And tonight, I finished - 52 games in one year! I never actually set out to finish this challenge so I never posted in this thread before, please excuse the wall of text.
1. Painkiller
A supremely fun, no-nonsense, shoot-lots-of-dudes game. The sheer variety of environments and enemies made this rather basic premise seem exciting right through to the end. The weapons were all so nice to use, with very unusual combinations. Didn't give a toss about the story and the bosses were rather hit-and-miss, but otherwise, I'd recommend it.
2. Silent Hill (the original PS1 game)
I never played this before but finished 2, 3, 4 and Shattered Memory before it, so I was curious to see how the series began. Unfortunately I played it at the wrong time as, compared to the later games, the dated graphics and rather tame enemy designs take the edge off of it. I'm still glad I got to play it, though, and it was definitely still creepy. I didn't get to save Cybil though. Sad face.
3. Momodora: Reverie Under the Moonlight
It was billed as a 2D Dark Souls with some Metroid stage exploration. It's a gorgeous game with fun mechanics and very, very challenging combat... in the first half of the game. Later on the enemies became a lot easier to avoid, which I felt undermined the combat aspect somewhat. The final boss was also a complete joke. But man, that 2D pixel art animation is to die for.
4. Bit.Trip RUNNER 2: Future Legend of Rhythm Alien
I really enjoyed the Bit.Trip series when it first came out, so I was looking forward to this. It's pretty much more Runner, and that's fine! A ton more stages, game modes, and unlocks. Still not entirely sold on the aesthetics. I liked the way it tied itself back into Bit.Trip FATE at the end.
5. Discworld
I did not like this game much by the end of it. I'm a big fan of Discworld and point 'n clicks, and I did get some joy out of seeing and hearing a lot of the characters come to life, but by GOD were some of the puzzles in this really nonsensical in the worst way. Also some very frustrating pixel hunting. A true example of every cardinal sin these types of games should never commit.
6. Mystik Belle
A strange, Amiga-esque Metroid game with puzzle solving elements mixed with action. I remember it being quite a nuisance due to the size of the sprites, it was very hard if not impossible to avoid damage sometimes. Also, the slide move just would not work reliably, which was rather unforgivable. Certainly an interesting game, though, and I can't say I didn't like it.
7. Firewatch
This game was so beautiful to experience - not just the aesthetics, though certainly I had to stop a few times just to admire the vibrant colours and scenery. It was a very human, very relatable and gripping story being told. A bit bummed by "the reveal", but it wasn't enough to ruin anything for me. Recommended.
8. Guacamelee
Oh man, did I enjoy this. A Metroid-style game with a great style and some incredibly fun, satisfying combat. Travelling from point to point was a joy for me because beating up enemies along the way just felt so good. Some great level and puzzle designs.
9. Hyper Light Drifter
I wrote some more in-depth impressions on this for the main thread, but I thought this game was great. Backed it as a Kickstarter and eagerly awaited it ever since the original reveal trailer with that wonderful music. Very challenging, but not unfairly so, an absolute visual wonder, an aesthetic that I just wanted more of and I hope returns for another game in the future. Only thing I remember being down on was the final boss, which I thought was a slight letdown.
10. Dark Souls 3
LOVE the Soulsborne series, and I loved this game. After Souls 2 I felt this was a return to form, with much nicer stage designs, better lore, better bosses, higher quality everything. It just felt like a really polished title. I actually beat it twice this year, I enjoyed it that much.
11. Quest 64
I know... I just wanted to see for myself what it was like. And yes, it's every bit as horrible as I was told it would be. It starts off like some Dragon Quest Lite-looking game that you could possibly enjoy in the same way someone might enjoy Mystic Quest, but then it very quickly shows its heartless, soulless, inane, horribly designed heart. Clearly nobody game a shit by the end of this game's development, and I was glad when the so very abrupt ending popped into being and the nightmare was over.
12. Mega Man X8
I wanted to plug in the gaps on my X series playthrough, and this was the only one I had yet to play, so I did. And yeah, this game wasn't bad. In terms of X games I played X5 and X6 immediately before this (both of which were horrible) so this felt like a refreshing return to form. Tight controls, great weapons, fun stages (at least, most of them. Some were much less so) and voice acting that doesn't make me want to rip my own ears off. Still not the same greatness of X, X2 and X4, though. I'd put it in the middle of the series.
13. Rocket Knight Adventures
Having previously played and loved Sparkster I wanted to see what the first game was like. I enjoyed it, it's certainly a great title from Konami's golden age, lots of action, cute graphics, tons of bosses. However, I still think Sparkster is better.
14. NanoAssault EX
An enjoyable, slick little game. Looks amazing and runs silky smooth. Shin'en certainly know how to make shooters.
15. Jett Rocket 2
The same, however, can't be said for platformers, especially mascot ones. Felt incredibly by-the-numbers, with some awful, unappealing character and enemy designs and boring gameplay. Not the worst game I played this year, but certainly not in any rush to play again.
16. Shantae and the Pirate's Curse
Looks gorgeous with some fun animation. A solid and enjoyable Metroid-style game. Jake Kaufman pumping out some awesome tunes for this one (as he always does). Not really a lot to say about this one, but it was solid.
17. Escape Goat 2
I loved the first one a ton for how under the radar it was, and this game is more of the same but with a new lick of paint and some extra mechanics. Very satisfying puzzle platforming, highly recommended.
18. Star Fox Zero
Being a big fan of Starfox and Starfox 64, I was hoping this would be a return to form for the series. As it is, it just feels like an inferior remake of the N64 game. I didn't really hate it, and I did manage to get to grips with the controls, but I have a hard time wanting to go back to it when I still enjoy the N64 game more.
19. Dark Souls 2 (DLC and Scholar of the First Sin)
My first replay of the year. Having beaten Souls 3 earlier and never playing the DLC of this game, I decided to return to it to see how it fared. I always considered it the weakest of the series, but now I feel it holds up even less than before. It's incredibly easy (relatively speaking at least) with some absolutely pathetic bossfights, and I don't rate the stage design as highly now as I did before. However, the DLC was top notch, with some battles FAR surpassing the main game.
20. Turtles: Mutants in Manhattan
I really wanted to enjoy this more. The core combat and mechanics are very fun and Platinum haven't steered me wrong before. But the stage designs and "missions" are just so lame, and maps are repeated constantly through the game. I know sidescrolling beat-'em-ups aren't known for the most amazing stage designs in the world, but they usually put in more effort than this game did. A big disappointment.
21. Assault Android Cactus
A pretty no-nonsense arena shooter. Incredibly slick and flashy, fun characters to unlock, and satisfying. It was a nice game to play through, even though the final boss made me swear a few times.
22. The Magic Circle
Now, this was an interesting game (and, as someone who makes games for a living, very relatable). I loved the premise of it, both in terms of "hacking" in-game elements and the story. Some rather powerful moments mixed with good lampshading. Got to love the main narrator voice too.
23. Mighty No. 9
Oh boy. This is still, to date, the Kickstarter I pledged the most money to, so to say I was eagerly anticipating this one was an understatement. And, yes, I was very bitterly disappointed by the end of it. I did not enjoy the stage designs, the voices, the patronizing, handholding nature of the characters, the half-arsed cutscenes and the lame ending. And to make it worse, I pledged for a Wii U version, which is so stuttery and buggy that it's borderline unplayable. What a terrible result from such a collection of veterans. Just about the only thing I liked was the music.
24. Crypt of the Necrodancer
I'm a sucker for procedurally generated roguelikes it seems (I helped make one that GAF loved a lot back in 2013) and this scratched an itch. What I wasn't expecting, however, was to enjoy it as much as I did. Maybe the rhythm part of it just makes it so much more satisfying when you get everything perfectly in place to do everything to the beat. Or maybe it's just that the music is fucking awesome. Whatever, I really liked this one a lot. Nearly 100%ed it too, except for a certain character at the end I couldn't finish it with...
25. Ys 1 (the remaster/remake/enhanced port/whatever)
Beat this entire game, and I can honestly say I didn't like it. I didn't like the core combat, I didn't find it satisfying, I didn't like the dungeon designs, I wasn't satisfied with the story elements or overall lack of any worthwhile story - I understand this directly continues on to Ys 2, but it still feels very, I dunno, halfhearted? Also, that bat boss was utter horseshit.
26. Mario & Luigi: Paper Jam Bros.
I was hoping this would combine the best of both current Mario RPG franchises into one super mega enjoyable and hilarious title. However, it just felt very soulless. The graphics are very nice with love sprite animation, and Yoko Shimomura's soundtrack certainly shines, but I honestly found the whole game a slog because it felt so very similar and unsurprising. I will probably give Mario RPGs a break after this and Colour Splash (more on that one later)
27. Ys Origin
After my unsuccessful attempt to jump into the Ys series with Ys 1, I gave this one a shot as I was told by many people that it was the best of the series. Well the developers must have known what to do with action RPGs by this point because this game was fucking awesome and I loved it from start to finish. Even though it all took place in the one tower, I felt more endeared with the plot and characters than I did with Ys 1's world. It feels like a really, really good PSP game, which is weird that it's a PC exclusive and never made it to a Sony handheld.
28. Ori and the Blind Forest
Wow, this has to have been one of, if not THE most beautiful games I've had the pleasure of playing. What visuals! What a soundtrack! That animation, the storytelling, it's just an audial-visual treat. And the game, while being yet another Metroid-like, felt surprisingly fresh in comparison to the others - its puzzles, challenges, movesets all seem to be based around propelling around the world in speedy ways unlike the others, which seem more combat-based. I thoroughly enjoyed this game.
29. Sonic Generations
Being part of the rare group of "good 3D Sonic games" (along with Sonic Colours, which I loved), this was a very well made, nostalgia-fuelled rollercoaster ride through Sonic's history. I enjoyed the Classic and Modern Sonic stages equally. However, the trend of ending a Sonic game with eldritch abominations that you Super Sonic into until one of you dies just has to stop, they're not fun and not especially challenging or memorable anymore. I felt that let it down.
30. Superhot
This game was surprisingly short and esoteric, and I don't feel like I got all the nuances of the story. But they used the time mechanic in a very novel, stylish and satisfying way. Watching an enemy shatter slowly from a katana blade slice John Woo style never, ever gets old.
31. Broforce
An enjoyably silly action game about explosions, death, guns and cathartic destruction. It's big and clever and I had a lot of fun with it.
32. Monster Hunter Generations
As any MonHun expert can tell you, "finishing" a MonHun game (i.e. beating a major Monster and seeing the end credits) isn't even close to seeing all that the game offers. I'm still playing this now, and will likely keep playing well until the next MonHun game comes out. I liked this one a lot, though. QoL improvements, the Arts/Styles and general flashiness of combat really breathes new life into this game. I hope the series keeps all these additions going forward.
33. AM2R
The unofficial Metroid 2 remake we all deserved. Taking what I personally consider to be a very boring game and making something great and memorable out of it, purely as a labour of love, is something that should be celebrated (and not constantly shat upon, as Nintendo keeps doing at the moment) The one thing I remember being a bit iffy about was that some of the art was of inconsistent quality with one another, no doubt a result of being a fangame. However, it's not a deal breaker.
34. Until Dawn
Great game. A really fun story and the right kind of gameplay elements to keep you constantly guessing about what's going to happen next, and compel you to play it even further. Some incredible character animations too, wow. Would love to play through again at some point, only with the intent of keeping everyone alive. Yes, even Emily.
35. Bloodborne
Rounding off my Soulsborne adventures is the PS4 exclusive I bought the system for. I was not disappointed. It took a while to get used to the slightly different gameplay as I usually play a tank character, and in fact overall I would still say the Souls series is better for me due to the variety of playstyles you have on offer to play as, rather than the more narrowed options here. I also felt the Chalice Dungeons got a bit old after a while. Those gripes aside, I liked this one. Played through twice, beat the DLC and even Platinumed it (my first Platinum too!)
36. DOOM (2016)
Holy. Fucking. Shit. I picked this up based on the insanely good word-of-mouth and I found I just couldn't stop playing it. I just couldn't. It's fast, frantic, it constantly kept my heart racing, the soundtrack is amazing, it looks awesome, the guns felt great, and the bosses were very fun too. Secrets to hunt everywhere, which give it almost a Metroid Prime style vibe. Just an incredibly solid package altogether. Definitely one of the highlights of the year for me.
37. Bayonetta 2
Bayonetta 1 was amazing, and this game was almost as good. It feels more of the same, really, which isn't a bad thing at all. Perhaps a bit easier? Might have been all the hours I put into Bloodborne that got me into Pro mode or something, hah. I didn't think the final boss was as crazy as the first game's though. Just as I did with the original I skiped every single cutscene as I didn't cara bout any of the characters, which is a good thing to as that brat of a boy has awful voice acting.
38. Dark Souls 3: Ashes of Ariendale DLC
(NOTE: I debated about putting this one in as it's part of a game I played this year - however it seemed appropriate considering the amount of time I put into it compared to some other games on here) It was more Souls 3, which was quite a jarring experience to return to initially after Bloodborne, but I enjoyed it. Not the strongest DLC the series has ever had, though. The end boss was an ordeal.
39. Grow Up
I don't know what it is about this game and its prequel Grow Home, but I can't help but feel a nice, warm glow inside my soul when I play through these two games. The pleasing colours, the carefree, stress-free nature of the game, the traversible landscapes, the flying powerups you can obtain, the helper robots' pleasant, upbeat, helpful natures, the oldschool noises BUD and the other robots make. It's just so pleasant!
40. Rodea the Sky Soldier (the Wii version)
My friend sold me on this game because of the flying mechanics and the airy, bright and colourful landscapes that oldschool SEGA are best known for. It looks like a carefree experience which lends itself to some fun game design. However, it quickly falls flat. The game swings wildly between so carefree that it's an unchallenging snore, and so frustrating to do the things you want to because of iffy flying and abhorrent camera. Story in a game like this can get away with being unobtrusive, but it's littered with some really bad voice acting and scene cuts which wouldn't look out of place on a film featured on Mystery Science Theatre. And to top it all off, it has what I can only describe as, without hyperbole, the absolute worst final boss I've ever fought in a game. It was so bad it almost made me quit the game and snap the disk in two.
41. Batman: The Game (NES)
Checking out some retro games I never got to play in the past (and always wanted to) Batman on the NES is a very polished game with some great music and very good graphics (for the NES, at least). It's a Sunsoft game, which means it starts off worrying easily but by the end of the game is testing you to your platforming and combat limits. Satisfying to beat, though.
42. Everybody's Gone To The Rapture
This is an interesting title. Stunningly realistic (it actually looks a lot like a village I grew up nearby, so it was especially amusing to see it all rendered in glorious PS4vision) and beautifully orchestrated. The story was an unusual one, which I have to say didn't quite capture my full attention, but some elements and some characters certainly had me feeling for them. At least it's a little more self explanatory than Dear Esther was.
43. Paper Mario: Color Splash
I know this game doesn't have the best rap, but I enjoyed it. I didn't hate the combat (though it did seem to incentivise avoiding it altogether, which feels counterintuitive) but what I really liked was the incredible scriptwriting. Some genuinely laugh out loud moments were to be had. By the end of it it did start to lose steam, though, and I got a bit frustrated with having to go back and retrieve the right Things for the right job. Also, bosses introducing instakill attacks when you don't have the right Thing to combat them felt very samey after too long. Overall, I thought it was flawed but I enjoyed it.
44.Toki (Mega Drive/Genesis)
For some reason I was obsessed with playing this after seeing it in an old magazine. Now that I could splash out on a proper retro collection like this, I have to say I don't know what I ever saw in it. I found it all a bit meh - plodding, unsurprising, not terribly challenging and not a whole lot of fun. Probably won't replay this one again.
45. Magical Quest starring Mickey Mouse
Another game I really wanted to play back in the day because of how beautiful and fun I thought it looked. It's certainly very pretty in spots and quite fun, but I wouldn't rate it especially high in this day and age. It's also rather easy. Not much to say about this one, but I'm glad I got to check it out at least.
46. Kung Fu
An incredibly short, arcadey NES game that can be beaten from start to finish in a few minutes. Even for the NES I remember this being really basic, but there's something very satisfying about just storming ahead and mowing down enemies in your path. Glad I got to do what a young Sovan Jedi could never do and actually finish it.
47. Abzu
Man, this year was a bumper crop of absolutely beautiful games for me, huh. I loved Journey to bits, and this feel just like Journey but underwater. I was worried about the same level structure popping up again and again, but the actual action sequences inbetween were so gorgeous and full of wonder that it was hard to hold a grudge against it. I especially enjoyed nearer the end when all the prehistoric marine life came out to play, and the end sequence was just as thrilling as Journey's was. If you liked Journey, please check this game out.
48. Darkwing Duck
I never was that big a fan of DW back in the day, but I loved the NES DuckTales and Mega Man games, and this feels like a combination of the two. Really, Capcom created some of the best Disney platformers back in the day, and this would have certainly ranked among them had I played it in the day. As it is, it's an ejoyable little platformer with some satisfying challenge.
49. Cool Spot
Yet another game I never owned but always wanted to play, I beat this in an afternoon. It was decent, I liked the controls and some of the levels were fun. I was expecting it to be a lot longer than it ended up being, though. Odd.
50. Aladdin (Mega Drive/Genesis)
As a SNES fan growing up, the one thing I'd always fold on was the subject of which version of Aladdin was better. Having only ever seen but never played the Mega Drive version and noticing its amazing, Disney quality sprite animations and faster gameplay, I always thought this version was superior. However, playing it through recently has revealed to me the great lie I had been living all this time. It has better animation, sure, but that doesn't make it a more fun game to play - attacks and motions sometimes take so long to execute due to the smooth animation that it can feel oddly sluggish and unresponsive at times. I also thought the bosses were, on the whole, a complete joke compared to the SNES game's offerings (which weren't exactly super difficult to begin with) That's not to say I didn't like this game - I enjoyed it a fair bit, the platforming is decent and the stages are all varied with their particular gimmicks - but now I feel I can say the SNES game is superior.
51. Blaster Master
Again, a NES game I wanted but never owned until now. I beat this last night and really enjoyed it. It would have been utterly mindblowing for me had I played it back in 1990, but even now it's a polished, well designed, pretty game with ace music and fun powerups. Some of the NES limitations or sloppy enemy placement let it down a tiny bit, and I would have appreciated a password or save game, but otherwise I liked this a lot. I can understand why it's held in such high regard. In fact, I might enjoy this game much more than the original Metroid. Imagine if Blaster Master was the series that went on to infamy instead of Metroid...?
52. Resident Evil (REmake)
My final game for the year is a replay of this classic. It's still an awesome game with some great graphics, tense moments, atmospheric music and awesome monster designs. Some of the puzzles and item management were a bit of a nuisance, though, I have to admit, but it didn't ruin a great game. Also even though the remake has a script and voice acting a level or two above "You were almost a Jill sandwich!", there's still some deliveries that make for quality riff material.
And that's it! If I had to rate my top 3 and bottom 3 of the year, it would have to be:
TOP 3 games played in 2016
1. Dark Souls 3
2. Ori and the Blind Forest
3. DOOM
Bottom 3 of 2016...
1. Quest 64
2. Mighty No. 9
3. Rodea the Sky Soldier
I don't think I'm doing this for 2017, sorry guys. :U