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mr_arkadin

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Game of The Year 2014 Users Choice

I played a lot of old stuff this year, so my 2014 picks are a bit slim. Despite that, I feel that there was a lot to be excited about this year in gaming. There are a few I meant to play (and are in my steam library) but just haven't gotten to yet (hello 2014 games of 2015). Still, there are great games that got left off my list (sorry Crypt of the Necrodancer). Basically, there is nothing comprehensive about this list. It's just 10 games I dug the crap out of this year.

Honorable mentions to Roundabout and Crypt of the Necrodancer.

List items

  • Yeah I know it didn't come out this year, but the patches this year took the game to some really great places. Comebacks are more viable now than they have ever been, and that's made every game far more exciting. DOTA may well be my favorite game ever made. Despite the fact that I've been absent from it for about a month, I have no doubt I'll be back in, neck deep, VERY soon. It's my game of 2013, 2014, and probably 2015.

  • I was really fond of the original Binding of Isaac. I bought it before there were any expansions, so the game grew greatly from when I started playing it. That game felt alive in a strange way, because of how it developed over time. Rebirth has these characteristics, but to a lesser extent. There is just much more content at the starting point. That being said, this game just plain plays better than the original BOI. Stable framerate aside, analog movement and controller support do a ton of good for the experience. I know it's pretty divisive, but I really dig the new art. I like the new music as well, though I do miss Danny B's original score. Overall, I got sucked in deeper this time around, I think largely due to the new item interactions. There are many perfectly valid reasons to find BOI and BOI RB off putting, but there is a ton of value here. It's a game with a great amount of depth, that has enough of a sense of humor to let item interactions essentially break the game. It makes fart jokes along side of art and story inspired by the creator's real life experiences. (his mom didn't try to kill him, but he apparently he had an intense relationship with religion as a kid. There are interviews, google it.). Also, shit monsters. There are a lot of shit monsters.

  • Nidhogg achieves what Dive Kick promised. It's fighting game mechanics stripped down to the bare bones, leaving tactics and head games at the center of the game play. I love how easy it was to pick up, and how high a skill/strat ceiling there is.

  • While the story fell a bit flat for me, the gameplay systems really shine here. I loved the modular ability system, and the interactions between abilities were super fun to play with. Their take on new game plus works really well, making the second playthrough possibly more fun than the first. And, it's Supergiant so the art and music are pretty incredible.

  • I first played JS Joust in 2013, but I really got into the whole package once the full release was out. Each of the core games is incredible fun with the right people around.The additions of a super crazy pong variant, and Bennett Foddy's Get On Top are also a good time, if even more minimal than the rest of the games in the package. Finishing a full game of Get on Top (first to 1000 wins) was probably my greatest personal achievement this year.

  • I arrived at the Jazzpunk party a bit late, having played it on Christmas day for the first time. I had to come back here and edit my list once I did.

    Initially, I thought this looked a lot like Thirty Flights of Loving, but this game very much has a personality and humor that are its own. It is an absurd noir parody mixed with some very well done non-sequitur humor. This is generally very difficult to pull of in any form (film, television), let alone video games, where humor in general is very tough. I was laughing hard front to back, and was constantly rewarded for exploring the environments.

    I will just leave you with two words "Wedding Qake".

  • Up front, this is a great "arcadey" dogfighting (the fighter jet kind) game. But, it's the upgrades available that really make it work long term. I eventually got to the point of just using random components for each part of my rauser. High score chases are fun and all, but I mostly put Luftrausers here because I just enjoy the tense, frantic gameplay experience. It's fun on its own. The score attack is just gravy.

  • It's Geometry Wars. I don't really feel the need to say anything else.

  • It's less a puzzle game than a meditative exercise in composing music. It's still in Alpha, so it probably doesn't count for this year, but Sentris is absolutely one of the best games I played this year. I find I settle into a groove working through the puzzles, and the music just comes together around it. It is really satisfying to hear a cool track coming together as a signifier of your progress through the puzzles. I can't wait to see what comes next for Sentris, and wouldn't be surprised to see it on my 2015 list as well.

  • There isn't really anything I can say that will sell Gang Beasts like it deserves to be sold. It is one of the most hilarious local MP games I've ever played. Old school wrestling game meets hilarious physics sim. Goes better with booze.
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