Games of the Year 2022: Cult of the Lamb

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Cult of the Lamb was surprisingly gripping.  It's a cute/horrifying roguelike with town building elements.  There's a lot going on with it and I'm not quite sure if that description does it justice.

There are almost two distinct games in Cult of the Lamb, but they each inform the other.

One of these two elements is a top-down action roguelike experience with semi-randomly generated maps and levels.  The combat is solid and no one run ever overstays it's welcome.

The second main element is a town building (cult building) game that is both cute and disturbing.  Everything is presented in a cutesy aesthetic but it's dealing with real cult-like ideologies and behaviors.  The discrepancy between the two is one of the compelling parts of the game.  In this second piece of the game, you're recruiting followers, getting resources, and building out your town amenities.

If Cult of the Lamb had leaned too hard one way or another, I'm not sure I would have liked it as much.  But, it seemed to strike the perfect balance to hook me and give me that "one more turn" feeling.  I finished the whole game over the course of the first weekend it came out.

Cult of the Lamb lands in the lower part of my top ten for now, right above Neon White and below Chrono Cross: Radical Dreamers Edition:

  1. Elden Ring
  2. FFXIV Endwalker
  3. Citizen Sleeper
  4. The Stanley Parable Ultra Deluxe
  5. Horizon Forbidden West
  6. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder's Revenge
  7. Pokémon Legends: Arceus
  8. Chrono Cross: Radical Dreamers Edition
  9. Cult of the Lamb
  10. Neon White
  11. Halo Infinite
  12. Vampire Survivors
  13. Stranger of Paradise: Final Fantasy Origin
  14. Cyberpunk 2077
  15. Forza Horizon 5 Hot Wheels DLC
  16. Triangle Strategy
  17. Mario Strikers: Battle League
  18. Multiversus Pre-Season
  19. Stray
  20. LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga
  21. Nobody Saves the World
  22. Unpacking
  23. Total War: Warhammer 3
  24. Tunic
I'm really surprised to put this more than half way up my list but I enjoyed my time with it a lot.  I kind of doubt it will stay in the top ten by the end of the year, but chances are good it will still be in the top half of the list.

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