It’s that time of the year. No, I don’t mean the holidays. Every storefront and radio channel in existence is full enough of cheer that I’m sure I don’t need to add some more jingling bells or flickering Hanukkah candles into the mix. Here at VPL, our end-of-year celebrations are always retrospective, looking back at all of the reads, good listers and naughty listers, that filled the past 12 months. But I wanted to put a little spin on tradition, as I am wont to do.

Besides the holidays, December brings my favorite online awards show to kick off the season of all the silly award show bingo games and “who got snubbed” arguments. The Game Awards are usually low-stakes for me because I never have a horse in the race, but this year with media and player darling Clair Obscur: Expedition 33  coming in like it’s Return of the King at the 2004 Oscars, it’s tough not to get swept up in the hype. So, I’m bringing the hype to VPL with our own 2025 Game Awards. I’ve polled our staff across the system to gather our top-tier games (board games included, because why not? The holidays are for tabletop gamers anyway) of 2025, where the awards are made up, but still very much deserved. If you’ve got your bingo sheet ready, let’s get into it!

In our first category, we have Elizabeth’s nomination Dragon Age for… Dragon Age? Or Best Use of Dragons in an Age? It’s tough to tell; the only note that was given to me was just Dragon Age in various fonts, so make of that what you will. It is an overall Good Game, though, silly award aside. If you’ve been having the RPG itch that something like Baldur’s Gate left you with, there’s no better time like the holidays to dive into the expansive, fantastical continent of Thedas (if you’re playing Inquisition), troubled with civil unrest and a growing tear in the sky that’s letting demons roam free, or elven trickster gods trying to destroy the barrier between the real world and even more demons (if you’ve picked up Veilguard). Fun! If you’re a game completionist, Inquisition alone will fill at least 60 hours of your time with loveable companion dialogue (and very involved romance!), a selection of playable classes that will keep you in the character creation screen for (the necessary) two hours, and a compelling high fantasy storyline that has more dragons than a game centered on demons might have you believe. I (and Elizabeth) do solemnly swear, here there be dragons.

Moving on to our second nomination, Katherine and Cynthia have nodded to Sushi Go! for Best Holiday Game for Family (or Happiest Little Food Items (Despite the Threat of Figurative Consumption)). It’s a card/resource collecting game with adorable, delightfully squishy-looking onigiris, wasabis, sashimis, and more on a metaphorical all-you-can-eat sushi conveyor belt. Not to rag on Monopoly (again, and probably not for the last time), but the fast-paced structure of Sushi Go! has the added bonus of not taking a whole fortnight to finish a single game as you try to maximize your points, so it’s perfect for gathering around the fire post-holiday feast when you’ve run out of Hallmark movies to watch. Also, from personal experience, for anyone who has a competitive streak in their family, this game satisfies the itch and ensures that any crash out clean-up won’t take half an hour. Your Scottie Dog-free feet can thank me later.

Next up, from Matthew, we have Super Mario Bros. Wonder as the firm winner for Best Way to Distract Oneself During a Cross-Continental Flight. For anyone doing a bit of travel to get away from the winter chill or get a last-minute, well-deserved vacation in, the latest from Nintendo’s classic side-scroller platformer series is sure to hit the spot. Whether you’re a princess lover, original enjoyer, or a Luigi-is-the-superior-brother truther, there’s more than enough colorful fun to go around to bring any dreary plane or car ride to life (or maybe help you avoid playing the same license plate game for the next two and a half hours) while you collect Wonder Seeds. This Mario game blends the best parts of its 80s and 90s predecessors. Its familiar mechanics with an updated twist are set in a world where Bowser is still (temporarily) king, but the journey is filled with dreamlike imagination and even more surreal sequences than usual when you smack your head into a box and a flower of random effect pops out. All in all, it’s a game that’s more effective than anything you can take pre-trip to make the getting there faster, so treat yourself this holiday season and save those coins for investing in a Switch (or a Switch 2, I did say treat yourself).

This year’s Split Fiction has also come in pulling at our staff’s hearts and gaming fingers for Best Co-op Experience. Mark and Sonya both tip their hats to this action-adventure romp with the same hard-hitting emotional core as its predecessor, It Takes Two. Down on their luck writers Mio and Zoe join an experimental simulation where, like probably any author on the planet wishes they could do, they get to live out the contents of their unfinished works to get the authorial juices flowing. It’ll be fun, they said. What could go wrong, they said. As any good reader would know, those are glaring red flags for Famous Last Words. Glitches force both women into each other’s sci-fi and high fantasy stories before realizing the machine behind their augmented realities isn’t as harmless as it seems. From Mark’s glowing testimony, you can rest assured that teamwork makes this game rage-inducing hard-mode free, with a satisfying split-screen mechanic and side stories that are worth playing even more than the main plotline. Word to the wise, apparently there are flying pigs and a level with witches that can’t be missed. If you’ve been wanting to bring loved ones together over the holidays, the library prescribes 2-3 hours of good, hearty Split Fiction.  

Lastly, duking it out for Best Farming Simulator, we have Stardew Valley picked by Anna and yours truly (for I will never not sing the praises of the cozy, pixelated farming juggernaut), and Paleo Pines, nominated by Rhea. On the one hand, you can’t beat what’s pretty much a classic at this point. On the other hand, dinos. On the one hand, adorable, fluffy, retro-styled critters, and you can ride a chonky horse with a sombrero. On the other hand, you can ride a dinosaur. On the one hand, a tongue-in-cheek game that pokes fun at your corporate overlord of choice while being a whimsical, go-at-your-own-pace experience. On the other hand, prehistoric ranching to release your inner “yeehaw” on an island full of secrets, and there’s nothing cooler than a detective riding a dinosaur. The choice is tough. But, since it is the holidays and in the spirit of good cheer, I think I might need to call this one a draw. The more farming simulators the merrier, especially when it means that you can avoid trudging through the snow outside in favor of some cozy gaming. Maybe I should amend this award to Best Excuse to Stay in the Great Indoors. When it comes to that, there can always be more than one winner.

There were a lot more games that our staff were eager to recommend, but if I went any longer, this show would become an Oscars where no one is played off with the music. So, in the spirit of poorly timed epic-sounding interludes, I’ll sign off here with a happy holidays and I’ll see you in the new year! For the rest of our staff’s favorite games and the silly awards they’ve received, check out our companion list on our catalog. Until next time!