Over the next week, we will be posting features for what we've nominated to be the best games of 2020. Then, on December 17, we will crown one of the nominees as GameSpot's Best Game of 2020, so join us as we celebrate these 10 games on the road to the big announcement. Be sure to check out our other end-of-the-year coverage collected in our Best Games of 2020 hub.

Spiritfarer is a cozy resource management and farming sim with a dreamy, colorful art style and adorable talking animals. It's also a game about death, grief, and the process of letting go. Though these two aspects may seem at odds, Spiritfarer finds a delicate balance between its lighthearted adventure gameplay and the heavier themes woven throughout, offering a large, intriguing world to explore and characters you'll come to love along the way.

Spiritfarer has an amusing connection to one of our other Game of the Year nominees, Hades, both of which feature the mythological ferryman Charon, who transports souls to the world of the dead. But while he plays a more minor role of shopkeeper in Hades, Spiritfarer dives deeper into the role of Charon--the Spiritfarer--and what it might entail if someone else stepped into his shoes. In this case, Charon's successor is a young girl named Stella, who, with the help of her fluffy cat Daffodil, must take on the responsibilities of the Spiritfarer and accompany recently deceased souls to the world beyond this one, marked by an ancient bridge called the Everdoor. Charon's role has ended, and even he must pass through the Everdoor--an early reminder that no one can escape death in the end, even the ferryman of souls.