For this article, we’ll be focusing on 3 outstanding titles that we believe have a shot at Game of the Year, and for each one, we’ll be going into the positives and negatives that could change their position on the proverbial scoreboard. Along the way, we’ll use PlayerXP’s community-sourced data, highlighted in bold, to support our claims and provide further insight. At the end of it all, we’ll be granting our own PlayerXP Community’s Choice (Unofficial Working Title) Award to the most deserving game, while also mentioning which of our chosen titles are most likely to win the Game of the Year.

​So, without further ado, let’s get into it!

‍

‍

Split Fiction | Hazelight

Released Date 06/03/2025
‍

Split Fiction is a Co-Op Adventure where you’re taken on a narrative-driven rollercoaster, flipping between the stories of the game’s two protagonists, Zoe and Mio, writers of Fantasy and Sci-Fi respectively, to attempt to escape the simulation that they’ve both found themselves in. So, how does this tale of two halves measure up against the other wholes?

‍

Split Fiction has plenty of positive aspects, the first of which is its Co-Op-centric Gameplay (+76), which is not something you see much these days. Thanks to Hazelight Studios’ team, not only is Split Fiction a unique experience, but it’s also one with masterfully-designed Puzzles (+80) and Levels (+73) that really test its players’ skill both as individuals and as a team. The game’s Co-Op nature enhances its Story (+75), which uses its dual protagonists to tell a tale of how two very different people can still find commonality between one another.

​

However, as with everything, there’s always another side to the story. While the reception is overall positive, there are downsides. First off is the glaring barrier to entry that is the requirement to have someone else to play with, which not everyone has the luxury of being able to do. While the “Friend Pass” does exist, meaning only one person needs to buy the game, getting someone else to sit down with you for several hours to play the game is quite the commitment. Additionally, Split Fiction is very Linear (+29) with very little to do in the way of side content, causing the game to not have much replay value outside of subsequent playthroughs with different people.

​

With an overall sentiment of +80, Split Fiction is a unique experience from Hazelight. While its linearity affects replay value, the community still loves the game.

‍

‍

‍

Hollow Knight: Silksong | Team Cherry

Released Date 04/09/2025

‍

Hollow Knight: Silksong is a difficult, quick-paced Action Metroidvania, and a sequel to the indie legend, Hollow Knight, where you control protagonist Hornet in her ascent to the Citadel of the stagnant civilisation of Pharloom. With all the cries of “Silksong Tomorrow!”, it eventually received overall positivity, so let’s get into the details of why.

‍

Silksong’s creative direction stands out, with Art (+66), Music (+75), and Story (+53) ranging from stylish to breathtaking. Hornet’s agile, freeform Movement (+63), along with various Tools (+25) and Crests (+31), allows for versatile player expression, resulting in well-received Gameplay (+33).

That being said, it's far from all positives, as the game has some notable flaws. Silksong’s biggest point of controversy is how it handles Damage (+1) as enemies that deal double damage, something that was reserved for the most challenging bosses in Silksong’s predecessor, is everywhere, resulting in much easier deaths. Add to this the fact that Silksong’s save points, Benches (-6), are much fewer and further between, resulting in longer (and sometimes hellish) Runbacks (-8) that can cause repeatedly fighting a boss to be tedious and frustrating for many players.

​

Silksong’s reception is more divisive than the other titles, with an overall sentiment of +44. Still, it’s a contender for Game of the Year due to the remarkable effort behind its long development.

‍

‍

‍

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 | Sandfall Interactive

Released Date 24/04/2025

‍

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is a western take on the classic Turn-Based JRPG, that mixes in mechanics from popular Action RPGs to tell a story of death and loss in a mysterious, broken world heavily inspired by French culture. So let’s follow the Expeditioner’s example, and continue…

​

Expedition 33’s defining factor is its unique take on Turn-Based Combat (+87), as it incorporates active-time QTEs (+67), Dodges (+70) and Parries (+68) to fill the downtime between turns, causing the title’s Gameplay to be extremely well received with an overall sentiment score of +78! The game’s also an artistic outlier for the genre, opting to place its roots in French culture, which permeates its Art (+90), its World (+81), and especially its Music (+90). Add to that a cast of unique Characters (+73) with very natural and real-feeling Dialogue (+77), and you have a game that consists of many unorthodox decisions that mesh together extremely well.

‍

‍

Now, it’s honestly hard to pick out anything outright negative about Clair Obscur; it’s just a really good game. However, it’s worth pointing out that while Expedition 33’s Turn-Based Combat is unique and engaging, it’s also fairly divisive to some. The inclusion of active-time mechanics in an otherwise turn-based game is not everyone’s cup of tea, not to mention that engaging with those mechanics is just not possible for some people due to certain disabilities that could impair motor functions or otherwise cause difficulty when interacting with the game.

​

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 came out of seemingly nowhere and shocked pretty much everyone with how outstanding it is, with an overall sentiment of +73, showing how positive its reception has been. It’s no wonder many believe it to be the most likely candidate for 2025’s Game of the Year.

‍

‍

Conclusion

‍

With three games on the podium, only one can be named Game of the Year and, more importantly, only one can be deemed the PlayerXP Community’s Choice (Unofficial Working Title). So, let’s see which of these games is critically perfect, and which one has the most passionate and dedicated community!

​

Before we wrap things up, we’d like to offer a couple of honourable mentions to Hades 2 and Ghost of Yōtei. We believe these two titles are also fully deserving of Game of the Year, we were unsure that we’d be able to fairly judge them due to their more recent releases resulting in less post-release data compared to the other titles. So, while they are definitely deserving of a nomination, we chose to exclude them from this article. So, without further ado, let’s get into the results!

​

For PlayerXP’s Community Choice, we’d like to offer it to Split Fiction with its overall community sentiment of +80, causing it to be the most well-received out of all the titles covered in this article! While it caters to a more niche audience, we at PlayerXP firmly believe that there should be more variance in the ways gamers can play, and dedicated Co-Op is a genre that’s sorely under-represented and under-explored. The fact that Hazelight was able to create such a wonderful experience despite the genre's relative infancy is a testament to their skill, and we at PlayerXP believe it deserves recognition!

​

As for what we believe to be 2025’s actual Game of the Year, it’s almost certain to be Clair Obscur: Expedition 33! This title had an overall sentiment of +73, putting it just behind Split Fiction, yet almost every aspect is Game of the Year material. Expedition 33 is unabashedly itself from beginning to end, resulting in a somewhat rough-around-the-edges yet truly one-of-a-kind experience. With a wonderfully orchestrated narrative that’s played out by some of the most realistically depicted characters I’ve seen in recent media, art that’s both grounded yet fantastical and music that ranges from head-bopping EDM to ethereal operatic tunes, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 more than deserves all the praise it receives. Most importantly, however, it deserves Game of the Year without a doubt.

‍

PlayerXP Community's Choice Award Report

If you’re looking for some more in-depth qualitative analysis of all the information used in this article, be sure to check out the accompanying PlayerXP Report that goes over all that and more! The report is available on our website, just look under the Industry Reports section. This comprehensive document delves into the data behind our findings, provides exclusive insights, and offers a detailed breakdown of key sentiment trends for each featured game. Whether you’re a developer, journalist, or passionate gamer, the PlayerXP Report is an invaluable resource to gain a deeper understanding of the community’s perspective. Or download it direclt here.

‍

‍

‍

‍

‍

‍

‍

‍

‍

‍

‍

‍

If you yourself want to know if your brand-new, groundbreaking game has a shot at Game of the Year, and more, be sure to get in touch with us at PlayerXP! We can help you learn more about your game’s community than anyone or anything else out there, so we look forward to hearing from you.
‍

‍