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While the single player campaign felt far less grounded than the first one, it made up for that somewhat with general awe. The real meat here is in the multiplayer, which has so many customization options it starts feeling like an RPG, yet it is far more balanced than the last game.
It took me a little over 40 hours to complete my first playthrough, and there were so many dialogue options that seemed perfectly natural yet totally dependent on choices I made that I just KNEW things would be very different playing through again. And they were. One of the best-written games I've played in a while.
This was one of the few games where the core mechanics, especially the fighting, were more of a draw for me than the story. Not that there was anything wrong with the story. If there was a bit more to the game it would be my game of the year. Definitely surprise of the year.
I never played Metroid, and my experience with Castlevania was a single playthrough of Symphony of the Night. If Shadow Complex is what Metroidvania is, then sign me up. I am hardly a completionist, yet the game was so fun I found the challenge of getting every question mark extremely rewarding.
Car simulation, made fun.
While the single player was pretty predictably bare bones, the fantastic fight system in UFC 2009 shines in the multiplayer. Considering that this game is a new franchise and was saddled with issues at launch, it still managed to be extremely fun.
As someone who was not a fan of Battlefield: Bad Company, I was tentative about jumping in to another game in the BF franchise. Luckily, the move to simplify Battlefield to its core made this game a lean, mean package that delivered.
The story wasn't great, but who cares. If you're hurting for that Diablo-style gameplay but don't have a PC that can run Torchlight, this will scratch that itch in a way many have clamored for and few have succeeded in. Looking at you, Too Human.
When looking at what the Tony Hawk series has become (if you can stand to watch), one must remember the franchise that killed it. Taking a skating mechanic that has a smooth, natural feel from Skate 1, slightly expanding it and polishing out the quirks made Skate 2 a great game. You can tell a good skateboarding game when you are perfectly fine just skating around, improvising lines.
Sure the core of this game came out a long time ago, but this was my introduction. I never thought I'd be into a game that's essentially luck, but this is the gaming equivalent of a restaurant that serves food like Mom used to make. Not quite like the old stuff you remember, but it has just enough flavor from your youth to make you come back for more. By the way, Mom was never that great at cooking, you were just a kid and didn't know any better.