Throwing this one in the ring

For our Best of 2025 series, we asked our staff and columnists to share their favourite videogame-related things of the year (and they didn’t necessarily need to be new for 2025). MMORPG and roguelite die-hard @austinup.bsky.social shares some expected and unexpected titles that shaped his year.

"For the moment, there’s nothing quite like Fellowship. It’s clear to me that Chief Rebel ‘get it’ -- they deeply understand what makes the MMO dungeons so compelling, and what needs to be trimmed..." - @austinup.bsky.social on @playfellowship.com

Despite a disappointing ending, Hades II had me completely spellbound with its scope, cohesion and visual flair - once again raising the bar for one of the industry’s most consistently excellent studios. My review: youtu.be/L2BGd3x5gP4?...

Idk who needs to hear this but if you’re into anime at all, pls go watch To Be Hero X. Creative blend of animation styles, great music, rad twist on the superhero genre, cool characters and some of the best fight scenes you’ve ever seen. S1 just wrapped and it deserves more love, imo

Finally finished Spiritfarer some 3 years after picking it up. What a profoundly beautiful game. 🛶 Very much looking forward to At Fate’s End next year.

Yooo wtf, I think Ravenswatch is the co-op roguelite I’ve always dreamed of? The storybook theme, the class designs, the ARPG-esque power-ups - damn it’s good. The design of the Romeo & Juliet characters? Genius, man 👌

I know Hades II is just around the corner, but I just wanna shout out Rogue PoP which dropped into 1.0 last month and has sadly slipped under the radar. Absolutely S tier music with super fluid combat and traversal. Just a really cool, unique roguelite that deserves far more attention, imo.

Peak is officially around the corner. What a year for indies, man 👑

Shinobi: Art of Vengeance ruuuules. I never played the originals, and tbh I find the usual metrodivania formula a bit played out at this point - but even then, this game had me hooked from start to finish with its level variety, its stellar art and S tier combat. My review: youtu.be/P8e57SvP4M0?...

The Peacemaker show is so good man what the heck

Close enough, welcome back Avatar: The Game

Tainted Grail: The Fall of Avalon! Played and finished this a little while ago but wanted to get a review out since it’s kinda slipped under the radar. Fell off the more I played, but those first 20 hours or so were magical. A+ buildcraft and quest design imo. Review: youtu.be/4mb_xsby7LU?...

An extra special game that deserved an extra special video. The story of Sandfall / E33 is chock-full of valuable takeaways, but most of all… it’s incredibly inspiring. It’s already had a real impact on me personally, and I think anyone in a creative field will resonate with it just as deeply.

Finished Clair Obscur: Expedition 33. Sits comfortably in my top 5 favourite games of all time. What a top to bottom masterpiece.

Wildgate, man. It’s fun. Very fun. Moonshot Games might genuinely have a sleeper hit on their hands. My impressions: youtu.be/7dOYDaDuhnU?...

lol had a weird moment where I closed Guild Wars 1 and opened up the Oblivion Remake, but thought I had GW1 still open in the background because both their music is done by Jeremy Soule and sounds basically identical 🙃

Been a bit since I shared a review on here, but finally released my review for South of Midnight which I think is sadly going under the radar. On the gameplay front it’s nothing special - but narratively, artistically and musically it’s really stuck with me. My review: youtu.be/vs8q6ynxlco?...

Got into the Elden Ring: Nightreign network test but my matchmaking doesn’t work

I know we’re all meme’ing on Blizzard bringing back loot boxes (agree it’s dumb) but having watched the full presentation, I’m lowkey pretty impressed? That new mode with a MOBA/CS:GO-esque item shop full of perks to mix and match genuinely feels like the shake-up I’ve been waiting so long for.

Lies of Peak is back baby 🙌

We have another returning guest on tonight's episode of Back Pocket - it's Austin from @skillup.bsky.social! Plus, our first Pete's Party of the year... 📺 7PM AEDT | twitch.tv/back_pocket

Reviewed ‘Eternal Strands’ this week, had a great time! It’s a visually pretty, focussed, trimmed-back RPG with a very playful sandbox - think the giant-climbing combat of Shadow of the Colossus / Dragon’s Dogma meets Legend of Zelda-esque powers! Watch my full review here: youtu.be/lnhyG1t8bSs?...

Played the early access of Heart Machine’s new game. As someone who really dug Hyper Light Drifter & Solar Ash, unfortunately this just didn’t click with me. Atm it feels frustrating, confused, and lacks the sauce that made their previous games so special :/ My review: youtu.be/jhIjVy37eAo?...

Watched The Lord of the Rings Musical tonight - honestly very impressed! Nicely truncated retelling of the LOTR trilogy. Awesome presentation. Incredible cast, all of whom can somehow sing, act, dance AND play musical instruments simulatenously (the orchestra IS the cast??). Do recommend it 👍

Finished Dragon Age: The Veilguard after 65 hours. Dialogue was very rough until midway through, but all the companions really grew on me, I loved the presentation, enjoyed the combat & buildcraft, and it finished quite strong with Act 3. Decent fantasy romp imo, had a good time with it 👍

Well I didn’t think I’d get *this* into Marvel Rivals, but here we are. Lowkey proud of this 😬 Onward to Diamond!!

‘Underdogs’ man… S tier VR game, dunno how I missed this. Robot boxing with clever locomotion (pulling yourself around like an ape), extremely satisfying physics-based combat and SUPERB presentation (comic-book Cyberpunk) banging OST. Almost the perfect VR game imo. Keeping an eye on this one 👀

Having a great time with Marvel Rivals! It’s a bit scuffed in places, but Netease’s commitment to preserving the fantasy of the heroes and villains we love, combined with its stellar presentation, has finally given Overwatch some real competition. My review: youtu.be/ee9K_PvcLiU?...

Have played about 2 hours of PoE2 and it’s… even better than I expected. I like Diablo 4, but it’s crazy how much this game absolutely matches, and in many regards, surpasses it. Wild to play a free-to-play early access game with this much depth and polish.

Finally got around to watching that Path of Exile 2 livestream and… god damn man, this thing’s gonna pop off. The amount of times they’re just like “…and there’s more!” The class design, progression, endgame content, visuals - it all looks incredible. The 6th can’t come soon enough.

Supervive combines elements from MOBAs, hero shooters, battle royale and top down shooters, and is one of those rare instances where you can imagine a newly launched competitive experience having an actual future (rather than being delisted after 6 months). youtu.be/Wnqj-dJjRaA?...

Having a blast with SUPERVIVE! The visuals, character kits, and game feel are on point - but that should come as no surprise given the stacked team behind it. Worth checking out if you have even a passing interest in MOBAs, battle royales or hero shooters. My review: youtu.be/Wnqj-dJjRaA?...

Played The First Descendent. Did not enjoy it. My review: youtu.be/CgKXWC7BWAc?...

Oh man, Hozier was incredible. 10/10 production, 11/10 performance.

Finished Act 1 of DA:TV and… I’m into it? I think the writing overall is very not good, but even then I somehow really like the companions (Bellara surprised me). On max difficulty, having a fun time with the combat too. Decent fantasy romp so far and heard it finishes strong - keen for Act 2 & 3!

Arcane, man. It continues to be one of the best TV series ever conceived. Cannot wait to see what’s in store for the rest of this season given the insanity of Act 1 👌

This studio has been through the ringer to get this over the line, but I’m so glad they did. What released into early access as a scuffed MMO-lite, is now a genuinely great ARPG with stunning art, tight combat and a very moreish gameplay loop. My review of Wayfinder 1.0: youtu.be/ECqhbFErxSU?...

Hey bluesky peeps 👋 #promosky I do game reviews / editing over on the Skill Up YT channel. Some of the things I like: - Guild Wars 2 - Halo - World of Warcraft - FFXIV - Monster Hunter - Elden Ring - Marvel - Hades - Avatar: The Last Airbender - Indies (Animal Well / Neva GOTY) - Critical Role 🦋

Really wild to come onto this site and see my entire timeline be actual GAMING stuff instead of *literally everything other than that*