Our latest Game of the Year announcement got us thinking about the past and every game we've ever awarded the prestigious title of GameSpot's Game of the Year to. Take a trip down memory lane with us as we recount some of the best games we've highlighted since our site's formation. You can also see our pick for Game of the Year 2025 at the end of this feature.
2025 featured a whole bunch of fantastic games from a variety of genres, including platformers, RPGs, a roguelike puzzler, and more. The choice for Game of the Year wasn't easy, and our top 10 best games of 2025 were each individually fantastic in their own ways.
Score: 9.6 | Review Date: January 23, 1997 | Written by: Trent Ward
"Diablo is the best game to come out in the past year, and you should own a copy. Period. If you like PC games, you should go out right now and experience what is likely to be the clone maker for the next two years."-- Read the full review .
Score: 9.6 | Review Date: January 23, 1997 | Written by: Trent Ward
"Diablo is the best game to come out in the past year, and you should own a copy. Period. If you like PC games, you should go out right now and experience what is likely to be the clone maker for the next two years."-- Read the full review .
Note: Through the years 1998-2001, GameSpot gave Game of the Year awards for both Console and PC.
Console:
Score: 10 | Review Date: November 23, 1998 | Written by: Jeff Gerstmann
"The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time is the real thing. This is the masterpiece that people will still be talking about ten years down the road. This is the game that perfectly exhibits the 'quality not quantity' mantra that Nintendo has been touting since the N64 was released. In a word, perfect. To call it anything else would be a bald-faced lie." Read the full review.
PC:
Score: 9.3 | Review Date: October 30, 1998 | Written by: Ron Dulin
"The one real problem with Grim Fandango is that the end comes too soon. This isn't because it's too short (it should take most a good two- to three-dozen hours), but because the designers have created a rich world that you won't want to leave, filled with memorable characters that are hard to say goodbye to. Don't be surprised if you're sad when it's over." Read the full review.
Note: Through the years 1998-2001, GameSpot gave Game of the Year awards for both Console and PC.
Console:
Score: 10 | Review Date: August 9, 1999 | Written by: James Mielke
"Yes, it is a fighting game, a genre with a fairly limited scope, but insofar as fighting games go, Soul Calibur is mind-numbing perfection. Namco has taken the best and made it considerably better. The level at which the company has done so is practically unprecedented. Think state of the art. Absolutely brilliant in all aspects, as far as games of this type go, Soul Calibur is the undisputed king of the hill. It is essential in any gamer's collection." Read the full review.
PC:
Score: 8.4 | Review Date: August 2, 1999 | Written by: Greg Kasavin
"Exploring the land, hunting monsters, fleeing from certain death - all these things are incredible fun in EverQuest so long as someone else is along for the ride. Although it might have been better in almost every respect, it is, like any good online RPG, a work in progress. And there's no question that it's the best game of its kind." Read the full review.
Note: Through the years 1998-2001, GameSpot gave Game of the Year awards for both Console and PC.
Console:
Score: 10 | Review Date: January 6, 2000 | Written by: Andrew Vestal
"With Square agonizing over every detail of its flagship property, the Chrono Cross team was apparently left mostly to themselves. Consequently, the game shares an all-out enthusiasm and joie de vivre found in the best 16-bit titles -- back before games became multimillion dollar properties that had to answer to glaring shareholders. Chrono Cross may not have had the largest budget, but it has the largest heart." Read the full review.
PC:
Score: 9.1 | Review Date: February 11, 2000 | Written by: Andrew Park
"This isn't to say that The Sims isn't an enjoyable and intriguing game, because it is. If you relished the feeling of complete control of building a city in SimCity, then you will doubtless enjoy the experience of building a domestic life in The Sims. And even those who didn't will still likely find themselves engrossed in The Sims' bright-looking, real-sounding, and highly detailed world of miniature people." Read the full review.
