by wumbo3000
Arranged in the order I beat them. At the end of the year, I will rank them from best to worst.
Showing 1-10 of 26 items
4/7/2016 5/5 - This game isn't perfect. But no game in recent memory has evoked such visceral reactions out of me. I don't remember the last time a game has made me physically gasp out loud as much as Life is Strange. The emotional roller coaster this game put me through shook me to my core, and I haven't thought about a game this much after finishing it in a long time. Life is Strange is sweet, gut-wrenching, beautiful, artistic, and I'm so happy this medium has evolved in such a way that made this game exist.
6/9/2016 5/5 - When I think of the things that make this game special, they're all on a macro scale. World building, characters, writing, player choice—Witcher 3 excels at these aspects like no other game in the market today. But when I start to analyze the micro—repetitive mission structure, relatively simple combat, awkward upgrade system—you understand why a game of this scope and scale has to make certain sacrifices. Thankfully, the Witcher 3 accomplishes such great feats on the macro level that its glaring annoyances become wayward thoughts in the background. It's really a testament to how much I enjoy this universe when after beating the main story after about 80 hours, I was already itching to jump into the DLC while the credits were rolling. Hearts of Stone - 12/25/2016 5/5 - Only one thing needs to be mentioned: the Shani/Vlodimir wedding quest. That quest alone makes this expansion pack truly unforgettable. Blood and Wine - 3/18/2018 5/5 - Not only was Touissant an incredibly gorgeous location, but the main story quests in Blood and Wine were some of the best quests in the entire game. After putting more than 120 hours into the Witcher III and its expansion packs, I think I can finally say I'm done with my time with this amazing game.
11/25/2016 5/5 - Both Doom and Titanfall 2's campaigns are some of my favorite FPS single-player experiences, ever. Titanfall 2 just does a great job at making you feel like you're the star in a bad-ass action movie. The multiplayer also did exactly what it needed to do to improve from Titanfall 1: add more stuff. And I need to make special note of the Effect and Cause level in the campaign. If you've finished the single player, you'll know why it deserves a special mention here. So rarely has a single part of a game have me grinning from ear to ear during its entirety. Just the way the game has an idea and executes on it so sublimely blew me away. The smoothness at which it happens, the way that mechanic is utilized to create some breathtaking moments... The combination of all of these elements coalesced into one of the most memorable levels in a game in years.
12/18/2016 5/5 - Similar to Bioshock Infinite, I felt compelled to read and devour as many discussions about Firewatch as soon as I beat it. While I was perusing through a variety of forums, I came across some very valid complaints: the story doesn't satisfactorily tie up the loose ends all that well, if you're going to tell a story about two regular people, you don't have to place all these red herrings about conspiracy theories and missing girls to try to "spice" up the narrative, etc. And while I agree with all these grievances, for some reason, they didn't bother me that much. The voice acting, the writing, and the overarching visual style are all just so fucking good that's it's easy for me to forgive some of the stumbling blocks the story might have tripped over. Similar to Gone Home, the story itself may not be perfect or revolutionary, but it's a real-world kind of mature narrative so rarely told in video games that I'm willing to overlook some miscues along the way. Also, I must note that this game scared me more than any other game this year, including Until Dawn. That goddamn raccoon and getting punched in the face literally had me jumping out of my seat. As colorful as the game is, there's something hauntingly real and stark about the forest. The game does such a fantastic job of making you feel truly alone and cordoned off from any kind of society, with a walkie-talkie being your only means of communication to the rest of the world, so when something out of the ordinary did happen, it really took me by surprise.
12/10/2016 5/5 - While Doom didn't really wow me right off the bat, I began to warm up to this game as the arsenal of weapons got bigger and the enemy encounters became more frantic. The ebb and flow of combat when there's a multitude of enemy types being thrown at you is a combination of pure frenzy, spectacle, and unadulterated violence. The game also became exponentially more fun as you had more weapons at your disposal. This must be mentioned as well: similar to Titanfall 2, the constant lock of a buttery-smooth 60 frames per second goes a long way in a game so fast-paced and hectic.
5/18/2016 5/5 - I'll be honest: my favorite parts of the Uncharted games is when I'm not holding the controller. That seems like damning thing to say, but Naughty Dog does cinematics in games so much better than a majority of developers out there that it doesn't even matter. However, having the option to complete a combat encounter through stealth made the gameplay far more interesting. And of course, the set piece moments are exhilarating, as per usual with the Uncharted series. But what made Uncharted 4 really special is its much more personal story. I played all three Uncharted games, but I couldn't tell you what happened in those games in regards to the actual story beats. Uncharted 4 manages to bring story, characters, and set pieces in a way that no Uncharted has done before it.
6/28/2016 5/5 - It's awesome how a relatively simple rhythm game that involves tapping usually no more than 2 buttons is so full of charm, personality, and downright weirdness. This game makes the simple act of pressing A so much fun. Seriously, all this game is pressing buttons to a beat, but all the ways the game wraps that mechanic in such a silly manner are what make this game special. The minigames also get pretty savage near the end, with the game throwing all kinds of syncopated beats to keep players on their toes. With the beginning of the game being pretty easy, this serious uptick in challenge was both surprising and welcoming. ...Wubba dubba dubba dat's true? Yeh.
2/28/2016 5/5 - I cannot understate how much I love this game. The creative-as-hell weapons, the fluid traversal, and the bright colorful world did a lot for me. While its referential and fourth-wall-breaking humor doesn't always hit the mark, I appreciated how the game did not take itself too seriously and kept the entire experience light-hearted and tongue-in-cheek. But some minor annoyances definitely irked me, like the repetitive side missions and the vague circle indicator which wouldn't directly point out what you're looking for, making you bumble around an area fruitlessly searching for a tiny knickknack hidden away in some random corner. If I gave out 4.5/5 scores, Sunset Overdrive fits that bill perfectly. A fantastic, original game that does what it sets out to do really well, bogged down by a handful of frustrations. But don't give out 4.5/5s, so I will round up because of LARPers.
8/7/2016 4/5 - I'll admit it: after solving about 3 or 4 lasers on my own, I used a walkthrough through most of the game. That actually made the rest of the game more enjoyable, as looking at hints and guides made me excited to look for the next puzzle. When I played this game with my initial rule of "no hints or guides," I would often feel a sense of dread going to the next puzzle, knowing that I probably wouldn't solve the next conundrum Jonathan Blow threw at me. While I thought some puzzles were obscure and obtuse to the point of making them impenetrable, most of the puzzles were so well thought out, so meticulously crafted, that I marveled that a human being was actually able to create and design them. But the most tantalizing thing for me about the Witness was the island itself. Utterly beautiful and bursting with secrets, the island is just as integral to the game as the puzzles. At some point, the puzzles are what they are, but the way the Witness wraps those challenges in such a uniquely gorgeous and intricate setting is what made the Witness memorable to me.
4/5 - What a beautifully crafted game. And I don't even mean that from a pure visual perspective (although the game looks fantastic). I'm referring to how all of the characters are so well thought out and varied, how all the maps have been smartly designed, and how the UI does an outstanding job of making the player feel like they had a positive impact on the game, even if they did get repeatedly mowed down by that goddamn Bastion camping in that one corner of Hanamura. And of course, the entire package is smothered in that patented Blizzard Polish™ that you've all come to know and love. Although I fell off relatively quickly compared to some of the Overwatch fiends that are out there, every time I do go back to play a round or two, I'm reminded of just what an exceptional game Overwatch is.
