That’s a wrap for 2022

Well give yourself a pat on the back, pour yourself a stiff drink and let out a sigh of relief: somehow we’ve made it through to the last working day of 2022. We’re back in earnest from January 3rd, and there’s plenty scheduled over the next week or two to keep you entertained with a whole host of our Games of 2022 series, Ian and Zoe providing a veritable blizzard of videos including a watchalong of some truly awful Christmas cartoons and of course the traditional festive lists. It wouldn’t be Christmas without them really, would it?

We’ve just finished putting together the Reader’s Top 50 which throws up some fascinating results – thanks, as ever, for your excellent contributions – and our own pick of 37 of the year’s finest (why 37? Because we’re annoying like that, but I’m sure you knew that already).

It’s been enlightening running through them all, and it highlights what a year it’s been. An odd year, yes – in nearly 15 years of writing about video games, I can’t remember a quieter 12 months for big ticket triple-A titles, but I also can’t remember a year that’s offered quite so much quality or diversity. It can be easy to forget as we twiddle our thumbs waiting for the likes of Starfield or Tears of the Kingdom, but there’s really never been a better time for the medium if you like your video games a little interesting.

And, of course, we’re staring down the barrel of a year that offers big-hitters like Bethesda’s next blockbuster RPG and Nintendo’s follow-up to a modern masterpiece, plus the most promising mainline Final Fantasy in a generation or two, an all-new Street Fighter from a Capcom that’s firing on all cylinders and – coming on for eight years after Shigeru Miyamoto first told us all about it – Pikmin goddamn 4. 2023 promises to be truly special, and I’m already tingling with excitement for what’s to come.

But let’s sit back and reflect on what’s been, and maybe even enjoy a break from all the noise and bother. It’s been a delight to have you along with us in 2022, and I’m hoping to see you back here in 2023. Thanks for being here, and may you have a merry Christmas and a very happy new year.