Ok, here we go again.
First, a link to my
2016 post, just to keep things neat.
Now let's start 2017:
01) Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare (PS4): Great campaign. After the disaster that was BO3 campaign, CoD redeems itself with this great adventure in space. Even the dogfight missions were great.
02) Medal of Honor: Warfighter (PS3): Another military shooter. I need to start clearing my PS3 backlog, and decided to start with this one. Played through it in one sitting. Found a game breaking bug and had to restart an entire mission. I went into this one with zero expectations, and ended up having fun. It's a decent campaign with an interesting story. Nothing amazing, but kinda good.
03) Rain (PS3): Another PS3 game from my backlog. Short and beautiful, it reminded me of Limbo and Inside. Good little hidden gem.
04) Datura (PS3): More PS3. A PS Move game this time (I usually don't like motion controls, but I have the controllers, and a few games in my PS3...so it doesn't hurt to play them). It's really strange and very clunky, but it kinda works as a different experience that makes an interesting use of the move controller. Really short (less than 2 hours), so it doesn't overstay its welcome.
05) Space Ace (PS3): I remember back in the eighties when I first saw this game and my jaw dropped to the floor...it was just so beautiful! Now I finally played it, and I can say for sure that it has the worst gameplay of all time. I had way more fun just watching the entire game (there is a menu option to do so) than "playing" it. And it lasts 15 minutes.
06) Kung Fu Rider (PS3): This game is one of the best examples to show why motion controls suck. After 2 hours playing this P.O.S., my wrists, arm and shoulder hurt a lot. The controls just don't work as intended. The game sucks big time. And I thought it had a fun premise...just do yourself a favor and stay away from it.
07) Severed (iOS): I know this is primarily a Vita game, but I got it on a sale on the App Store and ended up playing on my iPad during a trip. Great game, and the controls worked perfectly on the iPad. I loved Guacamelee back then, and Drinkbox Studios did it again. Recommended.
08) Virginia (Xbox One): A very "David Lynchish" game. It's like an interactive film, and there's no relevant choice to be made. Very symbolic and ambiguous. I like this kind of bold experiment in games.
09) Stories: The Path of Destinies (PS4): Awesome game! It's based on choices and replaying the game knowing the consequences of your acts beforehand. Really good. I played through it 5 times to see the true ending.
10) Fallout 4 Season Pass (PS4): I know it's only DLC, but since I spent 30 hours on it, I'll just count it (just like I did with The Witcher 3 Season Pass last year). In short => Automatron: Short and amusing. I liked building my robot. Vault-Tec: Kinda stupid. Didn't like it very much. Far Harbor: Apart from the really bad Minecraft-puzzle-thing (I hated it), it's by far the best DLC of the bunch. Great characters, story and locations. Nuka World: Great setting, but terrible characters. I hated everyone in this DLC and, even worse, it forced me to become a terrible person after I played the regular game like a paladin of the wasteland. I loved the Nuka World park, but hated the story and characters.
11) Oxenfree (PC): I knew this was gonna be right up my alley (love these Telltale-like choice/dialogue/narrative driven games). Great characters, story, mysteries and ending (I didn't get the best ending - maybe the second best - but I watched it on YouTube). Amazing game and the best one I played so far this year.
12) Superhot (PC): When I first saw the trailer for this game ages ago, I thought I wouldn't like it. Then I heard the Giant Bomb guys praising it and thought "Ok, I'll give it a try". Really glad I did. This game is awesome. Just play it.
13) Assassin's Creed Chronicles: Russia (PS4): I love AC games, but I don't love the Chronicles Trilogy. They look awesome and kinda play well, but they are such a frustrating mess. The assassins are all weak and die in one hit (the opposite of the main series). I'm glad I've got this over with.
14) Watch Dogs 2 (PC): A huge improvement over the first game. I think the series still has a lot to improve, but this was a major step up.
15) Prune (iOS): A relaxing little game about growing trees. Short and sweet.
16) Nioh (PS4): Great mix of Souls and Ninja Gaiden. Some bosses are a little unbalanced and too frustrating (sometimes I'd go through the entire level without dying, and then I died more than 20 times to the boss), but overall the game is amazing. It has one of the best combat systems I've ever seen.
17) Horizon Zero Dawn (PS4): One of the best games I've ever played. It looks incredible on a PS4 Pro + 4k + HDR, and the story is amazing. Highly recommended. Got the platinum.
18) The Vanishing of Ethan Carter (PS4): Such an interesting game. I like exploration games (or "walking simulators", but I don't like this expression), but this one has an extra layer of investigation and simple puzzle solving. And also a very interesting story, with a nice plot twist. Really liked it.
19) Shadow of the Beast (PS4): The reviews for this one weren't good, but since I grew up in the eighties, my nostalgia for the Amiga is big (though I could never buy one because it was too damn expensive). I ended up enjoying this game a lot. It looks good, plays well and has a lot of unlockables that make the game interesting. And it includes the original Amiga game as an unlockable. Great!
20) Cradle (PC): This game made me angry. It's beautiful, has a very intriguing world and story, but it's full of problems. It's horribly bugged...it hard crashed my computer 5 times during my playthrough (an average of once per hour), and the performance is terrible. And the gameplay is even worse: a lot of backtracking, terrible cube-puzzles minigames and frustrating first-person platforming. It could have been amazing, but it's just below average. It's still intriguing, though.
21) SOMA (PS4): Another game about AI and the essence of being human. Great story, setting and characters. But I really think this game would be much better without the monsters. I wanted to explore the world and had to be constantly sneaking around...it was not scary, just annoying. But I think it's really worth going through this to experience the story.
22) Owlboy (PC): It's flawed, but it's great. It has one of the best examples of pixel art I've ever seen...so beautiful. It also has a few very annoying jumping parts near the end that made me very angry, but overall it's a great game.
23) Oddworld: New 'n' Tasty (PS4): The world, characters and visuals are great. The gameplay is good, but there are some boring sections, and some frustrating parts. I got the bad ending...and it's a REAL bad ending.
24) Kirby Triple Deluxe (3DS): It's a Kirby game...colorful, nice and easy (with the exception of the final boss, which is not THAT easy). It's not exceptional, but I like Kirby.
25) NIER: Automata (PS4): I enjoyed it, but people talked about this game as if it was the greatest thing ever. I played the first Nier and also enjoyed it, and this one is better, but I didn't think it's as great as people say. Got endings ABCDE and a few others. Got the platinum with the help of that ridiculous in-game shop for trophies.
26) Submerged (PS4): A short non-violent exploration game. It's interesting, but the gameplay could use more variety. I enjoyed it, though. Finished it in one sitting.
27) Ori and the Blind Forest (Xbox One): Finally played this one. What a beautiful game! It's hard in some parts, but I definitely enjoyed it.
28) What Remains of Edith Finch (PC): It' the best "walking simulator" I've ever played. It has a lot of gameplay twists to keep things interesting, and a very good story. Highly recommended.
29) Rot Gut (PC): A small and simple black & white platformer set in the prohibition era. Very short. I had a little fun with it.
30) Milkmaid of the Milky Way (PC): A very interesting little point & click game. I haven't played one of these in ages...I guess this one made me want to play p&c games again...I'll look for more in my Steam library. Recommended.
31) Metal Gear Solid 5: The Phantom Pain (PS4): I've played most MGS games (1,2,3,4 and Ground Zeroes), but I've never really enjoyed them...I just played for the story. MGS5 is the first one that I actually liked playing. It's an amazing game, and by far my favorite MGS game. Played for 50 hours and got the true ending.
32) Sly 2: Band of Thieves (PS3): It's incredible how well this game holds up. I like 3D platformers in general, and really loved this game. I enjoyed it so much that I'll start playing Sly 3 right away.
33) Sly 3: Honor Among Thieves (PS3): I loved this one too. I still think I liked Sly 2 a little more, but the whole series is very good.
34) The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past (3DS): Finally played this one to completion. Through the years I've played it, but until today I hadn't finished it. This game is an absolute masterpiece for its time. But I confess I wouldn't be able to finish it without a guide. Essential.
35) Nex Machina (PS4): I really like Housemarque games. I always play them once on the easiest difficulty level, and then keep it in my PS4 to play again from time to time, trying different things. This one feels a lot like Resogun, despite being completely different. Great game. Looks and plays great. It was a nice break from my long (and amazing) journey through BotW (I'm getting close to the end now).
36) The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (Switch): Finally got a Switch. What an incredible game! I'm not a big Nintendo guy, and after playing Horizon I though it was surely gonna be my GOTY. But BotW is just fantastic. The sense of exploration and wonder is unparalleled. I'm not sure yet if it beats Horizon for me, but it surely will be close. 2017 is shaping up to be one of the best years ever for games.
37) Uncharted: The Lost Legacy (PS4): I thought this was gonna be a simple DLC, but it's a full-fledged Uncharted game. And it's one of the most amazing looking games I've ever played. Chloe and Nadine work really well as protagonists too. Much better than I expected.
38) The Sea Will Claim Everything (PC): A very odd game....it's very creative and funny at times, and has some really good writing. There's genius hidden in there somewhere, but it's not all it could be. I used a guide for parts of it, and I'd like to see these developers make a more elaborate experience someday. Very interesting.
39) Kamiko (Switch): It's a nice little indie game with pixel art. I finished it 3 times (one with each character) and it took 3 hours in total. It's not great, but it's good.
40) Destiny 2 (PS4): So much better than the first one. I'll consider it finished for now, but I'll keep playing it every now and then. I finished the campaign, all adventures and optional quests, played a little in the Crucible, a few strikes and completed a Nightfall. I don't think I'll play the raid because it's just too much work to coordinate six people for so many hours.
41) Cuphead (PC): I love and hate this game at the same time. It looks incredible (I have a real soft spot for those 1930s cartoons) and plays really well, but MAN, it's difficult! I died 768 (yep) times to complete it on normal difficulty. I guess I'm just getting old and my reflexes are not the same anymore (I'm 42), but I had a really hard time finishing this one. I'm very conflicted about the game, mainly because the visuals are such a warm blanket for me and make me feel very cozy, but the gameplay almost gave me a heart attack. Anyway, I'm glad I finished it. But I really wish someone made a game with visuals like this, but not so stressful (an open world RPG with different worlds, each one based on an era of animation would be my dream game).
42) Hare in the Hat (PC): After Cuphead, I need to play a few stress-free games. This one is a port of a mobile game...it's short, puzzle-based and slow paced. I played the game and The Abyss DLC.
43) RiME (PS4): A beautiful game that's all about exploration and light puzzle solving. I was enjoying it, but not loving it. And then that ending came and made me cry very unexpectedly.
44) The Walking Dead: A New Frontier (PS4): I love Telltale games, and this season was no exception. Maybe it's the best season of The Walking Dead so far. I played episode 1 yesterday and played all other episodes today. I just couldn't stop playing it...I loved the characters, the story and the choices. Great, great game.
45) Golf Story (Switch): What a cool little game...it's an RPG that uses golf instead of combat. The final tournament is a minor difficulty spike, but overall it's a very good game.
46) Assassin's Creed: Origins (PS4): I'm a huge AC fan, and played every single game in the franchise (including PSP, DS and the Chronicles trilogy). The series is a bit hit and miss, but I love it. Since Unity, it became tiresome and repetitive (although Syndicate is a good game). My favorites were Brotherhood, 2 and Black Flag. Now it's definitely Origins. This game has it all: Botw exploration, Souls combat, Destiny loot, Witcher 3 sidequests, Far Cry outposts, great stealth and the best setting the series has ever had: ancient Egypt (with amazing graphics and attention to detail). I love this game so much! I got lost in its world for 40 hours so far. Finished the story (and loved how it ended). But I'm far from done with the game...there's still so much do do and see! I never thought I'd say this in 2017 (IMO the best year in modern gaming), but I think AC Origins will be my GOTY (and I thought nothing would dethrone Horizon or BotW). Essential.
47) South Park: The Fractured But Whole (PS4): It's another South Park game. A nice story, some very funny moments, some gross jokes, and turn based combat that gets tiresome by the end. I liked it, but it didn't amaze me....2017 was a very good year for games, and it's very hard to be noticed among so many great titles.
48) Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus (PS4 Another amazing shooter. It's incredible that Bethesda revived Doom and Wolfenstein with such a high quality. I really liked this game. Great story, characters and gameplay.
49) Super Mario Odyssey (Switch): It's probably my favorite Mario game (with Galaxy 2 being a close second). Exploration without timers and lives. Just pure gaming joy.
50) Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice (PS4): It's beautiful, insane, stressful, kinda boring in places. A flawed gem with great acting by a woman who's not a professional actress. It's definitely not for everyone, but it has impact.
51) Doki Doki Literature Club (PC): That's one bizarre game. I'm not a Visual Novel guy, but everybody was talking about this game, so I decided to try it (it's free, anyway). It started really slow, and as I was about to get bored, it twisted itself and transformed into something else. It reminded me of Pony Island...I'm glad I played it. Really strange and interesting.
52) Old Man's Journey (PC): It's a short and simple puzzle game about an old man on a journey (duh). It's bittersweet...beautiful and sad at the same time. You see the man's memories of love, happiness, mistakes and regret, and in the end you cannot help but feel sorry for him. Good.
...and this was my 52 games for 2017. As the year is not over yet (25 days to go), I'll keep posting here about any games I finish over this period.
53) Call of Duty: WWII (PS4): A nice campaign, to me it was on the same level as last year's, and a LOT better than BO3. I enjoyed the story and the characters, but it took me a while to get used to those old, slow guns. But it's a good campaign.
54) Hob (PS4): It's a "MetroidZelda" of sorts...nice art style, gameplay and puzzles. The only thing I didn't like about this game was the huge amount of time I spend wandering aimlessly without knowing what to do. But it's a good, charming game.