As the year winds to a close, it’s a great time to take a look back at some of the games that stood out in serious and educational gaming. If you’re thinking about picking a new game for a class, keep an eye on the coming game awards season. There are a number of venues that showcase great educational games each year. The Serious Games Showcase & Challenge highlighted several winners this year, including National Geographic’s game The Underground Railroad: Journey to Freedom and University of Washington’s Nanocrafter. The 2015 Games for Change Festival will likewise no doubt showcase an impressive range of serious and educational games released this year.

Here’s a few games from 2014 that I enjoyed learning from:

• The Talos Principle. This new game is described by creator Croteam as a “philosophical first-person puzzle game,” and it definitely rewards thoughtful play. The puzzles are difficult but not particularly reflex-based, which fits with the contemplative atmosphere and the integration of a quest to unravel one’s own identity and humanity throughout the game. It definitely has potential for integration into classes (I’d love to use it with an interdisciplinary freshman seminar.)

• Elegy for a Dead World. Dejobaan Games’s new release is one I’ve been anticipating, as it integrates a creative space with the act of storytelling. Adi Robertson accurately describes it as “the world’s first abandoned alien landscape word processor” in a review composed within the games surreal environments, each of which includes different prompts to spark different types of narratives that can be shared through the game or as screenshots.

• World of Warcraft: Warlords of Draenor. While not technically an “educational” game, Blizzard’s World of Warcraft has been used in classrooms for language learning and hailed for its ability to encourage team-building, math skills, and problem solving. It’s also a remarkable example of game design, with some impressive re-invention and development with each expansion that’s been released over its ten years and counting. The latest expansion is particularly fantastic, with the introduction of garrisons, which essentially ask players to act as managers.

• Hadean Lands. It’s no secret I love interactive fiction, and Hadean Lands–the culmination of Andrew Plotkin’s 4 year Kickstarter project–stands out as one of the most ambitious and immersive games I’ve seen in some time. Hadean Lands is set in an alchemy-driven spaceship and asks the player to solve complex puzzles that are fantastical (and sometimes, at first, apparently nonsensical) yet strongly rooted in philosophical and mathematical influences. A screenshot of the game map appears above.

• Quing’s Quest VII: The Death of Videogames! Deirdra “Squinky” Kiai made this game as part of Ruin Jam 2014, which produced a number of entries worth a look. The jam was inspired by current conflict within the game community, which has made it a particularly difficult year for a number of important marginalized developers and players. Quing’s Quest is a simple, powerful example of how games can be used as a medium for commentary on this type of discourse.

Did you play any great educational or serious games this year? Share your favorites in the comments!