My Top 10 Games Of All Time (And How They Explain My Weirdness)
Some people have comfort food. I have comfort games. From awkwardly hella-fied hipster teens to emotionally devastating zombie dramas, my favorite titles say more about me than any therapist ever could. These ten games didn't just entertain me — they burrowed into my brain, rewired my emotions, and gave me a unique taste and personality that I wouldn’t wish on my worst enemy. Here’s my personal top 10 games of all time, and how each one helps explain my beautiful, bizarre brain.
10. The Last of Us Part II
What it says about me: I will defend morally complex women with a golf club and cry while doing it.
Naughty Dog’s most divisive sequel broke my heart, stitched it back together, then curb-stomped it one more time just to make a point. It’s brutal, it’s bleak, and it’s exactly the kind of emotional pain I apparently thrive on, considering my love for the equally divisive Buffy The Vampire Slayer Season 6. Watching Ellie lose everything — and choosing to let go anyway — left a permanent scar. If you ever hear me say “violence begets violence” like it’s the deepest thought ever, blame this game.
9. Life is Strange
What it says about me: I missed out on being my true, gay self in Secondary School, and it haunts me.
Max and Chloe’s time-bending teen drama is a love letter to the “what if” moments that haunt our memories. Do I romanticize angsty friendship and Pacific Northwest sunsets a little too much? Absolutely. I’ve often been someone who suffers from chronic nostalgia, to the point where I can sometimes feel dysphoric about my current reality. I look in the mirror and gasp when I’m not some little guy with no beard and no wrinkles. However, just like the best ending in the game teaches us: sometimes things have to permanently change, and holding onto a past that doesn’t belong in the present can be dangerous.
8. Until Dawn
What it says about me: I love it when badly written teenagers make stupid decisions.
This one’s part teen slasher flick, part butterfly effect simulator. I was obsessed. It turns out that making choices about who lives and dies under extreme pressure is exactly my kind of party. Every character is either painfully annoying or weirdly lovable, which, frankly, mirrors my real-life friend group. As always, my favorite character differs from the masses in Emily. She can slap me, anyday. What a girlboss. Also, I will never trust elk for as long as I live.
7. Life is Strange 2
What it says about me: I get radicalized by good soundtracks.
This entry doesn’t get enough credit, thanks to many players immediately writing it off for not having Max and Chloe in it, or being too ‘political’. The story of Sean and Daniel Diaz hit me like a truck full of feelings. It’s about parenting, growing up too fast, and trying to stay human when the world keeps calling you a monster. Weirdly enough, my first time finishing the game left me numb. I wasn’t all that moved. I enjoyed the game, but that’s it. It wasn’t until friends of mine became personally affected by racist attacks, following the BLM movement that this game’s message clicked with me. I replayed it and ended up being depressed for months. Shoutout to this game for teaching me empathy, I guess?
6. Resident Evil Village
What it says about me: I worship all things CAMP.
RE8 is pure schlock and chaos wrapped in Capcom's best haunted house ride yet. It's got everything: vampires, werewolves, fish-men, doll horror, Eastern European villages, and somehow... Chris Redfield. It made me fall in love with survival horror all over again. With my ADHD brain, I can’t be stuck in one mansion for too long or I lose interest. This game is the perfect antidote, changing genre every 2 minutes!
5. The Stanley Parable: Ultra Deluxe
What it says about me: I have a weird obsession with liminal office spaces, and have a parasocial relationship with Davey Wreden.
This is the most meta a game has ever been without actually imploding. It’s equal parts comedy, philosophy, and emotional dissection. I played it once and spiraled into a three-year long existential crisis. I played it again and laughed my head off. It’s the perfect game for people who want their gameplay with a side of identity crisis and a sprinkle of "free will is a lie." Plus, her since I wandered into my Dad’s workplace at 5 years old, I’ve had a strange fascination with office buildings. Seeing one empty and liminal was a treat just for me.
4. Sonic Unleashed
What it says about me: I want to travel the world in as little time as possible.
This game might be Sonic Team’s magnum opus. The day stages are a high-speed fever dream of joy, with some of the most masterful level design of any platformer out there, and the werehog levels are... deeply misunderstood. Unlock some combos and this guy becomes even more fun than DMC for me! The charm of visiting all these fictional countries with their own real-world counterparts, and talking to the NPCs who reflect cultural values perfectly cannot be understated. This game’s credits make me cry every time, and the game isn’t even that sad. It just truly feels like an ADVENTURE. And sadly, its polish and scope haven’t been matched by Sonic Team yet.
3. The Walking Dead: Season 1
What it says about me: Child CJ needs a hug.
Lee Everett and Clementine changed the game — literally and emotionally. This was the first time a video game made me cry ugly tears. The writing, the choices, the gut punches... it all hit too close to home. This game is why I overthink every decision in choice-based narratives like I’m defusing a bomb with my feelings. Shortly after this game came out, I wrote my first screenplay, at the age of 13. If it wasn’t for this game, who knows? I might never have become a writer! Clementine made me see something in myself, a little boy who had to grow up too fast. Lee will always be my father, as well as hers.
2. Sonic the Hedgehog (2006)
What it says about me: I root for the underdog.
Sonic 06 is a disasterpiece. It’s glitchy, rushed, and totally unapologetic — and I adore it. There's something noble about a game that tried to shoot for the moon and faceplanted into the sun. The music? Iconic. The ambition? Undeniable. The plot? Shakespeare wishes. I will forever champion the beauty of this hot mess. Many might be quick to point out “plot holes”, but I’ve written several 3000 word essays that debunk every one. And yes, though it might be buggy, the conceptual design and levels themselves are stellar. And sure, the tone might be overly serious, but I miss the days where we got that instead of Saturday morning cartoon jokes! Sonic 06 is the easy target everyone likes to bully, and so was I — so if nobody else will defend it, then I will.
1. Resident Evil 4
What it says about me: Perfection doesn’t mean you can’t have fun.
RE4 is the king of third-person shooters, the blueprint for modern action horror, and somehow still hilarious. It’s the perfect balance of tense, polished gameplay and totally unhinged one-liners. This game made me fall in love with game design, taught me the value of pacing, and confirmed that my dream aesthetic is “Eurotrash nightmare vacation.” Leon Kennedy is my ideal protagonist: resourceful, sarcastic, and always ready to suplex. Too many games (and people) nowadays, think you have to take everything seriously in order to be respected. I deny this way of life. I hope to live my life as camp as Leon Kennedy, whilst still innovating and creating works so undeniably masterful that I’m acclaimed no matter how cheesy I am. As it says on all my social media bios, “Don’t say weird, say interesting!”