Dustin's Poorly Written Top 10 Games of 2021

2021 was what you can define as a year. Congratulations to all the studios and teams that launched games in the last year. As a person who knows very little about game development, I’m sure it was no easy task.

Something I realized when putting my list together this year, is how many mobile games I played and how many made the list compared to my previous lists. Those games were great when I was looking for a small experience that I could just play for a few minutes at a time, when laying on the couch or during a lunch break. While the “Triple A” games I ended up playing are kinda par for the course. Not to say that’s a bad thing, but having a mix like this definitely makes this list and what I was vibing with this year interesting.

Honorable Mentions

• Riders Republic
• Clap Handz Golf
• The Great Ace Attorney Chronicles
• World Flipper
• Coffee Talk

10. SP!NG

SP!NG is a neat little Apple Arcade game where you are swinging to collect little pellets before reaching the end of a level. Its biggest strength to me is as soon as you load it up, you know how the game works. The levels later on do get challenging but you always understand what new elements do when they are introduced for the first time.

9. Microsoft Flight Simulator (Xbox Series X)

Flight Simulator makes this list for a second year in a row. The main difference is this year it came out on Xbox Series X and it runs it pretty well, unlike my PC. The reasons I love this game pretty much remain unchanged from last year. If you have Game Pass on Xbox or PC, you should definitely check it out.

8. Mass Effect: Legendary Edition

This one might be cheating. This collection contains the best trilogy in all of games. So of course it makes my list.

7. Pikmin Bloom

This game took me off guard. When I loaded up Pikmin Bloom on my phone for the first time I thought, “oh, I’ll mess with this for a day or two.” And I’m still checking in on it. It’s neat and very passive, which is probably why I like it.

6. Mini Motorways

I had Mini Motorways on my phone for quite some time before I played it. Going in I thought it was a Sim City type game, but what I found was this really neat city building puzzle game. This is a great game to lay in bed and spend either 5 minutes with, or 2 hours.

5. Fortnite

I spent a ton of time playing Fortnite this year. I also spent a ton of money on it. So maybe that’s why I played a ton of it. Everything Epic Games has added over the last year has been mixed. I'm looking at you Primal Season, but it didn’t stop me from having a good time. Also the changes they’ve made with the introduction of Chapter 3 have been really well implemented.

4. Metroid Dread

The fact that Metroid Dread is on my list let alone this high on it is crazy. Historically I am not a fan of this genre of game, but I love Metroid Dread. Although I haven’t finished it, from what I’ve seen is a master class of level design. As you get new abilities you feel like you are growing stronger and becoming more capable as you fight your way through this game.

3. Life is Strange: True Colors

I played Life is Strange: True Colors all the way through with my girlfriend. And it was a good choice because we both really enjoyed it. Running up to this game's release I didn’t know it was going to be all out at once and not over time like previous entries. Alex Chen is a wonderful character who just wants to better herself and move on from her past, and for the most part it works. Her story through the five chapters is a delight and has a very interesting mystery to solve that kicks off at the end of chapter 1. Fair warning, be prepared to cry.

2. Halo Infinite

Halo Infinite is in some ways a return to form. This is undoubtedly 343 Industries best Halo game since taking it over from Bungie. The year delay really did this game justice. This is the best shooter I’ve played this year. It’s super polished and feels great to play. It’s campaign does a good job at wrapping up the missteps that Halo 5: Guardians took, and has the best multiplayer suite since Halo: Reach. If you’re a fan of first person shooters you owe it to yourself to check this out, and the multiplayer is free to play, so what do you got to lose.

1. Forza Horizon 5

Forza Horizon 5 is the best racing game out there, and the one before what was Forza Horizon 4. Everything about this game is masterfully executed. Every time a Horizon game comes out I play it and I love it. It hit me pretty early on why it’s my favorite game this year, and it’s the same reasons why this franchise is always in my list. It’s an easy game where I can turn my brain off after a long day at work, knock out a few races or drive around and just relax.