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Silent Hill: The Short Message might not be a true return to form, but it is far from a mere facsimile of what came before.
Turnip Boy Robs a Bank might be one of the best games of 2024, and it’s only February. It’s a quirky, wonderfully weird roguelite.
In the Patch 5 epilogue, Larian hinted at a few storylines that would make excellent DLC for the 2023 Game of the Year. I share hype and hope.
Lies of P is a dark game, but “Feel” gives this Souls-like some surprising warmth. Learn more in our “Feel” Lies of P song analysis.
Let’s discuss the Bastion and Transistor endings through the lenses of trauma, depression, hope, agency, and change.
In The Punished Podcast Episode 5, we share our most anticipated games of 2024, restart our Fantasy Gaming league, and talk some Zelda!
Reviews
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Around the World in 80 Power Moons To say that Super Mario Odyssey had big shoes to fill is an understatement. In 2007, Super Mario Galaxy essentially took the franchise someplace it had never gone before: outer space. As crazy of an…
Tiny, But Deadly Difficulty in games has had a long and storied history. During the eighties and nineties, a hard difficulty was an integral part of the experience. The Legend of Zelda unleashed players out into its sprawling world with nary…
Fine Wine France is a country famous for its food. Walking down the streets of any major city, you’re almost guaranteed to find various boulangeries, fromageries, and pâtisseries selling bread, cheese, and pastries from dawn till dusk. With all of…
Battle Chasers: Nightwar is a good, classic JRPG with a great battle system and a memorable style set in the world of Joe Madureira’s titular comic.
The Punished Podcast
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Video game adaptations are everywhere — shows, movies, books, board games, music, and more. But what makes them work? Let’s discuss.
In The Punished Podcast Episode 20, we talk about all the hottest gaming news that broke this summer. Plus, our Fantasy Gaming league!
In this podcast episode, we discuss the history of video game difficulty, what makes a game “fun,” Clair Obscur, Souls-likes, and more.
In this podcast episode, we discuss why we replay video games, what changes between playthroughs, old games versus new ones, and much more.
In the latest episode, we go through the best (and worst) video games of 2025 so far, and provide a Fantasy Gaming league update!
In The Punished Podcast Episode 16, we discuss the best old school games, what retro even means, preservation, and much more.
Punished Notes
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In this edition of Punished Notes, Sam discusses how the incredible fall game release lineup is kind of killing him, among other thoughts
In the latest edition of Punished Notes, Sam talks about Lumines, visual novel and Roger, and other random thoughts from random games.
In this Punished Notes, Sam dives into how the latest Bethesda shooter harkens back to a simpler time in AAA gaming, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, and more!
In this new Punished Notes, Sam talks about the mystery behind Avowed’s dialogue options, what it means when you say a game takes time to “get good,” and more!
For this edition of Punished Notes, Sam lists some brief and simple New Year’s resolutions, shares some games from 2024 that just missed the deadline for his tier list, and discusses his latest TV binge being on… CBS?!
So far, there hasn’t been a game that has pulled me out of post-election despair, and maybe that’s not a bad thing.
Punished Chat
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Hollow Knight: Silksong is one of this year’s biggest new releases. What do the writers at The Punished Backlog think of it so far?
From the classics to new releases, we discuss the “Big Three,” the best anime ever, and what makes these series stand the test of time.
Donkey Kong Bananza is one of the biggest game releases of 2025. Does it work? Does it deserve its score of 91? We share our thoughts.
On the fence about Nintendo’s latest console? Six of our writers sat down to share our initial Nintendo Switch 2 impressions.
After a drama-packed premiere, our writers got together to share our The Last of Us Season 2 impressions so far.
Let’s see how The Punished Backlog’s excellent writers feel about that explosive Nintendo Switch 2 reveal!
Punished Favorites
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In our list of the best GameCube Games, see how classics like Metroid Prime, Melee, and Double Dash stack up.
While we here at The Punished Backlog could not be more excited about a new Nintendo console, we also figured it now is the right time to pay tribute to the first Switch and all its best games!
Indie games are labors of love, and this year, it looks like there will be a lot to love! These are our most anticipated indie games of 2025.
In honor of the 20th anniversary of the Nintendo DS, check out the very best Nintendo DS games ever created.
From straight-up horror games to RPGs and cute indies, here are some of the best horror game moments of 2024 so far!
Waiting for Hollow Knight: Silksong? Make the wait easier by reading and playing our picks for the best Metroidvania games ever made.