It’s the final day of 2018, and it was a great year for video games!

…Although it was a disaster for my five most anticipated games, since one was delayed, one was cancelled, one was different enough from what I hoped for that I didn’t get it, and one was a disappointment, leaving me only with Dragon Quest XI, which I hope to play soon.

So let’s take a look at the best games I played this year. As usual, these aren’t necessarily games that came out this year, just games that I played to completion this year.

Honorable Mention

This year’s honorable mention goes to the new God of War. Despite my best efforts, I didn’t beat it before the end of the year. It’s been a fantastic experience so far, though, so it’s well on track to become a favorite.

Now, onward to the top 5 games I played (and beat) in 2018!)

5. God of War (original)

All right, so even though God of War didn’t qualify for the list, God of War did! …And that’s not confusing at all.

Leading up to the new God of War game, I played through and reviewed all five games in the God of War Saga collection.

Now, it’s really hard for me to decide which one is my favorite. Ghost of Sparta might have had the best story, God of War II had the smoothest-feeling gameplay, God of War III had the best combination of story and gameplay… but the one my thoughts keep coming back to is the original.

As I explained in my review, it really felt like a Greek tragedy, and the way it captured that sense of mythology earned it a spot on my list.

4. 999: Nine Hours, Nine Persons, Nine Doors

999: Nine Hours, Nine Persons, Nine Doors is the first half of The Nonary Games collection and a game I’d intended to play for a long time. Earlier this year, I finally played it, with its sequel to follow in the future.

999 turned out to be an exciting game with clever puzzles, intense storytelling, and a way of playing around with strange phenomena in urban legends in such a way as to keep a surreal sense of realism even as it delved into fantastic territory.

I spent the entire story wanting to unravel the mystery and learn the truth of what was at work… and while part of the ending fell a little flat for me, it was still one of the most intriguing, enjoyable games I’ve played all year.

3. Xenoblade Chronicles 2

I love the first two Xenoblade games, and Xenoblade Chronicles 2 stands right up there with them. While it had some flaws (mainly due to the gacha-like Blade system), it was a great story with a good cast. For me, the good outweighs the bad, as you’ll see from my review.

But what makes it stand out even more is its DLC expansion. On top of the main Xenoblade Chronicles 2, which is itself a huge JRPG, we also got Torna ~ The Golden Country.

Like the main game, Torna isn’t perfect… but this smaller Xenoblade experience is a fun game in its own right, and as I explained in my review, it has a lot of features that feel better than the main Xenoblade Chronicles 2.

Together, Xenoblade Chronicles 2 and its prequel expansion created a standout experience.

2. Trails in the Sky

Early in the year, I finished Trails in the Sky. While it has a slow-paced story, I enjoyed the detective-like nature of the early parts and the way the stakes rose in the later parts, as well as its world and characters.

Technically, I’ve only seen the first half the story, so I’m looking forward to playing Trails in the Sky SC to see what happens next.

So why does the first Trails in the Sky rank so high on this list? It’s largely because of the twist. That twist. I still can’t believe I never saw it coming.

And at last, we’re ready to talk about the final entry on the list, the number one game I played in 2018.

Knowing God of War is out of the running, if you talked to me much at all this year, you probably know what it will be…

1. Yakuza 0

I’d never played anything from the Yakuza series before, but once I learned it was nothing like what I imagined, I decided to try Yakuza 0.

And what an experience it turned out to be.

I finished it after over 100 hours of gameplay divided between a fantastic story, a number of hilarious side quests, and plenty of mini-games to break up the pace.

Plot, characters, gameplay, side content… Yakuza 0 won me over at every turn. It left me eager to play more games in the series and confident in naming Yakuza 0 as the best game I played in 2018.

Conclusion

I played lots of games in 2018, and God of War (original), 999, Xenoblade Chronicles 2, Trails in the Sky, and Yakuza 0 are the five that stood out to me the most, with God of War (2018) also proving to be an excellent game as I continue to play through it.

Which were your favorite games that you played in 2018?