Jacob Geller, one of gaming’s most thoughtful video essayists, released his annual Top Ten Best Games of 2025 video on December 10. Topping his list is Hollow Knight: Silksong, the long-awaited sequel that finally launched this year after nearly seven years of anticipation. But as always with Geller’s lists, the rankings matter less than the thoughtful analysis behind each choice. This year’s theme explores the passions that drive us, drawn from a line in Trumbull Stickney’s poem: the passions that we fought with and subdued never quite die.
- The Complete Top Ten List
- The Top Two: Silksong vs Clair Obscur
- Clair Obscur: The Other Game of the Year
- Silent Hill f at Number Seven
- Death Stranding 2 at Number Five
- The Indie Deep Cuts
- What’s Missing From The List
- The Theme: Passions That Never Quite Die
- Community Response
- Frequently Asked Questions
- The Bottom Line
The Complete Top Ten List
Here’s Jacob Geller’s complete ranking for 2025, from ten to one:
10. Sektori – A rhythm action game that Geller played obsessively based on his Steam leaderboard appearances
9. Hades II – Supergiant’s sequel that expanded on the original’s formula
8. Dead Letter Department – An indie title exploring postal service mysteries
7. Silent Hill f – The franchise revival set in 1960s Japan
6. Citizen Sleeper 2 – The follow-up to the acclaimed sci-fi narrative RPG
5.5. Lies of P: Overture – A half-spot for the Pinocchio soulslike’s expansion
5. Death Stranding 2: On The Beach – Kojima’s ambitious sequel
4. Despelote – A sports game with deeper themes
3. Consume Me – An exploration of desire and consumption
2. Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 – A turn-based RPG about grief and time
1. Hollow Knight: Silksong – The long-awaited Team Cherry masterpiece
The Top Two: Silksong vs Clair Obscur
According to Geller’s video transcript, he sees a clear divide between Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 and Hollow Knight: Silksong, with both games representing our modern Majora’s Mask in different ways. Both explore grief and time, themes gaming will return to again and again because our need for art about these subjects never disappears.
Clair Obscur manages to hold multiple themes at once, presenting immediate, wonderful impressiveness through huge dramatic opening cutscenes and jaw-dropping visuals. The game doesn’t need to convince players to care about its lore because it sculpts its world with such confidence and artistry. Everything about it screams ambition and polish from the first moment.
Hollow Knight: Silksong, on the other hand, presents its brilliance differently. Where Clair Obscur is immediately impressive, Silksong’s genius reveals itself through play, exploration, and gradual discovery. The contrast between these two approaches to excellence represents what makes 2025 such a remarkable year for games, with room for both spectacle-driven RPGs and intricate metroidvanias to shine.
Why Silksong Takes Number One
Geller’s choice of Hollow Knight: Silksong for his top spot validates what Team Cherry fans have believed for years: the wait was worth it. After being announced in February 2019 and delayed repeatedly, Silksong became gaming’s most anticipated sequel, with each passing year increasing both hype and anxiety that it might never release or couldn’t possibly meet expectations.
The fact that a respected critic like Geller, known for championing innovative indies alongside AAA blockbusters, placed Silksong above everything else released in 2025 speaks volumes. His lists aren’t popularity contests or attempts to predict awards. They’re deeply personal explorations of games that resonated emotionally and intellectually, making his Silksong endorsement particularly meaningful.
Clair Obscur: The Other Game of the Year
While Silksong claimed the top spot, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 at number two deserves equal attention. Geller describes it as a modern Majora’s Mask, high praise considering that Zelda game’s reputation as one of gaming’s most mature explorations of mortality and grief. Clair Obscur apparently achieved something similar through turn-based RPG mechanics rather than action-adventure gameplay.
The game has performed remarkably well beyond Geller’s list. IGN’s community polling placed Clair Obscur as the number one game of 2025 so far with 82.4% approval from over 54,000 votes, ahead of Death Stranding 2 and other major releases. That level of community enthusiasm combined with critical acclaim from essayists like Geller suggests Sandfall Interactive created something genuinely special.
According to Geller’s transcript, Clair Obscur sculpted its world with such confidence that players don’t need convincing to care about the lore. Everything from art direction to narrative themes works in harmony, creating an experience that feels both epic in scope and intimate in its emotional resonance.
Silent Hill f at Number Seven
One of the most interesting inclusions is Silent Hill f at number seven, particularly because the game received mixed reactions from mainstream audiences. Konami’s franchise revival set in 1960s Japan took bold creative risks that didn’t resonate with everyone expecting traditional Silent Hill gameplay. But Geller, known for appreciating experimental and artistically ambitious games, clearly connected with what the developers attempted.
Silent Hill f’s inclusion demonstrates Geller’s willingness to champion games that mainstream critics might overlook or dismiss. His lists consistently highlight titles that take creative risks, explore difficult themes, or prioritize artistic vision over commercial appeal. Silent Hill f apparently fits that profile despite (or because of) its departure from series conventions.
Death Stranding 2 at Number Five
Kojima Productions’ Death Stranding 2: On The Beach landing at number five might seem low for such a high-profile release, but Geller’s list isn’t about budget or hype. His placement suggests he appreciated Death Stranding 2’s ambition and execution while finding other games more personally resonant. Given the sequel’s lengthy runtime and divisive gameplay loop of traversal and delivery, a mid-list position makes sense even for someone who enjoyed it.
Reddit commenters in the original thread expressed interest in playing Death Stranding 2 on PC, where it hasn’t released yet. The game launched as a PlayStation 5 exclusive with a PC version announced but not yet available. Geller likely played on console to include it in his 2025 list, demonstrating his commitment to covering games across platforms.
The Indie Deep Cuts
| Game | Position | Type |
|---|---|---|
| Sektori | 10 | Rhythm action |
| Dead Letter Department | 8 | Narrative mystery |
| Citizen Sleeper 2 | 6 | Sci-fi narrative RPG |
| Despelote | 4 | Sports with themes |
| Consume Me | 3 | Exploration of consumption |
What sets Geller’s list apart from mainstream outlets is his inclusion of lesser-known indie titles that most year-end lists ignore. Sektori, Dead Letter Department, Despelote, and Consume Me aren’t appearing in IGN or GameSpot’s top ten lists. These are deeply personal choices reflecting games that resonated with Geller specifically rather than consensus picks designed to match popular opinion.
Reddit commenters noted seeing Geller’s Steam account appear on Sektori leaderboards, confirming he genuinely played and engaged with the rhythm action game rather than including it for novelty. This commitment to actually playing and mastering games before including them on his list maintains the credibility that makes his recommendations valuable.
What’s Missing From The List
Notable absences from Geller’s top ten include several major 2025 releases that dominated other lists. Kingdom Come Deliverance 2, which achieved massive commercial success and critical acclaim, doesn’t appear. Neither does Monster Hunter Wilds, despite being one of the year’s biggest launches. Assassin’s Creed Shadows, Doom: The Dark Ages, and Ghost of Yōtei are also absent.
These omissions aren’t criticisms of those games. Geller’s lists reflect personal connection rather than objective quality rankings. He’s drawn to games exploring specific themes – grief, obsession, artistic passion, human connection – and games that take creative risks even when they don’t fully succeed. Technically polished AAA games that play it safe rarely make his lists regardless of quality.
The absence of these mainstream hits makes Geller’s list more interesting and valuable. Dozens of outlets will champion Kingdom Come Deliverance 2 and Monster Hunter Wilds. Only Geller is putting Despelote and Dead Letter Department in front of his 1.3 million YouTube subscribers and telling them why these games matter.
The Theme: Passions That Never Quite Die
Geller frames his entire 2025 list around a line from Trumbull Stickney’s poem: “The passions that we fought with and subdued never quite die.” This poetic framing elevates the video beyond a simple ranking into an exploration of why we play games and what draws us to certain experiences over others.
The theme connects to Geller’s broader work as a video essayist. He’s known for videos like “Fear of Depths,” “Fear of Cold,” and “Games That Aren’t Really Games,” which explore gaming through philosophical, psychological, and artistic lenses. His year-end lists follow the same approach, treating games as art worthy of serious analysis rather than products to be numerically ranked.
By connecting 2025’s best games to the idea of passions that never quite die, Geller suggests these titles tap into something enduring in human experience. Whether it’s Clair Obscur’s exploration of grief, Silksong’s celebration of exploration and mastery, or Death Stranding 2’s meditation on connection, each game apparently speaks to fundamental drives that transcend gaming as a medium.
Community Response
The video accumulated 220,000 views in its first two days on YouTube, impressive for a 24-minute video essay about games many viewers haven’t played yet. Reddit threads discussing the list generally praised Geller’s choices while acknowledging his taste differs from mainstream consensus. Comments like “Not all of his top ten lists resonate with me, but I find his selections consistently intriguing” capture the community’s relationship with his work.
Several commenters expressed excitement about discovering games they hadn’t heard of through his list. This discovery function – introducing lesser-known titles to audiences who trust Geller’s judgment – represents significant value for indie developers. Being featured on his list potentially translates to thousands of new players giving your game a chance.
Some viewers admitted Geller’s video made them cry, noting how his analysis connected gaming to broader life experiences and emotions. This emotional resonance sets his content apart from typical gaming media focused on mechanics, graphics, and value propositions. Geller treats games as art capable of profound emotional impact, and his audience responds to that sincerity.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Jacob Geller?
Jacob Geller is a video essayist with over 1.3 million YouTube subscribers known for thoughtful analysis connecting video games to broader artistic, philosophical, and cultural themes. His essays explore topics like fear in games, architectural design, and what games reveal about human psychology.
What is Jacob Geller’s Game of the Year for 2025?
Hollow Knight: Silksong topped Geller’s list at number one, with Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 at number two. He describes both as modern equivalents to Majora’s Mask in how they explore grief and time.
Why isn’t Kingdom Come Deliverance 2 on his list?
Geller’s lists reflect deeply personal choices based on games that resonated emotionally and thematically, not consensus picks or commercial success. While Kingdom Come Deliverance 2 is excellent, it apparently didn’t connect with the themes Geller was exploring for 2025.
Are these rankings objective?
No. Geller explicitly frames his lists as personal choices reflecting games that meant something to him specifically. The rankings represent his subjective experience rather than attempting to objectively measure quality across different game types.
Where can I watch Jacob Geller’s video?
The video titled “The Ten Best Games of 2025” is available on YouTube and Nebula. It released on December 10, 2025 and runs approximately 24 minutes.
What makes Geller’s list different from IGN or GameSpot?
Geller focuses on indie games and creative risks that mainstream outlets often overlook. His list includes titles like Sektori, Dead Letter Department, and Consume Me that won’t appear in most major publications’ year-end rankings.
Did Hollow Knight Silksong really live up to the hype?
According to Geller and many other critics, yes. After nearly seven years of development, Team Cherry delivered a sequel that justified the wait with intricate level design, refined combat, and the same meticulous craft that made the original special.
What is Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 about?
It’s a turn-based RPG exploring grief and time, described by Geller as a modern Majora’s Mask. The game apparently balances epic scope with intimate emotional themes, featuring impressive visuals and confident world-building that doesn’t need to convince players to care about its lore.
The Bottom Line
Jacob Geller’s Top Ten Best Games of 2025 stands as one of the year’s most interesting lists precisely because it doesn’t try to please everyone or predict awards. By centering his choices around personal connection and thematic exploration of passions that never quite die, Geller creates something more valuable than another consensus ranking – he provides a window into how thoughtful players engage with games as art.
The list’s value isn’t telling you definitively what the best games of 2025 were. It’s introducing you to games you might not have considered, validating niche titles that deserve more attention, and demonstrating that different players can find meaning in vastly different experiences. Whether you agree with placing Silksong above Death Stranding 2 or including Silent Hill f matters less than engaging with why those choices matter to someone who thinks deeply about games.
In a year where mainstream lists will largely look the same – Kingdom Come Deliverance 2, Monster Hunter Wilds, maybe Clair Obscur and Death Stranding 2 – Geller provides the alternative perspective that makes year-end coverage interesting. He reminds us that the best game of 2025 isn’t whatever scored highest on Metacritic. It’s whatever moved you, challenged you, or helped you understand something about yourself or the world. For Geller, that was Hollow Knight: Silksong. What’s yours?