Something went wrong. Try again later

Make_Me_Mad

Well. That certainly was a year.

3229 1007 183 127
Forum Posts Wiki Points Following Followers

GOTY 2012

This list wasn't as easy to put together as I'd initially predicted. When I thought about the year, I saw a few clear standouts and figured that it'd be simple enough to throw something together, but it actually turned into a bit of a scramble here in the last minutes of putting this thing together. There were some surprise cuts, a few entries I'd completely forgotten about with time and distractions, and at least one six-armed flaming suplex that rendered a continent uninhabitable for the next year. Enjoy!

List items

  • I used Galactic Punt to put Yosuke in another star system. I Bent Fools with Kanji and Take-Mikazuchi, and I showed the Persona 3 cast why seniority didn't mean they could walk around the Midnight Channel like they owned the place. It turns out the way to make me get serious about a fighting game is to give me characters I care about, and the best way to do that is to take them from my favorite game of all time. This game started out as such a weird idea that I thought I might have dreamed it the morning after, and I was apprehensive until it landed in my hands- and then suddenly everything started to come together in a way that it hadn't ever before. This is the first fighting game where I can claim I'm "good". I competed in the Giant Bomb Persona 4 Arena tournaments, and I'm competing in the league now, solidly in the middle of the pack. The idea of a fighting game EVER approaching the top of one of my top 10 lists, much less winning overall, was absolutely ridiculous to me before this year. Playing this game has been nothing short of an incredible experience, however, and on top of that it's introduced me to some of the coolest Duders I know.

  • I wasn't expecting this. I wasn't expecting a lot of things when this game came out, to be honest, much less that it would turn out roughly three times as long as my original estimation, or the multiple weapon types and the multitude of variations, the surprisingly complex bonus stat system, the wide range of characters old and new to liven up the world... you get the idea. This game turned out to be one of the best gaming experiences I've had in years, and it caught me completely off guard. I can't recommend it enough.

  • I had some problems with some of the changes and the plot in Borderlands 2, I'll admit. That doesn't change the fact that I played through it twice and keep playing the DLC as it comes out, and it doesn't do a thing to hinder the undeniable truth that I have a hell of a good time doing it. They've got a hell of a world in Borderlands 2, and a hell of a lot of weapons to lay waste to it with. If you can't find a weapon in this game that's an absolute joy to fire, then you probably just haven't found one that shoots electric bullets yet.

  • I keep catching myself saying Xenoblade Chronicles main flaw was that it was too long. In truth, that's my fault; I was the one who went after every side-quest obsessively, who went through the hassle of obtaining an elusive 100 Percent Reconstruction rating at a certain game-spanning side mission. The reason I did these things, in retrospect, was just because I was having so much fun with the game that I wanted to keep it going, and I did to such a degree that now I'm forced to remind myself that the reason I spent so much time embroiled in the world was because I chose to. The game might run through a cliche or two in the story, and a character or two might make some infuriatingly dumb choices, but the world alone is worth the time investment. Play this game if you get a chance. I'm pretty sure you'll like it at least half as much as I did.

  • If it weren't for this game, there's a good chance my Number 1 wouldn't be in it's spot. For a fighting game, this had the things I valued more than anything else: A story, good designs, great music, the desire to teach new player, and passion. From top to bottom you can feel the love that went into this game, so much that it's palpable in the trailers and drove me to commit to buying it long before it released. I was pleased that it didn't let me down one bit once I got it, and it went a long way towards making me a better fighting game player, teaching me the things I always heard but never had explained in a reasonable way before. The characters are beautifully designed, the stages feel alive, and the music is astounding- the credits theme might be my favorite song this year. I'm glad I didn't miss this one.

  • Dragon's Dogma is a game with flaws. Some of them feel downright monumental, almost insurmountable, and the frustration one can feel with this game could drive even the most stubborn of individuals to toss their controller aside in anger. If you can handle what the game asks of you, however, you're in for a wild ride (and that doesn't just mean the time spent hanging off of the backs of giant monsters). Dragon's Dogma is a game that went after me right where I'm weakest- it gave me an in depth character customization system, shiny equipment to go after, and an intriguing story. While it might be easy to grow complacent with the main quest, following it will lead you to a whole host of the game's most impressive moments, from the enigmatic and astonishingly threatening leader of the Salvation cult to the climactic, brutal battle with the titular Dragon, and beyond that to something I can only describe as equal parts bewildering and enlightening. It's rough, but I'm glad I was stubborn enough to take it on.

  • Foggy streets, booming music, haunting female vocals, and an absolutely devastating amount of neon lights and 80's style. Marion is kidnapped, Billy and Jimmy Lee are ready to fight mountains of punks, and the soundtrack is set to maximum nostalgia. There were a hundred ways that this game could have gone wrong, and absolutely none that it actually did. This is everything I wanted out of a new Double Dragon game, and tons of things that I never wanted at all but am infinitely glad I got.

  • Now we're entering the 'Proper' games, I guess. This one has been alternately passed over and focused on to a strange degree- when I first learned it existed it was only months from being released, and I was instantly intrigued by the ideas it promised to tackle. As a bit of a sci-fi fan who's been consistently let down by the amateur hour attempts of some other franchises to tackle the issues of Artificial Intelligence and Synthetic and Robotic lifeforms, I was hankering for a more ambiguous approach, and I was pleasantly surprised with what I found in Binary Domain. To top it off, everything is wrapped around a pretty-fun shooter and some memorable characters- if Dan Marshall doesn't start getting some recognition for the downright impressive work put into his backstory and prejudices, I'll have to start a petition or something.

  • That's right. Get any snickering or shaking of heads out of the way now, because by the end of the game your heart will be too warmed for either. Adult content? Turn that crap off, it isn't important anyways. (Or don't! I'm not here to judge.) If you're one of those people who claim Visual Novels aren't games, then I sincerely hope you didn't put The Walking Dead on your list either- this is easily as much of a game as that one, and with less bugs to boot. Why is this on the list? Quite simply, because playing it could straight up make you a better person, if you take some of the lessons taught within to heart. It's about acceptance, about honesty, about being less self-centered and more open to experiences and ideas, and above all else it's a hell of a good time, without dumbing itself down or presenting itself as anything but what it is.

  • Asura's Wrath is a game about emotion. I'll go ahead and let you guess which one features most heavily, but the god-killing, world devastating rampage that the game is known for would fall woefully flat without an equally effective backstory and tragedy to drive it. While it's easy to be caught up in the spectacle of it all (and what a spectacle it is!), there's a much more personal element to Asura's quest for revenge and redemption for his prior failings. As odd as it might seem to hear, Asura's Wrath is perhaps one of the most touching father/daughter stories I've heard in ages. Give it a try, and keep an open mind when you aren't punching a Mecha Space Bodhisattva.

1 Comments

Avatar image for immortalsaiyan
ImmortalSaiyan

4788

Forum Posts

26

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 9

Edited By ImmortalSaiyan

I enjoyed reading that. Glad to see Skullgirls get some praise. It may not be one of my favorites but I respect it and we need fighting games that are not from decade old series.