pent | Games I Played in 2025

In no particular order. Games with a ★ before their title are my personal highlights.

Keeping up with three live service games prevented me from finishing too many single player games this year, but I'm having fun, so it's all good.

Completed

Game	Notes
★ Fantasy Life i: The Girl Who Steals Time	My favorite single player MMO! Absolutely amazing. I have very few complaints.
Dreams of Aether	Rhythm Heaven-like?! Wario Ware-like?!
★ Inside	Phenomenal horror game. I played it twice; the second time on Halloween.
Lil Gator Game	A cute exploration game.
Nubby's Number Factory	Great early 00s aesthetic.
Pikuniku	Feels like a lost PSP/Vita game.
Slay the Princess	I started this in 2023, got to the final part, and then didn't play it again until 2025. Oops! It's great.
The Gnorp Apologue	Fun little idle game. Optimizing felt like a puzzle, and it was very entertaining and mesmerizing watching the different types of gnorps work.
Wuthering Waves	I don't pay attention to the story at all and just occasionally log in to explore. Very fun!
Peak	Technically, I've never finished this game, but it's all about the journey and not the destination, right? This game is really fun with friends, and I highly recommend it.
Zenless Zone Zero v1.5 – Astra-nomical Moment	ABSOLUTE CINEMA. Evelyn is kind of under-developed, but Astra carried all of their interactions, anyway.
Zenless Zone Zero v1.6 – Among the Forgotten Ruins	Trigger's story was touching, but I didn't like Anby's story. Or her new outfit.
★ Zenless Zone Zero v1.7 – Bury Your Tears With the Past	I don't know if they will ever be able to top this patch. Peak ZZZ. I adore Vivian and Hugo.
Zenless Zone Zero v2.0 – Where Clouds Embrace the Dawn	Great lore, awesome new areas, and the story was good. I like Ju Fufu, Pan Yinhu, Ye Shiyuan.
★ Zenless Zone Zero v2.1 – The Impending Crash of Waves	The story with Alice and Yuzuha was fantastic.
Zenless Zone Zero v2.2 – Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night	Seed's story was amazing. The Obol Squad parts were okay, but felt needlessly drawn out. Magus and Orphie are both interesting. Why was Soldier 11 even present?
Zenless Zone Zero v2.3 – Memories of Dreams Bygone	More Spook Shack! Komano Manato! I loved the story.
Zenless Zone Zero v2.4 – On the Precipice of the Abyss	A bit of a mess, but I liked it. Dialyn, Banyue, Ye Shunguang, and Zhao are all really fun characters.
Honkai: Star Rail v3.0 – Paean of Era Nova	Dr. Ratio sighting in Castrum Kremnos?!!? Shiny new puzzles and exploration. The story didn't do a good job of selling me on the Chrysos Heirs, but I really like the religious themes.
★ Honkai: Star Rail v3.1 – Light Slips the Gate, Shadow Greets the Throne	Anaxagoras! I loved this patch so much.
Honkai: Star Rail v3.2 – Through the Petals in the Land of Repose	Castorice's story was poignant and sad. More Anaxa being out of control!
★ Honkai: Star Rail v3.3 – The Fall at Dawn's Rise	Peak Amphoreus. The dread I felt at the end of Cipher's story still haunts me. The story bits with Hyacine's ancestors had awful presentation, but Hyacine herself was amazing. Also, the boss battle... wow!
★ Honkai: Star Rail v3.4 – For the Sun is Set to Die	OH, WOW. Phainon is the best character in Amphoeus, I think, and this patch did him so much justice. I also loved the Fate collab for the Penacony lore and more Aventurine. Also, the restaurant event was so cute and funny.
Honkai: Star Rail v3.5 – Before Their Deaths	I adore this patch. Rare Dr. Ratio sighting ("Don't just stand there. Mix me a drink."), doomed knight/monarch yuri, Aglaea finally getting some writing.
Honkai: Star Rail v3.6 – Back to Earth in Evernight	Pretty good, but 3.4 felt like Amphoreus's ending, and the pacing has been messed up ever since. I really liked Dan Heng's parts in the story, and I'm so glad that his English voice actor was able to return for this patch.
Honkai: Star Rail v3.7 – As Tomorrow Became Yesterday	Amphoreus's messy, but sentimental ending, and Currency Wars, which is very fun!
Honkai: Star Rail v3.8 – Memories are the Prelude to Dreams	More Penacony! I really liked Constance, the extra Robin scenes, and of course, Dr. Ratio and Aventurine.
Final Fantasy XIV v7.1 – Crossroads	FRU is awesome. I farmed it with my static and didn't do much else this patch.
★ Final Fantasy XIV v7.2 – Seekers of Eternity	Despite their embarrassing flaws, Forked Tower and Occult Crescent farming was a blast with my friends. The savage tier was also great.
Final Fantasy XIV v7.3 – The Promise of Tomorrow	I just phoned in the two extreme fights with my friends until I had 100 totems each. Pilgram's Traverse seems fun, but I've only done it once.
Genshin Impact v5.8 – Sunspray Summer Resort	Explored the new area and had a good time.
Genshin Impact v6.0 – A Dance of Snowy Tides and Hoarfrost Groves	Nod Krai was fun to explore, and I like the new characters.
Genshin Impact v6.1 – An Elegy for Faded Moonlight	Lost interest in the story after Nefer's backstory, but everything before that was amazing.
Genshin Impact v6.2 – A Nocturne of the Far North	Skipped everything for the delicious primogems. Some of the festival mini games were fun. My favorite guy Dottore was in a cutscene, and I hope he'll be playable at some point.

In Progress

One day I'll finish these... right?

Game	Notes
1000xRESIST	Amazing game about generational trauma.
The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy	Half strategy game, half Uchikoshi mind-fuckery. I adore this game.
Final Fantasy VII Rebirth	It's REALLY good. I'm not very far into it, but wow. It's doing it's own thing while being respectful of the original. I strongly dislike the combat, which is why I haven't touched it in a bit, but everything else is great.
Final Fantasy XVI	Amazing. Almost too amazing. The fights with the eikons are absolutely crazy. The whole game feels like a movie, and I really am loving it. Darker Final Fantasy games have always been my favorite. The cooldown-based combat is very familiar to me as a Final Fantasy XIV raider, but I'm not a fan of it. I wish it was turn based.
Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicles	I... don't like this game. I'm a huge Fire Emblem fan, but could never get into Final Fatnasy tactics derivatives. The original is no different for me. I might power through it just for the story since I paid for the game.
Ball x Pit	A delightful little Survivors-like.
Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds	If you even remotely like racing games, this is the one. I am having a blast playing this with my partner and online. The rival system is really funny.
Final Fantasy XIV v7.4 – Into the Mist	I only play this game to raid, so I am waiting for the savage tier. The normal raids are awesome, so hopefully it's fun. I'll definitely be doing the new Criterion when it comes out; the other three are amazing.
Monster Hunter Wilds	I'm a huge Monster Hunter fun, but... hmm. There's something about this game. I played it a little in March and had fun with it, but I haven't touched it since. I'm near the end of low rank.
Metaphor: ReFantazio	I don't really like the Persona games, but this game is right up my alley. I love the music, characters, and combat. The calendar system is kind of stressful.
The Farmer Was Replaced	Python coding thinly veiled as a video game. Well, it's a lot more game than most other games of this genre. I really like this one! It's a fun programming puzzle.

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