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It’s time for our annual countdown to recognize the best games of the year. Over the next 10 days, we’ll be counting down the top 10 games of 2025.
As always, the votes of each member of the Press Start team were collated, weighted from 10th to 1st place, to compile the best results of the year. A game worthy of the top spot will be awarded a maximum of 10 points, and its value will go down to the 10th selection, which will be awarded 1 point.
BALL x PIT was this year’s ballet no matter how you look at it. A highly ambitious and fresh take on the roguelike craze, it takes ideas from Arkanoid, Vampire Survivors, and more, and combines them with several other concepts, such as city-building, to create one of the most exciting, crack-like games of the year. What I appreciate most about BALL x PIT as a roguelike is its respect for time. It doesn’t matter if you finish the run or not. Return to base to do something. Nothing is lost.
BALL x PIT was a huge success for developer Kenny Sun, selling over 1 million copies after selling 300,000 copies in its first week.
The game is a mix of serenity and chaos, as quiet city building and resource extraction go head-to-head with the crazy barrage action you must endure to rebuild Beaubillon. This game proves that some old ideas, even simple ones like Breakout’s brick-smashing action, can stand the test of time and be sought after again. All it takes is a little twist.
james says
“From the moment I played BALL x PIT, I was hooked. Many games challenge the roguelite formula, but this one stands out for its sheer simplicity and devilish ‘just one more run’ appeal. It encapsulates it perfectly. It’s a stage before you get to basic management, and it almost functions as a game in itself.
No distractions from the loop. It adds a satisfying layer of progression to the already addictive gameplay loop that Kenny Sun and his team have created, deepening it even further. What really seals it is the way BALL x PIT teases you into opening it wide. The wide variety of balls and confidently stylish art and music come together to make it feel completely different. ”
In our review, Brody gave BALL x PIT a 9 out of 10 and said:
“BALL x PIT is an unexpected and addictive roguelike that throws some well-worn ideas into a pot and fuses them into something weird, fascinating, and unique. The rhythm of firing, merging, and evolving balls is more sophisticated and hard to throw away, but elements like city-building complement the package nicely, making it the ultimate ‘one more time’ game.”
And like a ball that spends hours grilling its enemies, it will come back again and again. ”
On review aggregation site Metacritic, BALL x PIT is resting with an average score of 84.
Congratulations to Kenny Sun and Devolver Digital on making it to the Top 10 of 2025!
2025 Game of the Year
#10 – Ghost of Yotei
#9 – Ball x Pit
