1. Dishonored; The artstyle is amazing. The world it creates is superb and leaves you wanting to explore more of it. The gameplay manages to get rid of common annoyances in the stealth genre in very satisfying ways. The powers (specially Blink) are genuinely fun to play around with and make you change the way in wich you play games of the genre. It really does feel like a playground at times in wich you just play with the game's systems (limited, sure, since it doesnt try to be an open world experience but rather levels where you decide how to approach, like Deus Ex), wich is something I really missed in games. The gameplay allows the perfection of your skills. This is a game where you actually get noticeably better as you keep playing, and I know it sounds silly but you rarely see something like this (to this degree) in today's empowering games. The ability to pull off crazy stunts/moves once you get really good at it is super satisfying. It also encourages replayability and I had as much fun in my second, non-lethal, unseen, blink-only, low chaos run than on my first (completely opposite) one; maybe even more.
2. The Walking Dead; Almost put this on third since I really really love the game below, but I feel like this deserves the upper spot for being such a different and original experience in a world of same ol same ol. This game's writing is superb in a somewhat overlooked aspect, and that is that it makes you think you had some real, hard input in the direction the story went when in reality you had very little. Your actions throughout the course of the game dont really impact where you end up, how you end up there, nor anything like that, but rather the fate of some of the characters. However, they manage to make you feel like your completely tailoring your own story and that you, as a player, are responsable of everything that happened, and that is as hard as actually fullfiling that goal, but with a third of the budget. I cared for all the characters more than I did for a single character in any game for a while. Ending was truly touching and had the right amount of player input. Just superb work all around, and it was about time Telltale got its due in being recognized as a really talented studio. Now they dont only try to keep a loved-by-few genre alive but they actually evolve it in the best way possible.
Major props to Telltale. David Cage pipedream done right, maybe he learns something.
3. Alan Wake (PC); One of my favorite gaming experiences this gen. The environments and the mood of the whole game is so engrossing that I was immersed in its world more than in any other game-world this year. The forest was amazing; even though it had a very linear path you still felt as if it just went on forever, great attention to detail and easily one of the best looking PC games out there (doesnt get enough love in this regard). Amazing use of lighting, shadows, sound, the whole deal. I was hooked to the story (beyond considering it good or bad in the end), I was eager to see what happened next and I couldnt stop playing in order to unravel it more and more. I literally beat it in one 15-20 hour sitting. I had a day off sick and I played it all day, non-stop, and I never intended to do so once I started it. I thought the methods on wich the story was told were superb (the chapters, the ending credits/music). It was similar to when you get a whole season of a show and you
have to go through it as fast as possible. The fact that I love Twin Peaks and the clear influences the game took from that dont hurt either. I actually enjoyed the combat a lot (wich seems to be an unpopular opinion), I liked the feedback on the shooting, I liked the aiming, I liked the flares, etc. It was repetitive but it just never stopped being fun for me throughout the whole game. Love this game, and cannot wait for dat next-gen Alan Wake 2 (let us dream).
4. Max Payne 3; Yes it has flaws that we've all discussed (specially the unskippable cutscenes), some of wich are baffling, but i'll be damned if it isnt the best-playing third person shooter ive ever played. The gunplay is INSANE. Euphoria/RAGE shining more than ever. The hit detection, the animations, the movement. Everything flows together in an honestly.. surprising fashion. It's one of the best looking games ive played when it comes to seeing it in motion. The story is your usual Rockstar business without much deviation, but the focus on style and visual presentation really makes it work. Michael Mann is clearly the biggest influence here and even when everyone complaints about "movie-like" games I think this is how you do them right. Replace QTEs and cinematic camera angles with gameplay that feels in line with what you'd expect out of an action film without losing control over the character. I know Max Payne has always been about this (with the noir focus, slow-mo, etc) but I feel like they really went for it here, with the OST and all. TEARS kicking in on that airport shootout is something that could perfectly belong in a movie, yet it works so, so well in this game that its one of my highlight gameplay moments this gen. Best soundtrack of the year as well btw.
A lot of people complained about the cover mechanic and how it didnt play like previous Max Payne games but im dead honest when I tell you that I played it on the hardest difficulty while taking cover maybe ONCE. Mouse & keyboard probably have something to do with it, but it was all about jumping forward in slow motion while getting as many headshots as possible before hitting the ground, like it always has been, and it felt better than ever.
5. Hotline Miami; Game is just oozing with style. The inspirations are obvious (game is basically a dirtier Drive - The Game) but its not like a game attempted to corner that presentation before. The gameplay is frantic and addicting, it makes you want to perfect every level and the quick retries annoy you but dont frustrate you in the same way it happened with something like Super Meat Boy. Second best soundtrack of the year as well, and playing this at night with headphones on at max volume while just retrying levels over and over and getting deeper into its fantastically-told story while smashing heads in with every object you can find really puts you in this weird, dark, violent place that dont many games take you to. You might find that place disturbing but the experience of being there is worth the price of admition alone.
6. XCOM: Enemy Unknown; Fucking XCOM is back, still hard to believe. Game manages to retain a lot of what made the originals special, while still feeling modern and relevant. Its amazing how my silly-named squadmates are probably the characters I cared the most about this year after those in TWD. That feeling of losing someone who's been with you since the beggining in an Iron Man run is something else. Game is properly challenging but rewarding, rage-inducing in the best ways possible, and really statisfying when you're doing good at it. Difficulty in games, remember that?
Reason its as low as 6 is because its bugged to hell and back, and when you're playing a game where you cant save (meaning Iron Man, playing the other mode is missing the whole point of XCOM), fucking-up because of the game not doing what you want it to do is inexcusable.
7. Sleeping Dogs; Great open world city with good side-activities, Arkham-like combat, inspiration from Hong Kong cinema, great character customization, good radio stations. First game ive 100%ed in a while and I had a blast doing it. Dont really have much to say here since Sleeping Dogs doesnt necesarelly bring anything new to the genre, but rather takes what everyone else did and improves on it by making it much more satisfying to play. The Story was predictable and could have been better, but I had so much fun dicking around and just doing everything I could possibly do that it gets a pass. I still enjoyed the characters a lot, and Wei is one badass motherfucker. Doesnt hurt that the game looks fantastic (specially when raining) either. Riding the fastest motorcycle while dodging cars (and getting that competitive leaderboard times showing up as you do so, another brilliant addition) in the rain and listening to Hudson Mohawke is something that everyone should experience.
8. Mark of the Ninja; Best 2D stealth game ever made period. Super accesible and direct when it comes to give you indications as to wether you're being seen, youre in a line of sight, etc. Something that stealth games (and specially 2D ones) have had a hard time communicating to the player since the genre first appeared. The controls can be a little "sticky" but once you get used to them you're pulling some crazy ninja stuff as if it was nothing. The levels are well designed and the collectables are actually fun to find. The 3 "achievements" per level system is also quite original for the genre and works super well. Keeps you from doing the same thing over and over again in every level. Just a great game, specially if you love the stealth genre.
9. Super Hexagon; Hooray simple games! it basically scratches the itch left after playing Super Meat Boy for so long. They're very different games but they have that same adrenaline rush to them of just wanting to get better at it as fast as possible. Game basically puts you in that zone where you're looking beyond the screen and just playing in some sort of auto-pilot mode. The inputs become extensions of your two fingers and your mind drifts to wherever while you're playing it. Its actually a very zen-like experience beyond the frantic (and fantastic) soundtrack. I'll be playing this in short bursts for a long time.
10. Spec Ops: The Line; What to say that hasnt been said. This is how games should tell stories: by
really making you play them. One of the most talked about games this year so I dont feel like going too deep into why I liked it, not to mention its hard to avoid spoilers, but it is something that every person who considers themselves videogame enthusiasts should have played this year.
didnt make the cut (and reasons why):
[X] -
Rayman Origins (PC); I love this game and I just realized the PC version counts, FUCK. Only reason is not on the list is because I forgot about it and now I dont know what game id take out in favor of this :|
[X] -
Lone Survivor; Best Silent Hill game since Silent Hill 2. Game manages to do everything the survival-horror genre does on a 2D plane. Similar to Mark of the Ninja nailing stealth in 2D, this game nails survival horror in 2D. The story was weird but satisfying, and I really loved how it emphasized the surviving aspects of the whole thing. Having to basically make "runs" out of your safe-house to advance the game a bit more while needing to to return eventually to load up on ammo/food/water and saving the game was something I wasnt expecting to see on a pixelated sprites based 2D game. Much more ambitious than what it might seem at first glance. Extremely overlooked/underrated as well. Everyone forgot about this gem!
I wanted this to be in the top 10 soooooooooooooooo bad, oh well.
[X] -
Far Cry 3; talk about doing a 180. During the first 15 hours I was convinced this game was gonna be on my top 5 easily, but man did it drop
fast. It became incredibly repetitive, even though capturing outposts is fun I can only do it for so long before it becomes just boring. The actual side missions are terrible. The story is a huge, HUUUUUGE missed opportunity, you get through the skill-tree/crafting way too quickly, and the game basically offers 0 challenge in terms of difficulty. Big missed opportunity with this game. Still had my fun but yeah.
[X] -
Torhclight II; Best Dungeon Crawler since Diablo 2, and the first one to really grab me since then. Did not care much for 1 but I absolutely love this one.
[X] -
Rhythm Heaven Fever; only non-PC game on this list. Not much to say here really. Its more Rhythm Heaven, I love Rhythm Heaven, I missed Rhythm Heaven, I played Rhythm Heaven. Would have been number 11.
[X] -
Dark Souls: Prepare to Die Edition; Dont hate me guys, I just havent played enough of it. I really really like the game (even though I feel less so than most people on GAF), but I feel like it would have been cheap to put it in the list considering im not even halfway through it.
[X] -
Borderlands 2; only played about 10 hours of it before I started running into trouble finding time to play it with my co-op buddy, and then other stuff came out. I really loved what I played of it but it was barely a tiny bit of the entire game. Im gonna start a single player run in 2013 I guess. Really want to play this.
[X] -
Binary Domain; Just no place for it
would have been number 12. My dream Dreamcast 2 launch game. Im sorry Big Bo.
[X] -
Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet (PC); another case of just no place for it on the best 10. Definetly a highlight of the year.
[X] -
Hitman: Absolution; The bad is bad, but the good is really good. Its the best playing Hitman game yet and that alone makes it better than its predecessors in some aspects. Gets too much bad rep.
[X] -
Tribes: Ascend; Its Tribes and its great. The F2P system scared me at first but it doesnt really get in the way once you buy the starter pack wich is reasonably priced. Great game. Shazbot.
[X] -
The Darkness II; Gunplay is really fun, satisfying violence and moves. Art Style looks great at times. Story is somewhat interesting and there's good characters in there.