by drunkenvike
2019 was a year of massive upheaval in my personal life. Thinking back, what I find interesting about the changes that came are how each affected the way that I interact with videogames. Bear with me as I journalize the most important year of my life:
At the beginning of 2019 I was at the tail end of a limited-term employment that I adored, but commuted three hours a day to attend. Lunch breaks seemed long and poor weather could strand me near the workplace, so my trusty Nintendo Switch was never far from my side. But I knew that about halfway through the year, my employment would end and I was free to seek engagement closer to home. Then we got the news that was five years in the making.
I was going to become a father.
Suddenly new employment much closer to home became an imperative. The dark cloud of combined unemployment and parenthood weighed heavily on me, and I responded how I always do: retreating into games with every moment of my waking free time.
I am fortunate that these bouts of oppressive escapism are short-lived, but I delved into the backlog with intensive focus. Eventually, I landed a position that paid modestly but promised family-friendly hours. I suddenly found myself with more free time than I've had in fifteen years, since the day I earned a driver's permit.
Months later, my son was born. My paternity leave stranded me at home with huge stretches of time with nothing but a sleeping baby to account for. The changes in your life are numerous and foundation-shaking but when it came to gaming, they were two-fold: a game must be pause-friendly and I have to play with a controller. Most multiplayer games were suddenly off limits and my PC began to collect dust until suitable controller and living room arrangements were made.
The following are the top ten games I played this year, with no promises that they released in 2019, only that I played them for the first time in 2019. This, I feel, is the only sensible way a civilian like myself can hope to have a year-end list. Additionally, I have included three honorable mentions that were not in contention, but I felt deserved recognition.
Showing 1-10 of 13 items
HONORABLE MENTION My great gaming shame is that prior to Tetris 99, I had never played Tetris. I found myself taken, gleefully slinging blocks in the hopes of surviving. I did okay for weeks, but as a Tetris newcomer I continue to find myself more and more outgunned by others' incredible skill by the passing day. It's a great game, but not for me.
HONORABLE MENTION Apex Legends would win the award for "game I played most for one week and then never played again." Why? Despite my best efforts, I could not pry any of my gaming circle from their chosen multiplayer games, whether those be Fortnite or otherwise. I am not in a position to have time or inclination to play multiplayer games without a crew, so Apex will forever sit in the basement of my hard drive, a warm memory in my mind.
HONORABLE MENTION I only leave Bloodstained off the heart of my list because I feel I did not have enough time to properly evaluate it. I squeezed in a week or so of Bloodstained between two of my most anticipated releases of the year. I found exploration and combat to be exhilarating and I look forward to a full playthrough early next year.
NUMBER TEN A confession: I am the target audience of Pokémon Let's Go. As a youngster I lived and breathed Pokémon through the cards, the television show, and, of course, the games. As I grew into my teenage years, I became more concerned with having "mature" experiences in games and I fell off the Pocket Monsters before the third generation. Pokémon Let's Go was a warm breath of nostalgia. The most moving part of the game, for me, was the music. Hearing the beautiful and modern takes on songs that chirped out of my Gameboy twenty years ago nearly brought me to tears. I smiled at seeing the Pokémon throughout the world, including following after my avatar. Pokémon games are largely locked in stone, it seems, but the foundation has always been solid. Rock-paper-scissors turned based combat with your favorite murderpet. It has never been made to be difficult or frustrating, and that was to full effect in Let's Go. The game was too easy, the reimagined story boring, and the depth lacking, but my lasting memory of Let's Go will always be a warm smile.
NUMBER NINE In contrast, Ape Out is a spasm of violence and heart-pounding drums. I found my breath tattooing to the dynamic drum beat as I sprinted from open corridor to corridor, searching for the next target. I cackled as I seized an agent only for him to turn his compadre to mulch with a shotgun. I was enamored with the cardboard cutout-esque design. It's a simple experience, but a memorable one. There's perhaps too little variety and the performance was iffy for me at times, but there are days when I grab my Switch seeking an experience to liven me up. There are few better, with the carefully orchestrated march of death set to the ever pounding drums. It's an acidic yet lively energy and a game I return to every once and again.
NUMBER EIGHT The much-ballyhooed indie darling finally released, and I found it to be an altogether delightful experience. You become the ultimate agent of avian chaos as you steal, frighten and confuse the poor village folk on your way to your ultimate objective. The game is split into scenes with multiple objectives each, reminiscent of the recent Hitman games. Pull (or honk) the right lever and the clockwork world reacts in a particular way. Some of these objectives are confusing and the game is quite short, but the art is striking and the piano soundtrack is fitting and mellow.
NUMBER SEVEN A controversial addition to the list, but Sea of Thieves feels like the Last Hurrah of multiplayer games for me for some time. I do not know what the game was like on launch, but in January there was a handful of different things to do and see. It's a uniquely cooperative experience that lends itself to creating stories, like the time we were sunk by a kraken but I got out in a rowboat with all our loot, or the time a rival ship chased us for over an hour, finally catching us only after we'd finished dumping all the treasure out in our wake. All games are more fun with your friends, but some games are better at eliciting that sidesplitting chaos than others, and Sea of Thieves is among the best. I would not recommend to those playing along, but for me, Sea of Thieves was one of the best experiences I had all year, and I will never forget the beauty and terror of staring out at that wonderful water.
NUMBER SIX I briefly tried DOOM a few years back but I bounced off hard. Hearing all the excitement for DOOM Eternal forced me to give it another try, and I'm glad I did. The problems I had still existed, but I was able to find the joy in sprinting around ripping demon limbs from demon torsos. There's not much to say in support of DOOM beyond the fact that it is pure combat. Flying across the arena blowing away foe after foe while intense metal pounds in the background does not grow old quickly. The weapons are fun and varied, and any game with a good shotgun gets a bump from me. More surprising was the hints at worldbuilding and lore which added just the right amount of intrigue to the hellish encounters. All that said, I had major issues with level design in places as I felt the game does not signpost your goal well. It also has some of the worst forced platforming I have had the misfortune of enduring. And finally, the visual design is muddy in the worst of ways. All that aside, the pure adrenaline of DOOM makes it a remarkable game.
NUMBER FIVE My ears perked when I first heard about Slay the Spire. I have a huge weakness for roguelite games and an even bigger weakness for card games, so the concept of a roguelite deckbuilder was salivating for me. Slay the Spire is deep, difficult, and keeps surprising me with every new run I make. It's packed with difficult choices at every fork in the road, but the like best roguelites, if you can break it, they let you break it. I could not put this game down for weeks after I started. It crept into my every free thought and camped out. On my long commutes, I found myself glancing wistfully at my Switch case as I felt an near-irresistible pull to play it (not that I ever did while driving, mind you). I was hooked in the way that great roguelites do.
NUMBER FOUR I spent most of the 2010s immune to the Fromsoft Souls game craze. All I saw was a dry, nonsensical grim fantasy game with slow combat and no plot. There was no discernible draw. It wasn't until the release of 2019's Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice that I found myself drawn to the series. I played Dark Souls and enjoyed it, but Bloodborne was the game that I loved. The world is detailed and impressive. The character models are detailed and grisly. I fell in love with the aggressive, blitzing play style. I couldn't stop myself from killing each and every boss until I earned the platinum trophy. To me, each new boss encounter was a puzzle to be solved. I'd enter the arena and play passively, observing each move until I detected what seemed like a weakness. Then I'd wade in. I struggled most of all with Bloodstarved Beast, a hulking candid-like monster with a poison mechanic. It took me twelve or so tries but when I finally slaughtered him, I felt as though I'd just climbed a mountain. Each boss battle felt like a careful dance above a precipice. One step too far, one commitment too hasty, and I'd fail and have to start again. And it was exhilarating.