I

n the world of games, there’s a plethora of ranking systems, podcasts, blogs and news publications dedicated to telling us what we should play next. The listicles alone are too many to count! They read like a strange collection of Buzzfeed receipts: ‘Best Games of 2019’ ‘The most exciting games of 2019’ ‘Really really, THESE are the best games of 2019’. 

That’s all fine and well but it left us feeling a bit curious. What are the devs, the people making games, playing in their spare time? 

We asked around our studio and got some answers.

Some of these picks may surprise you, because, it turns out, that game devs are pretty dang busy.  

Soooo….

Here’s our studio top picks for the best games that we played in 2019, in no particular order.

*A note of caution: not all of these games came out in 2019, but they are the games our devs found comfort in after a day of designing and coding.

DRAGON QUEST BUILDERS 2

“I never played DQB1 so I can’t really compare it [to the first] BUT it’s the first voxel game I’ve really played though… It’s a great introductory game for that kind of aesthetic … the creative part is highly alluring. [It’s a] good mix of voxel and non-voxel art which is what drew my eye. And they have great ways of stacking blocks to change their appearance depending on how you connect them” 

– Taylor Sauer, Artist

(P.S If Taylor’s name sounds familiar, it’s because Taylor was on Treehouse Live this E3)

Hearthstone

“My favorite thing this year was Hearthstone’s single player Dalaran Heist content which was released a few months ago. I already love Hearthstone, but sometimes competitive play can be a little too stressful, especially if I want to play before bedtime. While they’ve had single player content going all the way back to the Curse of Naxxramus expansion five years ago, and added the deck-building element with the Dungeon Runs of the Kobolds and Catacombs expansion of 2017, this year’s single player added more customization options and a greater variety of ways to play with the addition of multiple chapters (each with its own set of rules or “twists”) and Anomaly mode (a unique twist that affects both human and AI players for the duration of the run).

The ability to beat each chapter with all nine classes in both easy and hard modes meant that I could keep enjoying the mode long after I’d already “beaten” it.”

-Eric Stoll, developer

Hellblade

“I regret waiting so long to play it. Thematically, it was amazing. Gameplay was extremely simple, tight, and relied a lot on player skill and mastery. Pacing was on point. The only element that I wish was a little better was a little more help in finding the exact right place to stand and look for some of the puzzles.”

-Randy Nash, developer

God of War

“My pick for this year so far would definitely have to be God of War. It was such a fantastic cinematic, thoughtful, and moving experience that really gave me Last of Us vibes. I really appreciated how they made side-quests — they weren’t just things to do, but were actively used to explore and develop the relationship between Kratos and Atreus, which just enhanced the narrative even further.”

-Kenneth, QA

A Plague Tale: Innocence

“One standout game for me this year was A Plague Tale: Innocence. It was a relatively under-the-radar game that I didn’t really pay much attention to until right before it released, but I was blown away by the production quality of everything about it. It had an intriguing premise (set in mid-1300s France during the onset of a plague epidemic), fantastic narrative and characters (centered around a girl and her younger brother trying to navigate the chaos of an epidemic), great VO, and really well-designed gameplay systems that all tied together into an unexpectedly satisfying overall experience.”

-Michael Musick, IT

Apex Legends

“Because I like flipping tables.”

-Dave Calla, developer

Bloodstained

“Bloodstained. It delivered on the difficult need to be both true to its inspiration but to also refine the experience. Also a fun study of a very constrained gameplay loop that is bursting with creativity.”

-Dan Hurd, director

Did we miss your favorite? What game gave you all the feels in 2019?

Let us know in the comments.

Up Next