A list of my favorite gaming experiences of 2014. A strange year with a lot of middling games.
Games I played, that didn't make the list:
Haven't Played Yet:
The combat, exploration and RPG elements are all implemented perfectly. The awesome boss encounters are fun to play over and over in coop as is the entire game. A must play for any action RPG or Dark/Demon's Souls fan.
I'd say I've played over 200 hours between PS3 and PC versions, even if a good chunk of that was in PS3 load screens.
This classic Final Fantasy styled game is a perfect recreation of that era of Japanese RPGs. The story, characters and systems all fit well into the traditional JRPG mold. It's not without its missteps but the pros out way it's cons by a wide margin.
Once again the Forza series delivers an exceptional driving game. The cars control well, the scenery is beautiful and the soundtrack is great.
Yes it's crashy, yes the warrior class is OP, but it's still a good attempt at replicating the Dark Souls formula. I'm a sucker for Dark Souls so that's why it makes my top 10, but it is very short and has its issues for sure.
Fun world and gameplay, just can't play it for long installments.
This game has issues in both technical and design but it is a decent RPG of about the same quality as ME3.
The Mass Effect style MP is addictive but buggy and not quite as fun. The writing is a minor improvement on ME3 and DA2 but not even in the same league as ME2 or DA:Origins. The open world takes cues from Skyrim but is pretty much just a big open area full of random collectibles which is presented as a shopping list. The explorable areas are very cool to look at though.
There's a hell of a lot to see and do in DA:I, just not all of it is that memorable or well crafted.
Middle-earth is probably the most polished game to come out this year. The combat and other systems all work perfectly. The writing is a standard video game affair so I guess I can't be too harsh on it. The graphics are great and all the orcs look super grotesque and varied.
The biggest issue for me is I'm over open world collectible hunting, Batman combat and Assassin's Creed. This game is an amalgamation of modern game design tropes and they're getting real tiresome. However, it is thankfully saved in the late game thanks to the nemesis system.
It's Far Cry 3 but with terrible characters, poor design choices and an annoying crafting system... Blood Dragon is really the true sequel to Far Cry 3 that no one seems to remember.
That said riding an elephant into a stronghold, clearing it out and then flipping the cars full of reinforcements through the air is great.
An alright game but the story gets worse as it goes along.
A love/hate kind of experience. Memorable regardless.
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