Origina1Penguin's Top 10 Games of the Year 2010
By Origina1Penguin 4 Comments
For a long time I had decided to restrain myself from making a Game of the Year blog since everybody else makes one. But it looks like I just can't keep my opinions to myself. It is a good opportunity for me to start working on my new year's resolution of starting up and sustaining my blog though. So without further delay, I present my personal top ten games of the year based on what I have played.
Limbo
Plenty of arguments about Limbo are tossed around. Whether they're about how innovative it is, how short it is, or if it deserves its praise or not, plenty of voices want to be heard on the matter. That should give you a hint that this was an impacting game in 2010.
Right from the start of Limbo, you feel out of place in your environment and an unsettling feeling courses through your body. You soon realize this feeling is justified as you are inevitably mutilated in one of many gruesome fashions. The game doesn't ease off either. Just when you are becoming familiar with your fatal surroundings, you wander deeper into the unknown. No explanation is ever given for many questions you may come up with, including where exactly you are and what is happening to the world around you. Limbo discards these details in exchange for its perfectly eerie atmosphere. Despite you knowing knowing nothing about the world with any certainty, Limbo engrosses you in its wonder and horror in a truly memorable way.
Super Meat Boy
Plenty of games copy a laundry list of features and game concepts from previously released games, but no other game in 2010 came close to executing rehashed ideas as well as Super Meat Boy.
It takes a rare breed of gamers to accept and endure relentless punishment and foreboding difficulty from their favorite form of entertainment, or so you would think. As it turns out, Super Meat Boy embraces these qualities to such an extent that you become lost in the challenge it provides, and upon victory, feel a deep sense of pride and happiness for your accomplishment. Every game design decision made for Super Meat Boy keeps you going, death after merciless death, until you are content with your day's progress. Then you'll come back for more. It's difficulty will steer plenty away, but those who stay will lose days if not weeks trying to get one.....more....bandage.
Fallout: New Vegas
I really liked Fallout 3. It's a good thing too because New Vegas is basically same shit different day in the Fallout universe. That's not to say this is a glorified Fallout 3 mod though. You can literally spend hundreds of hours in the Mojave Wastelands with its new quests and locations.
One of my favorite aspects of New Vegas is the disparity of everything. Everything, even a simple message delivery, can just turn to shit quicker than you can tip a Brahmin. But don't fret, you have a myriad of ways to overcome your hardships. I prefer the quick method of shooting a guy in the face until it goes in about 26 different locations across the room. But New Vegas also provides a rich cast of characters for you to meet and greet through your travels. You'll probably enjoy yourself more if talk to the locals every now and then, but sneaking hand grenades into people's pockets is a viable decision. If the game didn't feel a little bit dated, it probably could have moved up a spot or two on my list.
Sid Meier's Civilization V
I am not a Civ veteran. I dabbled in IV for a bit, buy its overwhelming complexity flooded my brain with too many options at once. Civilization Revolution alleviated almost all of the factors that annoyed me with Civ IV, but to a point where I felt like I wasn't getting the whole experience. Enter Civilization V to create a near perfect blend of intuitive communication between the game and the player as well as a wide array of game mechanics to keep newcomers and seasoned players alike playing the game for weeks.
Besides the greatly improved HUD and guidance the game provides, Civ V also restructures its playing field with a new hex grid and unit management options. Together these changes have breathed fresh air into the aging lungs of the Civilization franchise, making it the best option for turn-based strategy fans.
Heavy Rain
Many gamers chastise game developers for churning out the same types of games iteration after iteration, and every now and then, they are graced with something truly new. Heavy Rain provides an experience no other game has accomplished. It may have grassroots from Indigo Prophecy, but the polish and production of Heavy Rain conveys an emotional and thrilling narrative with no cinematic equal among games. The best part being that the player is involved and controls the outcome at all times.
Heavy Rain appeared to be a gimmick to some, and others dismissed it because of its questionable replay value. However, I strongly feel that this is a game everyone should play, even if they do not play games. I have to look down on it for its poor English voice acting, but the game easily earns a spot in my top ten list.
Halo: Reach
I'd be lying if I told you I didn't enjoy the Halo games. However, I haven't really been impressed since the first game, with the exception of forge in Halo 3. Reach aims to change that, and it certainly does a good job.
Bungie wanted its work with the Halo franchise to go out with a bang at the top of its game. Every detail of Reach was made to cater to fans and deliver the most solid and Halo-ass Halo experience possible. Forge is now a rival to PC modding, firefight has become more fun any horde mode on the market, multiplayer is packed with anything you could want from a Halo game, and the campaign still manages to impress with new gameplay and the best co-op to date. The genre has made great strides since the first Halo game, but Reach reminds us that it still hangs in there with the top dogs.
Call of Duty: Black Ops
If you like first-person shooters...you probably already own Black Ops. Besides shattering sales records, Black Ops marks an important point for developer Treyarch. It proved that they can match the quality that Infinity Ward had become known for with its iterations in the Call of Duty franchise.Business aside, Black Ops provides much of what you would expect from a Call of Duty games. However, it distinguishes itself with a creative -- although somewhat heavy-handed -- plot in its single player campaign. It struck me as fresh and unexplored territory for video games; an experience I hadn't seen before. That's precisely why I play games in the first place, to show me something unique.
Some additions to multiplayer also sparked my interest, making Black Ops the first Call of Duty game I was more curious of rather than intimidated by. Multiplayer has been enjoyable for me so far and will likely get plenty of play time in 2011 as well.
Red Dead: Redemption
It seems like every time Rockstar releases a game, they're saying fuck you to the doubters and haters. Red Dead: Redemption takes the grossly neglected western theme and delivers it in a way no other company would want to try to outdo.
Using familiar Grand Theft Auto traits, Redemption presents the player with its cynical view of human nature and modernizing world. Satire and flamboyant characters are a given, and its still a joy to see just who Rockstar has come up with now. The story plays out contrary to what we've been accustomed to with this style of game and the multiplayer provides a whole new experience to try out. Redemption doesn't bring many drastically new concepts to the table, but being the best option for my favorite game genre puts it firmly at my number three spot.
Alan Wake
I love me some video games. I also love a good story. The problem I have most with video games that supposedly have a good story is the story itself. I don't want to predict exactly what will happen. I don't want to have everything spelled out for me like I'm a toddler. I don't want a plot twist just for the sake of a plot twist. In the years approaching the release of Alan Wake I heard tidbits of informations about the game, but I never really knew what it was about. When I bought the game, it was pretty much a leap of faith based on Remedy's tenure. Perhaps that's why I was so blown away by the game. I love it. I love this game. I can only assume the story is the reason I gush for the game. It's unlock anything I've seen before. More important than being new though, the story was genuinely enjoyable.
Alan Wake also provided a tension for me. The combat was not very difficult, but if you messed up you would die quickly. Enemies ambush, outnumber, and sometimes outmaneuver you to create a nagging sense of insecurity. Unlike some others, I had no complaints about the combat, so my experience with the game was not hindered by it. This leaves nothing short of a whole bucket of awesome for me to enjoy. It's rare for me to enjoy a game's story, atmosphere, and characters in nearly equal amounts. It's unprecedented for to enjoy it as much as I have with Alan Wake.
Mass Effect 2
What can I say about Mass Effect 2? Really my love for it comes from my love of its fiction. Mass Effect has the most interesting universe I have ever known, video game or otherwise. Aside from that, everything I like about Mass Effect is present and even improved upon for the sequel. Almost every problem from the first game has been alleviated, if not eradicated. It improves on a game that was already one of the best on the market. For me, the conclusion to the trilogy can't come soon enough.
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