GOTY 2015
My game of the year list for 2016. This year was a little difficult to make a list for because even though i'm completing games more than ever, a lot of them are old.
List items
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It would be easy to dismiss Life is Strange based on the setting and characters at first glance. I know one person who did in fact do that, but if you are able to look past that you'll see that everything comes together to be the best story in a video game this year. Some of the writing and character dialogue has been criticized for being unrealistic or out of place but i think those arguments don't resonate with me enough to not absolutely love what the game presents in every other front.
Because of the tighter budget on the game it's not really a technical marvel and you'll quickly notice lips aren't synced with what characters are saying. Instead, a greater emphasis was placed on the overall art design and it looks wonderful, this is one of those games where i was dying to see if there was a concept art book being released after i finished it.
Game play hasn't been the major focus in most adventure games these days but Life is Strange gives you abilities that tie into the story and are appropriate for the type of game it is. Max is able to use her time control abilities to undo almost everything that happens. By having this power it's easy to always make the choices you want while at the same time exploring dialogue options you normally wouldn't.
Because of how much i was enjoying the series i was really worried they wouldn't be able to wrap it up in a way that felt satisfying. Luckily, they did. Some of the ending scenes were predictable in spots but what made Life is Strange not get bogged down in a poor ending was in the way it was all framed. The pacing through each of the episodes was just right and the momentum built was consistent and didn't lull in the end like I've seen in a lot of other games. I was really afraid this series would pull me in so much and turn sour right at the very end but i am so glad to say it didn't.
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There was no other game in 2015 that took up as many hours of my life as Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate did. The remarkable thing about spending well over 100 hours in it is that the majority of that time was in multiplayer.
Going into this installment brought some nice changes to the way i experienced Monster Hunter. My hunting group added a third player and i took the leap into ranged weapons and specialized in heavy bowguns. By having an extra person in the group it took enough of the heat off of me so that i could be slightly more fragile yet weild consistent ranged attacks. The amount of content in this game is nuts and if you were to try to get every weapon and become proficient in each one, i could see that taking a good thousand hours to do.
Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate is best enjoyed with a group of patient people you know and is easily my multiplayer game of the year.
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Everything about Splatoon screams fast, fun, arcade action and it really delivers on that. Matches go quick and you're always working to max out gear so that you can pick some more up to continue that process. The game has a great style and feels super fluid to play if you're using the gyro aiming. Like with most other Nintendo titles there are a few tweaks i wish they would've made so that matchmaking worked more like i would want, especially when trying to group up with friends.
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Everyone knows the Madden formula of releasing games that only slightly innovate on the product that then sell well with Madden die-hards. I believe this edition goes way beyond that and makes some fundamental changes to the game that makes playing each individual player on the field an exciting challenge. If you want to play an edge rusher there are new mechanics for you so that you're not just mindlessly bumping your character against a lineman. If you want to do a really bad job at playing safety like I do but still have fun, you can! The new passing and catching mechanics drastically change how every single pass feels and gives you an amazing amount of control that hasn't existed before.
I haven't played a Madden game in a few years and previously i hadn't had a ton of interest in football but now that's different and it's great seeing Madden also take steps in teaching you offensive and defensive concepts. Yes, you can still throw hail mary after hail mary and probably be reasonably successful but if you do want to try to take a more reasonable approach you will be rewarded.
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Amiibo, Disney Infinity, and Lego Dimensions are the three toys-to-life series I've gotten to try out and each one brings something different to the table. Amiibo works as a form of dlc and Disney Infinity is a way to create levels in a Disney setting. Lego Dimensions tries to suck you into each branded world where you can space out and collect every single Lego stud and it works really well if you don't mind the usual Lego game formula. The game does take a step forward that Amiibo and Infinity haven't; you get to not only build the characters and models you'll play with but you also interact with them on the base station to affect what's happening in the game. The puzzles and game play in those sections aren't overly complicated but I was glad to see it trying to differentiate itself in some way. If you have liked past Lego games and are interested in any of the worlds this game has to offer I'd say it's well worth the investment.
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Ori and the Blind Forest felt like equal parts animated movie and video game. Something about the way characters emoted in cutscenes and how the story played out felt straight out of a movie from my childhood and there was something wonderful about that. What wasn't wonderful were the sections of gameplay that you had to execute perfectly or you die and have to start all over again. To me, those types of sections are deal breakers and are the reason i hate games like Uncharted so much. Looking beyond those sections, the rest of the game feels good to run around in and progress your character as you look at some of the most beautiful scenery this year.
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iOS games don't last very long for me, many get deleted after loading them once because they just aren't deep or fulfilling. Skiing Yeti Mountain worked for me because of the simple yet challenging tilt-to-ski gameplay and no free to play barriers junking up the experience. The game isn't too difficult on the main mountain but when you unlock the more challenging mountain you'll be retrying constantly to get the golds on each level. Thankfully, the game lets you restart levels immediately with almost no loading so you never have to wait to try again.
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I tried probably upwards of 6 or 7 different picross games this year; some on iOS and some on 3DS. Picross e6 was the best of them all simply because it never tried to hinder my playing the game with any free to play timers or gating. Picross e6 is perfect for you if you just want to solve puzzle after puzzle with no strings attached. It includes three different types of picross so there is some variety; though I'm not a huge fan of mega picross i do appreciate some added challenge to a puzzle game that has gotten pretty easy for me.
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Grim Fandango has become a mixed bag for me. On the one hand, it's an incredibly creative and well built world that has a cool plot. On the other hand, playing the game just isn't that great and some sections are just a drag. Having it be re-released is fantastic since more people can now properly try it out and the updates they made were good to see, I'm just not sure if time has done it many favors.
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I felt compelled to try Pokemon Shuffle out because it was one of Nintendo's first free to play titles and i wanted to see how they would approach it. It's a pretty standard match three game with the usual micro-transactions that you would come to expect from such a game. Luckily, the barriers that lead you to having to turn to those micro-transactions didn't feel too restrictive. It's a good first step, now hopefully they can move on to more compelling game types.
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