2015 has been an interesting year. There have been many amazing games released this year, but also many that were a huge disappointment. Star Wars Battlefront was a game I spent many hours on as a kid and it’s sad to see the game at such a mediocre state. Batman: Arkham Knight was a fantastic game but was plagued with more bugs and glitches than any other game I can remember in existence. The Witcher 3 was a slow start, but it is not completely playable and nearly bug-free. Fallout 4 is a game I have been waiting on for 8 years and it is finally here! Rocket League made me appreciate soccer a little more and is the most addictive multiplayer game I have gotten my hands on this year. Mortal Kombat X went above and beyond my expectations, and there were so many great indie games. Metal Gear Solid V was finally released, P.T. was canceled, The Elder Scrolls Online and Destiny were turned around by developers and became fantastic games, the 3DS has some excellent games, while the Vita converted to a JRPG machine.

Yes, the indie scene is seriously huge in 2015 and will get even bigger next year. Thanks to things like Kickstarter and Steam Greenlight, developers that didn’t have a chance before can make their dreams come true. Her Story, Westerado, Path to Luma, Soma, Ori, and the Blind Forest, and many others are fantastic indie games. Rise of the Tomb Raider is one of the best games in the past decade; period. PS4 and Xbox One exclusives are still on the slow side, but they are slowly trickling out and I feel 2015 is just the beginning of greatness to come. The Wii U is still on life support, but the support Nintendo is giving it is excellent and will keep the dust off those gamepads.

2015 is a year to remember with more A-grade games than any year I can remember. So be prepared for fewer games stealing the majority of awards like previous years. Even the best games like Fallout 4 and The Witcher 3 will only have a couple. It was so hard to eliminate games down to the five best for each category but it had to be done.