by zackington
2020 was a challenging year for us all. At the end of 2019, I had been let go from my job and was entering 2020 working retail while trying to find a new job. Then a global pandemic started and made not only job hunting nearly impossible, but my retail job became an essential worker, and I had to keep going to work in person, while my partner was able to work from home. I tried to be as safe as possible, but I was always worried I would get them infected. Finally, in September I got a great job and got me out of the Covid infested retail environment and into a safe work from home situation. Things were finally coming up Zack.
Besides the love and support from my partner, family, and friends, the main thing helping me through this year were video games. I didn’t play as many new games as I normally do, but spent more extended time on fewer games. This time spent with these games really helped me relax and feel like myself through a year that was hard on so many people. So here are the 6 games that had the biggest impact on me in 2020.
6. Animal Crossing: New Horizons – When I started planning to do this list, I was only going to do 5 games, but when I sat down and went over my list, I noticed Animal Crossing wasn’t there. So instead of doing a Top 5 and an Honorable Mention, I just made it 6 games. Its my list I can do what I want. Yes, the other games on this list resonated with me more, but ACNH had such a major impact on 2020 for me. I haven’t played it since September, missing so many end of the year holiday events, but I have so many fond memories of my island. For my partner and I’s anniversary, I got us both a copy of the game for our Switches, and everyday for months, we would sit side by side on the couch watching tv and working on our islands. We even chose to be in different hemispheres so we could get different bugs and fish quickly to complete our museums faster (which I don’t think either of us ever did). We would make each other jealous when we would find a villager the other wanted and then bring them to our islands. We would have island parties with our friends where we goofed off and raided each others stores. And according to Nintendo’s Year in Review, ACNH was my most played game on my Switch in 2020. I honestly may never go back to my island, but the time I spent there was very special. I hope my island girlfriends Bella and Audie are ok without me.
5. Spiritfarer – This game took me completely by surprise. Watching the trailer on one of Nintendo’s Indie Directs, I was immediately captivated by what I saw. This game looked just charming and calming. And it was, but it also delivered one of the biggest emotional gut punches I have received since I finished The Last Guardian. The first time you take a passenger on your boat to the Everdoor, it is a very sad, but positive experience. Helping these souls find completion in their life and experience the calm talked about in the series finale of The Good Place, made me incredible emotional, but I knew this was their time. And all this time while growing close to the spirits on your ship, you are playing a management sim. Watering crops, cooking food, sawing logs, making sure everyone is fed and needs are met. The last few hours did get a little too long trying to find what I needed to finish the final few quests before completing the game. Some of the quests can be a little difficult to find what you need and where to go. I have no shame in admitting I had to look up where to find certain items for quests. But the final moments of that game are so powerful and moving. This game is not for everyone, but I do think if you give it a chance, you will fall in love with this game and the journey it takes you through the other side.
4. Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity – Not only did I not see this game coming at all, I didn’t expect to love it this much. I did love the original Hyrule Warriors, clocking in over 100 hours on the WiiU, but AoC is just a blast. Every character feels unique, and though I don’t love to play all the characters, I do love that no two characters are the same. Even the 3 main characters who had counterparts in the original Hyrule Warriors (Link, Zelda, and Impa) all play and feel different. The story is focused and really gave me a stronger sense of who these champions were since so much of our time with them in Breath of the Wild was through flashbacks and quick Force Ghost hangs. I know some people out there are not a fan of the direction this game went at around the midway point, but I loved it. I thought it was a clever way to tell this story. And in all honesty, if the game had gone the way we all thought it was going to go from the original reveal, the game would have just been one long bummer, and I didn’t really need any more of that energy in 2020. I’m not generally someone would is a stickler for frame rate hitches, but AoC can start to drag in intense situations. The Divine Beast levels when dozens of Lynels are bombarding you with shock arrows can really cause the game to get a hitch in its giddy-up. Some of the story missions where there are so many enemies plus multiple Guardians and maybe a Lynel or two all attacking at once can drop it down as well. But I can forgive it because the feeling of wiping out hundreds of enemies and using the champions to kick some ass was a blast.
3. The Last of Us Part II – This game had me captivated from beginning to end. I HAD to know what was next. Just one more mission. Just one more cut scene. I was just so entranced by this unrelenting story of revenge and how it can affect us. Like so many of us, I never expected this game to be as long as it was, and the moment I thought we were at the end, but it was just the halfway point, blew me away. When this game was announced, I understood why it was being made, but I thought it was unnecessary, which is also how I felt about Uncharted 4 when it was announced. To me the story was done. Yes, there was room to tell another story, but would this really add anything, or is it just a money grab? In both instances, I was wrong. Uncharted 4 is my favorite in that series and a beautiful ending to the Nathan Drake saga, and The Last of Us Part II is definitely not an ending the way Uncharted 4 is, but it is definitely a story worthy of its predecessor and a story needing to be told. So many movies, books, and games focus on getting revenge for a wrong committed against the main character, but we rarely ever see how that person continues on after the revenge has been obtained. Abby’s story shows how empty she is after she has gotten her revenge, and how what she did has negatively affected her life. Her friends are worried about her, and the one person she loves the most is planning on leaving her. As I played the final moments of the game, I just sat there pained and what I was having to do. I just wanted everyone to go home and stop this unnecessary violence. I know there was so much hate directed at this game (some deserved, others not so much) but to make this game with this story is such a ballsy choice, and I am so glad to have experienced it. I don’t know what Naughty Dog is planning to do next, but I will be there day 1 to play it. (Assuming I can find a PS5 by then)
2. Persona 5 Royal – It surprises me that this game is where it is on my list because A) the original Persona 5 was both my favorite game of 2017 and last decade, and B) P5R is a better game than its predecessor. But we’ll get to the game that beat it for the top spot later. P5R kicks so much ass. It took a game I absolutely loved, made some tweaks to the gameplay to improve the user experience (crafting multiple lockpicks at once, letting you know when you find a better weapon and equipping it right away, palace navigation, etc), and added two new characters, and an expanded third semester story that felt like a perfect continuation of the ending of the original game. Having only played Persona 4 Golden and not original Persona 4, I do feel like the added palace and story of Golden was a weak and took away from a very strong ending of the original. But this new P5 palace and boss was implemented so well, and dealt with some powerful thoughts on making the world a better place and forging your own path. Being stuck at home gave me so much extra time to play this game, and I savored it as I took my time playing through the game in April and May. Its always quite an ordeal to choose to replay a game of this length, especially when its now even longer than it previously was, but putting in 100+ hours and getting that platinum was so worth it. (And yes, getting the platinum in Royal is significantly easier than P5 and P4 Golden)
1. Hades – This game is perfect. It rules. There is honestly nothing I can say about this game that hasn’t been said by so many games journalist, streamers, Youtubers, and the millions of people who have been playing it. It is an insane achievement. The gameplay is so tight and the loop is so rewarding that its always pushing you to do “just one more run”. And on top of that, the story is so engaging. All the characters are fully developed and interesting AND fully voice acted. This game didn’t need to be voice acted. But they did it. And the game shines even more because of it. Art design, game design, character design, music, boss fights, EVERYTHING. They all are perfect. My only complaint is that they won’t let me fully romance my girl Dusa. Dusa is best girl. I love her and she deserves only the best. Supergiant has made 4 games, all of which are great and unique, but Hades is their masterpiece. It’s this beautiful culmination of their whole body of work. I have no idea where Supergiant goes from here, but all eyes will be on what their next project is due to just how much Hades has taken the gaming world by storm. But for now, I’m going to do another run and see if I can get Meg to kiss me.
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This game is perfect. It rules. There is honestly nothing I can say about this game that hasn’t been said by so many games journalist, streamers, Youtubers, and the millions of people who have been playing it. It is an insane achievement. The gameplay is so tight and the loop is so rewarding that its always pushing you to do “just one more run”. And on top of that, the story is so engaging. All the characters are fully developed and interesting AND fully voice acted. This game didn’t need to be voice acted. But they did it. And the game shines even more because of it. Art design, game design, character design, music, boss fights, EVERYTHING. They all are perfect. My only complaint is that they won’t let me fully romance my girl Dusa. Dusa is best girl. I love her and she deserves only the best. Supergiant has made 4 games, all of which are great and unique, but Hades is their masterpiece. It’s this beautiful culmination of their whole body of work. I have no idea where Supergiant goes from here, but all eyes will be on what their next project is due to just how much Hades has taken the gaming world by storm. But for now, I’m going to do another run and see if I can get Meg to kiss me.
It surprises me that this game is where it is on my list because A) the original Persona 5 was both my favorite game of 2017 and last decade, and B) P5R is a better game than its predecessor. But we’ll get to the game that beat it for the top spot later. P5R kicks so much ass. It took a game I absolutely loved, made some tweaks to the gameplay to improve the user experience (crafting multiple lockpicks at once, letting you know when you find a better weapon and equipping it right away, palace navigation, etc), and added two new characters, and an expanded third semester story that felt like a perfect continuation of the ending of the original game. Having only played Persona 4 Golden and not original Persona 4, I do feel like the added palace and story of Golden was a weak and took away from a very strong ending of the original. But this new P5 palace and boss was implemented so well, and dealt with some powerful thoughts on making the world a better place and forging your own path. Being stuck at home gave me so much extra time to play this game, and I savored it as I took my time playing through the game in April and May. Its always quite an ordeal to choose to replay a game of this length, especially when its now even longer than it previously was, but putting in 100+ hours and getting that platinum was so worth it. (And yes, getting the platinum in Royal is significantly easier than P5 and P4 Golden)
This game had me captivated from beginning to end. I HAD to know what was next. Just one more mission. Just one more cut scene. I was just so entranced by this unrelenting story of revenge and how it can affect us. Like so many of us, I never expected this game to be as long as it was, and the moment I thought we were at the end, but it was just the halfway point, blew me away. When this game was announced, I understood why it was being made, but I thought it was unnecessary, which is also how I felt about Uncharted 4 when it was announced. To me the story was done. Yes, there was room to tell another story, but would this really add anything, or is it just a money grab? In both instances, I was wrong. Uncharted 4 is my favorite in that series and a beautiful ending to the Nathan Drake saga, and The Last of Us Part II is definitely not an ending the way Uncharted 4 is, but it is definitely a story worthy of its predecessor and a story needing to be told. So many movies, books, and games focus on getting revenge for a wrong committed against the main character, but we rarely ever see how that person continues on after the revenge has been obtained. Abby’s story shows how empty she is after she has gotten her revenge, and how what she did has negatively affected her life. Her friends are worried about her, and the one person she loves the most is planning on leaving her. As I played the final moments of the game, I just sat there pained and what I was having to do. I just wanted everyone to go home and stop this unnecessary violence. I know there was so much hate directed at this game (some deserved, others not so much) but to make this game with this story is such a ballsy choice, and I am so glad to have experienced it. I don’t know what Naughty Dog is planning to do next, but I will be there day 1 to play it. (Assuming I can find a PS5 by then)
Not only did I not see this game coming at all, I didn’t expect to love it this much. I did love the original Hyrule Warriors, clocking in over 100 hours on the WiiU, but AoC is just a blast. Every character feels unique, and though I don’t love to play all the characters, I do love that no two characters are the same. Even the 3 main characters who had counterparts in the original Hyrule Warriors (Link, Zelda, and Impa) all play and feel different. The story is focused and really gave me a stronger sense of who these champions were since so much of our time with them in Breath of the Wild was through flashbacks and quick Force Ghost hangs. I know some people out there are not a fan of the direction this game went at around the midway point, but I loved it. I thought it was a clever way to tell this story. And in all honesty, if the game had gone the way we all thought it was going to go from the original reveal, the game would have just been one long bummer, and I didn’t really need any more of that energy in 2020. I’m not generally someone would is a stickler for frame rate hitches, but AoC can start to drag in intense situations. The Divine Beast levels when dozens of Lynels are bombarding you with shock arrows can really cause the game to get a hitch in its giddy-up. Some of the story missions where there are so many enemies plus multiple Guardians and maybe a Lynel or two all attacking at once can drop it down as well. But I can forgive it because the feeling of wiping out hundreds of enemies and using the champions to kick some ass was a blast.
This game took me completely by surprise. Watching the trailer on one of Nintendo’s Indie Directs, I was immediately captivated by what I saw. This game looked just charming and calming. And it was, but it also delivered one of the biggest emotional gut punches I have received since I finished The Last Guardian. The first time you take a passenger on your boat to the Everdoor, it is a very sad, but positive experience. Helping these souls find completion in their life and experience the calm talked about in the series finale of The Good Place, made me incredible emotional, but I knew this was their time. And all this time while growing close to the spirits on your ship, you are playing a management sim. Watering crops, cooking food, sawing logs, making sure everyone is fed and needs are met. The last few hours did get a little too long trying to find what I needed to finish the final few quests before completing the game. Some of the quests can be a little difficult to find what you need and where to go. I have no shame in admitting I had to look up where to find certain items for quests. But the final moments of that game are so powerful and moving. This game is not for everyone, but I do think if you give it a chance, you will fall in love with this game and the journey it takes you through the other side.
When I started planning to do this list, I was only going to do 5 games, but when I sat down and went over my list, I noticed Animal Crossing wasn’t there. So instead of doing a Top 5 and an Honorable Mention, I just made it 6 games. Its my list I can do what I want. Yes, the other games on this list resonated with me more, but ACNH had such a major impact on 2020 for me. I haven’t played it since September, missing so many end of the year holiday events, but I have so many fond memories of my island. For my partner and I’s anniversary, I got us both a copy of the game for our Switches, and everyday for months, we would sit side by side on the couch watching tv and working on our islands. We even chose to be in different hemispheres so we could get different bugs and fish quickly to complete our museums faster (which I don’t think either of us ever did). We would make each other jealous when we would find a villager the other wanted and then bring them to our islands. We would have island parties with our friends where we goofed off and raided each others stores. And according to Nintendo’s Year in Review, ACNH was my most played game on my Switch in 2020. I honestly may never go back to my island, but the time I spent there was very special. I hope my island girlfriends Bella and Audie are ok without me.