With 2022 in the rear view, it’s time to pick which video game was the BEST of the year. Our team has nominated their choices, but we’re leaving the vote up to you!
As the New Year is just getting started now is the time when we look back and see what the best of the best was from 2022 (we like to actually let the year END before we do these things…). Understandably, our gaming team has different tastes and coming up with a clear Game of the Year has been a difficult task. As such, we’ve decided to leave it up to YOU to help us out.
You’ll find each of our gaming team members have nominated their personal choice for GOTY 2022, while explaining why YOU should consider it as well. Once you’ve read our picks, you’ll have the chance to vote using the form below. We’ll leave voting open for ONE WEEK, after which we’ll announce a winner!
Best of all by adding your vote, you’re automatically entered to win a Digital Copy of The Witcher 3 on PlayStation 5 (that’s why we need your email when you vote). Once the GOTY winner is announced, we’ll also be reaching out to one lucky voter to supply them with the code!
And the nominees are…
Dustin
GOTY Nomination – MADiSON
This game was in production for a while with several beta stages, but the final release was honestly one of the best experiences I had all year. I was debating between this and Martha Is Dead, but MADiSON just felt more like a complete experience and edged out the win. Yes it is a horror game, and yes it will scare you, but everything is crafted so extremely well that it was a welcomed new addition in the genre. We all want to play the rest of P.T. and MADiSON fills that void perfectly.
Runner Up – Dying Light 2
The game had some minor complications on launch, luckily I avoided most of it, but it was overall a really great experience after a few updates. Any game that has full co-op built in will always get my vote because I truly enjoy playing games with my spouse, and Dying Light 2 did everything extremely well. While not as strong as the first outing, Dying Light 2 made my PlayStation top games played list because I spent so many hours exploring the game.
Honorable Mentions: God Of War: Ragnarok, Stray, and Nobody Saves The World
Jordan
GOTY Nomination – Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge
In a year filled with so many amazing AAA games, and highly anticipated sequels, it may seem odd for me to go with a retro-throwback game for my pick. And yet, Shredder’s Revenge is a title that has stuck with me throughout the year. It was on my Most Anticipated list at the start of the year, and it still managed to exceed my expectations. Combining a new story with classic characters I grew up with, along with insanely fun fighting mechanics, it’s a game I’ve found myself coming back to play regularly throughout the year. Even just a few minutes here and there, Shredder’s Revenge has been my go-to “decompress from the day” game for 2022.
Runner Up – Horizon: Forbidden West
There’s a lot to love about Horizon: Forbidden West, a sequel to one of my favorite games in the past few generations. Personally, I loved where they went with the story and how they expanded the lore in some unique ways. The reason it doesn’t get the GOTY nom from me, however, is it is simply WAY TOO BIG. Seriously, it’s overwhelming the amount of things to do in the game. While some of the sidequests added some great character moments, so much of the extra stuff felt like it detracted from the emotional direction of the story at times.
Honorable Mentions: Sifu, LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga, Mario + Rabbids: Sparks of Hope
Becky
GOTY Nomination – Elden Ring
Elden Ring has been at the top of my 2022 gaming list for a while now, not least because it finally got me into the Souls genre, a game type I never thought I’d go anywhere near. And while the game is indeed as insanely difficult as you’ve heard, the game world is so staggeringly beautiful, I can’t bring myself to be mad at the difficulty. And honestly, once you get the hang of combat, it’s actually fun to sneak around The Lands Between and see how much you can do without running into a boss. No other game I’ve played this year has topped my experience with playing Elden Ring.
Runner-Up: God of War: Ragnarok
Honestly I could have easily flipped my nominations around and made this game my GOTY pick. God of War: Ragnarok blows the 2018 game out of the water in every way possible (and that’s saying a lot). There is literally so much to do in this game that you can easily spend hours working through side quests but still feel like you’re totally immersed in the game world and not missing out on anything. This is easily one of the best, if not the best God of War game and easily one of the best games I’ve played this year.
Honorable Mentions: Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands, LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga, The Dark Pictures Anthology: The Devil in Me
S0LEB
GOTY Nomination – God of War: Ragnarök
As a father, one of the most emotional things about being a parent is seeing my children grow up far too fast. My daughter is now 6 and my son is 3, I can remember it like it was yesterday when they first joined us in this world. Playing GoW Ragnarök just showed me not just the challenge of a God, but a full on emotional journey of a father from start to finish! It’s by far one of the best looking titles I have played and will live on as one of the best games ever made!
Honorable Mentions: Ghostwire Tokyo, Dying Light 2, Horizon Forbidden West
Matt
GOTY Nomination – Horizon: Forbidden West
The biggest reason why Horizon: Forbidden West isn’t more touted as a Game of the Year title is because it was released in the same month as Elden Ring. While Elden Ring is an all-around masterpiece in terms of world-building and combat, no one can deny that Horizon: Forbidden West is just as deserving of Game of the Year designation. The game saw Aloy continuing her journey to discover what happened in the past to create her dystopian present. To do so, she goes out west to fight against impressive and formidable new enemies. The story is incredibly captivating and the combat is pulse-pounding. Plus, the soundtrack and acting is exceptional. It’s definitely deserving of your vote.
Runner-up – God of War: Ragnarök
Probably gonna be looked at as a Sony shill, especially after all the nice stuff I said about Elden Ring and to not choose it as runner-up is a little glaring. In my defense, though, I am more of a narrative-based game shill, but again Elden Ring is incredible and I also love it. I digress. God of War: Ragnarök is right up there with Elden Ring and Horizon as a Game of the Year candidate. It gave an emotional story that spanned across the 9 realms and closed a chapter that will undoubtedly never be forgotten as one of the best stories ever told in gaming. Whatever game you choose, you can’t go wrong.
Honorable Mention: Stray ← My cat forced me to write this. Shadow’s Game of the Meower
Katy
The games above are all absolutely fantastic titles that captured the attention and love of the gaming community worldwide and I absolutely recommend checking them all out. They are also titles that I watched get played in their entirety by my partner, who is a massive fan of both Soulsbourne and God of War (and got through them so much more efficiently than I would have!), so I don’t feel like I can nominate since I didn’t actually play them myself. My nods are going to skew towards indie since I want to mix it up a bit and its how my tastes skew a majority of the time.
GOTY Nomination: Cult of the Lamb
More and more rogue-like games are being developed as the genre continues to grow in popularity and I saw a few drop in 2022 including my nominee Cult of the Lamb, Spelunky 2, The Binding of Isaac’s Repentance DLC and the exciting announcement at the Game of the Year Awards for Hades 2. Cult of the Lamb brought in the macabre humor I love from TBOI and mixed it with the fun of roguelike dungeon crawling and management sim mechanics. This is a winning combination in my eyes, along with continued development and updates that have already made the game better.
Runner-up: Beacon Pines
The macabre wins again. This time with the most engaging narrative mystery that I immersed myself in this year. Jump into the world of Beacon Pines and unravel the mystery of your mother’s disappearance and other creepy happenings around town in a game of consequences. A shorty but absolutely worth your time with a playthrough, especially if you utilize a Xbox Game Pass.
Honorable Mention: Bear and Breakfast, Stray, Potion Permit, Kynseed, MultiVersus, Harvestella, Disney Dreamlight Valley
Get those votes in now and be sure to come back next Wednesday to find out who won!
