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Great games of 2021

by kalos

Games I loved in 2021. Likely includes older games.

Showing 1-10 of 21 items

Ikenfell

1. Ikenfell

Lot of fun playing this with my kid. The assist mode options to turn off Oops let him play with less anxiety. The characters and dialogue were enjoyable and he loved the boss battles. It was a bit long, but I think it did well to shake things up.

Monster Train

2. Monster Train

This is the first plot-free card battler that got me hooked. It's not that hard to "win", but then you can layer on all kinds of additional challenge. So instead of being pummeled with loss after loss like other run based games, you get to enjoy some wins as you learn about card combos. My kid loves it too -- great boss battles.

Donut County

3. Donut County

Fun story with a simple but evolving mechanic. Played it myself and played it through again with my kid.

Prey

4. Prey

Haven't finished, but I'm really loving it. So tense. This is the closest to a horror game that I can enjoy. I'm really reluctant to get alien powers because I like my turrets. Ended up falling off. Too much horror that it's hard to come back.

Wolfenstein: The New Order

5. Wolfenstein: The New Order

Fun shooter with some good characters. Hated the final boss, but dropping it down to easy and playing predator to take him down was fun if disappointing.

Spiritfarer

6. Spiritfarer

The first time I've enjoyed a "tend and befriend" game. There's enough gameplay to keep me interested, but a bit too many quests you can do and it became a bit of a slog towards the end. I was glad I could finish without taking care of all of my passengers, but I really enjoyed my time with many of them. (Not Mickey.) Regardless of my complaints, the game is beautiful art and story and it was wonderful to play through it co-op with my son.

Path of Giants

7. Path of Giants

I found the puzzles in Path of Giants boring at first. I only kept with it because it captured the imagination of my son. He solved some of the levels (either in part or in whole) and fully solved many of the pipe dream level end puzzles. Once the game got to the paired suspended platforms (one goes up and the other down), the puzzles were finally interesting for me and a bit hard for him (but he still made progress!). A surprise hit. This game was wonderful father-son time. The final puzzle was good, but the story bit at the end was very disappointing. The Winterland extra content was surprisingly deep. Started late 2020, but finished in 2021

The Wild at Heart

8. The Wild at Heart

Great pikmin like game with cute characters and a sensitive story. One of the buggier games I've played lately, but only in superficial ways. The climax was touching and exciting.

Mutant Year Zero: Road to Eden

9. Mutant Year Zero: Road to Eden

Started in 2021 and fell off.

Ori and the Blind Forest

10. Ori and the Blind Forest

Started in 2020 and fell off.

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