Well, are you looking for this year’s Balatro? We may have found this year’s Balatro, at least in terms of scale and the unpredictable nature of its success. That would be Blue Prince, a new puzzle game that has come out of nowhere to be potentially one of the best games of 2025.
It has a 92 Metascore right now, which puts it one point above Split Fiction, and that means it’s the best-reviewed game of 2025 at present. A full third of its reviews right now are perfect scores from different outlets with more coming in. Here’s the official synopsis for the game:
“Welcome to Mt. Holly, where every dawn unveils a new mystery. Navigate through shifting corridors and ever-changing chambers in this genre-defying strategy puzzle adventure. But will your unpredictable path lead you to the rumored Room 46?”
The sheer nature of the creativity of the game makes it a bit hard to even articulate, as it’s a “you have to play it” type situation. Fortunately, Microsoft has snagged this as a Day One Game Pass drop when it arrives on April 10. But the game is not full priced regardless, and should release for $30 this week elsewhere.
I just have not seen endorsements this glowing for a game in a long while. Here’s high-profile industry journalist Jason Schreier giving it about as much praise as humanly possible:
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“For the last month I have done very little but think about, talk about, and play Blue Prince. It’s sort of like a cross between Slay the Spire and Outer Wilds — you progress by gaining knowledge — but it’s also much more than that. It is one of the most incredible games I have played in my life.”
“Blue Prince isn’t just going to be the best game of 2025, it’s going to go down as one of the best games of all time. If you’re a puzzle sicko and you love nothing more than keeping a notebook next to you, this game was designed for you baby.”
Obviously a hardcore puzzler is not going to be for everyone, but something with these scores and this much enthusiasm is probably going to be worth trying out regardless. For Game Pass subscribers it’s a no-brainer, and for everyone else, $30 isn’t exactly the biggest commitment in the world (well, ignoring the current state of the global economy).
Right now this seems like it’s sprinting toward the GOTY shortlist, if not at least a Best Indie win for its essentially unknown developer Dogubomb. This is the good news we all need right now, and you can try it for yourself on April 10.
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Pick up my sci-fi novels the Herokiller series and The Earthborn Trilogy.
