2017 Ranked
2017 sucked, but most of these games sure didn't.
List items
-
The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time is one of the three most important games to me. It was the first time that I played through a massive story in a game. Journeying through Hyrule with Link was important, and I'll always hold that story dearly. Breath of the Wild had me worried at first when it seemed to toss out the idea of even bothering with a narrative. While most Zelda tales have been pretty simple variations on the classic formula, I wasn't eager to abandon this approach. Clearly, I had nothing to worry about. Breath of the Wild is another massive risk. Returning to Zelda's routes, putting the emphasis on exploration of a strange land was absolutely the right risk to take. This was the first game I played on Nintendo Switch. I sunk twenty hours of gameplay in the first weekend. There have been other games that exhausted me after four or five hours, but I could not get enough of this Hyrule. To date, I've logged just about 70 total hours, still not enough to have seen every inch of this map. I'll never say no to a Zelda with a strong narrative, but Breath of the Wild proves that sometimes aimless wandering can be just as much fun as a well-told story.
-
Super Mario Odyssey lives up to the hype and gives players the same feeling I felt playing Super Mario 64 for the first time. The exploration of these different kingdoms is wonderful. The patchwork style assembled never feels out of place despite literally being able to transform into a T-Rex. From the first trailer, this looked like a massive risk, a change in the way that Sunshine was from 64. Rather than stick to safety, Nintendo relies on their ability to craft engaging sandboxes, and the result is absolutely one of the greatest Mario games out there.
-
Though I wasn't able to play through Cuphead on its initial release, its port to Nintendo Switch finally gave me time to play through one of the most gorgeous looking games I have ever seen. I am absolutely in love with this game. The commitment to the art style is so satisfying. The jazz score is bombastic. The bosses are challenging, but never quite so impossible that they're out of reach. I loved slamming my head against those big baddies because every time I did I could feel myself getting better, moving a little farther down that progress bar, closer to victory. I can only hope we'll see more of Cuphead in the coming years.
-
Massively cinematic, Horizon Zero Dawn is a technological achievement. Those massive dinosaur robots are so impressive to watch as the navigate these wild landscapes. I found Aloy to be a wonderfully written character, one that I empathized with deeply over the course of the story. While the narrative doesn't wrap up quite as neatly as I hoped, I loved the exposition that unspooled itself about how this world became what it is now. I hope that future installments in this franchise continue to build on the excellent world that's been established and continue to put character-building high on their list of priorities. This game also gets my vote for best bow in a video game.
-
NieR: Automata is ambitious as hell. The narrative here is absolutely not to be missed. Even as someone who finds the "Are robots people?" rhetorical question sort of tired, I was totally riveted by the striking representation of humanity on display here. The Platinum polish is definitely on display here, though I did find the combat to be a bit exhausting after a while. The Bayonetta meets bullet-hell gameplay is totally unique, at least to me, at first. By the mid-point of my third "playthrough," I was pressing on in spite of the combat system to see the narrative through. But that's also a ringing endorsement for one of the wildest stories I've experienced in games. There's so much to dissect and discuss, even before the first route wraps up. I'm very excited to see what Yoko Taro cooks up next.
-
Nioh doesn't have the world-building or the characters that Dark Souls brings to the table, but what it does have is action combat that is multifaceted and supremely satisfying. The variety of builds available for your character is astounding. Even though I found myself pretty satisfied with a standard katana right out of the gate, I kept adding new weapons and approaches into my playstyle because they all just felt so good. To me, the game never quite got as challenging as the Dark Souls games. The mission map approach I like less because it requires you to renavigate the same areas time and again. The combat was addictive in a way that no Souls game has been for me. Occasionally punishing, but mostly enjoyable.
-
A game that succeeds because of its absolutely insane cutscenes. Though I didn't play through the first game, I was persuaded to jump on board for the second, and man, am I glad I did. BJ's story is pulpy and powerful and felt so extremely cathartic to play through. In a world where literal Nazis continue to exist, blowing their brains out has never felt so satisfying. The story is completely bonkers, and I love it. I have no idea how they'll wrap up this trilogy (actually, I think most of us have a better good idea of how it'll all work out), and I can't wait to see what game three has in store.
-
With the advent of Gone Home, singular narrative-driven experiences that can be completed in a single sitting have become even more popular. What Remains of Edith Finch adds its own spin to the burgeoning genre by giving small games to play as the character navigates an abandoned house. The player gets all the fun of rooting through someone's abandoned room. The sequence involving the fishery is undoubtedly one of the most affecting moments in 2017. The intersection of narrative and gameplay worked perfectly for me. Though some may balk at the game's short length, getting to know the Finch family is unforgettable and should not be missed.
-
HQ Trivia was, for a time, the coolest app in the world. The idea of tuning into a daily game show that I was an active player in was right up my alley. The fact that potential winnings could eventually turn into literal dollars and cents kept me tuning in at 3:00 PM and 9:00 PM for several months. I found the OG Quiz Daddy Scott Rogowsky to be a fantastic fit for the app despite its clear struggle to keep on top of an expanding user-base that seemed to get exponentially larger every week. Though I've only ever won ten dollars through the games, that first win was a moment I'll never forget. My heart was racing as fast as when I'd put the final hits on a Dark Souls boss. I'm not sure HQ will be around forever, but it was absolutely instrumental in setting up the future of interactivity and live-streaming.
-
Speaking of great gunplay, Splatoon is back! I probably played more Splatoon on Wii U than any other game for that console. I absolutely loved it. Splatoon 2 adds in all of the great multiplayer madness of the first game plus some new weapons, maps, and fashion to go along with it. The addition of Salmon Run, a highly addictive horde mode, is also a fantastic choice. Interestingly, I didn't finish the campaign in the first game, and I still didn't in the sequel. The multiplayer is just too much fun to me. Love the colors, love the style, love that Nintendo can still create a classic franchise in the modern era.
-
-
Destiny 2 was crazy fun for about two weeks, and then I never touched it again. Bungie once again demonstrates their absolute mastery to create satisfying gunplay, and while not all of the vistas worked for me visually, there were some locations that are massively impressive to look at. The story is, to me, completely nonsensical. It's all about those sweet powers and those satisfying guns.
-
Dream Daddy is also much more than it first appears. I have no fondness for this genre, but I did find the writing to be captivating. It's so interesting that a game can pull all of the sexual politics of dating away to allow the player to focus solely on compatibility. Again, everybody should give this game a shot.
-
I spent a cold winter's night with Doki Doki Literature Club, and although I don't love the game as much as others who've finished it, I can't deny it was an experience I will never forget. You have to go into this game knowing that things are not what they appear. That at some point, the style will change. There's just too much other tedious activity to justify spending the time with it otherwise. The way in which this game opens up after an event happens is equal parts hypnotizing and horrifying. Even if visual novel games aren't your thing, give this one a shot.
-
Gorogoa feels handcrafted like a beautiful papercraft or a piece of origami. The artistry on display is gorgeous. When the puzzle-solving comes together, it is remarkable. I was just way too stupid for this game and ended up looking up a number of solutions. Maybe others found this to be easier to navigate. I did not.
-
After Splatoon's phenomenal debut, I was willing to give whatever Nintendo's next big IP was a fair shot. With a brand new Switch to my name and an open mind, I picked up Arms, ready to learn its systems and characters like any other fighting game. While there's certainly a personality to this game, I left with the feeling that the personality wasn't one I wanted to spend much more time with. Some of the character designs are interesting, but none are as instantly likable. The combat is also only moderately entertaining.
But let's give it up for that opening theme. What a fanfare.
-
For an hour or two, I thought Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp was going to be the next great mobile phone game. The Animal Crossing polish was there, my favorite animals were hanging around my campsite, and it seemed like a fairly faithful recreation of the daily grind of the main series. This feeling quickly faded. I'll be honest, I wouldn't be opposed to some of these design ideas making it into the next Animal Crossing. I think increasing friendship via a visible meter is useful and adds some more reason to interact with the various critters. On the whole, this does feel like another cash-grab.
Load Comments