My personal top ten for 2010. The number one pick is probably quite contentious, and ascertaining whether red dead or mass effect should come out on top took some serious mulling. Other than that nothing too out of the ordinary. Looks like 2010 was a pretty fine year all told, robust body, piquant bouquet, but not quite as memorable as 2008.
No other game this year has lasted long enough and been good enough that I've wanted to keep playing long after my body's physical endurance has been exhausted. Between the extensive exploration on offer and the menagerie of interesting characters/factions of the Mojave, as well as the breadth of player influence on story progression therein, New Vegas is my favorite game of 2010.
One might think a game which put so much effort into letting the player choose their path, and which crew-mate to fuck for that matter, would struggle to provide a compelling narrative. Mass effect 2 has some of the most nuanced and interesting characters, not only in games but across any medium you wish to name. Gameplay improvements and refinements are present and appreciated, but storytelling is a Bioware specialty, and it's the reason Mass Effect 2 is as special as it is.
Until red dead redemption, I struggled to see why each grand theft auto release garnered such a gushing critical palaver. Despite an expansive, vibrant world and excellent gunplay, what really impressed me about red dead redemption was the quality of it's storytelling and character development. Finally I've been brought into the fold of drooling Rockstar aficionados.
It isn't the longest game, and doesn't have the most sophisticated combat mechanics, but it does boast bountiful graphics and above all else, an exceptionally engrossing story.
Dead Rising 2 is far from an ideal game, it doesn't take the opportunity to address the issues of it's predecessor or to expand on it's promise with the advancements of the years expired since it's release. Instead, Dead Rising 2 maintains it's obtuse tenets, while maniacally throwing in any mechanic or idea that might make gleefully tearing through zombie hordes more exhilarating. Regardless of the flaws, it's an experience like no other and for that I celebrate it.
I am not a fan of the strategy genre, I don't even dabble. Hell I find playing viva pinata frustrating, so the fact that I found so much love for Civ V probably speaks for itself. The mechanics are well explained and accessible enough that not only those new the series but new to the genre will be able to put off looming real world responsibilities to show Suleiman of the Ottoman empire who the real fucking superpower is.
Limbo is a perfect marriage of narrative and gameplay. It has a very specific aim and executes upon it perfectly, proving that a great game doesn't need a massive world or even dialogue, it simply needs intent properly fulfilled.
The idea of expanding upon a monumentally massive maelstrom of content like dragon age origins, just months after the original release is well, kind of crazy. But to have played through and loved the dozens of hours of blood soaked, beardy carnage that was origins, you have to be afflicted with a certain kind of madness. For that subset of maniacs however, returning to the realm of dragons and facial hair is an alluring proposition.
The leap that was made from assassins creed 1 to assassins creed 2 hasn't been matched here, but far from being a simple online heavy cash in as I expected, the refinements to the formula here mean that stabbing dudes is rarely as fun as in brotherhood.
For as much as I've lauded story development and character nuance in this list, sometimes a game can just be a game, and Vanquish takes this idea, lights it on fire, runs with it and throws it in your face in a blistering display of rocket knee-boosting, hails of bullets and cigarette smoke. Vanquish makes no apologies, it is ridiculous and it doesn't care.
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