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Best of 2014 that didn't actually come out in 2014

by arbitrarywater

Showing 1-10 of 10 items

Etrian Odyssey IV: Legends of the Titan

1. Etrian Odyssey IV: Legends of the Titan

If Etrian Odyssey III was the game that finally got me into the series, EO IV is the one that I can actually recommend to others. It's a classical dungeon crawler of superior construction, with a lot of ways to build a viable team and some surprisingly decent writing.

Valkyria Chronicles

2. Valkyria Chronicles

I might take issue with Valkyria Chronicles' occasionally discordant tone, but it's a turn-based strategy game that is a step or two away from being one of the all-time greats.

Ace Attorney Investigations 2: Prosecutor's Gambit

3. Ace Attorney Investigations 2: Prosecutor's Gambit

I've played every single Ace Attorney game, and this might legitimately be one of my favorites. Certainly helps that it has a professional quality fan translation underlying what is likely some solid writing.

Crash Bandicoot 2: Cortex Strikes Back

4. Crash Bandicoot 2: Cortex Strikes Back

Crash 2 is a platformer that comes from an era when it was okay to be just a platformer. I can appreciate that sort of purity and Crash 2 still holds up extremely well because of it.

Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance

5. Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance

The Peanut Butter/Chocolate cross between Platinum and Kojima has many of the strengths of both companies without as many of their excesses. It's short and the combat is perhaps less deep than it appears, but it's a fun crazy ride while it lasts.

Crash Team Racing

6. Crash Team Racing

No joke, might be the best Kart Racer of that era. Sonic and Sega All Stars Transformed is secret best Kart Racer of all time though.

Demon's Souls

7. Demon's Souls

Weirdly enough, I wasn't super keen on Demon's Souls. Not sure if Dark Souls 2 gave me my fill of sadism or I've just played a better version of this game elsewhere.

Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow

8. Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow

"It's Castlevania yo". Just put that on the back of the box. It's a spacewhipper that does the spacewhipping thing well with few surprises but also few caveats.

Tales of Maj'Eyal

9. Tales of Maj'Eyal

A surprisingly accessible Roguelike that stole my attention for like a week straight before I remembered that I'm not patient enough to be good at these sorts of games.

Final Fantasy XIII

10. Final Fantasy XIII

Huh. Well, maybe. I liked it more than I disliked it, and somehow there aren't very many other old games I'd put on this list. What the hell, why not?