Editor’s Choice

Bloodborne
Nobody builds worlds with such grisly panache as From Software, and the fearsome town of Yharnam is arguably its most focussed and memorable creation yet. I poured countless hours into sheepishly exploring its streets in 2015, and loved every horrible second.
— Fred Dutton // Social Media Manager, SCEE

N++
N++ lies somewhere between improv comedy and throwing yourself down a flight of stairs. And while it may be voluminous in its myriad masochistic challenges, it’s the balletic platforming and devious level design that coheres the experience into something irresistible. And oh so stylish!
— Nick Suttner // Lead Account Manager, SCEA

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
Master-class RPG design. Back in May, I wrote this tweet: “Finished a series of quests in The Witcher 3 that was probably more emotionally powerful than the entire story of any game I’ve ever played.” Months later, I can stand by those words.
— Sid Shuman // Senior Manager of Social Media, SCEA

Fallout 4
Fallout 4 has everything. Great music. An engaging story. Robust customization options. Thrilling combat. A dog. It’s the type of game that you need to barricade yourself indoors for days on end to fully play. I absolutely loved it.
— Ryan Clements // Social Media Specialist, SCEA

Editor’s Choice

Teslagrad
I keep coming back to Teslagrad as one of the most thoughtful, quietly clever games I played last year. Its weird fairytale world held just enough mystery without overplaying its hand, and it felt super tight when it could have felt short. Just a really nice puzzle-platformer that deserves some love among the heavy-hitters.
— Nick Suttner // Lead Account Manager, SCEA

Helldivers
Helldivers catapulted Swedish studio Arrowhead into a new echelon that redefines the top-down squad shooter. An intoxicating blur of snarky satire, team kills, and cape twirling. All hail Super Earth!
— Sid Shuman // Senior Manager of Social Media, SCEA

Editor’s Choice

Geometry Wars 3
I’ve still got the calloused groove in my thumb to bear witness to the amount of time I spent with this one. Hugely generous with its content, and packed full of clever twists on a classic formula, it monopolised my PS Vita this year
— Fred Dutton // Social Media Manager, SCEE

Hotline Miami 2: Wrong Number
One of the most rewarding games I played this year, Denaton’s macabre follow-up treads edgy new narrative ground. The characters, the soundtrack, and the visceral combat merge in an almost hallucinatory experience.
— Sid Shuman // Senior Manager of Social Media, SCEA

Shovel Knight
A love letter to the golden age of 8-bit gaming, Yacht Club’s inaugural effort wears its inspirations on its sleeve. It forges its own path though, bringing new ideas to one of gaming’s oldest genres and never falling into the trap of imitation. By story’s end, this unlikely horned hero had me laughing, cheering, and even tearing up a bit. For shovelry!
— Justin Massongill // Social Media Manager, SCEA

Editor’s Choice

Bloodborne
Did you read the extraordinary 90-page lore fan essay that did the rounds last summer? I love how creator Hidetaka Miyazaki hides his narrative in the background – unpicking its ambiguous mysteries is a fascinating game-within-a-game.
— Fred Dutton // Social Media Manager, SCEE

Everybody’s Gone to the Rapture
Rapture is the story of a small town devastated by… something. But for me, the game wasn’t ultimately about that something – rather, it’s about the more intimate, human moments shared by its citizens in times of tragedy. And while its script and voiceover are excellent, it’s the environmental storytelling that truly stands out – wandering the silent streets and exploring the homes of the departed; a snapshot of small-town culture, forever frozen in time.
— Nick Suttner // Lead Account Manager, SCEA

Soma
I thought about Soma for weeks after watching the credits roll across the screen. A masterful endeavor in atmosphere, Soma poses intense philosophical questions to its audience — and does so with emotional poignancy. One conversation late in the narrative left my heart broken, and I’ll never forget how that felt.
— Ryan Clements // Social Media Specialist, SCEA

Tales From the Borderlands
Believe it or not, I just finished playing Telltale’s bold first step into the Borderlands universe while putting the finishing touches on this post, and I’m glad I did. Not only does it feature the most honest-to-goodness hilarious writing I saw in a game in 2015, I think it’s Telltale’s best work yet. Long live Loader Bot!
— Justin Massongill // Social Media Manager, SCEA

Editor’s Choice

Axiom Verge
As much as I adore N++’s opus of licensed electronic jams, I have to give the nod to Axiom Verge – the score is wholly original, and as with everything else in the game, crafted entirely by its sole creator, Thomas Happ. His score maintains every inch of creeping sci-fi strangeness that runs through the rest of the game, the perfect compliment to being trapped in a suffocating alien world.
— Nick Suttner // Lead Account Manager, SCEA

Fallout 4
With Fallout 4, Bethesda created the ultimate cultural mix tape, blending stirring orchestral overtures and suggestive 40s and 50s pop tunes into a surprisingly cohesive mix. “Personality,” indeed.
— Sid Shuman // Senior Manager of Social Media, SCEA

N++
There was a lot of great game music out there this year (I feel terrible not giving this one to Shovel Knight), but I’ve gotta hand it to the team at Metanet for their work here. N++ as a whole is an exercise in deliberate, thoughtful curation and design, and its soundtrack is a reflection of that same design philosophy. Perhaps the chillest collection of tunes in 2015, I keep finding myself with these tracks on loop to help me power through big projects.
— Justin Massongill // Social Media Manager, SCEA

Editor’s Choice

Wolfenstein: The Old Blood
Call me old-fashioned, but I like my FPSes linear, single-player only and story-based! It was slim pickings on that front in 2015, but MachineGames turned in a fine snack-sized prologue to its excellent 2014 shooter.
— Fred Dutton // Social Media Manager, SCEE

SOMA
Frictional Games released one of 2015’s most inspired accomplishments: an experiment into the nature of human consciousness that filled me with existential dread. I can’t wait to see what this team tackles next.
— Sid Shuman // Senior Manager of Social Media, SCEA

Nuclear Throne
Why do I love a game that tortures me so? Nuclear Throne ties together lightning-fast combat, strategic weapon selection, and a brutal difficulty into one addictive roguelike. Infuse that with character-specific abilities and Nuclear Throne is the type of hole you could fall down for hours.
— Ryan Clements // Social Media Specialist, SCEA

Axiom Verge
Tom Happ clearly and completely understands the type of gamer who wants to play a game like Axiom Verge, and his five-year project plays to that audience spectacularly. Oh, right! This game was made by ONE GUY. No big deal.
— Justin Massongill // Social Media Manager, SCEA

Editor’s Choice

Rocket League
Rocket League is great for a lot of reasons, but most of all because it’s a real sport. It’s entirely skill-based, and it’s a total blast whether you’re kicking the ball around the field with some non-gaming friends or flying through the skies, teeth gritted, against seasoned pros. It’s accessible, polished, infinitely replayable, and above all, fun. Everything you (or at least I) could want in a multiplayer game.
— Nick Suttner // Lead Account Manager, SCEA

Call of Duty Black Ops 3
For my money, Call of Duty still boasts the most satisfying feel of any multiplayer shooter. Add in Treyarch’s best Zombies co-op yet and a rock-solid four-player campaign, in regular and Nightmare flavors, and you’ve got a game you could play for years.
— Sid Shuman // Senior Manager of Social Media, SCEA

Destiny: The Taken King
It’s all about the little things. Destiny: The Taken King may have sweeping battles and a ferocious new enemy, but it was the many small improvements Bungie made to the Destiny universe that makes The Taken King so special. The same can be said for its highly addictive multiplayer. There are countless, fun little moments built into one singular package.
— Ryan Clements // Social Media Specialist, SCEA

Editor’s Choice

Dark Souls III
Yes, correct, I’m your resident Dark Souls bore. You should probably avoid me at parties.
— Fred Dutton // Social Media Manager, SCEE

The Last Guardian
Because duh.
— Nick Suttner // Lead Account Manager, SCEA

Paragon
Epic unveiled Paragon at PlayStation Experience last year with a jaw-dropping trailer — and that was all I needed to begin my jittery anticipation for this ambitious new MOBA. Anything with black hole-inducing super attacks deserves sustained applause.
— Ryan Clements // Social Media Specialist, SCEA

Horizon: Zero Dawn
Dark Souls III is singing its siren song, but ultimately I have to give the nod to Horizon: Zero Dawn. Guerrilla Games’s bold decision to move away from the guns-and-grit of Killzone to this colorful, lush world populated by biomechanical creatures already looks like it’s going to pay off in spades.
— Sid Shuman // Senior Manager of Social Media, SCEA

The Witness
I played an early build of The Witness for around 50 hours a few months ago, going so far as to actually finish the game. So then, it certainly says something that the experience I’m most looking forward to in 2016 is playing it again.
— Justin Massongill // Social Media Manager, SCEA

Editor’s Choice

OlliOlli2: Welcome to Olliwood
Roll7 improved on its already-phenomenal 2014 breakout hit in every way. Can’t wait to get my hands on Not A Hero!
— Fred Dutton // Social Media Manager, SCEE

Gauntlet: Slayer Edition
Clearly, Rocket League is the favorite here. But I will buck the trend and highlight this underappreciated gem from Arrowhead, a frenetic multiplayer-focused dungeon crawler that does the classic original proud.
— Sid Shuman // Senior Manager of Social Media, SCEA

OlliOlli2: Welcome to Olliwood
Gotta agree with Fred here. The original OlliOlli was one of my favorite games on PS Vita, and the fact that its better-in-every-way sequel was free on PS Plus at launch was a slam-dunk for the plucky team at Roll7. These guys have a bright future ahead of ’em.
— Justin Massongill // Social Media Manager, SCEA

Editor’s Choice

Bloodborne: The Old Hunters
In which From Software provides an irrefutable answer to Shakespeare’s 500-year-old poser, “Can one desire too much of a good thing?”
— Fred Dutton // Social Media Manager, SCEE

Final Fantasy XIV: Heavensward
Heavensward, above all else, demonstrated a thematic cohesion in nearly every facet of its colossal (perhaps draconic) scope. Story, music, class design, and quests were spun together with aplomb, ensuring that Final Fantasy XIV remain a dominant force in the MMO landscape for years to come.
— Ryan Clements // Social Media Specialist, SCEA

Final Fantasy XIV: Heavensward
Another category where someone gets to my pick before I do. It’s okay though: I initially convinced Ryan to play FFXIV in the first place, so my work here is done. Kudos to Naoki Yoshida and his team on a massive, Eorzea-altering expansion that I can unreservedly say is worthy of my time. Hundreds and hundreds of hours of my time.
— Justin Massongill // Social Media Manager, SCEA

Editor’s Choice

From Software
Not only did the supremely diligent Tokyo-based outfit release the GOTY and announce the imminent release of Dark Souls III, it also found time to reward the faithful with the hugely under-rated Dark Souls II: Scholar of the First Sin on PS4.
— Fred Dutton // Social Media Manager, SCEE

Psyonix
Psyonix made a brilliant gamble in retooling their PS3 cult hit (Supersonic Acrobatic Rocket-Powered Battle Cars) for the eSports generation, and the result — Rocket League — is a triumph of accessible, competitive action. They stuck to their guns, and had the faith and foresight that success would follow. It did.
— Nick Suttner // Lead Account Manager, SCEA

Kojima Productions
If not this year, then when?
— Sid Shuman // Senior Manager of Social Media, SCEA