The generation vote I've finally been waiting for. I did a whole thing on my blog about my top ten games of the generation on my blog a few years ago, so some of the words I wrote on those games at that time are gonna form a basis for this. Gonna do this in descending order.
10. The Beatles: Rock Band ; ”And in the end, the love you take is equal to the love you make," Paul McCartney says in that final song of the game. Anything Harmonix does is done with care and respect to music. After all, music is in its DNA and it's something they truly care about, you can see it in their games – past, present and future. But The Beatles: Rock Band was a lovingly crafted love letter from the developer, not just to The Beatles, but to music as a whole. Outstanding.
9. Portal 2 ; We may go on waiting another six years for a resolution to Dr Freeman's story [Ed note: hahahaha oh past me knows how to write these - its been six years alone since Portal 2 came out], but in the case of Portal 2, it was Valve's finest hour since that Red Letter Day.
8. Heavy Rain ; Heavy Rain is a game that told an engrossing story, one of the best of the generation, and asked the player serious questions about morality in the process. Beyond may not have lived up to the high standards of what came from the studio before it, but personally speaking, if Heavy Rain – and to a lesser extent tech demo Kara [Ed note: in this instance, Detroit: Become Human] – showed what's still possible from Quantic Dream, then Beyond was merely a blip.
7. Mass Effect 2 ; Mass Effect 2, more or less, feels like the Shepard trilogy's version of The Empire Strikes Back. Again, no dramatics, just an awesome AAA blockbuster that was incredible to sink your teeth into for the 30-40 hours or so that the game has you for.
6. Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriot ; Metal Gear Solid 4 has the hallmarks of Hideo Kojima within: ridiculously long cut-scenes, weird Kojima-like moments and the Hollywood inspiration that bears on the game like a hawk. And this won't make sense if you've not been following the series since MGS1 (or at least, like me, since MGS2), but Kojima always makes sure you're in for a massively wild ride.
If you got in just for MGS4, chances are you just won't get it. But for the fan who's been in since MGS1/2, who's had to put up with breaking the fourth wall, La-Le-Lu-Li-Lo and nanomachines but also some fantastic messaging on anti-nuke, riveting characters, censorship and current & future technology, MGS4 is still another enjoyable Hideo Kojima ride.
And I quite like it.
5. BioShock Infinite ; BioShock Infinite is a shooter that tries to break the norms of a traditional shooter and tries something different within a genre that is filled with so many space marine/military shooters as of these past few years. A fascinating, incredibly made world to explore – both before its downfall and whilst in the midst of its ruins – its themes of racism, politics and religion with a fascinating set of characters to boot and brilliant setpieces.
4. Grand Theft Auto V ; If GTA IV represented a cold and depressed Rockstar North that eventually perked up with the released of its DLC, Grand Theft Auto V represented the Edinburgh-based studio's finest work in not just the series' sixteen year history, but one of Rockstar's finest in its now fifteen year history.
3. Uncharted 2: Among Thieves ; Uncharted 2 was an action spectacle like no other. A story with some brilliant wit but also maturity around it and a superb cast, all with incredible setpiece sequences and outstanding scenery surrounding it. It advanced storytelling in games to whole new heights that, until then, not been seen for a long time. It confirmed Naughty Dog as the flagship studio within Sony Computer Entertainment Worldwide Studios and if they weren't already, they were now among gaming's development elite.
2. Journey ; Journey was already something incredible, in my eyes. But having now seen it in an entirely new way after this, it's something more, something higher. And that in itself is truly the biggest praise I can heap upon Journey and Thatgamecompany.
1. The Last of Us ; The Last of Us is special. Game of the Year doesn't even come close to how I feel about it. Game of the Generation gets it partly there. But it overtaking Metal Gear Solid 3, the first game I truly fell in love with and the one game to make me realise that all I want to do was write about games, as my favourite game ever is probably the biggest honour I can bestow upon it.
Honourable mentions:
x. The Orange Box ; The best god damn thing last gen on console that wasn't The Last of Us.
x. Alan Wake ; Remedy's best game to date. This is not up for debate.
x. Forza Horizon ; The series has gone from strength to strength, but its 2012 debut is such a monumental game and honestly one of the best racing games ever.
x. Grand Theft Auto IV ; Even if V is such a better game in every way objective, I still have a super soft spot for IV. I love it so and I'll happily die on its hill defending it.
x. Tomb Raider ; Crystal Dynamics revived an icon in the best possible way.