Compared to some years (I am thinking of 2023 and its wealth of offerings, from Cocoon to Viewfinder), 2024 has been a bit slower for must-play video games, particularly for the science and technology-themed titles I like to highlight for a 麻豆传媒 audience. But that isn鈥檛 to say there was nothing to enjoy 鈥� far from it! 鈥� so here are my picks for the year.
(Team Asobi)
I suspect this charming platformer (see main image) will be at the top of many game-of-the-year lists, and it would certainly deserve that spot. It is an unashamed love letter to all things PlayStation, with the titular Astro Bots travelling the stars in a spaceship that resembles a PS5 before it is blown up by aliens, scattering parts and robots everywhere. Your job is to jump, climb and swim your way through a series of levels to find console parts and robots dressed as Sony characters to reunite everyone. It all looks gorgeous and is incredibly fun. PlayStation 5
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(LocalThunk)
This is a game for probability fiends. You are dealt a hand of cards and must score the highest you can according to standard poker rules. So far, so boring 鈥� until you add the jokers. Each joker card has a special power, from the mundane (slightly increase your score) to the extreme (copy the ability of other jokers). Your job is to assemble a set of jokers that increasingly breaks the game, boosting your score, while playing the odds to hit ever higher score goals. Throw in other cards that offer one-time effects or other upgrades, along with slot machine-style visuals and sounds, and you will be playing this for a long time. PC, PlayStation 4 and 5, Xbox Series X/S and One, Nintendo Switch, Android, iOS
(Square Enix)
As I said in April, this second title in a remake trilogy of the iconic Final Fantasy VII has a lot to say about environmentalism. It is set in a world that runs on mako, a form of spiritual energy drawn from the planet itself, and follows a band of eco-terrorists as they attempt to fight the evil Shinra power company and prevent it from over-exploiting mako. What makes it interesting is that mako can be read either as a nuclear power analogue or stand-in for oil, with quite a different message depending on your interpretation. PlayStation 5
(The Chinese Room)
This period piece set on a 1970s North Sea oil rig is dripping with atmosphere, Scottish dialogue and tentacles. I am not normally a fan of the 鈥�walking simulator鈥� genre, in which you slowly move around an environment to uncover a story, but this one had me hooked. PC, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S
(Balloon Studios)
An utterly charming puzzler in which you explore a 19th-century English manor to put together a herbarium of weird and wonderful flowers. You play as botanist Arabella Greene and subtly learn her story through the course of play, such as how she has fought against the male-dominated scientific establishment to make her name as a researcher in her own right. PC, PlayStation 4 and 5, Xbox Series X/S and One, Nintendo Switch, Android, iOS
(Saber Interactive)
I grew up playing the Warhammer 40,000 tabletop game, which mostly involves spending vast sums on plastic soldiers and painting them poorly, so it is always a world I am happy to return to in the slightly cheaper realm of video games. This title is actually a follow-up to a decade-old original, hewing surprisingly close to its story, which I had mostly forgotten. None of that matters 鈥� the point here is to strap on your power armour, hoist a gun the size of a small car and blast through hordes of alien scum. PC, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S
(Hollow Ponds)
Soar through the skies as you search for fictional bird species, classifying each one by its unique characteristics. Some are easy to track down, simply flying by, while others require more dedication and puzzle-solving. You can also team up with friends to fill out your bird guide together. PC, PlayStation 4 and 5, Xbox Series X/S and One
