For the past three years, I’ve kept a running tally of games I’ve completed in that calendar year on Twitter, writing up a short review of each game as I’ve finished.
(This has been a fun thing to do, hence why I’ve kept doing it.)
And for the third year in a row, at the end of the year, I’ve compiled a ranking for this blog.
This part of it is actually harder than it sounds.
The reason I keep doing the ranking, though, is I find it the most useful piece for anyone reading and deciding on which games they’d like to try on for size (or even revisit). A direct comparison between games in an “either-or” situation tells you what you ultimately need to know.
“Should I buy Metroid Dread or Mario Kart 8?”
“Which old-school Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles game is the best?”
Well, you’ll know my answers if you scroll down.
I also break things down into four simple categories: “Give It a Miss” (basically a score of 5 out of 10 or worse), “Tepid Thumbs Up” (6s and 7s), “Endorsed without Reservations” (a solid 8 and consideration for my own personal Top 100 list), and “As Good as It Gets” (9s and 10s … greatest of all time territory).
Basically, if a game gets into that last category, I recommend you don’t miss it. The two middle categories are a good time (to varying degrees). The worst category is something you probably shouldn’t bother with.
One thing I’ll say here is that it was a good 2022! I played fewer games overall (I had some LENGTHY time investments in a couple of places here), but also I played WAY fewer duds this year.
So, let’s see what we’ve got…
Give it a miss
51. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: Back from the Sewers – Oh, it’s very much not good.
50. Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels – It’s punitive in a way that isn’t the least bit rewarding or enjoyable.
49. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Tournament Fighters (Genesis) – This difficult fighter just isn’t very deep or fun.
48. Spriggan Mark 2 – Translation issues aside, it spikes in difficulty way too much and its control scheme is awkward as balls.
47. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Tournament Fighters (NES) – It’s not terribly broken or anything, but there’s just not enough there to recommend.
Tepid thumbs up
46. Retro Bowl – A truly simple football sim, it deserves a passing grade but not much more than that.
45. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Fall of the Foot Clan – A reasonably fun time, but it’s short as heck and fugly (as one would expect for an early-life Game Boy game).
44. Warriors of Fate – It has the correct sense of lunacy it needs as a brawler, but beyond its sense of style, there’s not much there.
43. Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon 2 – It’s manageable if you go down to the easiest setting, but I’m never gonna be a fan of stupidly difficult games that ask you to complete the quest multiple times (see: Ghouls ‘n Ghosts series).
42. Battle Circuit – Questionable decisions relating to taste and story direction ding this late-era brawler, which didn’t really excel in any way to begin with.
41. Knights of the Round – A little more in the way of ridiculousness or a more robust moveset might have aided this barebones beat ‘em up.
40. The King of Dragons – Knights might be a better game, but I absolutely enjoyed the over-the-top final battle here more.
39. Captain Commando – It’s silly and weird, but those attributes make it more attractive as a brawler than other more boring fare.
38. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Turtles in Time (Arcade) – Possibly the hardest game to slot of any I played all year, I can still say without a doubt that it’s simultaneously a decent arcade brawler and absolutely worse than its SNES cousin.
37. The Legend of Valkyrie – It’s cute, it’s fun, and if you dig games like Zombies Ate My Neighbors, you’ll probably like this too.
36. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Tournament Fighters (SNES) – Personal nostalgia aside, it’s the best TMNT tournament fighters game and a solid fighter with or without the license.
35. Rygar – I don’t consider it to be a must-play, though it’s definitely relevant historically as an early Metroidvania that hangs its hat on exploration.
34. Doom 64 – As a unique continuation of the Doom saga, it holds up as a good game, even today.
33. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III: The Manhattan Project – A person could list this as the best NES turtles game and have a great case, and though I have issues with its sloggy nature, I will say that all three NES games are REALLY close in terms of overall quality.
32. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Arcade Game – I can’t in good faith give this nostalgia blast (one of my earliest favorites) a full-throated endorsement due to its difficulty and repetitive nature, though it does have merit as an example of programming wizardry re: wringing as much as possible out of the NES hardware.
31. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (NES) – Probably not as difficult or roughly programmed a game as it’s generally penalized for being, this exploratory TMNT boasts a lot of positives, and I think I’ve come around on it being a (slightly) better game than its NES sequels.
Endorsed without reservations
30. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Hyperstone Heist – It’s all recycled material … but it’s GOOD recycled material.
29. Rocket League – Cars playing soccer; the concept alone makes it a winner.
28. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III: Radical Rescue – It’s a quality Metroidvania that’s a smidge short/simplistic but nevertheless rocks while it lasts.
27. Lego Marvel Super Heroes 2 – I enjoy its sense of style and that it leans into some characters the franchise doesn’t always feature.
26. Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow – Look, it’s a Castlevania game in the Metroidvania realm, so you know it’s a good game.
25. Final Fight – History lesson aside (and it’s darn important in that sense), I still enjoy an occasional romp with this classic brawler.
24. Super Mario Galaxy – This quality 3D platformer might rank higher if I hadn’t consumed its direct sequel – a much more polished and enjoyable affair – first.
23. Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity – Flaws galore, but this Warriors-style game is still a heck of a ride and expands on the lore of Breath of the Wild in a fun way.
22. Banjo Kazooie – Man, this game is not for the faint of heart, but its humor and overall impact on the collect-a-thon genre is undeniable.
21. Out Run – This old-school racer is a weird game to slot because of how significantly it has aged, but gosh, it’s still fun to play.
20. Twilight Princess – I adored the character of Midna and the way this game/story wrapped up way too much to drop it any lower than this, but it was also a too-linear, stiff-controlling struggle at times.
As good as it gets
19. Armored Warriors – The depth of options/gameplay, the gorgeous visuals, and the sheer madcap insanity of Armored Warriors elevate it above most other brawlers.
18. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge – It’s objectively a much deeper game than two other Turtles brawlers I have even higher on this list, making it absolutely a worthy sequel.
17. Cotton Reboot – This cute ‘em up (which features an original version of Cotton and a rebooted game with shinier graphics) is just a complete delight.
16. Cruis’n Blast – The newest game in the Cruis’n franchise attempts to answer the question of just how much joy can a single arcade racer inspire?
15. Super Smash Bros. Ultimate – Yeah, the single-player mode still hasn’t been smoothed out into an impeccable experience, but for multiplayer, few games deliver better.
14. Castlevania III: Dracula’s Curse – I’ll listen to arguments all day, everyday for this being the best Castlevania game, because it honestly has a case.
13. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe – Much like annual sports games like Madden, the latest iteration of Mario Kart usually becomes the most feature-rich or “best” version of the game almost by default, but Mario Kart 8 Deluxe delivers on that statement beyond any reasonable standard … it is absurdly good.
12. Super Mario Bros. – It never, ever, ever, EVER gets old.
11. Mega Man 3 – “Merely” my second-favorite Mega Man game, MM3 deserves its reputation as one of the series’ high points.
10. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (arcade) – Four-player mayhem is such a timeless draw to games of any era, that I refuse to believe nostalgia elevates this classic beat ‘em up in this ranking … this game is simply THAT good.
9. Dr. Mario – Play it, become addicted, and thank me later.
8. Super Mario Bros. 3 – It’s exceptional; there’s not a lot more to say here.
7. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles IV: Turtles in Time – Still the absolute GOAT for Turtles video games, it’s also my favorite beat ‘em up ever.
6. Castlevania: Rondo of Blood – An impeccable soundtrack, branching paths, multiple playable characters … this is as good as Castlevania gets.
5. Metroid Dread – Debating between this and Super Metroid is like trying to choose a favorite child; it’s silly because they’re both miracles.
4. Street Fighter II: Turbo – In terms of impact on an industry, Street Fighter II has an argument for being the greatest game of all time.
3. Mega Man 2 – I adore its runtime perhaps more than anything else, as a run through Mega Man 2 feels like the perfectly timed gaming experience.
2. Air Zonk – I will never stop advocating for this game, which is the goofy sort of fun we should all be able to get behind.
1. Breath of the Wild – It’s not my favorite game of all time, but that it’s in the conversation should speak volumes.
My Top Five Games I Beat for the First Time in 2022:
1. Breath of the Wild
2. Metroid Dread
3. Dr. Mario
4. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe
5. Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
Runners up: Cruis’n Blast, Cotton Reboot, TMNT: Shredder’s Revenge, Armored Warriors