2022 gave gamers another incredible year for video games. Besides playing last year’s games, I spent 2022 catching up on older games. Such as Final Fantasy 7 Remake, God of War, Red Dead Redemption 2 and The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. Read on for a summary of my favorite games I played in 2022.

God of War Ragnarok

For game value, God of War Ragnarok offers a 10 out of 10 experience. I recommend playing the 2018 GOW before diving into GOWR, though. Since GOWR builds upon the first game’s narrative and acts as a continuation of that story.

NOTE SPOILERS BELOW

What’s to like 

Compared to the first game, GOWR offers more variety in enemies, locations and weapons. Second, besides an axe and Kratos’ trusty chains, you get a spear. The new shield moves and circle cues make things more defensive. Which reminds me of Namco’s Soul Calibur series. Other standout moments include more epic boss battles than in the last game. I also enjoyed the fun side quests, which feel worthwhile. Since you gain critical health and combat upgrades to make combat easier. Finally, Richard Schiff steals the show with his outstanding performance as Odin. He has a friendly bad-guy demeanor comparable to Christoper Waltz in Spectre. 

What’s not to like? 

The game struggles to balance the open world with the linear design of early GOW games. For example, the events of Ragnorak get built up as a huge deal, but the plot’s not urgent. After a slow opening for GOW standards, you encounter Odin and Thor and then don’t see them for around 20 hours. GOWR also feels like the Last of Us Part II at times because you spend a good deal of the game not playing as Kratos. Unfortunately, while Atreus makes a compelling lead, he’s dull to play as during combat. Since he lacks the physical strength of Kratos and you take out most enemies by firing arrows. His jumping melee move rules, though. 

Other gripes? The game’s focus on the quantity of bosses versus memorable encounters. GOWR contains some cool epic one-on-one mini-boss fights early on in the story. However, the game reuses them in the second half too much. Instead of introducing new enemies, Kratos fights two minibosses at once most of the time. Lastly, the menu for armor selection desperately needs a revamp! The upgrade options in the menu don’t feel clear and took me out of the gameplay experience.

Despite my complaints, I enjoyed GOWR. Even though I prefer a 10-15 hour incredible linear action game to a pretty good 25-35 hour open world game. For the next GOW, the series needs another reboot to freshen things up again. How about Egypt mythology Sony Santa Monica?

Gran Turismo 7

Sony hits gold with number 7 in its premiere racing franchise. The graphics look stunning, and the cars feel amazing to drive. I love the idea of using a cafe for car introductions. Plus, getting a history lesson from professionals makes the single-player more exciting. The music track-style racing offers a fun diversion, too. A bummer you don’t get rewarded for finishing them like other single-player events, though. I didn’t finish the game, but I’m excited to return later this year, and the VR mode sounds incredible. 

Cuphead: The Delicious Last Course DLC

Another delicious helping of Cuphead, indeed. I finished the original game and loved it despite the difficulty. The best thing about the new DLC involves the removal of the frustrating platform levels. Instead, new encounters reliant on strong parry skills take their place. So far, it seems like a welcome improvement.

However, the most significant addition involves the new character, Ms. Chalice. Who adds a new dynamic to the game while acting as an easier nudge into Cuphead’s brutal difficulty. Like the last game, the DLC contains an easy mode to beat all the bosses. But to get the whole experience and ending, you must fight the bosses on normal difficulty.

You’ll want to since the bosses feature very imaginative combat encounters not seen in the easy mode. For example, one boss, you continue the fight inside their belly when you get eaten alive.

Cuphead can get frustrating fast, so to limit frustration, play in short sessions. Once you learn their attack patterns, it becomes second nature to dodge enemy attacks. I’m curious about what’s next for Cuphead or what new IP and genre the studio focuses on next.

Immortality

I loved Telling Lies and enjoyed Her Story, so I’m always excited to see Sam Barlow’s new work. From what I’ve played, Immortality doesn’t disappoint. It is definitely the most ambitious live-action FMV video game I’ve seen. I’m pleased to see it on Netflix for free too.

The gameplay works like Barlow’s previous games. But, instead of using a search bar, you pause the game to find clues in the environment. Such as a plant, facial expressions on actor’s faces and a film clapperboard. It’s very impressive the developers shot three whole movies for this game too. Revealing any more would ruin the surprises, so I recommend you give Immortality a try. Even if you don’t think it’s for you.

Echoes of Mana

Secret of Mana! My favorite video game besides The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past. So this mobile spin-off that resembles a greatest hits collection excited me. Unfortunately, it contains gatcha from mobile games, and the art’s not as good. Instead, Echos of Mana uses high-resolution models of the old games. I prefer it over the Secret of Mana remake’s crappy graphics, though!

I enjoyed seeing old characters from the past game return, and the combat’s decent. It does get complicated, and playing earlier levels to power up feels grindy. The equipment and item usage do feel too cumbersome and lack the simple ring system of SOM. Still, as a Mana fan, I’m compelled to play more and at least finish the main story. Which I’ll have to do on YouTube since, unfortunately, the game’s servers recently shut down.

Thanks for reading. Besides the new Zelda and PlayStation VR2, I’m excited most for the Resident Evil 4 remake and Final Fantasy XVI. Microsoft’s lineup of Redfall, Forza and Starfield all show promise too. Bring on 2023 games!