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thelastgunslinger

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I played a lot of games in 2013, these are the ones I liked best

The range of video game experiences available this year really made choosing, let alone ordering, this list a very difficult task. Despite playing so many games across so many devices there are still games that I wish I had gotten to before the end of the year. I have Year Walk sitting on my iPad, The Stanley Parable installed on my computer, Assassin's Creed IV in the disc tray of my Xbox One, and despite it being one of my favorite series, Ace Attorney 5 rests unfinished in my 3DS. Then there are games like The Last of Us that I've finished and I'm not quite sure what I think of, but that's a completely different matter. What we have here is a list of games that really stood out to me in 2013, the year of our lord, Luigi.

List items

  • I have no nostalgia for A Link to the Past. I've played it, but due to being a Genesis household instead of an SNES one, I didn't have the same childhood exposure to it that many others have. Even without that connection A Link Between Worlds easily stands as the best Zelda game since Wind Waker. The ability to take on the dungeons in any order and the clever ‘turn into a painting’ mechanic shake up what has become a very stale formula. The dungeon and puzzle design equals and often surpasses that of Skyward Sword and Nintendo had the good sense to remove all of the extraneous backtracking and item collection that ruined that game. A Link Between Worlds also makes the best use of the 3DS’ sound chip, pumping out stunning music that sounds far too good to be coming out of a handheld. This is a game meant to be played with a pair of high quality headphones and on a 3DSXL, as the 3D effects make the best argument for the system’s features since Super Mario 3D Land. A Link Between Worlds has done something I thought was almost impossible at this point; it has made me excited for Zelda again.

  • One thing that stands out about Fire Emblem: Awakening is how much this game makes you care about the troops you control. Each has a unique, deep personality that make the game’s use of perma-death even more brutal. Not that I would know, since I will freely admit I played this on the non-perma-death ‘Casual’ mode. I grew to care so much about each and every troop that I would have just reloaded old saves had any of them died. Layer the game’s relationship mechanics on top of the classic Fire Emblem strategy RPG mechanics and you have a game that is a complete time sink. I wanted to level up every relationship with every character and take on every single side mission that appeared on the map. Awakening is a high point in a great year for the 3DS.

  • Irrational had a huge challenge trying to follow up the original BioShock and with Infinite they managed to evolve the core gameplay and create another memorable setting and cast of characters. Playing on Hard for my first playthrough I was forced to mix up the use of the game’s various firearms and vigors, making each encounter part firefight and part puzzle. Columbia is a beautiful, if disturbing, place to visit with Booker and Elizabeth and the ways in which the game ties into the original Bioshock make for a fun ride. In the months since release there has been some backlash against the praise this game received at launch but count me among the defenders of BioShock Infinite.

  • I have spent far too much time getting people to simply try this game. They’re dismissive because of Dante’s new look or the fact that it’s not designed by an internal Capcom studio. It’s a complete shame because Ninja Theory has produced not just the best character-action games of the year, but one of the best ever. The new DmC’s combat is more approachable than previous entries without the removal of the complexities that make Devil May Cry so fun. The twisting, mutating levels and clever bosses are outstanding and make great use of Dante’s new abilities. This is a game that I played through 5 times in a row, earned every achievement in both the main game and DLC, and fought my way up the leaderboards. Actually, maybe I haven’t spent too much time getting people to try DmC because everyone needs to try DmC.

  • Super Mario 3D World is fun. It doesn't have a complex, emotionally charged plot. It doesn't have revolutionary gameplay mechanics. It doesn't have system-melting graphics. Super Mario 3D World does have unbelievably creative level design and undeniable charm. Nintendo’s latest effort makes me feel sorry for anyone who has written off the WiiU.

  • Remember how GTAIV had a great story and memorable characters but was kind of a slog to actually play? Rockstar took the lessons it has learned from Max Payne 3, various Midnight Club games and Red Dead Redemption to make a fun (and funny) open-world game that grabbed my attention and didn't let go for 60 hours. Rockstar is prepping new story content for 2014 and I’m more than ready to jump back into Los Santos.

  • I played Gone Home one rainy Saturday morning with a cup of coffee that got cold because I wouldn't take my hand off the mouse. I’m not going to argue if it’s a game or if it’s a narrative experience or if it’s some other thing, because those distinctions are dumb. Gone Home is a powerful story told very well, something that isn't done often in this medium.

  • I’ll admit that I was tempted to overlook Brothers at first because it was being published by 505 Games. Thankfully good word of mouth prompted me to download the game and I was treated to a unique control-scheme that sometimes made me go cross-eyed but also drove home the symbiotic relationship of the titular brothers. The game’s ending, that I won’t spoil here, is also one of the best moments of any game this year.

  • It was going to be impossible to top Saints Row: The Third but the fourth installment of this increasingly batshit-insane series took the best of the 3rd Street Saints and combined it with the superpowered glee of Crackdown. Fun missions, funny writing and call backs to the earlier entries (including a surprising number to the original, self-serious GTA-wannabe Saints Row) made this a great experience. On a personal level, since the second game I've used the character creator to make the Boss a tall, lanky, gray space alien which made the fact that the characters were shocked to be invaded even funnier.

  • Yes, it has spent a large portion of the last two months being broken but it’s a testament to the quality of Battlefield 4’s various multiplayer modes that even after my third crash-to-dashboard I was ready to dive back in just for a short hit of that sweet shooting experience. Patches have generally stabilized the game at this point and now that I can reliably get into a match no other multiplayer game has been booted up on my Xbox One. Oh, and the fact that the game happens to be one of the most technically impressive things I have ever played doesn't hurt either.
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