I feel like a broken record, but once again, in many ways this was a bad year for developers, gamers, and the industry writ large. But hey, just because AI slop is ruining everything and greedy execs are destroying pop culture, that doesn’t mean we can’t find some joy and genuinely great moments in all the bullshit.
Like we’ve done in years past, here we’ve collected 10 of the best video game surprises and bits of good news from the past year. Hold on to them tightly. Cherish them. Reread this list a few times. Remember that things can be good. Hope is important. We’ll likely need a lot of it to get through 2026.
Elden Ring Nightreign Rules
©FromSoftware / Bandai Namco
The average person seems pretty burnt out on live-service multiplayer games. Fans had every reason to respond with groans and sighs to the idea of the premier action-RPG maker turning its attention and resources to exactly that—an online multiplayer game—instead of toward its next single-player adventure.
But FromSoftware delivered with Elden Ring Nightreign. It didn’t just successfully nail multiplayer Elden Ring; it produced an entire new mash-up of genres that I wish more games would try to experiment with. Do you need close friends to get maximum enjoyment? Sure. But unlike some of the friendslop turning heads out there this year, Nightreign‘s magic goes far beyond capturing hot mics and silly moments. (It’s great for that too, though.) I now expect great things from The Duskbloods and would love to see FromSoftware reimagine Armored Core PVE for the modern era. -Ethan Gach
Star Wars: Fate of The Old Republic Announced
©Lucasfilm
The 2025 Game Awards started off with a super-surprising announcement: Star Wars: Fate of the Old Republic. This is a new single-player RPG from Knights of the Old Republic and Mass Effect director Casey Hudson, and is a spiritual successor to KOTOR. Holy shit, folks! Sure, it ain’t KOTOR 3, but it’s likely the closest we’ll ever get to that game, and that alone has fans excited.
Before you start getting too hyped to play Fate of the Old Republic, it should be noted that the studio working on FOTOR was formed just a few months ago, so this game is likely five or more years away from release and could launch on PlayStation 6 or even PS7. Hudson denies this, however, and claims it will be out before 2030. I want to believe him, but I’m not sold on that being possible unless Fate of the Old Republic is much smaller in scope than most AAA RPGs. We’ll just have to wait and see, and hope this one doesn’t get canceled.
Digital Foundry And Giant Bomb Going Fully Independent
©Giant Bomb
The digital games media space has never been more pervasive, thanks to creator platforms like TikTok and YouTube, but it’s also never been less able to support large institutional teams producing work that wouldn’t otherwise flourish on our algorithmically driven internet. So it was heartening to see that despite the broader digital media apocalypse, there’s still room for once corporate-owned outlets to thrive in the indie space. That includes the re-launch of Giant Bomb and Digital Foundry, as well as things like Game Informer coming back to life with a physical magazine that you can actually buy IRL. – Ethan Gach
Nintendo Adds Virtual Boy Emulation To The Switch Online Catalog
©Nintendo
There aren’t many people around who fondly remember Nintendo’s failed stereoscopic 3D Virtual Boy console from 1995. It was a big flop for the company, was barely supported by it or third-party studios, and has mostly faded into the past as an odd misfire from the Mario maker.
But it is still a part of video game history, and so it was extremely unexpected but nice to see Nintendo announce Virtual Boy games coming to Nintendo Switch Online. And to let you play these rudimentary 3D games properly, Nintendo is shipping a whole new headset accessory that looks a lot like the OG Virtual Boy. All of this arrives in February 2026.
Terminator 2D: No Fate Was Worth The Wait
©Reef Entertainment
Back in February, Terminator 2D: No Fate was announced with a reveal trailer that immediately propelled the game to the top of my most wanted list. With its beautiful pixel art and excellent animation, No Fate looked like it might finally deliver the pulse-pounding run-and-gun action game that James Cameron’s seminal sci-fi flick has always deserved, but never received. Amping up my excitement in the months that followed were videos like this one, which highlighted that the folks at developer Bitmap Bureau had the knowledge, skills, and experience to deliver a game that paid homage to the arcade action classics of yesteryear while also feeling exciting and rewarding today. But you never know for sure until a game arrives, so as hopeful as I was, I also feared that the end result might be a disappointing one.
Originally set for release in September, No Fate saw delay after delay, pushing it back to December 12 and making me more anxious than ever. But the end result proved to be everything I hoped it could be: a gorgeous, varied, challenging, and immensely rewarding action game that not only does the film justice, but earns a place among the best arcade-style action games of all time. What a wonderful surprise to help close out the year! – Carolyn Petit
Helldivers 2 Comes To Xbox, Gears Of War Goes To PlayStation
©PlayStation Studios
The era of video game exclusives has truly come to an end. I mean, we all sort of knew that already, but in 2025, we watched it happen in real-time in a way that I’ve never seen before. On August 26, Gears of War: Reloaded, a remaster of a remake of the first game in the once Xbox-only series, arrived on PlayStation 5. On the very same day, the PlayStation published Helldivers 2 launched on Xbox Series X/S consoles. It was like watching a prisoner exchange on a bridge between two nations that were once at war, but who now have struck a truce.
And yeah, playing Gears of War on a PlayStation is strange! I earned Xbox achievements on a PS5. We live in weird times. But I’m also happy that the future seems to be one in which you won’t need to own every console to play every game. That’s nice, and as consoles get more expensive, it will be a boon for gamers trying to enjoy the hobby on a limited budget.
Id Software, Bethesda, and Ubisoft Studios In North America Unionize!
©Bethesda / id Software
Despite the bottom falling out of the AAA video game industry this year, gaming’s nascent labor movement has continued to eke out notable victories. Multiple teams at Blizzard announced new wall-to-wall unions, while developers at Bethesda secured their first contract. And the organizing isn’t just isolated to Microsoft-owned studios in the U.S., Ubisoft Halifax in Canada just formed a union as well. – Ethan Gach
Fortnite’s Mini-Simpsons Season Was Great, Actually!
©Epic
A mini Fortnite season based entirely on The Simpsons could have been a disaster. But despite the odds, Epic was able to make it work and delivered what might be my favorite season of Fortnite in a long time. The Springfield island map was incredible to explore. The visuals felt very cartoonish and Simpsons-y without looking too garish, and all the Simpsons Easter eggs and characters that appeared throughout the event were a treat for fans. And on top of all that, this season included funny animated segments featuring Simpsons characters that were written by the staff of the show. Is this just one more sign of all of pop culture merging together into a grey slurry? Sure. But whatever, man, I can now play as Moe in Fortnite. I’m happy.
Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered Shadow-dropped
©Bethesda
Years of marketing, teasers, and trailers are annoying and tiring. I mean, we’ve been waiting years for more information about The Elder Scrolls 6, a game that was announced all the way back in 2018 when E3 was still a thing. So getting a remake of 2006’s The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion out of nowhere was super nice. No long waits. No delays. No annoying series of teasers and trailers. Just a reveal and boom, you were playing the game.
Based on how well it did, people seem to agree that shadow-dropping a game like Oblivion is a good idea. Even Todd Howard seems into the idea of launching games like this. And hey, Oblivion Remastered ended up being a solid and very pretty way to play (or replay) Bethesda’s seminal open-world RPG. Now, let’s hope next year’s list of best surprises features an entry about a Fallout 3 remaster shadow-dropping out of nowhere.
Hollow Knight: Silksong Finally Launches After A Long Wait
Team Cherry
Hollow Knight: Silksong could have easily been delayed out of 2025 or been disappointingly mid when it launched. Instead, it built on the foundation of the original without losing sight of what made that one so special. May every long-awaited sequel *cough* GTA 6 *cough* manage to deliver the same. – Ethan Gach
