1. The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds ; I've been waiting for this kind of Zelda game for a long, long time. It feels like a game from an alternate history where Nintendo kept more of the original Zelda's freedom of exploration and creativity in progression in mind rather than solidifying the linear dungeon->item progression that came to be a key part of the Zelda formula with Link to the Past. So while it's supposedly a sequel to A Link to the Past, it feels more like a sequel to the original game itself: Legend of Zelda, the game that really hooked me and made me feel like games were something special. In other words: Nintendo split the timeline again! Ha ha ha ho ho ho. Beyond that, the dungeons were clever and interesting while still going down smoothly, and the wall-painting mechanic does a wonderful job of changing your perspective on the classic top-down dungeon, both literally as well as mentally for solving puzzles. This game might not be quite as flexible as the original game with allowing things like a "Swordless run" but I'll be eager to try some things like it on my next playthrough. If I had one complaint it would be that Hero Mode isn't unlocked at the start, but to say that I cared during my opening playthrough would be a lie. I was too busy soaking in the smooth gameplay, the amazing 3D effects, and
amazing [URL="http://youtu.be/nvrVC9t33aM?t=2h37m19s]music[/URL].
2. New Super Luigi U ; Boils down Mario to its pure essence, which is fast, precision platforming with a lot of creativity in each level. When combined with New Super Mario U, this is the best 2D platformer you can play. I enjoyed the hell out of it. I played a few levels every day to unwind and it was something I looked forward to each time. And completing the Superstar Road levels, especially Fire Bar Sprint, are some of the highlights of gaming this year. I'm ready for 2D Mario to take a break now, but this was one hell of a way to hit the intermission.
3. Papers, Please ; One of my favorite ways to describe a game is by using the Sid Meier quote: "A game is a series of interesting choices." Papers, Please is exactly that. The story is your story, the choices all yours, all incredibly compelling. It's a game that showcases that choice is the most critical element of this medium, and that it's incredibly powerful, leaving a lasting impression. Plus, my name is in this game somewhere, so that makes it super awesome. You better let me past the checkpoint! Sure, my passport may not be exactly up to standards, but we're cool here, right? You're a cool guy. Come on, let me through.
4. Super Mario 3D World ; EAD Tokyo does it again. There are ideas in here that could sustain entire games from other companies, and EAD Tokyo churns through them, throwing new ones at you with such intensity and regularity that it's astonishing. It's like the ultimate playground, one with new things to play on every time you're done with one, and it just keeps inviting you to do more, more, more. Each mechanic and idea is introduced so effortlessly, so smoothly, that it's just a joy from start to finish. The reintroduction of different character types with their own moves adds a wonderful wrinkle into the gameplay, causing you to change your approach, and getting every last drop of gameplay out of the levels. The pure design skill of Mario games is somewhat underappreciated these days, but speaking as a designer, making a game this good, this pure, and this polished isn't easy. EAD Tokyo just makes it look that way.
5. Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney - Dual Destinies ; I love this series a great deal, and I was pretty concerned when I saw them moving to 3D models. Turns out my fears were unfounded, as they did a killer job with the transition. The characters have more life than ever, while still retaining the classic feel of the earlier games. I think more than perhaps any other game in the series, this game's cases are consistent. They're all Very Good, B+/A- affairs. It doesn't reach the heights of Trials and Tribulations, but it's a damn fine addition to the series. Athena is a great new addition to the crew, and even Apollo is more likable this time around. Blackquill is a decent addition to the prosecutor's roster as well, better than Franziska von Karma and Klavier, but not in the same stratosphere as Edgeworth and Godot. I do miss Maya and Gumshoe, but this game has more than enough fanservice for longtime fans. I hope they continue with the series. I know I'll be there for the next one if so.
6. Gone Home ; I never found this game to be scary, though I guess a lot of people did at the beginning. I just found it to be mysterious in all the right ways. As a 90s kid, the setting, music, and technology all felt like a fun nostalgia trip. Though the developers use the typical locked door format for pushing you through a pretty linear pathway, I appreciated that they didn't push the story down your throat in the same way. I missed quite a few things that I heard other people discussing afterward, but at the same time I didn't feel like I missed anything personally. There are a lot of fantastic little touches in this game that give life to the characters in a charming, affecting sort of manner that goes a long way on the developers' clearly limited budget. All in all, it's one of the best examples of the "found thoughts" form of storytelling in videogames. That said, I'm pretty tired of it... I have a problem with it because I don't communicate that way and I find it hard to find characters that do so realistic. With that in mind, the most effective parts were finding things that weren't "notes to the player" -- old letters between colleagues, stuff in filing cabinets, photos on the wall. When the game respected my intelligence, I respected the game more. Fortunately it rarely indulges in forcing the story on you in an unnatural way. The other thing I find hard to relate to? This type of storytelling generally requires HUGE environments. Whether it's Rapture or the mansion in Gone Home. We need something that will work in a more intimate setting. Maybe that's where they'll go next.
7. Animal Crossing: New Leaf ; I put hundreds of hours into this game, so I feel I'd be remiss for not including it. The mayor abilities in this game hint at exactly what I've wanted from the start, which is a bit more control with town layout and more ways to customize your town and personalize it. This game always stuns me with how much there is to see and do on any given day. Even when I go in with the intent to merely "check in" on my town for a day, I end up spending at least 30 minutes thinking, "okay, lemme just do this, of now I better do that, hm, oh yeah, I forgot I wanted to do this, guess I'll do that now..."
It strikes me this is the exact kind of series that probably wouldn't exist if Nintendo was a third-party. Sure, nowadays they'll keep making it because it's been built up to be insanely popular. But I've played this series since the first game, when it was a weird, underappreciated port of a Japanese N64 game Animal Forest, and while Nintendo has since continued to improve and build upon the series, it's the kind of risky, unique game that can only be made with the protection of having your own platforms to build for and the mandate that not every project has to be a major success right away. Lastly, I want to say this has one of the nicest, most friendly online communities I've ever seen in a game.
8. The Wonderful 101 ; In my head, Hideki Kamiya and Goichi Suda are alternate dimension versions of each other. Games that are never perfect, but that have a raw verve that is impossible to ignore. Kamiya's passion has never been more on display than in The Wonderful 101, which is hard to describe. It's like a rollercoaster that starts at the top of the tallest hill and proceeds to do its huge drops, loops and corkscrews without ever having to do the slow uphill parts that standard physics requires of a rollercoaster. Oh, and this rollercoaster randomly flies off the tracks and onto other tracks around the theme park. It's wild and fun, and rides that fine line between reckless fun and outright danger. In a word, it's exhilarating and breathless and unapologetically FUN.
9. Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons ; I've long thought about a game where each control stick controlled its own character simultaneously, and I was glad to see this experiment played out so successfully in this game. I also appreciated that this game was short, so that I could play it through in a single sitting, soaking in the gameplay and the story told through it in such an effective, tight package. As with most of my favorite games, it tells a story through gameplay that couldn't be done the same way in another medium. The beginning and ending cutscenes meant nothing to me, but the feeling of playing the game towards the end feels rather different from the beginning. It's empowering in completely different ways from the beginning to the end, and you feel the arc of the character played out in the controls themselves.
10. The Entertainment ; I haven't played anything of Kentucky Route Zero yet because it's not complete and for some reason I don't feel a pressing need to play it until the light is at the end of the tunnel. I didn't play The Walking Dead until the final episode was right around the corner for the same reason, and I think that immensely helped my appreciation of that game. I'm going to spoil the thing here so don't read on if you already plan to try it, but if you're looking for my take, here it is below:
The Entertainment is apparently a little side project that probably takes place in the same world as KRZ but merges two plays and plays them out at the same time. One play is the one you're "playing" -- a simple, silent play where you have really nothing to do but look around. Meanwhile, the other play happens right in front of you, with dialogue, music and motion. You're free to look around, but not to interfere. Your placement places you just in front of the audience, but still back from the "real" story action. In other words, you're in a world of your own, a silent observer of the story in front of you just like the audience is, but also with your own actions, feelings, and impulses. But you're confined to your chair, left to your thoughts as the story carries on without you. Sound familiar? Yes, it's the current gaming paradigm, where you're generally passive observer to the story that you're being told, all while your own story, your own performance, your own PLAY, goes on silently. This game exposes the separation between the two. And strangely enough, it is your interaction with your character's extremely limited interaction set that makes that clear. I've found myself thinking of it often, with some of my usual despair at games where your interaction is often meaningless to the narrative, which generally progresses in cutscenes without any of your input, such as in the game that will inevitably top GAF's collective list this year. But at the same time, The Entertainment, as with The Walking Dead last year, also shows how limited interactivity, when applied correctly, can achieve compelling results. Which is really games in a nutshell, isn't it?
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HONORABLE MENTIONS
x. Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag ; This is the first Assassin's Creed game that I've actually enjoyed playing. My wife loves this series to death, but I could never get into it until this one. I still don't like all the "modern-day" filler that Ubisoft tries to throw in there, but at least the rest of the game was fun. I haven't beaten the game yet, or else it might have ended up in my list, but considering I've sold my PS4 I don't see it happening anytime soon anyway. Still, count me impressed with Ubisoft polishing a series that I never though I'd have any interest in until it actually became fun.
x. Bioshock Infinite ; I love Columbia, I hate just about everything else.
x. Fire Emblem: Awakening ; This nearly made my list. I love this game, and this was my best experience with the series by far. The depth to the game is somewhat staggering, and I always find myself paralyzed by my options. My wife is a great help with this, as she understands the full depth of the mechanics and can help me make a decision based on what I want to do. It's the kind of game where if I was younger and had a lot more time than I currently do, I'd play it 50 times and try everything. Since I don't have that kind of time anymore, my wife acts as the proxy, as she's beaten the game 5 times, including her Lunatic run. Her enjoyment of the game improved mine as well.
x. The Last of Us ; Noteworthy for the presentation and the fact that it's the first Naughty Dog game this generation that I haven't thought was outright BAD months later. Unfortunately it looks like ND is going back to Uncharted, so it'll be some time before I care about what they do again. The characters and worldbuilding here are great, I just hope they do something with gameplay at some point during this next generation. The opening of The Last of Us promises so much more than what the game ends up delivering, until maybe the end. Unfortunately the player has to get through all that "in-between" stuff, the gameplay, that seems to be sitting in the back seat in the Naughty Dog car. The gameplay in The Last of Us ranges from passable to tedious, something that becomes more obvious on subsequent playthroughs. Resident Evil 4 came out many years ago and does laps around this game in every part of the gameplay department, and ultimately the gameplay shortcomings are why The Last of Us doesn't make my list. Maybe next gen we'll see ND approach gameplay with the same passion they have for presentation. I really hope so, because if they do we might play something special.
x. The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker HD ; Still the worst of the 3D Zeldas and one of the lower ranking ones in the entire series for me. And yet... still so charming, so enjoyable to take in. with this revision, Nintendo really reduced the pain points from the original, making the game much more pleasing to complete even if the overall game is still fairly lacking. It still has the slow intro, and the dungeons range from passable to bad or missing completely. But the fast sailing, the Miiverse bottles, and the improved Pictobox made everything around that so much more enjoyable. I actually completed the Nintendo Gallery in this game, something I couldn't bear to do in the GCN version (even after I sank a LOT of hours into it).
x. Pikmin 3 ; So close to getting on my list. I really do love this series, but since I wasn't able to play the multiplayer with anyone like I was with Pikmin 2, I felt a giant hole in my soul
Maybe someday.
x. Rogue Legacy ; It was fun while it lasted, but it doesn't seem to be balanced all that well. It sort of turns into a weird... farming game which I wasn't expecting, and didn't particularly enjoy.
LTTP WARNING
2012. XCOM: Enemy Unknown ; Hooooooooly shit this game is exactly what I've been looking for. I decided to play this game due to the love it got on GAF in last year's GOTY thread, and I wasn't disappointed. I never played the original, but that didn't stop me from lovin th hell out of this game. I love turn-based strategy games and sci-fi, and this fit the bill perfectly. The game gives you just enough info to leave the scary dice-rolls in the back of your mind as you make decisions that could end up disastrous at any turn. I'm a turtler by nature, but this game got me out of my shell. I loved being aggressive and tactical and taking a quick strike before the enemy knew what hit 'em. The narrative is also surprisingly compelling considering how spartan it really is overall. Truly a gem and one I returned to all year.
Now all I need is for Alpha Centauri to get a sequel, but since EA owns the IP it's never gonna happen, and if it did I would be afraid of what they'd do to it. Which leads me to...
AVOID AT ALL COSTS
Badge of Shame: Electronic Arts, for SimCity. What a travesty. As somebody who posted threads on GAF in the interim, wondering why we were going a decade without a SimCity game, I was overjoyed to hear about the new entry. What we ended up getting was a slap in the face to every SimCity fan, followed by repeated kicks to the nuts. RIP, SimCity. It wasn't supposed to be this way.