by dukestinks
My favorite games of 2006, in order. Once again, this is simply a list of the ten games I enjoyed the most, not the ten best games. The two games I haven't finished yet that could well be on this list are Shadow Complex and Demon's Souls. Other than that, I'm pretty much caught up.
Showing 1-10 of 10 items
I really, REALLY enjoyed the first Assassin's Creed even though it was obvious that it needed some more time in the oven. Assassin's Creed II had PLENTY of time in the oven and perfectly filled in all the gaps that held its predecessor back. Unfortunately, they didn't make any great improvements to the actual gameplay (which is fine, since it was really, really good), but they improved what needed to be improved and left what was working alone. You can't argue with that. Anyway, I remain a devoted fan of this franchise because of it's unique gameplay that harkens back to the great Prince of Persia trilogy and it's engaging story. Can't wait to see what they do next.
As one of the biggest Monkey Island fans on the planet, I can't help but feel that these games were made specifically for me. They were fabulous. Each episode contained a heaping portion of the great puzzles the series was built on, great humor, and fan service. I didn't care for the episodic format, though, which is the only thing that kept it from being my favorite game of the year.
It's absolutely astounding how much better it is than the original. The first Uncharted is pretty much a big, pretty pile of crap. It looks like a great game, it talks like a great game, it smells like a great game, and it is in fact crap. I don't know how to say it any more simply than this - Uncharted 2 is all of those things except it is in fact a great game. I don't know how they did it... it's like another company made the game instead of Naughty Dog or something. It's not just a great game, in fact... I think it's the best game of the year.
This game was a blip on my radar that I didn't really pay attention to until it was released to universal acclaim. I didn't have much interest until I bought it - and was hooked immediately. It's just a great open world action game. Simple as that. There aren't that many games where you can say that simply playing the engine is a blast. I think that this year, for me, Infamous and Assassin's Creed II are the only games where that's the case. Batman and Modern Warfare 2 come close. Uncharted 2 is fabulously scripted but it's not that kind of game.
I know it's been said a million times, but really, who expected this game to be good? Who? Pretty much every licensed comic book game is garbage. Nobody had ever heard of Rocksteady and Eidos hadn't published a good game since about 2001. Much like Infamous, it wasn't really on my radar until it was released, and I bought it purely because of the reviews. It does not disappoint. While I found the combat freeflow challenges to be preposterously frustrating, it's not a mandatory part of the game and really, I only have myself to blame for playing them in the first place.
Modern Warfare 2 was who we thought it was.
It's a pure testament to Resident Evil 4's greatness that this game pretty much does nothing but update the graphics and throw in a co-op element and still fares extremely well. The pure gameplay is essentially unchanged after FOUR years, which is incredible. To be sure, the co-op element is a major part of the game and is executed well. But I still can't get over how little is actually different. A greatly improved story also helps distinguish RE5 from it's predecessor, but really, when it comes to Resident Evil, who cares?
What applies to Uncharted 2 applies to Spirit Tracks - it looks, smells, and feels very similar to its predecessor, but is somehow much better. Granted - the difference between Spirit Tracks and Phantom Hourglass is about one tenth of the gap between the Uncharteds... but the same principle applies. Its formula is almost exactly the same except they have somehow injected life into it. I can't figure out why, but it's just a lot more fun to play and is simply a better game all around.
Aside from a few moments where the game feels laughably cheap (an Alpha Dream trademark, at this point), this is really one of the best games on the DS. It's clearly the best overall game in the Mario & Luigi series and is probably one of the five best games on the DS. The story is excellent with the exception of the later parts, which tend to lag. The characters are hilarious, as usual. And while you spend probably 45 minutes throughout the game scrolling through text to say "No, Chippy, leave me the fuck alone," it's bearable when you consider that the game is pretty meaty in length.
After a slow start, I think it definitely picks up and offers both a great challenge and compelling gameplay. There's nothing revolutionary here, or even evolutionary, but it's still solid 2D Mario platforming.