37 is wrong, 36 is right.

More clues.

#35

• Third of four in a series of 13 so far
• The most recent release in the series is a remake of the first game

#34

• A game about revenge that only leads to worse outcomes for everyone involved
• Features two playable characters

#33

• A secret mission in the frozen north that takes place at the same time as the first game in the series
• Set in a fictional version of Europe during a continent-wide war

#32

• The origin of the Dragon and the Mad Dog
• Organized crime in Japan

#31

• When it rains, the path to another world opens
• Through a TV screen

32: Sounds like a Yakuza game, I'm gonna try Like a Dragon.

31: Persona 4

32 is right series, wrong game. 31 is correct.

#39: Thwart a global alien invasion with your handful of soldiers A bit surprised nobody found this one. It's Xenonauts

1. It's an hommage of a series that was big in the 90's and still gets some games out now, but unlike those who mostly played in the future, this one starts in an alternate late 70's.
2. Unlike the X-COM series, here telepathy does nothing
3. You start out with assault rifles and will go over laser to plasma weaponry later in the game 
4. The invading alien fleet includes Sebillians (Big lizard-type guys with regenerative powers and poor eyesight), Ceasarians (The stereotypical greys, with a big head, good eyes and low health, later joined by reapers that are deadly on touch, robotic Androns, Drones, teleporting Harridans and finally psychic Praetors.
5. Both this game and it's successor, which is still in early access, have been financed through Kickstarter. And in the second one, you can also find me as one of the soldiers.

#35: Doublekill!

1. Flak Monkey
2. Adrenaline!

#34: In this game, you steer a character from the womb until college graduation. 

1. What you can learn depends on the stats you gain each year in the brain grid
2. You meet several other children and students during your childhood, some of which you can make deep friendships (and more!) - but you can also be  bad to someone and have them end their friendship with you.

#33: A post-apocalyptic game with a bit of silliness included

1. Part of a long-running series

#32: Your mission: To slowly terraform Mars into a habitable planet

1. You are actually an AI who steers the terraforming effort, but after the early phase human scientists will move in and conduct research on your behalf.

#31: Often called the black sheep of this action-adventure series from Nintendo

And more.

#35

• Third of four in a series of 13 so far
• The most recent release in the series is a remake of the first game
• Set in the empire of Erebonia

#34

• A game about revenge that only leads to worse outcomes for everyone involved
• Features two playable characters
• One of the characters seeks revenge for what the first game's main character did to her father

#33

• A secret mission in the frozen north that takes place at the same time as the first game in the series
• Set in a fictional version of Europe during a continent-wide war
• A tactical RPG, the fourth in its series

#32

• The origin of the Dragon and the Mad Dog
• Organized crime in Japan
• Run a host club, or a real estate agency

#31 Persona 4

• When it rains, the path to another world opens
• Through a TV screen

#34: I should have gotten it sooner but The Last of Us: Part 2

Correct.

#43

Change YoY: -3   My Rating: 9.1 / 10

In some ways, it's quite surprising just how popular Stardew Valley and other so-called cozy games like it have become in recent years. Obviously, these life-simulation games have been around for a very long time, with the likes of Harvest Moon and Animal Crossing having gotten their start decades ago now. Yet, for a long time they were very much a niche genre, beloved by a small minority of players but largely ignored by most others. But then something changed, and earlier this year Stardew Valley had sold over 35 million copies, and the most recent Animal Crossing has sold another 10 million copies on top of that number. As far as video games go, those kinds of sales figures are reserved for a very select few titles.

So, what exactly changed? Who knows, but I can take a few guesses. First, the average age of people who play video games rose significantly, most recent reports stating that it's around 35 years now, and constantly rising. Second, the pandemic happened, and people needed something less stressful to spend time with and take their minds off the outside world. And third, video games are being played by a much wider range of different types of people than before, and as such it makes sense that genres that may not have been massive successes in the past have found much wider audiences in these new players. There are probably dozens of other reasons too, but those would make sense to me at least. I first encountered the genre back in the late 90s when I played the original SNES Harvest Moon on an emulator. I certainly liked it, the slow-paced, relaxing gameplay providing a nice counterbalance to all the action titles that tended to rule the gaming space at the time (and still do today), but it wasn't the kind of game I would necessarily go out of my way to play after experiencing it once.

Then came Stardew Valley, and it not only retained the stress-free gameplay of games like Harvest Moon, but added other features to give the experience much more variety. Suddenly, it wasn't just about managing and developing a farm, but also dungeon diving, relationships between characters, improving the town, and a number of other features that in other games could have served as the core of the whole experience. There's a staggering amount of content to be found here, but much of it is also optional, so if you prefer to focus on just one or two aspects of the game, you can do that. This also makes the game great for co-op, as different players can focus on different things depending on what they enjoy the most. Stardew Valley is a game that is easy to go back to even after a long absence, and one that always provides a nice, relaxing experience for however long I might feel like playing it that time. I haven't been actively playing the game for a few years now, but it is still installed onto my computer so whenever I feel like it I can go and spend a little time tending to my farm and completing other tasks.

Alright, we're almost at the end of November, feel like I've taken as much time as I could really. I just "finished" Hades 2 the other day and my opinion on it feels more solidified now, so that can go into the list. As for Clair Obscur... I've yet to finish it, but if it ranks high, I have a couple weeks yet before I have to commit it to a specific position on the list. It's risky to do this for a game I haven't seen the ending of yet, but I'm confident that it will rank high so I'm gonna go on a limb here and get the list going.

Right off the bat I wanna say, I've got 6 new games coming into the list this year! That's more than I've had in most years, and I'm happy with it. Still wish I'd had the time and money to have added a 7th new entry there in Digimon Story Time Stranger, but well, that'll have to wait for next year. For now, well...

I still need to make my graphics, but let me try to catch up by giving away a lot of easy hints.

#50 - The third entry of the series that brought several new plastic toys into your living room!
#49 - The first in a sci-fi trilogy that became a classic in gaming culture. I hear they're making another one...
#48 - Maybe the most popular game that plays like Smash Bros. without being Smash Bros.
#47 - The remake of the 1st game in a series due its next entry this December.
#46 - What if Zelda, but every character is a fox?
#45 - Apparently this "failure" sold 35 million units... 
#44 - The remake of the 2nd game in a series due its next entry this December. (yes I am milking this hint now)
#43 - Chicken jockey.
#42 - The latest and greatest ink shooter  :)
#41 - If poker was as addictive as this, I'd have a serious gambling issue...
#40 - still alive.
#39 - The last 2D entry in a series that has been regularly criticized since its move to 3D.
#38 - Putting the "hero" in the hero shooter.
#37 - Still the latest entry in this trilogy that is very soon to get a 4th entry.
#36 - I swear this is nominated for "Best Community Support" literally every year at The Game Awards
#35 - Maybe the least popular game that plays like Smash Bros. and is Smash Bros.