The Best Video Games We Played This Year (We Had Time for Lots of Them)

There were two major console launches--the PlayStation 5 and the Xbox Series X--as well as big titles like Assassin's Creed Valhalla, the Final Fantasy VII remake, and Cyberpunk 2077 (we said big, not good!). Slate staffers recently convened to discuss what they played to pass the time in lockdown, what games surprised and disappointed them, and how many hours they honestly spent in Animal Crossing. Karen Han: I don't think it's out of line for me to say that this was the biggest year for games in recent memory, not just because of new console launches but because I feel like, thanks to the pandemic, we had a lot more time on our hands to be playing games. Is that fair to say, at least for this group? Daniel Schroeder: I think you're spot on. Before this year I never had chunks of time big enough to descend into and obsess over a new game like I like to. This year I was able to sort of keep up!