her life; and I heard the optimism when reminiscing with the rest of the crew who journeyed together.
She was given a perfect canvas to work with, thanks to Maelle’s story — a story filled with a plethora of opportunities for the actor to express a wide range of emotions. I felt like Maelle was a real person due to the authentically human portrayal by Jennifer; not once did I stop to think about the actor in the booth reading their lines whenever Maelle was on the screen.
Runners-up: Alex Jordan (Jan Dolski in The Alters), Konatsu Kato (Hinako Shimizu in Silent Hill f)
Winner: Jennifer English (Maelle in Clair Obscur: Expedition 33)
Weird Lil Guy of the Year - Awarded By Hiero de Lima
Nominees: Beef (Dispatch), Brome The Frog Wizard (Absolum), Cow (Mario Kart World), Dog (to a T), Esquie (Clair Obscur: Expedition 33), Every Side Character in Baby Steps, Everyone in Peak, Frinos (Hades II), Lopez (Fire Emblem: The Hag in White), Matikanefukukitaru (Umamusume: Pretty Derby), Mega Starmie (Pokémon Legends: Z-A), Mothgirl (Lost Records: Bloom & Rage), Nate (Baby Steps), Nubby (Nubby’s Number Factory), Pinky (Promise Mascot Agency), Rick (Kirby Air Riders), Sirei (The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy)
2025 has been truly a stellar time for the freaks, the misfits, and the sickos of the world. If I could give this award to everyone in the list, I would — five of these entries, for one, are all my own submissions, each a winning personality in their own right, from horse girls plagued by Fate Herself to the cutest egg-shaped genocide enabler you ever did see to oh my God, why does it have legs now I love it. Alas, we have but one metaphysical statuette to distribute. It feels only right that it should go to the adorable, terrifying ringleader of this year’s biggest collection of weirdos.
Pinky, the pinky finger mascot who runs the titular Promise Mascot Agency with her boss and bosom buddy, disgraced ex-yakuza Michi, is perhaps the most charming character of the year. The daughter of a marshmallow fairy and a deadbeat mob boss thumb, she takes after both her parents through being cute and vicious, facets of her behaviour that often come mere lines apart. Both are her sincerest self, the yin and the yang that make her such a great companion character to be around. She is the bleeding heart of one of the best games of the year; if you haven’t already, you owe it to yourself to check out this glorious mess of an open world mascot management crime drama.
Runners-Up: Matikanefukukitaru (Umamusume: Pretty Derby), Sirei (The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy), Mega Starmie (Pokémon Legends: Z-A)
Winner: Pinky (Promise Mascot Agency)
Home of the Year - Awarded By KM Nelson
Nominees: Blake Manor (The Séance of Blake Manor), The Hellfire Club (Eyes of Hellfire), Hinako’s House (Silent Hill f), Hotel Promise (Promise Mascot Agency), Mount Holly Estate When You Reach Room 46 (Blue Prince), Robert’s Shitty Apartment Full of Lamps (Dispatch), Teen’s House (to a T), Villa Torrisi (Mafia: The Old Country)
I mean, the answer’s obvious, isn’t it? By wearing its contradictions on its sleeve, Blue Prince makes itself the exemplar of the Fantasy Of Home Ownership. You inherit a large property, yet you must still earn it by deciphering a series of puzzles — the estate will not be bequeathed to you until you unlock (some of) its secrets and cross the threshold of Room 46. Despite the existing structure, you also get to build it to your desired specifications. You have to start over every morning, but that’s part of the dream: a daily remodel with no sawdust, the only limits the 5x9 blueprint grid, the draft pool, and perhaps some bad RNG.
The game isn’t truly afoot until you’ve claimed your inheritance. You go off-grid, opening a final door into a seemingly impossible space, and take ownership of Mount Holly Estate once and for all. But wait, there’s more. And more, and more. More rooms. More puzzles. More family history. You’ve made this your home, and you’ll make it again each day.
Runners-Up: Hinako’s House (Silent Hill f), Teen’s House (to a T)
Winner: Mount Holly Estate When You Reach Room 46 (Blue Prince)
Video Game Criticism Just Got Critiqued Award For Best Bit of Video Game Writing, Crit, Reporting, Guiding - Awarded By Ashley Schofield
Nominees:
“From Independent to Indie: Cave Story Revisited” (SYSLBNTH)
“Despelote review: miraculous slice-of-life soccer game pulls a hat trick” (Moises Taveras, Digitaltrends)
“Final Fantasy VII Offers a Way of Living and Working through Catastrophe” (Grace Benfell, A.V. Club Games)
“Former Employees, Community Members Allege AbleGamers Founder Fostered Abuse Behind Closed Doors” (Grant Stoner, IGN)
“Games Media Can’t Ignore BDS Xbox Boycott” (Autumn Wright, Aftermath)
“Hamazaki Has To Goh – where does Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio draw the line on casting, and why is it not at sexual assault?: (Ashley Schofield, Skybox) [Ed. Note: Another startmenu contributor nominated Ashley's piece, and we chose to leave the nomination in place.]
“How Dispatch helped me to see my father's death in a new light” (Luis Gutierrez, GamesRadar)
“Kaizo Mario was my physical therapy” (Imran Khan, Skybox)
“Lumines Arise is the cure for our cynical world” (Giovanni Colantonio, Polygon)
“Mother Loves You” (Luca Fisher, Stop Caring)
“One Year Later” (Steven Santana, Breaking Arrows)
“Sex With A Sadist” (Artemis Octavio, Stop Caring)
“Shadow of the Colossus: An Oral History” (Matt Leone, James Mielke, Design Room)
“The Freelance Camaraderie of Death Stranding” (Diego Nicolás Argüello, A.V. Club Games)
“The Yakuza Series’ Love of Rape” (Hiero de Lima, Medium)
There is simply no conceivable way I could have chosen anything else as the most important piece of writing on games this year. Autumn’s writing, despite first being published in April, has remained relevant right up until this very moment, and sadly will likely continue to long after. The split between the vocal opinions of games journalists, both freelance and staff, and the silence of the larger, corporate-owned sites they may write for, is still noticeable. News, reviews, previews, guides, and general hype covering the products of Xbox continue to be published relentlessly in complete ignorance of the boycott, stained by blood.
Some writers, gratefully, choose (and are permitted) to at the very least include references and links to the BDS boycott itself and Palestinian relief campaigns within coverage of Xbox as an olive branch — an implicit “look, I’ve gotta do my job, but I do care.” As Autumn writes, “Writers, staff and freelance alike, must also pay rent.” We may be limited by our financial and career positions. We may occasionally be in positions that necessitate mention of Xbox products — to be addended with said references and links, yes, but it still feels…wrong. No writer has communicated all this context, nuance, and necessary introspection quite like Autumn has here.
“Games journalists and critics are writers of and within empire. Therefore we must make the conditions for revolution inevitable, and we must see the liberation of the Palestinian people within our lifetime. There are many of you who know games are political and feel at a loss for what to do right now in ways greater than interpreting bulleted lists of correct behaviors, who cannot imagine that writing about games could at all align with moving the world towards justice. [...] But then I remember what others’ words have done for me already. [...] Our writing must also do the work to shape how others understand the world. We can move with compassion and with interest when we write about games. We can share how we came to know what is inevitable.”
We can hold ourselves and each other accountable. We have to. We can make a better world.
Runners-Up:
“One Year Later” (Steven Santana, Breaking Arrows)
“Sex With A Sadist” (Artemis Octavio, Stop Caring)
“The Freelance Camaraderie of Death Stranding” (Diego Nicolás Argüello, A.V. Club Games)
Winner:
“Games Media Can’t Ignore BDS Xbox Boycott” (Autumn Wright, Aftermath)
Best Trailer - Awarded By Eoghan Watters
Nominees: Bradley The Badger (The Game Awards 2025); Bubsy 4D (Gamescom ONL); Control Resonant (TGA 2025); Deltarune (Switch 2 Direct); Denshattack! (Gamescom ONL); Divinity (TGA 2025); The Duskbloods (Switch 2 Direct); Hades II (Nintendo Direct September 2025); Lumines Arise (State of Play, June 2025); Mario Kart World (Switch 2 Direct); Marvel Tokon Fighting Souls (State of Play, June 2025); Marvel’s Wolverine (State of Play, September 25); Rhythm Heaven Groove (Nintendo Direct, March 2025); Romeo is a Dead Man (State of Play, June 2025); Stupid Never Dies (TGA 2025); Unbeatable (Gameplay Trailer 2.0)
Last year, I said this about game trailers: “A good trailer, especially a reveal trailer in a showcase, has to achieve a few things. Number one, it has to build up the excitement to the reveal. Number two, it has to effectively demonstrate what makes the game special, ideally feeding you something new every few seconds. Number three, it has to end with a bang, leaving the viewer at their most excited when the trailer ends.”
By these metrics, I should be handing this award to those highly anticipated games that got big trailers this year. Grand Theft Auto VI, Marvel’s Wolverine, and Mario Kart World all handle this excellently. Rewatching trailers for this award, I was reminded how excellent Marvel’s Wolverine and Mario Kart World are, in particular, revealing games that are highly anticipated with constant reveals and surprises. Wolverine ends particularly strong with the excellent shot of Wolverine unleashing his claws alongside the line “‘cuz I ain’t no hero, I’m Wolverine” and Mario Kart World’s excellent editing to the game’s main theme and constant revealing of new mechanics and concepts.
But there were two (kinda three) trailers that really grabbed me this year. Both were shorter trailers, one clocking in at 1 minute and the other at 1 minute and 30 seconds. Both showcased excellent editing, using outstanding and eye-catching visuals alongside incredible original music to suck you in from the very first second. They also display excellence at keeping an audience's attention firm for their short runtime, leaving you wanting more and running to wishlist the game immediately.
The runner-up here, and it kills me to do this, is Denshattack! The trailer immediately grabs you with eye-popping anime-inspired visuals, and a slow buildup in its score. As the beat drops and the trailer moves from 0 to 100, the game reveals its cards, that it is in fact, train Tony Hawk… I think. The singular flaw is that I’m still not 100% sure what Denshattack! is, but to the trailer’s credit, its high-octane gameplay, soundtrack by the incredible Tee Lopes and Sailor Moon/Power Rangers–inspired mecha-train have me desperately waiting for a game I cannot fully explain.
The winner then, has to be Unbeatable, a game where music is illegal and you do crimes, which actually had two incredible trailers this year. The release date trailer from Gamescom 2025 delivers everything Denshattack! does with more clarity, but it’s actually the Gameplay Trailer 2.0 that gets the award from me. This trailer excels thanks to its focus on clarity, music, visuals, reveals, and narration. Narrated by RJ Lake, the game's co-director, the trailer’s first half succinctly explains Unbeatable’s premise with perfect text treatment and b-roll gameplay used, along with some of its best music.
Halfway through, the trailer’s narration switches from RJ to Rachel Lake — the game’s producer, vocal lead, and the voice of the game's protagonist — and introduces its new reveal, Unbeatable arcade. After showcasing the game’s wider soundtrack, it ends with a final bang, title card, and reveal that there’s a demo available now.
This trailer lives by its voiceover. The way in which RJ delivers the narration, somewhat dry but with great emphasis on lines like “punching this guy, right in the jaw” or “playing baseball the wrong way, and dealing with cops the right way”. Alongside the instrumental track, it serves as a sort of hypnosis, bringing you into the punk attitude of the game. If by the halfway point of the trailer you don’t want to play music and do crimes, I’m afraid I cannot understand you.
Unbeatable is a deeply emotional and immensely satisfying rhythm game that lives entirely by its ability to suck you into its world and make you a rebel. It feeds into the struggle we face with mental health and capitalism, and tells you that you can rock out while you do it. In the world of Unbeatable, rebellion is literally punk-rock, and D-Cell Games successfully conveys all of this in one trailer while revealing an entirely new and unrelated game mode.
Runners-Up: Mario Kart World (Switch 2 Direct), Denshattack! (Gamescom ONL)
Winner: Unbeatable Gameplay Trailer 2.0
Best Butt - Awarded by Artemis Octavio
Nominees: Donkey Kong (Donkey Kong Bananza), Emma (Pokémon Legends: Z-A), Fennel (Brush Burial: Gutter World), Goro Majima (Like A Dragon: Pirate Yakuza In Hawaii), Gustave (Clair Obscur: Expedition 33), Kirby (Kirby Air Riders), Lune (Clair Obscur: Expedition 33), Robert Robertson III (Dispatch), Naked Snake (Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater), Nate (Baby Steps), Norman Reedus (Death Stranding 2: On the Beach), Poop Butt (Nubby’s Number Factory), Terry Bogard (Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves), Venom (Marvel Rivals)
As the startmenu writer with the fattest ass (citation needed), it falls to me to award the most prestigious award in gaming. Screw the Keighleys, forget every other award or end of the year list, this is what matters most. Butt of the Year, the Big BOTY, and it must go to the video game character with the greatest, juiciest, jiggliest cheeks.
I have considered women’s butts, such as Pokémon Legends Z-A’s detective menace Emma and her scene-stealing rump encased in tight pants, grabbable man-butts like Naked Snake’s firm backside as he sneaks through the jungles of Metal Gear Solid Delta, creature butts, like Donkey Kong’s whole ass or Fennel’s bodacious buttocks as she whips her way through Brush Burial: Gutter World. Hell, I even considered Poop Butt (of Nubby’s Number Factory fame).
But, the biggest derrière, the thickest of peaches, the rump that stayed in my mind long after I finished the game, was attached to the lower back of loser manchild Nate from Baby Steps. Thirty-five-year-old basement dweller Nate is magically whisked away to a strange land full of zany characters and well-endowed horsemen, and he has to do the thing he’s been dreading for a long time: get off his keister and walk. And so, he begins his long march, each trigger representing one of his legs as you drag him along in this physical walking simulator.
There’s a mechanical weight to the game’s controls as you take each perilous step through the vast landscapes, all that force of gravity concentrated in his gigantic bum. Watch it move and jiggle each time he lifts his foot; it’s almost hypnotic. It’s an ass that takes quite a beating too, as he tumbles and falls down cliffsides quite often. Witness the hyperrealistic cloth physics as his posterior gets dirtied with mud or as sweat trickles down his crack from the exertion of his strenuous hike.
Baby Steps is a great game to pass a controller around, but all my sessions with friends ended with at least one of them exclaiming, “Wow, that guy has a nice ass!” It’s almost impossible not to empathize with Nate’s alienation and insecurity, but it is easy to be jealous of the whole bakery he’s packing behind him.
Nate’s tush accompanies him even in his darkest moments, when the jokes subside. It’s with him when he falls from the Manbreaker, it’s with him when he spectacularly fails at social interaction, and it’s with him when he meets a statuette-angel and all he wants to do is die. The game doesn’t just have an overabundance of man-ass, but a surfeit of heart, joy, and soul poured into it. A lot of melancholy and pain too. God bless Nate’s glorious booty, 2025’s Butt of the Year.
Runners-Up: Donkey Kong (Donkey Kong Bananza), Fennel (Brush Burial: Gutter World)
Winner: Nate (Baby Steps)
Retro Handheld of the Year - Awarded By Mike Moran
Nominees: Anbernic RG477M, AYN Odin 2 Portal, AYN Thor, Retroid Pocket Classic, Retroid Pocket Flip 2
The retro handheld industry has grown immensely over the past few years, primarily through Chinese Linux- and Android-based handhelds from the likes of Ayaneo, AYN, Anbernic, and Retroid, but in 2025, it exploded with some truly excellent devices and entirely new subcategories of hardware.
For the uninitiated, when I say retro handheld, I don’t mean a Game Boy, I mean a newly produced gadget that’s designed to run older games through software emulation or, in some cases, through mimicking the actual hardware (also known as FPGA). These devices run the gamut from cheap and cheery devices that can play SNES and Mega Drive games to powerful beasts with built-in fans and OLED screens that can run up to PS2 and GameCube, and even some *cough* *cough* newer titles.
Dozens of these things get released every year, but there are a couple that really stood out to me in 2025. The AYN Odin 2 Portal, for example, is a gorgeous device with a 7” OLED screen, large responsive sticks, and enough power to run most retro games perfectly. It looks and feels like a premium product, and is one of my go-to devices when I want to play a widescreen game.
For older stuff, I favour the Anbernic RG477M. It’s made of metal, so it also feels premium, and although ergonomically it’s not as good as the Odin 2 Portal, its 4:3 ratio screen is perfect for most older systems. Whilst not OLED, it is 120Hz, which actually has a super important use for emulating retro titles — black frame insertion. It allows us to play older, 60Hz games with a fully black screen inserted every other frame, producing higher motion clarity that helps mimic the feel of real CRT screens. It sounds counterintuitive, but once you see how it looks, it’s difficult to go back.
But there’s one handheld that’s really taken over the conversation this year — the AYN Thor. This thing is just amazing. It looks like the evolution of the Nintendo 3DS with two crystal clear OLED screens — one widescreen and one in an almost square aspect ratio. This means the device is perfectly laid out for DS, 3DS, and Wii U games, but having a second screen is also a great benefit in other ways too, such as having a guide or YouTube video open whilst playing.
We’re at a bit of an impasse when it comes to the future of these devices. The state of computer components in general, due to the all-consuming rise of AI presents a problem, as well as Google’s flip-flopping on whether or not future versions of Android will allow sideloading — important for continued emulation support, as a lot of developers prefer to remain anonymous. Another factor is that the rate of processor development is outstripping the level of support — exciting new devices which aren’t readily available until the new year such as the AYN Odin 3 or Konkr Pocket Fit have an incredible amount of power due to utilising the latest chipsets, but devices like the Thor will in many cases run things more easily due to the custom drivers and mature software designed for its older internals. For that reason, it’s easy to recommend the Thor as the “ultimate” choice for right now, and it’s easily my favourite handheld of the year.
Runners-up: AYN Odin 2 Portal, Anbernic RG477M
Winner: AYN Thor
Photo by Mike Moran
2024 RPG to Finally Catch Up On - Awarded By Adam W
Nominees: Arco, Arranger: A Role-Puzzling Adventure, Bandle Tale: A League of Legends Story, Black Myth: Wukong, C.A.R.D.S. RPG: The Misty Battlefield, Caves of Qud, Dragon Age: The Veilguard, Dragon’s Dogma 2, Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake, Dungeons of Hinterberg, Eiyuden Chronicle: Hundred Heroes, Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree, Fantasian Neo Dimension, Farmagia, Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth, Grandia HD Collection, Infinity Nikki, The Legend of Legacy HD Remastered, Like A Dragon: Infinite Wealth, Mario & Luigi: Brothership, Metaphor: ReFantazio, Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door, Persona 3 Reload, Reynatis, Romancing SaGa 2: Revenge of the Seven, SaGa: Emerald Beyond, Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance, Sky Oceans: Wings For Hire, South Park: Snow Day!, The Thaumaturge, Unicorn Overlord, Visions of Mana, Wizardry: Proving Grounds of the Mad Overlord, Wuthering Waves
The original Romancing Saga 2 broke every rule of its genre in 1993. Instead of leading a plucky band of heroes to defeat an empire, you took control of an empire to defeat seven immortal heroes. This brought a whole new set of unexpected challenges. Affording a sword at the marketplace might be no problem, but how do you scrape together the money to found a university for magic? What if the pirate clan with which you formed an alliance betrays you years later? Meanwhile, successive generations of emperors expand your toolset while demanding that you adjust your strategies. It's overwhelming, opaque, and often brutally difficult.
Romancing Saga 2: Revenge of the Seven cleans up the original for a modern audience. Now you can change party members whenever you want, rather than purposefully letting them die so that they might be replaced. Running in dungeons no longer makes enemies invisible. The game's labyrinthine skill-learning paths are made transparent so that you can make informed decisions. Under this surface of polish, though, is still the beating heart of Romancing Saga 2. This remains a game where the nastiest enemies you will encounter are termites, and where ignoring a succession crisis across the seas can make your life extremely difficult decades later. Some parts, like the infamous final boss battle, were made even tougher than the original to compensate for your new tools. If Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 this year reminded us that RPGs could be fun and beautiful, Revenge of the Seven is proof now and forever that RPGs can be anything they please.
Runners-Up: Caves of Qud, Fantasian: Neo Dimension
Winner: Romancing SaGa 2: Revenge of the Seven
Game That Is Never Coming Out - Awarded By Alex Green
Nominees: Beyond Good & Evil 2, Bloodborne Remake, Canon BubsyxGex Sequel, DC Game That Isn’t Batman, Final Fantasy IX Remake, Half-Life 3, Judas, Kingdom Hearts 4, Marvel 1943: Rise of Hydra, Mass Effect 5, Prince of Persia Remake, Skies of Arcadia Remake/Sequel
This award may feel a bit unnecessary given some of the games that sat in development purgatory or were out of sight of the public view. Metroid Prime 4 finally emerged from the Nintendo dungeons as part of the Switch 2 lineup. Meanwhile, Hollow Knight: Silksong ended its ever-increasing wait with Team Cherry with a game that decided to illustrate that amount of time in its boss runs.
However, these nominees are longing to avoid those ancient ideas of releasing so that people can “play the game”. Many of these nominees have been announced with trailers but have been hesitant to pin down a release date, such as Judas, Mass Effect 5, and Kingdom Hearts 4, whilst some sit as rumours, notes in shareholder presentations, or wishes in beleaguered fanbases, such as a Bloodborne Remake or a Final Fantasy IX Remake. This award, though, goes to the current king of the genre.
Ubisoft did have two nominees in this category, but Beyond Good & Evil 2 wins this award as despite its endless wait time, the company posted a new job advert in November for technical roles working on the game. Nice to see that the company has progressed the business case; now they can get on with staffing for the game. Based on this timeline, we can project development continuing through 2040 with a release date of 2057. For all the snark here, I earnestly would like to see a sequel to the cult classic, once Ubisoft has figured out who’s actually making the game.
Runner-up: Kingdom Hearts 4
Winner: Beyond Good & Evil 2
Hottest Mess - Awarded By Joe Chivers
Nominees: AI Slop, Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 Campaign, Collective Shout’s abuse of payment processors as a backdoor to force censorship on digital storefronts, Larian’s AI drama, MindsEye, Monster Hunter Wilds’ performance, RAM prices going out of control, Rockstar’s alleged union busting, Sonic Rumble, Storefronts’ handling of Horses, Ubisoft, Warner Bros’ waffling on its commitment to video games, Xbox, ZA/UM unending drama
In a year full of profoundly nonsensical bollocks in the gaming industry, it's almost impressive that a late entry to the Hottest Mess nominations was able to make such a big impact. According to the Independent Workers' Union of Great Britain (IWGB), 31 workers were fired from Rockstar's UK studios back in October, allegedly as a result of their involvement with the union. Rockstar and Take Two state that they dismissed the employees for sharing confidential information. It's turned into such a huge scandal that the UK government has even got involved, with Keir Starmer describing the situation as "deeply concerning" when it was raised in Prime Minister’s Questions.
Runners-up: ZA/UM's unending drama, Storefronts' handling of Horses
Winner: Rockstar's alleged union busting
Most “Thing that Makes You Say ‘...Neat!’” - Awarded By Vivian Winn
Nominees: Banjo-Kazooie gets a fan-made mini-sequel made in Media Molecule’s Dreams; EA releases the source code for the original Command & Conquer games to the public; Final Fantasy becomes the first Universes Beyond property made into a main set in Magic: The Gathering; GameCube decompiler project is revealed with a recompile of Mario Party 4 for PC; New life given to Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite with the massive cel-shading mod “Infinite & Beyond”; Pope Leo signs a Popplio card from the Pokémon Trading Card Game; The Super Mario Galaxy Movie updates the sparkle meme by declaring “HE MR GAY”; Undertale celebrates its tenth anniversary; Video Games History Foundation opens early access to its digital archives; Wizard101 gets ported to current consoles; Xbox 360 decompiler project is revealed with a recompile of Sonic Unleashed for PC
In the constant deluge of industry layoffs, closures, and destructive business patterns, it's important to find and acknowledge the small glimmers of positivity and hope found in video game news. Though they may not be drastic or impactful, they are often worth cherishing and bringing to the forefront of mind to keep readers and reporters from spiraling into complete cynicism. Most of 2025’s most noteworthy little surprises focused on community efforts towards games preservation, with a few bizarre-yet-quaint crossovers also piquing interests and inspiring smiles. It’s especially notable when a business openly enables said preservation efforts to the general public, as EA has allowed for its venerable Command & Conquer series. Conversely, the mix of Final Fantasy with Magic: the Gathering is perhaps the most innovative and fitting blend of properties seen this year. For as amusing and impressive it may be to have at least two more years of suplexing trains in paper form, playing decks with all 16 Cids in them, having the militaristic FF7 villain Heidegger placed in the same color designation as angels (non-biblically accurate), or watching the most lovable, innocent mage secretly be too destructive for competitive play, it still cannot begin to hold a candle to the potential for glee that is the Xbox 360 decompiler project. Thanks to the popularity of the console, the swath of games (both physically and digitally) that were available only within this humongous collection of releases is difficult to measure, and thus difficult to share and preserve. Games that were multiplatform (such as Sonic Unleashed) tended to have their greatest popularity on Microsoft’s sophomore console, as well as easier access for emulation compared to the PS3 and Wii. Emulation, however, is limited compared to the power of FULL NATIVE PERFORMANCE that decompiling and recompiling can bring. The meme-ery of the game chosen for the decompiler’s reveal cannot mask the true impact of the project’s scope. It takes only one hashtag to convey the greatest weight that the Xbox 360 decompiler project holds in breaking the shackles of perfect performance and expiring exclusivity:
“#FreeMistwalker”
Or if you’re a bum, then look forward to reliving your kicks with Viva Piñata or Culdcept Saga or whatever someday. I’d be willing to accept Dance Central as an alternative, but Kinect-to-webcam translation support is unclear. There’s also a particularly ENCHANTED RPG FROM an ARM of a particularly popular SOFTWARE studio that some fans would find more interesting to explore in 4K resolution at 240 frames per second than any of the other offerings possibly expected to come down the pipeline.
Runners-up: EA releases the source code for the original Command & Conquer games to the public; Final Fantasy becomes the first Universes Beyond property made into a main set in Magic: The Gathering
Winner: Xbox 360 decompiler project is revealed with a recompile of Sonic Unleashed for PC
JUST STOP - Awarded By Alex Green
Nominees: Assuming “embargo” is a universally-known concept, Firing games journalists, Geoff Keighley, Insisting your company will become “AI-focused”, Letting AI companies buy consumer-focused RAM production factories, Letting the PIF get away with using video games to whitewash MBS’s reputation, Letting Randy Pitchford have access to social media, Killing video games, Poking the bear with Nintendo of America’s lawyers, Trusting the Guillemot family, Stapling receipts to boxes, Using copyrighted material without permission to advertise controversial government agencies, Worrying about live-action Legend of Zelda
So many antithetical and pointless trends continue on that we wish would stop but ultimately are harmless, like 6-7 memes and Emerald Fennell projects. Some trends sadly do have more far-reaching and dangerous consequences for all. This award steadfastly celebrates those trends that have achieved the appropriately terrifying mix of consistency, continuity, and horror.
This was a toss-up between many things. After all, AI continues to occupy our brainspace whilst eroding our actual brainpower. GameStop had a period of stapling receipts to boxes, which is up there with the silliest trend and one that manages to cause physical damage. Geoff Keighley continues to read scripts as if he is reading about video games for the first time every time. However, amongst all the business and industry trends, the continued monopolisation rumbles on. EA’s sale to Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund and Jared Kushner’s partner companies raised eyebrows as EA now has to tackle over $20bn of debt. Meanwhile, Ubisoft’s key franchises are headed to a new startup in Vantage Studios, which includes a 26.32% Tencent stake as the company continues to spread its influence across the industry. This trend will almost likely never stop as the rich need to find ways to get richer, and spinning off companies and stakes like Pogs is the simplest way to win that game.
Runners-up: Geoff Keighley
Winner: Industry Monopolisation
Yapper of the Year - Awarded By Sana SMW
Nominees: CEOs that love AI, Cesare Massaro (Mafia: The Old Country), Esquie (Clair Obsur: Expedition 33), Everyone (Borderlands 4), Everyone (Death Stranding 2: On the Beach), Gex (Gex Trilogy), Goffard Gaffgarion (Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicles), Joe Musashi (Shinobi: Art of Vengeance) Masahiro Sakurai (Director of Kirby Air Riders), Evangeline Morgan (of The Devil), Myles MacKenzie (Metroid Prime 4: Beyond), Tsubasa Kawana (The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy), Waterboy (Dispatch)
As a yankee and midwesterner at that, my upbringing has taught me to appreciate our chances to blabber to our hearts’ content. It appears that my particular region of the United States has been the prime exporter of the everlasting phenomenon known as “yapping” — the antithesis of shutting the hell up. And now of all times I’d say is an important time for us to stand up for our right to yap, be it about taboo subject matters, our dissent towards industry trends and actions that align with fascism we disapprove of, or… y’know… just gushing about our hyperfixations among peers. So as one of the representatives at startmenu for all things Midwest, the Yap Capital of the World, I am happy to present the award for 2025’s Yapper of the Year. Be it your squeeing engineers (The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy, Metroid Prime 4: Beyond), a bullish knight filled to the brim with Gaffs (Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicles), any one of the scrawny babies of Randy Pitchford (Borderlands 4) or Hideo Kojima (Death Stranding 2: On The Beach), or even Mr. Masahiro Sakurai himself, 2025 brought a mixed feeling of pure bliss and inescapable agony as we deal with the increasing population of yappers in the world of gaming.
And the Winner is…
Mr. Sakurai himself!
With his most recent directorial accomplishment of Kirby Air Riders alongside the development teams at Sora Ltd. and Bandai Namco, Sakurai-san, known primarily for the Super Smash Bros. series, reminded at least a decent spoonful of folks why the teams he oversees are able to show so much love to any franchise and genre they touch. However, without the calibre of being an entry in the Smash series to back up this pedigree, for most audiences, having a feature-length film’s worth of overview information spread out over two Kirby Air Riders Directs in the months of August and October may have seemed a bit overwhelming, particularly to those that have not had the chance to experience the GameCube original cult classic Kirby Air Ride (2003). This duality of obsessive details that engage rabid hyperfans which also aren’t so easily comprehensible to other onlookers perfectly encapsulates the spirit and multitudes of the art of yap.
As a small aside, if you feel information overloaded from Sakurai-san’s extensive preliminary infodumps, or overwhelmed by the in-game chaos of City Trial, I would still encourage folks to give Kirby Air Riders a try. While it may be asking more from the player to understand, it has a much more forgiving skill floor compared to any Smash game from my perspective. (Plus, a decent suite of accessibility toggles.) The happenings in modes like City Trial get people reacting to one another in the same way as Mario Party or Jackbox in my experience, which I believe puts it in the pantheon of a midwestern yapper’s perfect game night.
As Runners-up, Tsubasa Kawana and Myles MacKenzie still deserve some kudos for representing the duality of tripping over oneself in order to gush about one’s interests. Both are engineers ready to nerd out about any technology that they come across, but have had completely different receptions in their respective titles. Yapping contains multitudes, its presence can mark a highlight in a character-driven rollercoaster ride, or it may also clash with expected genre or tonal conventions. Nora Armstrong in Metroid Prime 4 also has some contrasts and commonalities with MacKenzie’s reception, as her fangirling over Samus somewhat mirrors our own (or at least my own) excitement and eagerness as fans. Sometimes, we can’t help but let the words spill all out, and if that makes us annoying, that’s just life. It’s par for the course in the realm of gaming — for better and for worse.
As a final remark, 2026’s future with yapping also seems bright, with the The Adventures of Elliot: The Millenium Tales’ Faie and Elliot hailing from Philabieldia and the return of Bubsy to the 3D platforming genre with Bubsy 4D both on the horizon.
Runners-up: Tsubasa Kawana (The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy), Myles MacKenzie (Metroid Prime 4: Beyond), Nora Armstrong (Metroid Prime 4: Beyond)
Winner: Masahiro Sakurai (Director of Kirby Air Riders)
The startmenu Game of the Year 2025
And so it is, the year that was. 2025 comes to an end, and with it, some of the most rotten 365 days this industry has ever faced. It feels hollow to talk about how good the games were this year when so much of the news around them was objectively terrible, but in a way that’s kind of the point. The games industry (and the world) is going through some shit right now, man, and yet despite that (or maybe even in part, partially because of it) creative people keep making great creative works.
I have met many developers, writers, and creatives in this job, and there is one thing that stands out as obvious above everything else… These people need to create. Art is not optional; it's not a thing we humans can go without, and so the drive to create art is unending and limitless. As such, it doesn’t matter what state triple-A game dev is in, who owns what, or where the technology is heading. There will always be creatives creating great art.
So, with all that said, and after tallying up the votes, it makes sense that our first site-wide game of the year is what it is:
