Branching Path: Mikhail Madnani's Top 10 Games of 2024

by Mikhail Madnani on 03 January, 2025

I thought last year was one of the best years for games since 2017, but I ended up finding a lot more I enjoyed in 2024 across platforms and genres. With some ups and downs that even led to me joining RPG Site, 2024 is now behind us all, but I struggled to restrict the games I wanted to highlight here to even 50 when I started thinking of my favorite games of 2024.

Not only did I end up discovering some superb smaller games, but I was surprised at how a few of the bigger ones I was excited to play ended up left unfinished as I found myself enjoying some surprise releases. Before getting into the many games I enjoyed in 2024, I want to mention a few that I wanted to play, but didn't end up finishing them for whatever reason. These are Astro Bot, Rise of the Ronin, Caves of Qud, Stellar Blade, Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, and Slitterhead.

I decided to wait on the PC release for Final Fantasy VII Rebirth before getting deeper into it since I would be able to give it more time then, and just didn't end up being able to play much of Rise of the Ronin when it debuted despite enjoying it a lot. I've been slowly chipping away at Caves of Qud, Astro Bot, and Slitterhead over the holidays as well. I'll likely have more to say about them in the future, but I am enjoying them. Having more than 24 hours in a day would have been very useful.

With that out of the way, let's get into the games I enjoyed a lot this year across genres, not just RPGs.

15 Honorable Mentions across two sets

I have two sets of honorable mentions, or games that didn't make into my top 10. Aside from what you could consider "11-20", I decided to put any remakes, re-releases, or remasters into a separate set as well. The five games below are unordered:

Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance - I loved the original Shin Megami Tensei V on Switch a few years ago, but Vengeance basically fixed any problem I had. I consider it Atlus' best re-release ever and one of the developer's best RPGs in many years. It also happens to have a legendary soundtrack that somehow lived up to the Shin Megami Tensei IV score.
Romancing SaGa 2: Revenge of the Seven - Romancing SaGa 2 is what got me into SaGa games many years ago and I'm glad to have experienced it again in a superb remake that is now the definitive way to get into the SaGa series for newcomers. I enjoyed Romancing SaGa 2: Revenge of the Seven so much that I bought it thrice to support the release.
Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake - Square Enix's HD-2D Remake of Dragon Quest III is a perfect blend of old school Dragon Quest with the HD-2D aesthetic I adore. Dragon Quest III has been a mess on modern platforms, but I'm glad that we now have a superb version of it on all current platforms.
MARVEL vs. CAPCOM Fighting Collection: Arcade Classics - Having gotten really into fighting games over the last few years and after learning to play with both sticks and leverless controllers, I had been slowly revisiting older games. MvC2 felt like something I would never get to play officially, but MARVEL vs. CAPCOM Fighting Collection: Arcade Classics delivered a superb package that I've enjoyed playing online and offline across PS5 and Steam Deck.
Master Detective Archives: RAIN CODE Plus - When I first tried playing Rain Code on Switch, it felt like Spike Chunsoft's biggest game production, but it was clearly very downgraded on Nintendo's hybrid system. Rain Code Plus on current consoles and even Steam Deck is a massive visual improvement, but one that doesn't address the original game's issues unfortunately. Either way, Rain Code Plus is an easy recommendation for Danganronpa fans, and I hope we see more like it from Spike Chunsoft in the future.

The games below are what I would consider "11-20" but unordered:

UFO 50 - UFO 50 felt like a game that wasn't ever going to be released, but it continues to impress me each day. UFO 50 took me back to my childhood shareware game days with a package that actually featured 50 full games across genres of varying sizes. Not only does it feel underpriced given the superlative value, but I can't think of anything that comes close to its ambition from any developer, not just an indie. UFO 50 just narrowly missed my top 10 because I wasn't fond of every single game included.
Shiren the Wanderer: The Mystery Dungeon of Serpentcoil Island - Shiren's newest release debuted on Switch earlier in the year and was immediately one of the best exclusives in a while for Nintendo's hybrid console. While I haven't played all entries in the series, Shiren 6 is easily my favorite, and an easy recommendation to even newcomers to the genre who play on Switch or PC. Shiren 6 is a sublime handheld experience wherever you play.
Unicorn Overlord - I'm as surprised as you are that a brand-new Vanillaware game isn't in my top 10, but this year has just been that strong. When I was playing it, I realized Vanillaware is like the Australian band King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard who keep exploring different genres with each new album and maintaining the quality. The narrative being a bit weaker than I had hoped from the developer is the only real issue I have with this strategy RPG gem.
Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown - I didn't end up playing Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown at launch, but finally got around to it a bit before its Steam release. It blew me away and while it goes on a bit too long, Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown and Nine Sols are easily my favorite metroidvanias in decades. Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown is a shockingly good game that managed to impress this old school Prince of Persia fan who has not really enjoyed the series after the first two games.
Granblue Fantasy: Relink - Relink was another game I just wrote off because it showed no signs of releasing, until it did, and it was awesome. Its sublime music, excellent visuals, great multiplayer, and lovely action-packed single player campaign impressed me enough to replay it all the way. After all the delays, I'm glad Granblue Fantasy: Relink managed to knock it out of the park and become one of my favorite games of the year.
Children of the Sun - Children of the Sun is a brilliant tactical shooter meets puzzle game with an impeccable aesthetic. While the core gameplay on its own is worth the price of admission, I found myself quite taken with the narrative. It doesn't overstay its welcome either.
SaGa Emerald Beyond - SaGa Emerald Beyond is the perfect follow-up to the amazing SaGa Scarlet Grace: Ambitions with its incredible turn-based combat, structure, and music. This isn't really an accessible game, but a SaGa for SaGa sickos (compliment).
Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 - A friend of mine kept telling me about Space Marine 2 for years, and I didn't pay attention to it back then because I wasn't familiar with Warhammer 40,000 at all. A few years ago I started playing many games based on the universe, and was impressed by a trailer for Space Marine 2 that made it look like a big budget take on the superb third-person gameplay we'd see in the Xbox 360 and PS3 days. I ended up enjoying it a lot through its campaign and multiplayer.
Tsukihime -A piece of blue glass moon- - Tsukihime's remake impressed the hell out of me when I played it earlier this year on Switch. Having heard about Type-Moon's debut visual novel for many years, I didn't think I'd ever be able to experience it in English, but the remake floored me. I wholeheartedly agree with Josh's review calling it the closest we are to an AAA visual novel experience.
Mouthwashing - Mouthwashing is a game best experienced without knowing anything about it. The first-person walking simulator horror game has characters and a story I won't forget anytime soon, and it also ended up being one of the best examples of pushing the medium forward narratively. Mouthwashing is best when it isn't trying to add "gameplay" and just focusing on its storytelling.

The advantage of wanting to do a photo like the one you see above for this article is it made me stop moving games in and out of my top 10 and across honorable mentions. After thinking about my ranking and the games I wanted to cover here for a few weeks now, and even adding Nine Sols as the newest game, I finally settled on the ranking for my top 10 games of 2024.

10) Emio – The Smiling Man: Famicom Detective Club

When Nintendo released two remakes a few years prior, I thought it was one of those releases that made a lot of Switch owners (like myself) happy, but not really something we should expect to see more of. Emio – The Smiling Man: Famicom Detective Club proved me wrong and delivered one of Nintendo's most surprising releases in many years. It is a superb adventure game that has one of the best finales. Emio – The Smiling Man: Famicom Detective Club was easily Nintendo's best game of 2024 and an essential for fans of the genre. I just wish it had touchscreen support like other adventure games and visual novels on Switch.

9) Arctic Eggs

Arctic Eggs was a game I got gifted to me because I love cooking and fishing mini-games in anything. I ended up loving its aesthetic, music, and also how it controlled. The Steam Deck's trackpad ended up being my favorite way to try and cook the various egg requests through the game's story, and it was also a learning experience for Steam Input. Arctic Eggs with its relaxing music and writing felt like the perfect game for someone who loves Umurangi Generation. Hey, that's me. It doesn't play too well with a controller sadly, but is a lovely Steam Deck experience if you like using the trackpads.

8) Nine Sols

Nine Sols is literally here because of James. When he played it, he used to post about it a lot, and I have had it on my wishlist ever since. We got sent an Xbox code for it, and I decided to give it a shot on my new ROG Ally. I ended up playing for a few hours and loving it. I bought it during the recent sale, and have been obsessed with it ever since. In fact, I put more time into Nine Sols over the last two weeks than anything else. The incredible combat, gorgeous visuals, slick animation work, and memorable (and challenging) boss fights elevated Nine Sols to what is likely my favorite metroidvania ever. Yes, I mean it. I can't believe I ended up finding two of my favorites in the genre with Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown and Nine Sols in the same year. Please play Nine Sols. Don't get intimidated by the challenge because it has some accessibility options. If you own a Steam Deck, it is perfect on that and a stunner on the OLED screen.

7) Thank Goodness You're Here

When I saw Thank Goodness You're Here's reveal trailer, I thought it might be a decent game carried by its voice acting. I was wrong. I ended up adoring the writing, aesthetic, and interactions across the three hours I spent with it. In a lot of ways, Thank Goodness You're Here felt like I was playing an interactive version of an old English comedy like Allo Allo with a cartoon aesthetic. Thank Goodness You're Here might not hit as hard for those who aren't fans of a specific kind of British humor, but it did for me.

6) Lorelei and the Laser Eyes

I've been a Simogo fan ever since I played Year Walk on iPad a long time ago. Since then, the studio has put out incredible and creative games mostly on iOS, but we saw some console and PC games with Year Walk hitting Wii U and Sayonara Wild Hearts launching on all platforms. I used to consider Device 6 my favorite Simogo game, but Lorelei and the Laser Eyes ended up exceeding all my expectations and delivering one of the best puzzle games I've ever played. It is meticulously crafted and while I first played it earlier this year on Switch and Steam, I've found myself adoring the DualSense haptics included in the new PS5 release. Lorelei and the Laser Eyes will not be for everyone but it hurts me to have it just out of my top 5 games. I look forward to rebuying it whenever a physical release happens.

5) Tekken 8

I've never hidden how much Tekken 7 disappointed me. I hated it at launch on PS4 and basically never touched it again until years later. I still wasn't a fan of how it was, and basically wrote off the series that I adored during the PS1 era. When Tekken 8 was announced, it looked like a massive step up for the series, and I decided to give it a shot even though it released near many other games I was excited to play. I'm glad I did because Tekken 8 was good enough to get me to buy it on all platforms and play it regularly with friends through its base game and with each of the DLC characters including Final Fantasy XVI's Clive who recently joined.

4) The Legend of Heroes: Trails through Daybreak

Whenever a new Trails game releases, I make sure to play it and I usually enjoy it. When discussing it with friends though, there is always a big caveat whether I recommend it or not because of how many games you might need to have played before to get the best experience. We've had a few good entry points in recent years, but Trails through Daybreak is the best one yet as far as I'm concerned with its modern combat, upgraded game engine, superb cast, amazing protagonist, and basically not requiring any prior games. It is funny having Trails through Daybreak right below Metaphor in my top games of 2024 list because Metaphor's combat is clearly inspired by Trails through Daybreak. If you've ever wanted to get into Trails, this is where you start until we get a remake of Trails in the Sky later in the year of course. I can't wait to play that as well.

3) Metaphor: ReFantazio

Metaphor: ReFantazio is another game that felt like it was never going to be released given how early it was revealed as Project ReFantasy. After it was officially re-revealed as Metaphor: ReFantazio with a 2024 release planned, I was curious, but unsure what to expect. Atlus delivered what feels like a step forward for RPGs and a greatest hits of Atlus games with Metaphor: ReFantazio. It has my favorite Atlus game cast, iteration on its turn-based combat, a sublime soundtrack, and excellent gameplay throughout. It is a bit lacking technically even today, but Metaphor: ReFantazio is proof that Atlus still has it in them to deliver great RPGs. I can't wait to see what this team does next. Metaphor's fantasy setting, strong narrative, soundtrack, structure, and class system all come together to make it one of my favorite Atlus games ever.

2) Balatro

Balatro is a game I've probably put in the most amount of time in all year across all platforms. Yes, ever since I played it around launch on Switch and Steam Deck, I ended up buying it on every single platform so that I have it whenever I need a break from any long RPG or just want to listen to the amazing song that never gets old. A poker roguelike isn't something that I ever thought I'd play this much, but it managed to up the ante and also move up on my game of the year list to become my runner-up game of the year for 2024.

1) Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth

I love the Yakuza / Like a Dragon series more than most things in general. Yakuza: Like a Dragon felt like a breath of fresh air with its new protagonist and turn-based combat shakeup. It was held back by some combat issues and one very annoying late-game difficulty spike. The narrative was amazing though, and I couldn't wait to see what the Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio did next. About four years later we received Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth AKA Ryu Ga Gotoku 8 in Japan. Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth built on the foundation laid by Yakuza: Like a Dragon and fixed all of my issues while delivering two full games worth in a single package that rewards not only newer fans, but also the ones who have been with the series from the start.

It is rare for me to get time to play long games like this multiple times, but it is even rarer for me to do it in the same year. Some might wonder why I spent over 200 hours with Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth instead of playing other games I never got around to in 2024, but Ichiban, Kiryu, Saeko, Nanba, Adachi, Seonhee, Eric, and Chitose are easily one of my favorite casts in gaming, and I can't get enough of just exploring Hawaii and putting time into the plethora of mini-games in my playthroughs across platforms.

Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth is a masterpiece and a mammoth of an RPG that stuck with me right from the time I beat it in January. 2024 has been one of my favorite years in gaming with how many releases catered to my taste, but Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth stood tall above the rest as a Yakuza 0 and Lost Judgment-level experience that I consider among my favorite RPGs and games in a very long time.