Best of 2011
Honorable Mentions: Mortal Kombat, Marvel vs. Capcom 3, Bulletstorm, Dead Island, Sonic Generations, Rayman Origins, Bastion, Super Mario 3D Land, Battlefield 3, Modern Warfare 3
List items
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1. The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
I've sunk dozens of hours into Skyrim over the past month. Almost every bit of my free time has been spent playing it, and for good reason. It has a huge game world with an endless amount of things to do within it, and somehow the developers managed to make nearly every aspect both exciting and memorable. I loved how they eliminated the typical western RPG mechanics of forcing you to decide how you're going to play before you actually get to play. Instead, being given free reign to experiment with any combination of tactics I saw fit helped me to become even more immersed in the game's brilliantly crafted world. I imagine I'm going to spend dozens of more hours in Skyrim because of all this, and for that, it's my game of the year.
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2. The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword
Skyward Sword definitely felt a little late to the party with me. Had it been released when the Wii was in its prime, I can't imagine how revolutionary the amazing motion controls of this game would have influenced developers for the console. Aside from its top notch handling, Skyward Sword features beautiful scenery and some of the best dungeons I've seen in the series. My favorite aspect was how the developers took a hint from the Metroid series in its level design, weaving nearly all of them into one tightly knit and well designed world. It's a fantastic place to get lost in; the pitch perfect controls had me feeling like I was really there and the overall design from the levels to the characters kept me going for longer than I was ever expecting.
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3. Portal 2
I was completely blindsided by the original Portal back in 2007. I had no idea Valve could fill a quick three hour game with dozens of brilliantly designed puzzles and one of the greatest video game characters of this generation. I also didn't think a sequel could match the greatness marked by the original, except it totally did. Valve not only introduced one new memorable character this time around, but two. Both Wheatley and Cave Johnson match the charm and intrigue of Glados from the first game, while the new puzzles this time around echo the brilliance set by the original. All of these aspects come together seamlessly and conclude at what is easily the best ending in any video game of this year. Valve never ceases to amaze me with its games, and Portal 2 is no exception.
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4. L.A. Noire
What appealed to me about LA Noire wasn't the jaw dropping facial animations or enormous open world feel, but the fact that it played like an adventure game from start to finish. Instead of causing ironic mayhem throughout the post-war city of angels, I was happy enough with performing simple police procedures and solving challenging investigations, which brought me satisfaction I haven't felt since the days of Lucasarts point-and-click adventures from the early 90s.
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5. Deus Ex: Human Revolution
While Battlefield 3 managed to deliver first person freedom in its multiplayer, Deus Ex certainly hits that mark with its campaign. Less an FPS and more of an RPG, Human Revolution gave me a staggering amount of ways to augment the adventure as I saw fit and craft the story in a unique way. But perhaps my favorite aspect of the game was its rich cyberpunk storyline with insanely beautiful visuals and detailed environments that kept me totally immersed while I absorbed as much of the game's universe as I possibly could.
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6. The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings
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7. Batman: Arkham City
Part of me misses the creepy, claustrophobic hallways and tunnels of the original Arkham Asylum. While this might have taken away some of the enjoyment I could have received with Arkham City's new open world setting, in the end, I realized that gliding around the city and perching myself on rooftops really captured the true Batman feel. With the return of the graceful free-flowing combat mechanics of the first game, plus a ton of new gadgets and moves to make me feel like the ultimate badass against Batman's biggest enemies, Arkham City stands as one of my favorite titles this year and the blueprint that all superhero games should follow from now on.
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8. Assassin's Creed: Revelations
It's true that many of the new features in Revelations aren't all that compelling, or even necessary, but none of that bothered me. What really impressed me was that Ubisoft managed to balance the story of three major characters, all in one campaign, while telling a fantastic tale that provides a satisfying end to the adventures of Ezio and Altair. Yeah, the tower defense and Tron-inspired minigames could've used work, but none of them were broken and thankfully the core gameplay and unique multiplayer make a triumphant return to make this the best Assassin's Creed yet.
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9. Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception
Uncharted 3 was another title this year that didn't stray far from its predecessor. That's perfectly okay with me, since I haven't found an action game nearly as beautiful with as many jaw dropping set pieces since Uncharted 2. Featuring the tried and true mechanics that made the previous entry my 2009 game of the year and the best story in the series to date, Uncharted 3 deserves nothing less than a spot on this list.
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10. Gears of War 3
While the formula hasn't changed much since Delta Squad's last adventure in 2008, the new features in Gears 3 really help to keep it relevant today. The addition of game types like Beast mode, all new tower defense mechanics in Horde, and the fine tuning throughout its competitive multiplayer space all stand out to make it one of my favorite titles this year. Not to mention the new four player co-op mode and well designed set pieces all tie into a great campaign that provides a fitting end to Epic's epic trilogy.
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