I’ve played a pile more games, including some with my favourite themes. I’ve indulged in a lot of new scifi games, but kept the balance above 50% of games beaten, and unplayed is at 17% As usual I’ve bolded my favourites.

Because someone queried this before: when I mention AI, I’m just talking about fictional characters who are digital beings, and not ‘generative AI’. Basically I like scifi stories about computers who are people/people who are computers. I keep a list of games with similar themes on Steam https://store.steampowered.com/curator/29740488-Science-Fiction-Games/list/129797/ and I’m always interested in finding more (probably broken right now due to the steam sale.)

The Secret Order 4: Beyond Time - hidden object that didn’t stick in my mind
The Red Lantern - more of a choose your own adventure than I was expecting, but short and easy to finish.
The Stillness of the Wind - short and sad game that drained me of all hope as I played. Loved it.
Broken Reality - Odd and memorable game about a virtual space that never existed. The sudden transition to 3D platforming nearly wrecked this for me, but I still got a lot out of the game. Would have been a favourite if not for the platforming.
Streets of Kamurocho - nostalgia-laden sidescrolling beat-em-up that took me back to my arcade kid days.
Still Wakes The Deep - Beautifully voiced and paced horror game that did a great job connecting me to the characters and setting.
NeuroNet: Mendax Proxy - interesting visual novel about a newborn AI created to control a city
Signalis - Beautiful scifi horror/yearning/grief/angst game. One of my top plays of the year.
Return to Grace - short but enjoyable game about a someone seeking out the fate of a lost great AI.
OpenSorcery - text-based game about a fire elemental bound to an AI. My sort of thing. Short but good.
Fallen Hero - choose your own adventure with a villain protagonist. Decent stuff.
OilStrike 75 - retro-style game that reveals teasers for Still Wakes The Deep.
The Turing Test - a portal-esque game about an AI, and I kept feeling I should have liked it. Unfortunately it bored me, and I never really connected with the characters.
Vessels - short but fun possession-based scifi game. You start off locked in an airlock. Nice.
Starship Murder - I think this was an old Flash game. Nice idea about being an AI spaceship trying to solve a murder aboard, but game mechanics are minimal.
Minds Beneath Us - very interesting game in a setting where human brains are used as hardware for computing and AI systems.
Buddy Simulator 1984 - this one really got me. You wake up a digital ‘friend’ left on an old machine full of software and memories. 100% up my street. The game starts off with an interactive fiction style text parser, and then continues in other forms.
Ultreïa - short point-and-click about a little robot seeking revenge. Gets a bit surreal. Brief but I liked its oddness.
Shardlight - very visually beautiful pixel art point-and-click that didn’t quite hit the mark for me.
Silicon Dreams - a branching game about an AI made to interrogate other AIs. Interesting but didn’t draw me in.
Cloudpunk - I really enjoyed the voxel art style, but this felt a bit lacking somehow. Nice idea though.
Immortality - this is a cool game explained really badly. My gaming and sound setup meant I missed the critical cues for certain things until very late on. I still enjoyed it, but lets say sub-optimally.
A Highland Song - very nice Inkle exploration game. Frustrating at times, but there are options to ease some of the mechanics if you aren’t enjoying them.
Mouthwashing - I had this on my wishlist after playing How Fish Is Made, but I got so much more than I was expecting. Still having feelings about this game.
Stranded - basically a short pixel art showcase with a slight story.
Murder - same, but with a little more story
Dangerous High School Girls In Trouble - What a title. Board game about 1920s teens getting into hijinks and righting wrongs in their town.
Fort Solis - my disappointment of the year, as I really wanted to like it. Unfortunately the clunky movement, pace and extended animation made what could have been a nice 2hr walking sim into a bit of a 4hr slog. The visuals and voice acting are good, and I liked the characters, but the game kept getting in its own way. I kept comparing it to Still Wakes The Deep which managed to build character connection and pace while developing a really creepy theme and making me feel immersed.
The Invincible - this was the other walking sim on my ‘must play’ list. Also with control and performance issues, but not so troublesome as in Fort Solis IMO. Very glad I played this one, and for all its flaws I found it beautiful. It made me feel emotional about mechanical things, grief, and being lost, and that’s kind of everything I want in a game. I do sense that things ran out of steam (or time/money) towards the end.
Rituals - brief game that felt a bit like a tech demo, but had some atmosphere. I destroyed the earth.