Much like last year, I probably barely played/bought 10 games over the course of the year, so creating a top 10 list is kind of odd in its own way. Regardless, here are my favorite games released this past year.
Showing 1-10 of 10 items
As a Halo fan its kind of impossible to not enjoy Reach on some level. Bungie took the kitchen sink approach in terms of features, providing the penultimate Halo gameplay experience while simultaneously leveraging some powerful editing/customization tools. While the games narrative is somewhat underwhelming, the campaign itself is certainly the best to date and hits the tropes of a Halo game stellar while introducing some interesting new sequences and gameplay. Halo Reach is the Halo fans Halo game, and makes 343s job that much harder in the process.
Blizzard continues in their tradition of taking as long as they damn well please to make some of the best games in the industry. While the game may not be the revolution in RTS gameplay, it is without a doubt one of the most polished fully-featured gaming experience to come out this year. Additionally the game contains a fantastically varied and deep single player experience for those who will never tread into the online space.
Why is a downloadable Pac-Man game coming in behind some of this years heavy hitters? Because its a incredibly polished revitalization of a classic that is also simply a hell of a lot of fun to play.
Mass Effect 2 is the definition of a mixed bag. The chainsaw approach that BioWare took to streamlining the game was frustrating. While the gameplay itself was certainly stronger for it, the removal of any type of inventory and weapon/armor customization hurt the 'RPGness' of the game making it feel shallow. Thankfully the colorful and varied cast of characters that you are introduced to and their stories helped the game experience tremendously.
While I do not personally have the infatuation for RDRs endgame that many people do, it is still a great, atmospheric Rockstar Game in a long line of great, atmospheric Rockstar games. It certainly was not my favorite game to actually play, but the feeling and atmosphere that the game cultivates takes it far above the rest.
Like the majority of the gaming community while on some level I wish the game was longer, I feel like it would have been worse off for it since what we have is a incredibly solid, tightly designed, and beautiful gaming experience.
This game combined with its subsequent DLC provide a good ol' (albeit easy/short) taste of DoubleFine goodness.
PC version yall.
A fairly worthy sequel to the original Golden Sun(s), even with the nearly unbearable chattiness.
I'd call this a under appreciated gem, but its a DSiWare game thus making it automatically under appreciated. While its controls leave some things to be desired it should be looked at from a enjoyable technical/artistic piece that it is. Besides this is a Q-Games joint (you know, the PixelJunk folks).