FakeKisser

Done!

Fakey's 2020 Games of the Year

	1. Kentucky Route Zero I bought Kentucky Route Zero a week after the first Act was released because of a write-up in Kill Screen. I played every Act and Interlude as they were released up until the last Act this year. I don't feel the last Act is the strongest, but they did a nice job, and I teared up at least once. Kentucky Route Zero, overall, is one of my favorite games of all time, and I'm looking forward to playing through it again back-to-back...instead of spread out over a 7 year period. :D
	2. Detroit: Become Human I know the response Detroit got, but this game really touched me. It didn't have any revelations, and I was frustrated at how it handled some topics, but I was gripped by the story and couldn't wait to see what happened next, thinking about the game every hour I wasn't playing it. After not liking Beyond: Two Souls at all, I'm now hoping Quantic Dream can make an even better game next time.
	3. Grand Theft Auto IV GTA IV came out at the time I wasn't playing video games, so I just got around to it this year, and it was well worth it. It still holds up in 2020, and with a couple mods, the art style just makes it feel like a different cartoony take on the graphics, as opposed to V. And, of course, the DLC is great.
	4. If Found... I'm a bit obsessed with my Irish heritage, am learning Irish, and I was supposed to take my family to Ireland in 2020 where my wife and I honeymooned 10 years ago. So, If Found gave me a great Irish setting with an impactful interpersonal story and creative storytelling/gameplay.
	5. Void Bastards I'm not really into rogue-likes/lites, but a first-person stealth take on it already is going to grab me. I then liked the way the tools and levels were built. I only got a bit frustrated at the end. Otherwise, I loved the experience.
	6. Assassin's Creed Syndicate Honestly, this game and the last 2 are basically tied for 4th, for me, as they just all did different things. AC Syndicate is, in my opinion, the best old-style AC game. The setting is fascinating, the characters are very good, and the graphics still look very nice in 2020. I was very happy to finally get this off my backlog, and I'm very much looking forward to playing Origins in 2021, bringing me into the new style of AC games.
	7. Yakuza Kiwami I loved Yakuza 0, but Kiwami was very disappointing for several reasons. The story is not as good, I got frustrated in several parts. However, I still enjoyed it, and I'm looking forward to playing through Kiwami 2 and Yakuza 3 this year!
	8. A Short Hike A Short Hike was very meditative for me. Besides a couple spots, it was very relaxing, and I loved the short length along with the visuals, as well. I played it on PC, but I just bought it on Switch for my wife to play. :)
	9. Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories Vice City is my favorite GTA game. I'm not sure if it still holds up, as I've been afraid to go back to it, but it is the only GTA I loved from start to finish due to the setting, visuals (at the time), and the music. I just bought the soundtrack on CD, actually, after playing Vice City Stories. VCS is not as good as the original, of course, but it was nice to relive the setting, and the appearance of Phil Collins sealed the deal to put it on this list.
	10. Omikron: The Nomad Soul I bought and played Omikron when it first came out due to David Bowie being in it, but I don't know how far I got in it. This year, I played all the way through it, and the gameplay really needs to be refreshed, controls completely redone. However, I personally think there is enough in Omikron with the setting and story that it would be worthwhile for Quantic Dream to outsource a remake to some other company and just refresh it a bit.

What a dude! I'm going to do this next year. I normally give away some keys to friends, but I'm going to accumulate some for doing my own giveaway this year :P

I'd like to stack all 3 of my entries on Styx, if you please :D

Thanks!

@shagge I've heard great things. I just go in phases with playing adventure games and then not playing them for long periods, and Wadget Eye and some other adventure game makers have gotten my attention the last few years while I've been in those phases. :D

This surprised me when it popped up on my news feed last night. I knew they were niche, but I figured that the Minecraft game must have made some money, and I figured the Batman games and Walking Dead games still had a fanbase for them to keep making them. I've been meaning to check out the Batman games and never got around to Tales of the Borderlands, either. I'll have to play those at least out of respect for those that lost their jobs here.

I got an email saying the game was out, because I followed it on Steam, but I'm too busy with several other games to buy it and play it right now. However, I'm also interested in thoughts from people who've played it.

I love this thread.

I'll come from a slightly different angle than other people, as I have been building PC's for around 20 years, every 3-5 years, and while what people are saying is true (tech always changes, what you buy now is "outdated" in a year, you can't ever completely future-proof, you can't even always predict what will be out in 6 months...), there is also sometimes a better time than others.

For example, I built my current computer for Watch Dogs...yeah, I know... The worst part about it is that I got a 980, which I paid a pretty penny for, and the 1080 came out a year later and was vastly better. Plus, besides Watch Dogs, there weren't a lot of other games I was interested in that really needed the horsepower I was buying. In hindsight, I could have easily waited a year, got better tech (1080, the next released CPU), been better equipped for other games such as Witcher 3 that I truly were worth the investment, and my computer would have lasted longer til I had to buy a new card (I have a 1070 now) or CPU (which basically means a new computer, which I can't afford for at least another 2 years).

So, generally, "wait until you absolutely can't wait anymore" and "make sure you really have several good reasons to build (i.e. games you just have to play)" are my general pieces of advice. :D

Happy Building!

@nux: Yeah, me too. I have a hard time using the term, because I just think of the P&P RPG...

Then, yeah, I think of ME: A next :P @dixavd

The two games that really burned me have already been mentioned, No Man's Sky and Watch Dogs.

However, I still pre-order *some* games for two reason:

• I have saved a LOT of money by pre-ordering games when there are discounts to incentivize people to do so.
• I pre-order indie games the most, because I want to support those developers, and even if I get burned by a few, they cost less, and I still feel good about supporting developers that are really trying to create something new and interesting.

Every time I hear someone talk about how no one should ever pre-order or how stupid it is to pre-order, those two points above are what I immediately think of.

Obviously, I have no problem with people not pre-ordering, but there are still reasons that people do so, and I personally think that is a choice people should be free (from ridicule) to make. :D