There is a case to be made that some games are so incredibly influential, that they carried a year on their own. Think the year Tetris was released or the year Minecraft was released.

That being said, we have 2004, which had WoW and GTA San Andreas, both of which are up there for the most influential games of all time. Pair that with a few other gems like KOTOR II, and I think that year should take the cake.

I'm sure there are discord servers and other communities that would love to play alongside you. You just have to look for them ^^

Buuut, I also get that it can be very intimidating to join random people like that. I think there are probably also still many very active larger servers. Maybe you could try and look around for people there?

There is of course always the option of a good old-fashioned Minecraft Server if you have the people for it. Those are always a fun time.

We've all been there. Then, suddenly, someone or something gives you an idea on what to try and it just clicks.

If you are looking for a game to make friends in, single player games probably aren't it and co-op games might be more up your alley. Try to find something that has an active community, as that makes it much easier to find people. Games that get updated regularly are always a good bet. Or maybe jump on the hype train of something new that releases.

Maybe Csgo 2 might be your chance. Or whenever GTA 6 comes out.

I personally really enjoy Destiny 2 and it very much suits that 'puzzle, combat, platforming, online co-op game to make friends in' niche you're looking for and it gets updated very frequently with a highly active community. Maybe give that a try if you haven't already.

Then again, it's absolutely okay to take a break. If you're not feeling it at the moment, don't force yourself into it.