The best of 2025

As the year comes to a close, it's time to take stock of everything that came out in the last 12 months. For Region Free, it was a banner year with nearly 150 film reviews, 50 game reviews, and 30 pieces of technology were released on the site.

Picking the very best out of that pile isn't easy, but I think I've found the perfect mix of titles that should fit every need. Below, you'll find sections for gaming, films, streaming media, festival favorites, and of course everyday carry that has gotten me through the months. As always, everything has links to full reviews and you can always come back to this page to reference something you may have missed. It will keep updating until the last day of December.

2025 was the year of the PlayStation and Nintendo. Both titans of the industry released some of the finest first-party titles not just this year, but in the lifetime of the console generation.

Hideo Kojima made possibly his career-defining masterpiece with Death Stranding 2 while Sucker Punch defied all expectations with Ghost of Yotei which improved upon every area of the already superlative Ghost of Tsushima.

Meanwhile, Nintendo released the Nintendo Switch 2 and came out of the gate swinging with Mario Kart World, Donkey Kong Bananza, and the hugely enjoyable Hyrule Warriors: Age of Imprisonment. While the console itself has still some problematic elements (game key cards are a major bummer), there's no denying that Nintendo has once again defied the odds to create a memorable continuation of their most popular hardware to date.

Another surprise for the year was my experience with the PS+ Subscription service. I'm not a huge fan of digital rentals, but even I can't raise my nose at the value Sony's big gamble offers. Especially due to the wealth of classic PlayStation One, 2, and 3 titles available for both streaming and download.

You can check out the full listing of my best games of the year from below, including reviews to each title in order of publication.

The best tech of 2025

This was the year that I really started to cover technology in a big way, and it made a huge difference in my everyday carry as well.

For my personal gear, I tend to favor streamlined experiences over newer and fancier tech. The price doesn't matter as long as it fits into my backpack, uses the same charging cables, and works with every other piece of gear that I've built my setup around.

In the past 12 months, both Apple and Android have begun to work supremely well together. Past failings, like the like of Airdrop or easy pairing between systems, have basically been smoothed out entirely.

A major surprise was the MOVA Z50, a robot vacuum that I traveled to see in Sweden, which has made a considerable difference in may everyday life. As someone with ADHD and general cognitive disabilities, cleaning isn't exactly one of my strengths. I use MOVA at least once a week on a routine cleaning program, and it amazes me every time how smartly and efficiently the device handles both vacuuming and mopping.

It's also extremely easy to fix, something that I was initially worried about in my review back in April. Spare parts are readily available online, and the manual for replacing and cleaning parts is detailed and easy to parse. It's the kind of technology the Jetsons promised us all the way back in the 70s, and it feels like the one true piece of the future that I've covered all year.

Another major surprise was the Sony ULT Power Sound headphones, which I expected to like, but did not anticipate to make a major difference in my health.

In my review, I go into further detail about how they helped me on a personal level, but the gist of it is simple: The ample bass boost in the headphones vibrate the area around my ears to the point that it sends a soothing signal around my body when I experience an anxiety attack.

No, it's not scientific and it probably won't work for everyone. But some will probably notice the effect of these well-built and otherwise nice-sounding headphones that I've come to use daily.

DJI, a favorite in my daily use from 2024, made huge strides with their releases of the DJI Mic lineup – both the Mic Mini and Mic 3 are brilliant pieces of gear – and brought in a fantastic last minute addition to the year with the Osmo Action 6.

This list is still under construction as I review more products before the year is out, but you should check out the major winners from the link below.