Don't mind me, I'm just getting around to doing that thing I've been meaning to do. Unfortunately, I'm writing this all with about a 10 month buffer between its conception and now, so I might be a little fuzzy on the details.
Disclaimer: I still haven't finished DOOM, and I'm sorry about that. I haven't even bought The Last Guardian, and I'm mostly sorry about that to myself.
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The greatest compliment I can give to a game that's set in the wilderness is that it realizes that the outdoors are beautiful and strange and inherently worthwhile. Couple that with a truly mystifying combination of narrative-adventure games and a lite Metroidvania progression, and here you have one of the most expertly crafted games I've ever seen. The craft itself isn't even the takeaway, either! Rich Sommer and Cissy Jones provide one of the most grounded and enjoyable rapports to see gaming in its entire history, all through its incredible writing and direction. As much as we all love our bad voice acting (and boy, do I), I legitimately feel so proud that a game has come along that's completely dedicated to bringing a touching depiction of people learning about each other. It's almost mundane at times, but mundane in a way that games simply don't achieve. If it sounds like I have too many things to praise about Firewatch, it because I do. It's wondrous in nearly all of its facets, and I couldn't possibly summarize my complete appreciation for it. Just go play it if you haven't, will ya?
There are two popular kinds of horror in modern games. The first centers around inducing fright and shock - if you've watched a YouTube video, you might be familiar. The second indulges in atmosphere, almost less focused on being definitively scary than it is being a space for horrific imagery to exist with its claws intact. Anatomy, however, has different priorities. Anatomy is less about the release than it is the tension. It is exclusively tension, in fact. As you navigate the completely dark and pedestrian house, gaining more insight, the game's grip on the pressure valve grows tighter. A growing distrust of the narration and the space you've been working in starts to linger in the back of your mind; the most dreadful part, perhaps, is that nothing has come of it yet, and not even an inkling of what to expect has manifested. When you finally think it's coming to a head, the game closes, and you're greeted to the bright white folder it was launched from. Then, as you try and understand what just happened, you realize all at once that you're not finished. Not even close.
When I formed this list, I was probably nearing 50 or so hours in Overwatch. 50 hours is a bit of a mental landmark for me when it comes to games; once I hit that, I'm nothing if not entirely in at that point. Multiplayer shooters, generally speaking, are not easy for me "get" into. I haven't purchased a multiplayer-focused FPS in a long time for that very reason. The pressure to perform just gets to me, and, frankly, I don't find much of a desire to get better. Well, Overwatch, if not just for a small period of time, sure did change that. Much has been said of the game's accessibility, and I definitely appreciate it, but I'd wager that the tone and glamour of the package contributed just as much to my honeymoon with the game. I mean, who wouldn't have a favorite character after playing this game on and off for a year? More importantly, why isn't your favorite character one of mine? Zenyatta? He's perfect. Roadhog? God, I love him so much.
More so than any other genre does the Cinematic Platformer seem like The Space for a game focused solely on tonality and buildup to prosper. The fluidity of its action, the usage of space in both the fore and background, and the happenings that occur by simply going right all contribute to something completely and wholly its own. So, it's no surprise pragmatically speaking that, after years of development, a more knowledgeable Playdead completely superseded their first game with Inside. What was once a grayscale and macabre journey in Limbo has now become a delicately realized dystopia, using small touches of color and even more oppressive imagery to invoke something between a dead Russian landscape and a Precisionist painting (with just a skosh of CGI children's movies thrown in). Similarly, Limbo's quiet dawdling has been completely uprooted in favor of a fluctuating pace that drives about as well as you could possibly ask for. It's an elegant, provoking, undulating piece of strange, and I love it for all of that.
I never got into any Harvest Moon, but judging by the reception given to Stardew Valley, I can't muster up that much nerd remorse. Simply put, this game was the only thing that got me through a semester of college. I got it during a break, and it essentially became the reward for me not dying from stress. Sure, any good game would be a treat after that, but I'm convinced that Stardew was actually built for this purpose. The cheery tunes, the bright sprite work, the cute townsfolk waiting to be betrothed in between your miraculously menial errands - it's all so nice. Can I just chill out in Pelican Town until, oh, I don't know, 2020?
I can confidently say I've played this game more than most people. While I can't quite explain why, I never grew tired of running the same patterns of metal album covers waiting to happen. The software-rendered aesthetic is right up my alley, and the sound design is simply amazing. Crucially amazing, even. Out of my handful of friends on Steam who've also played, I have (had?) the top time at a little over 3 minutes. I tried to beat it here and there, and rarely came close; however, seeing the stakes raise right past my skill level never stopped being exciting. It isn't a particularly complex drive, but its undeniably there.
Listen, I don't mean to brag, but I'm pretty good at rhythm games. After my introduction to the plastic guitar, I spent a lot of time building up a dexterity and reflex that eventually made hitting notes scrolling down a lane a second nature. Finishing a song with a prestigious accolade, whether that be stars or a letter grade, is less of a challenge and more of an inevitability at this point. So, why do I say this (besides the ego boost)? Because Thumper is fucking Hard. At its hardest, I'm playing at the complete apex of my focus. I can't spend a moment thinking about anything else. The pounding drums that comprise most of the soundtrack are pushing me, taunting me. And I love it.
I am sometimes reminded that we now live in a post-Witness world. I remember periodically checking up on Thekla's devblog, hoping to gain any detail that could tide me over until its release. Then, The Witness was here, I played it, and I enjoyed my time with it. And now it's been over a year and I'm much less concerned with The Witness than before I played it. There was a time, no doubt, that details and mazes and hints would float through my mind calling for me to revisit the austere island and confirm my suspicions. I tried every-so-often to reach a conclusion about "it all", but it was mostly a casual relationship. At a certain point, I finished my share of puzzles, but there was still something staring me in the face. Honestly, I'm still a budding 20-something, and the complex, often-contradictory nature of The Witness' philosophy is hard to even factually speak of. I have my thoughts and theories, but this is already too long for what it is. I'll just leave by saying that I had a pretty nice time, and I'm interested in whatever they're cooking up next.
It wouldn't be a Brett GotY list without one game being put on against my better judgement, now would it? Listen, Dark Souls III is good. It's probably the strongest entry into the series from a pure design standpoint, and is entirely effective as a mechanical "Greatest Hits". If it were your first, I imagine it'd be a tough act to follow. However, the Soulsborne formula relies on unknowns. Triumph is definitely the most pivotal element pushing you through any of these games, but discovery and curiosity don't fall far behind. What made the worlds of Lordan or Drangleic fascinating is also what eventually made Lothric a bit too comfortable, and as I would see a piece of complex architecture off in the distance, waiting to be plundered, all I could think about was how I had seen that before. Several times, in fact. Even with all that in mind, a good Souls game is better than most others. I can't deny the joy it brings me to go through the motions, even if they are just that.
A bit of a disclaimer: I didn't play that much Hitman? I wanted to, but the PC version is a tad chunky and, if I'm gonna play modern AAA games, I should probably upgrade regardless. Anywaaaay! Hitman 2016 is essentially what you wanted Hitman to be from the get-go. Even a retroactive playthrough of Hitman: Blood Money, the canonized Best Hitman, made me realize that IO only uncovered the platonic ideal of Hitman within the past two years. Sure, it has all that pesky online stuff, and as someone who didn't play during the hype, it's a pretty big bummer that I missed a lot of the things that made it special, but Run-based Immersion Sim Hitman is too good of a thing to pass up at any point. I mean, even if you don't wanna play, it makes for one hell of a watch. Giant Bomb by itself has you covered for a while on that front, and it's arguably just as entertaining.