OH SHIT - I totally screwed this video up. Metroid Dread was on my list lol it's pretty much my #1 or #2 pick. I HAD ONE FREAKIN JOB lol this is why you don't rush

nice

Guardians of the Galaxy really surprised me with its quality, such a good game and an incredible story too.

Your opinions on games mean everything for me when I pick it up. So I appreciate you bro. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.

Bought Ghost of Tsushima Directors Cut as my first PS5 game and have been playing it all year. It's my first RPG ever really and I've 100%'d it and put in 120+ hours. It's the first video game that has made me understand what's so special about playing a good game by yourself.

This year I decided to go back through the catalogue and find the games I missed from the past 4/5 years as there was some spaces in the year to go back. Finally went through Mad Max and wow it’s definitely underrated!! Replayed spider-man ps4 for no way home. Finally got into Dying Light after so long and now about to restart the Batman Arkham collection in anticipation for The Batman!! Nice going back

Death's Door was such a pleasant surprise for me this year. In a world where so many games get bigger, and free time seems to get shorter, Death's Door drops in at a perfectly paced 10-12 hour action/adventure full of charm, great music, engaging combat, and what I thought was a perfect balance of challenge, all for an affordable indie price. Its an easy recommendation if you just want a classically great "i just want to play a good video game" kind of game.

RETURNAL on PS5 was my favorite by far this year! It may be bc it was my first Rogue-like game Ive ever played. But the gameplay, the implementation of the Dual Sense controller, the bosses and level design of each Biome was chef's kiss for me!

This year I fall in love with the Yakuza franchise. I've been playing since March when I started with Yakuza zero and now I'm playing Yakuza 5.

I'm legit addicted to Hitman 3. Still playing it daily tryin to get silent assassin rank on every mission. And there's an expansion coming for new missions, gear etc.

I got into Metroid this year because of Dread, and it's in my top 10 games of all time now. Kinda crazy, but I just adore that game.

My top 5 games this year were 1) Death’s Door 2) Metroid Dread 3) Resident Evil Village 4) 12 Minutes 5) Little Nightmares 2 Also kinda an honourable mention to Bowser’s Fury. Since it wasn’t a full game. But it was a really cool look into the future of Mario games. That artful escape game you talked about seems right up my alley and I’ve never heard of it! So definitely gonna check that one out. Merry Christmas, Jake!

Oh man, I didn't get to play a lot of new games this year, but I think I did one better. I played: >Metal Gear Solid Twin Snakes, 2 and 4 and for the first time >Final Fantasy 10, 12, 13 and 15 for the first time >Yakuza 1, 2, 3 for the first time >Dark souls 2 for the first time, the last Souls-like Fromsoft game I played in the series, but it's the first one that finally made the series click! That being said Disco Elysium The Final Cut is gotta be the most memorable game I played this year. It's just... perfect in everything it does. Great video! I think you've finally convinced me to get the Guardians of theGalaxy game!

I agree with Ratchet and Clank being up there with being considered one of the best games of 2021. This is a game that I have a lot fun playing and everytime I comeback to play enjoy every minute of the experience. Also, as of right now i'm trying to 100 % the game and get the platinum trophy.

The Nier Replicant remaster was such a pleasant surprise. It was recommended to me by a friend and I really didn't know what to expect, but it ended up being one of my favorite games of all time. Yeah, the quest design and graphics aren't quite up to modern standards, but they did an amazing job modernizing the character models and combat, while adding new content to appease fans of the original. It has one of the greatest and most enigmatic stories I've ever seen in a game, and I still think the remastered version's soundtrack is the greatest soundtrack to any piece of media, period. And that's including games and films lmao. What an amazing and unique game

Jake, you’re one of my favorites. Your passion for video games is amazing! Keep it up bro! Happy Holidays!

I think Kena deserves so much more love than it has been getting. It was emotional, it was beautiful and it was a good old fun single player experience. Had me hooked straight through

I played a lot of older games this year and fell in love with divinity original sin 2

I really appreciate Jake, his personality, warmth and passion for games really shines through. 👊🏽 and ❤️ to you dude. Merry Christmas and happy New Year to you and yours.

Just bought The Artful Escape on the Steam Winter Sale because of your recommendation, Jake. Looks like a great all round experience as you said. Thank you for your continued passion about games, you are always a joy to watch.

Merry Christmas Jake! I’m a mostly silent fan but I’ve been following you (in a non creepy way) since the PMI days, and it’s so cool to see how you’ve grown so much! You’re the underrated GOAT

I like getting your opinion on things Jake. You just seem appreciate video games in a way not everyone does and it's great to hear.

You Jake are the one that got me into watching KZfaq gaming coverage. I'll always support you any that I can

My favorite game I played this year was Read Dead Redemption 2...I'd say finally(!) but I've never played the first so I didn't know the hype behind it. DANG RDR2 was a freaking masterpiece. My favorite game that came out this year was It Takes Two. My wife and I are about 70% of the way through I think? and it's so much fun. Great game and I'm glad it's seeing the love.

Kena: Bridge Of Spirits was my goty and one of my favorite games of all time. I absolutely loved everything about it, it was such a breath of fresh air, and I can't wait to see what Ember Lab does next. It Takes Two takes was my second favorite game of the year. It's honestly so nice and fresh having smaller games and studios be my top games. The indies killed it tyud this year. Have a wonderful holidays with your family Jake!

I always enjoy hearing you talk about your passions, and watching your videos makes a tough day better!

Thanks for all ur videos this year jake. I watch the weekly gaming new show every Saturday morning and your videos on this channel as soon as I can😁

Hey Jake, I just wanted to thank you for the years of positivity you've given to a platform that is always in desperate need of it. I'm much more of a movie guy than a video game guy lately, but your enthusiasm and love for everything you talk about is something I've always appreciated. I want to make an effort to play more games next year, so I'm hoping to check out a lot of stuff on this list! Plus, I'm really looking forward to Hogwarts Legacy, Project Eve, and DokeV (hopefully) dropping next year. Cheers and happy holidays!

I actually picked up No Man's Sky this year and have been having a surprisingly good time with it. It's come a long way since it's launch and it's the perfect blend of immersion and casual and I love it

I went “balls deep” into Mass Effect as well. Such a blast to play through them again.

Your game reviews are the only ones I've seen lately. So thank you very much, Jake! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.

Played resident evil 7 as my first resident evil game this year and made me love how horror can be more than just running and hiding, even though you do. Accompanied along with the release of village it was a fun spooky ride that I hadn’t experience before in games. Sekiro was also another big one for me this year even though I never finished. Papers please was an stressful and crowded ride that I would hop on again. And finally halo Infinite, I played halo growing up and felt great to go back to that even feeling competitive multiplayer. and forza horizon 5 that made me fall in love with racing games again. Thanks Jake for doing what you do, really like hearing your perspective on games and the gaming world as a whole. Looking forward to next year! Cheers

Hit the nail on the head with this list. Mines about the same, I didn’t get to play some of the titles you mentioned (yet), but looking forward to! I’m also all about the old school single player type games. Thanks for putting these videos out and happy holidays!

Honestly love your videos, they are very genuine. It's good to see someone who's got so much passion for what they do. Stay safe brother!

Hey Jake I love the way you talk, you seem like such a down to earth guy. I could listen to you talk about any game for hours

Great taste and glad to see the passion ! Look forward to more great content my friend, happy new year

Fun year following you and the boys at Ranx. Looking forward to your insights and thoughts on some of my favorite things in life too.

the "Big Creature" in GOTG was such a cool story beat. Drax's reaction when they make the decision to go was one of the funniest moments of the game for me lol. Two of my favorite games this year I tried based on your recommendation (Deathloop and GOTG) so thanks! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

I love you Jake - I always have your videos on when I’m doing stuff like cooking, eating, doing chores, etc. you’ve got great opinions on games and these videos have great production quality. Thanks man!

As someone who still cherishes playing Super Metroid as a kid, I loved Metroid Dread. It felt like visiting an old friend who had grown and matured in a surprising and satisfying way. Another game I loved this year, even though it came out last year, was Hades. The complexity of the weapons with the various boons and enhancements, coupled with the roguelike formula of the encounter design just keeps that game fresh.

The Artful Escape looks gorgeous! All the colors, the side scrolling chillness. Didn’t know it existed! Thanks for putting it on my radar, Jake :) Merry Christmas to you and your family, brother! 😊🎄

Physchonauts 2, Halo Infinite, Immortals Fenyx Rising (yeah i know its last year but enjoyed it this year) and Kena Bridge of Spirits were defo my most enjoyed of this year, I really wanna play Ratchet and Clank someday but got no PS haha

So surprised you didn't talk about Returnal! To me one of the most, if not the most, original new IP in a while. The sounds, the smooth controls, the graphics, the voice acting....tight!

I just finished playing the Halo collection i now am a hugh fan more then i was before. Plus playing through the Bioshock collection was a great experience. Great vid as always Jake! I would love a new Jak and Daxter Game just throwing that out there.

I was able to pick up Hades on ps5 this year and played the everyloving hell out of it. Never would have thought that kind of game would appeal to me but man it hooked me

Always look forward to your content Jake! My fav was the mass effect remaster. Loved every second of playing those 3 games… Merry Xmas to you and the family!! Thanks for all the great content. 👍🏻👍🏻

Oh boy, got quite a list. Hitman 3, Valheim, Huniepop 2 (I know I know, but it's genuinely fun), Mr. Prepper, Yakuza Like a Dragon (I know it's from last year but had a great time), Final Fantasy Pixel Remasters 1-4, Chernobylite, Road 96, The Ascent, Powerwash Sim, Deathloop, Alan Wake Remastered, Mass Effect Legendary Trilogy, Guardians of the Galaxy, RE Village, Exo One, Last Stand Aftermath. Just so many damn good games all around. Started streaming this year, too, so that's been a great experience with quite a few of these.

Happy Holidays Jake, thanks for all the work u put in this year. GOAT Activity!

Jake, good shit as always. Love these type of sit down bro talk videos. Happy Holidays to you and your family! Keep up the great work!

I deadass didn't know u personally had a youtube until like a day ago now im here happy for the ride ayeee

Finally ! LOVE THIS KIND OF VIDEOS

I absolutely loved the Hitman Trilogy. The only thing that takes it down a couple of notches for me is the fact that the progression is tied to online connection. Hopefully one day they will patch that out.

Jake your videos are great man and I appreciate your opinions, they help me decide if I should try a game or not. Thanks man and happy holidays.

Great video Jake!! For someone who had never played the ME trilogy before, the legendary edition was such a great surprise and my personal GOTY. Especially when you don't get these story/character heavy AAA games anymore. Also may be unpopular opinion between orignal fans but ME1 was my favorite of the 3 when it comes to story, world building, choices ya it lacked in gameplay but that was all worth it once I finished the first game and it setup the whole universe.

Thanks for a year full of great content Jake! (on both Gameranx and here) Happy holidays!!

Was waiting for this! Happy Holidays, Everyone! 😊

Merry Christmas Jake! Your channel is my go to for everything video games, can’t wait for next years games and what you have to say about em! I’m terms of this years new games I was only able to play: Deathloop and Hitman 3. I’ve played these two sooo much and I absolutely love the amount of detail that they had.

Thanks Jake! Have a great holiday season. Merry Christmas and happy new year

Thanks for the time and effort you put into making these videos. I never would have tried the likes of Kena and Little Nightmares 2 without your great reviews, so thanks. Will give It Takes Two a try, I usually play solo / single-player as well, so it could be fun! Also, chopping people's head off after a stressful day at work... I can definitely get on board with that 😈🤣 Wishing you and yours a very Happy Christmas. I appreciate you and your content. Looking forward to more of your (and Gameranx's) awesome videos next year!

I've loved your content across Gameranx and your own channel. Happy Christmas and new year, keep up the great work/content! I use your reviews to help me buy games over anything else, love the 'before you buy' videos 😉

You're probably one of the coolest gametubers here. Merry Christmas, Jake!

Mass Effect is still my favourite of the trilogy. I LOVE 2 and really like 3, but the first just has a really, REALLY special place in my heart. Possibly my overall favourite single piece of sci-fi, taking inspiration from practically every other piece in existence and meting them all together into this wonderful, magical experience.

The Carpenters! Great taste in music Jake for the classics. Love your content! Merry Christmas!

Warframe really hooked me this year, didn't have have that much fun in a game for a really long time. And a game where i find myself searching for a "how to" video many times which i like. Really like a game who doesn't throw that much information at you so you have to search it up for yourself. Thanks for your video. Merry Christmas and a happy new year to you!

love how active you’ve been dude i listen to ur stuff behind games all the time

Metroid Dread is hands down the best Switch game from 2021

I’m so glad it takes two won the game of the year. It’s my game of the year for sure… played with my friend and had such a blast. I’m really a single player campaign kinda gamer but wow this game really made me appreciate coop games

You’re the best! Keep it up Jake, thank you for all the content.

Thanks for being you Jake! Love the recommendations !

I’ve spent this year catching up on games, I played Control, God of War, Death Stranding and Ghost of Tsushima. Also got a switch lite and played Breath of The Wild for the first time. I was so desperate to play them, may sound so weird but feels like I can look forward to new games now and not feel like I need to tick old ones off. Love the videos man always true hero 🙌🙌

Surprised and a little saddened to see scarlet nexus wasn't on here. I feel like you mentioned it a few times and thought you really enjoyed. I've been playing it woth the little free time I have and it's been very fun.

i didn't play anything from this year but tried bioshock infinte for the first time and i cant talk about it too much cause i may start crying because of how awesome it is

Tried over cooked 2 for the first time this year (2018 release). This is such a solid game. My gf isnt a gamer but we both fell in love with it. Word of caution though, I'd stop playing when fingers start to get pointed for failure haha. I can only handle the chaos the game offers in small doses but my gf enjoys the high chaotic stimulation and usually is pushing me to keep going, and I'm the gamer!

Thanks for a great year Jake, been a pleasure watching your videos

Really appreciate your vids. Very best wishes to you for the festive period and keep up the great work.

i really love how positive you are, most video game channels are salty and come from this negative place, so i truly appreciate what you are doing !

My top 10 this year: 10. Forza Horizon 5 9. Hitman 3 8. The Artful Escape 7. Halo Infinite 6. Ratchet and Clank 5. It Takes Two 4. Psychonauts 2 3. Inscryption 2. Returnal 1. Resident Evil 8 Honorable mention to Deathloop, I adore arkane games but this one was my least favorite in recent memory, having said that it's still a lot of fun. Also the back half of RE8 started to lose me but the first half was so excellent and I personally enjoyed the ending. I'm super invested in this first person... trilogy thing

My favorite discovery this year has been Enderal: Forgotten Stories (Special Edition). The story, the characters, the world, the voice-acting,... everything about this game blew me away.

Jake’s word is the video game gospel. Merry Christmas, man!

your awesome jake, keep being a badass and cant wait to see what this year brings for you and i hope its nothing but the best!

Great video I'm happy you picked games throughout the whole year and not just at the end I've been playing It takes two and I've been loving it and i feel like everyone should get DMC 5 SE when it's on sale or whatever I got into it this year and I LOVED it so much it made me buy 1-4

It takes 2 was the game of the year to me as well, and for pretty much the identical reasons. My wife and I had an absolute blast playing that game.

I’m playing through the insomniac spidermen games again after watching nwh. It’s so good and Spider-Man is so cool. Happy holidays Jake. Love you

Love you, Jake. Thank you for being you.

I’m like 220hrs into Forza Horizon 5… it’s barely been out a month. I’m not even a big racing game guy. But I’m completely addicted. Plus after my recent OCD diagnoses it’s one of the few things that totally distracted. Great list tho keep up the content!

Going back 3 years cause you are the best video game reviewer on YT, keep it up and thanks

So glad that Hitman 3 got some love on this list. I really feel like it got overlooked in the GOTY awards at most outlets. Even the fact that it *COMPLETELY* changes the gameplay by bringing the entire trilogy to VR (shifting from third to first person, meaning you can only see what Agent 47 does - no eyes in the back of your head, no peeking around corners, etc.). It makes you feel like 47 more than ever, and at the same time, had me enjoying playing it as a “loud” game as well (something I never did on the flat screen). Because all the items are physical objects, you can deflect bullets with a frying pan, for example. Or blind fire a big ass weapon around corners and balconies. Running-and-gunning in Hitman in VR felt like a totally new sort of experience and that there’s so much full length AAA tier content across the entire trilogy, all of it playable in VR, makes it one of the best PSVR games out there (even though it wasn’t made for VR from the ground up).

My GOTY and a game I had a blast playing this year. Most people forget it came out this year is Little Nightmares 2. A great game with suspenseful and dread filled moments. The puzzles in it were fun without being over simplified. I would say more, but I'm afraid to get into spoiler territory and don't want to ruin it for others. It had an amazing soundtrack that sounded creepy and somehow beautiful if that makes sense.

Thanks for the heads up on The Artful Escape. I wasn't aware of this one, but I tend to like those games that provide a unique experience as well.

It was a little slow for me with video games this year, but honestly, replaying Marvel's Spider-Man when I (finally) got the PS5 was my game of the year. I'd be remiss not to mention Metroid Dread, Guardians of the Galaxy, and Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart.

It takes Two is by far my favorite game this year. Gameplay, story, and fun are all there. Just amazing to play with someone while experiencing and solving the game together while delving into the very deep, human story.

I had surgery in August and needed to take it easy for about 7 weeks. During that time I played through Star Wars Squadrons and Jedi Fallen Order. Both were great stories to play through. After Fallen Order, I was itching for another action adventure title. Guardians of the Galaxy came out and I was able to get it half off for Black Friday. I can’t recommend that game enough. Finished it and am itching for more single player games to try out.

The Carpenters! Awesome. 😁 Sorry you missed Metroid Dread, I too was waiting for that in your list. Thanks for your positivity around games!

Appreciate game ranx and you Jake. All set for Xmas managed to snag a next gen and bought a load of games on sale and used ready to go for the day most that are on this list

Thanks for the vid Jake!

Always enjoy your videos and I'm a solo player also . Have a good Christmas and a great new year 🥳🥳

The three that stuck with me the most this year were Deathloop, Kena, and surprisingly Psychonauts 2, which I checked out because of you guys and I loved it. I thought everything about the game was weird and charming and the writing had me actually fully laughing out loud which almost never happens with games.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year Jake! Great list your opinions and recommendations in games is always my favorite playing Mass Effect Trilogy first time was really fun. My Goty choices Guardians of the Galaxy or Tales of Arise. Other great games I had fun too was Kena Bridge of Spirits, Nier Replicant, Far Cry 6, RE 8 Village, Judgment and Ys IX Monstrum Nox.

Thanks for this video Jake I would appreciate your opinions on games you keep the little hope I have left in single player games as a 26 year old it's really hard to play multiplayer games nowadays but whenever I see you having fun with the game it makes me seem like I'm playing with you so thanks

You are the reason I just bought chivalry 2 in the sales, and it is so much fun!! I’m never not smiling when I’m playing it, usually as my arms and head are getting sliced off 😁