a collage of 15 different games included on the list, from silent hill f to elden ring nightreign

this was 2025, as told by 91 writers across the world

intothespine.com/2025/12/31/s...

The Spectacle of Suffering - Unwinnable Across the screen, pain is spectacle.

"It is only then that you are left to ponder in horror: Since when did I become a creature capable of this?"

@zhzhou86.bsky.social explores how BLOODMONEY! reflects unsettling current trends:

Immersion, Empathy, and Fate: What Remains After What Remains of Edith Finch - Unwinnable Players have enough input to feel they are “there”, yet not enough to prevent the outcome.

"Does immersion always require attachment, or can a game be immersive even through detachment?"

Simon Liu looks back on the critical reception to What Remains of Edith Finch and ponders the connection between immersion and attachment:

the papers please logo, which is the emblem of the fictional arstotzka

"An act that is supposed to deny uncertainty ironically becomes complicit in a rigid state of stagnation and exhaustion."

Zonghang Zhou (@zhzhou86.bsky.social) examines the meaning of repetition via Papers, Please, and Tang Shanjun's Sisyphean efforts.

intothespine.com/2025/05/23/t...

@thewitcher.com Happy 10th anniversary!

Corrupted Hero, Corrupted Dream - Unwinnable Still, viewers choose to find good in the evil.

"If a hero cannot resist the corruption of reality, are we doomed to be corrupted as well?"

@zhzhou86.bsky.social on In the Name of the People and working within and without the system:

Where are the Games for Children? - Unwinnable There is no greater void in the current market than games intended for children.

"We are all poorer off without ambitious mediocrity."

Joshua Henson notices a link between today's lack of children's videogames and creativity standards in the industry:

The Ambivalence of Resistance - Unwinnable Once these antagonizing powers are crushed, the rationality that sustains and justifies our actions will be accordingly diluted and quickly absorbed.

"Lamentably, these laborious struggles do not change the fact that the performance of resistance does not create a vision for the future."

Zonghang Zhou examines the ambivalence of resistance in Watch Dogs: Legion: unwinnable.com/2024/...

“Rage, rage against the dying of the light” Though the fear of impending death is rendered moot by respawn mechanics, you know it will eventually run out. Still, you flatly refuse to go gentle into that good night.

"Like those wise men at the end, you know dark is right, but the inevitability of death does not stop you from forking more lightning."

Zonghang Zhou immerses himself in Dying Light: unwinnable.com/2024/...

A Tale of Game Restrictions “I know what you want better than you do, and I am doing this for your own good.” Such blatant patronizing attitudes reveal the inherent disparity of identity between adults and minors.

"Clearly, the energy of children’s thought and imagination can neither be created nor be destroyed. It cries for an outlet."

Zonghang Zhou points out the flaws in China's gaming restrictions for minors: unwinnable.com/2024/04/30/a...

Escape from Tomorrow The greatest pity is that Marcus does not succeed where Aiden has failed – to rebuild.

"The story of Watch Dogs 2 has the ambition to construct something new or meaningful, but as it cannot draft a blueprint of tomorrow, there is eventually nothing to do but escape from it."

Zonghang Zhou digs into Watch Dogs 2's themes of rebellion: unwinnable.com/2024/03/12/e...

Promising Hope, but Never Delivering Standing still on the sand, I tried to probe into the devastation of my hope.

"As long as we take reality as the ultimate pursuit of video games, we are doomed to fall and drown."

Zonghang Zhou reflects on dreams and reality in videogames: unwinnable.com/2024/01/15/p...

Chicago, the Ambiguous, and Ourselves “Stop being a hero, Aiden. Let it go.” Beneath the veneer of a near-future dystopian technocracy, Watch Dogs is a bildungsroman of a man seeking redemption and salvation. Following the journey of the vigilante Aiden Pearce, driven by a thirst for justice and vengeance against those whose nefarious schemes led to a car crash that claimed the life of his niece, this ambitious game explores the consequences of unchecked technological power and engages with pressing issues related to our complex reality. In the game’s fictional rendition of Chicago, the city has become a hotbed of corruption and conspiracy, teeming with…

"As Pearce navigates this glitzy world, we are not merely steering a vigilante through the virtual streets of Chicago; we are invited to ponder something more."

Zonghang Zhou explores the contradictions inherent in Watch Dogs: unwinnable.com/2023/...