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2024 in Gaming

From Astro Bot to Balatro, 2024 offered a groundbreaking slate of games that have kept us busy the entire year. Follow along as we reflect on what made the year’s best titles so special.

Living room with Microsoft Xbox Series X (L) and Sony PlayStation 5 home video game consoles alongside a television and soundbar.

2024 gaming report card: How did PlayStation, Xbox, and Nintendo fare?

The PS5, Xbox Series X, and Nintendo Switch all had a strange 2024. Which console scored best in our annual year-end report card?
Nintendo Switch.

We predicted gaming’s 2024 last December. Here’s what we got right (and wrong)

A pal aiming a gun in Palworld.

The biggest gaming news of 2024: Concord flops, Palworld vs. Nintendo, and more

From Nintendo suing the company behind Palworld to Xbox shifting toward a multiplatform strategy, these news stories defined the game industry in 2024.
The main character of Thank Goodness You're Here is hoisted into the air.

The best weird little guys of 2024’s video games

2024's video games were filled with weird little guys. Let's take a walk down memory lane and honor some of the year's best sickos.
Indiana Jones rappels into a tomb in Indiana Jones and the Great Circle.

These December games already deserve Game Awards 2025 nominations

The Game Awards 2025 may be a full year away, but games like Indiana Jones and the Great Circler are already early front-runners.
Soh, Yoshiro, and Villagers prepare for battle in Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess.

The best games of 2024 were the ones we didn’t see coming

2024 was filled with great games, but most of our favorites are the ones we couldn't predict.
Nintendo Switch OLED and Joy-Con.

The Nintendo Switch 2 rumor mill was a comedy of errors in 2024

While Nintendo Switch 2 did not end up launching in 2024, rumors surrounding Nintendo's Switch successor dominated gaming discourse this year.
The Mental Wellness Awareness Xbox design.

At the end of 2024, Xbox finds itself as a crossroads

Xbox finally delivered the strong games it needed this year, but its mixed messaging left Microsoft's vision for the future unclear.
Key art for The Rouge Prince of Persia Update 10.

In 2024, early access video games went mainstream

Between Palworld, Hades 2, and Path of Exile 2, early access became more mainstream than ever in 2024.
A shattered screen shows an emergency warning in Mouthwashing.

Some of 2024’s best games were only as long as movies

2024 was filled with enormous video games, but more compact projects like Arctic Eggs and Mouthwashing proved the power of a short game.
Sun Wukong holds his staff in Black Myth: Wukong.

Black Myth: Wukong’s impact is more important than any award

Black Myth: Wukong may not have won Game of the Year, but it leaves 2024 having made an even bigger impact.
A Meta render gives you an idea of what you'll experience in VR with a Quest 3S.

If you didn’t become a VR gamer in 2024, you probably never will

The last 12 months proved that cheaper headsets and better games still might not be enough to launch VR into the mainstream.
Shadow, with Doom Wing spread out, holds Maria's hands before his final battle with Black Doom in a scene from Sonic X Shadow Generations.

Shadow Generations is a master class in confronting grief and moving on

Shadow Generations turns a tragic piece of the hedgehog's history into a moving story about grief and moving on.
A disembodied hand walks through a street in Starstruck: Hands of Time.

You need to add these oddball 2024 hidden gems to your backlog

From Judero to Mouthwashing, these instant classics were some of 2024's best games.
Best XBOX Games of 2024

The best Xbox games of 2024: Indiana Jones, Hellblade 2, and more

While 2024 has been a year full of ups and downs for Xbox, it delivered with games like Indiana Jones and the Great Circle and Senua's Saga: Hellblade 2.
Aerith prays in FInal Fantasy 7 Rebirth.

Final Fantasy VII Rebirth creators love that you’re debating its ending

We caught up with Final Fantasy VII Rebirth director Naoki Hamaguchi and producer Yoshinori Kitase to reflect on the RPG's origins and polarizing ending.
Best PS5 Games of 2024

The best PlayStation 5 games of 2024: Astro Bot, Helldivers 2, and more

Sony may have whiffed with Concord, but the PS5 had a surprisingly fantastic year otherwise.
Key art for The Game Awards 2024.

The Game Awards 2024: Here’s the complete list of winners

It's once again time for the video game industry to come together to recognize the year's biggest and best games. Here are all the winners at The Game Awards 2024.
Best Switch Games of 2024

The best Nintendo Switch games of 2024: Zelda, Mario Party, and more

If 2024 was the Nintendo Switch's last full year, it went out in a memorably eclectic fashion.
Game of the Year: Astro Bot

How Astro Bot charmed its way to becoming our Game of the Year

Astro Bot is Digital Trends' 2024 game of the year, but that decision came with a lot of soul searching.
Best Indie Games of 2024

Our favorite indies of 2024: 10 must-play games you shouldn’t miss

From Animal Well to Balatro, these indies made 2024 a fantastic year for original games.
Top 10 Games of 2024

The 10 best video games of 2024

It's been another year full of incredible video games, even if it didn't seem like it at a surface glance. These are our favorite games of 2024.
A screenshot from Call of Duty: Black Ops 6's zombies mode.

Black Ops 6’s Zombies Easter egg hunt is taking me back in time

Call of Duty: Black Ops 6's Zombies mode isn't just a great return to form; it's a time machine.
Key art for Nikoderiko.

Astro Bot wasn’t 2024’s only great platformer. Try these 5 underrated gems

With all eyes understandably on Astro Bot late in the year, platformer fans may have overlooked some of 2024's best offerings. Here are 5 you may have missed.
High res key art for Helldivers 2- Escalation of Freedom.

Helldivers 2 showed us the best and worst of gaming in 2024

For both positive and negative reasons, Helldivers 2 will go down as one of 2024's year-defining games.
Key art for Hollow Knight: Silksong.

We didn’t need Hollow Knight: Silksong in 2024

While Hollow Knight: Silksong still does not have a release date, there's no denying that 2024 was a fantastic year for Metroidvania games.
A character sits on a "fatter cat" mount

Why I kept coming back to Final Fantasy XIV in 2024

In 2024, Final Fantasy XIV reminded us why it's still the undisputed king of MMOs.
The heroes of Dragon Age: The Veilguard stand against a dreary landscape.

I thought I hated Dragon Age: The Veilguard. Now I love it

Dragon Age: The Veilguard may be remembered as a divisive RPG, but it told one of 2024's most vital and misunderstood stories.
Cloud and Aerith on a date.

I ended up on Final Fantasy VII Rebirth’s lamest date. It was perfect for me

Some players ended up on a date with Tifa or Aerith in Final Fantasy VII Rebirth. I spent an evening with Red XIII, and it was the scene I needed to see.
The Xbox Series X and PS5

2023 gaming report card: how did PlayStation, Xbox, and Nintendo score?

After a long 12 months filled with games and industry shake-ups, we're handing Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo their final grades for 2023.
A zombie crawls toward a player on a boardwalk in Dead Island 2.

We predicted gaming’s 2023 future last December. Here’s what we got right

We made four bold predictions last December about where gaming was heading in 2023. Here's what we got right (and one thing we got very wrong).
the overlooked games of 2023 mog23 featured

The overlooked games of 2023: 11 sleeper hits you need to play

With so many excellent games in 2023, some were bound to get lost in the shuffle. Here are 11 games from this year that you shouldn't miss.
Ms. Marvel listening to lo-fi in Marvel Snap.

A busy 2023 wasn’t enough to pull me away from my go-to mobile game

While there were tons of fantastic new games on PlayStation, Xbox, and Switch this year, my most-played title was a mobile game from 2022.
Kratos looks solemnly in God of War Ragnarok Valhalla.

Forget live service. Great DLCs kept us playing old games in 2023

Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty, God of War Ragnarok: Valhalla, and more showed that games don't need to go full live service to keep players' attention.

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As Digital Trends’ Senior Gaming Editor, Giovanni Colantonio oversees all things video games at Digital Trends. As a veteran of the industry who first began writing about games professionally as a teenager, Giovanni brings a wealth of knowledge and historical context to Digital Trends’ gaming coverage. He brings that expertise to everything he writes, from interview features to reviews. His specialty is criticism and he’s committed to raising the bar for video game reviews. Just read his ambitious UFO 50 review as proof!

Giovanni majored in Film and Photography at Ithaca College, and that skill set had intersected with his games writing through his career. He previously worked as a Segment Producer on Polygon’s daily gaming show, Speedrun, and has contributed video content for sites like Prima Games and Hard Drive. He’s always willing to experiment with new media, whether that be via podcasts or creating videos for Digital Trends’ YouTube channel. He has previously written for Inverse, Fanbyte, The Inventory, and more. He began working with Digital Trends in 2019 as a Destiny 2 guides contributor before moving into his current role as Senior Editor.

His love of gaming dates back decades. Giovanni grew up in Massachusetts with his mother’s hand-me-down Atari 2600. He was hooked from that point on, spending his childhood obsessively playing Sega Genesis or Super Smash Bros. Melee with his friends. He carried that passion into college, where he hosted and produced Ithaca College’s own studio format video game news show. Since then, he has been committed to giving back to the video game industry that raised him by providing honest criticism, sharp analysis, and thorough coverage.

Giovanni is currently based in Brooklyn, New York where he works alongside his cat, Mirah. On weekends, you can find him birdwatching in local parks or watching professional wrestling, his second love behind gaming.