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WJist

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GOTY 2012

For what is supposed to be the end of a generation of games, this year has had a lot of great ones, including some new ideas as well as interesting sequels and returns to really old franchises (see: XCOM). Here's to 2012!

List items

  • Proud to have this at #1 - a turn-based strategy game with base-building elements and aliens? And it doesn't baby you at all? This one was a lot of fun and one of the only games I've started a new campaign IMMEDIATELY after I beat it. With customized soldiers and a great X-Files vibe, I'm going to be playing this game well into 2013.

  • Rarely does a game come along and make us all wimper, weep, and get us to evoke strong emotions - The Walking Dead is one of those games. It really speaks to the writing of the characters (yes, even the douche-y ones) that we tried to save all of the survivors (if you are familiar with the source material, you know that's not going to happen). There are also some really tough moral decisions and I think Telltale's timer system works well to apply the pressure to choose. However, I do think some of the episodes' pacing was off - why should episode 3 drag or episode 4 result in a wild goose chase around Savannah? Still, I was left shaken after the end - man, what a strong, sad conclusion. Ranking of Episodes: (2, 5, 4, 1, 3)

  • Gran Turismo was the original car game that got me hooked into racing; Forza Horizon might be the one to model future racing games on. It's simple: build an interesting world to drive in (Colorado), put in a lot of cars that drive well but don't complicate the controls, make a fun single-player campaign, and attach a good soundtrack. Why is that so hard? Doesn't hurt that it looks beautiful and there are very quick load times.

  • Really, the only reason to own a Vita and the most compelling case for re-releasing old games with new strings. Persona 4 is already a fun dungeon-crawling RPG/social simulator, but throw in an added character and some added scenes, and you have one of the best portable experiences you can get. Fair-warning: this is a very Japanese game and, as such, has a lot of cultural references you may not get if you haven't played a JRPG before or haven't been to Japan (so yeah, there's a fishing minigame).

  • I haven't really enjoyed Halo games since the first Halo and this one is a return to form for the series. Sure, the new enemies and weapons aren't all that different from the Covenant, but they're interesting enough. And the multiplayer, by adding Call of Duty-style progression, makes that side of the game meaningful again. I'm a little nervous about Master Chief's story arc moving forward, but 343's handling of this game and making it so similar to the original trilogy is a step in the right direction.

  • True noire games are few and far between and I'll admit, when Rockstar got involved with the development of Max Payne 3, I was concerned it would turn into another failed Grand Theft Auto clone. Instead, what we got was a modern Max Payne game in Brazil, with all the reverence and respect to the franchise's former entries. Yeah, the story didn't really go anywhere and Max Payne is now poised to forever be the video game-version of John McClane, but this was a fun little romp. Multiplayer is surprisingly ok, despite some obvious Rockstar touches.

  • Kickstarter is a dangerous game that I think too many people throw their money into, but personal views aside, if this game is any indication of the kind of quality possible with crowd-funded games, there's hope yet for developers who wouldn't otherwise be able to attract publishers. A space-sim game that is difficult and encourages death so you can learn how to play better, FTL is a great game. The menu music alone is worth it. I just wish you got new spaceships faster or more of them were available and this game would be near perfect.

  • The most subvervsive game this year, Hotline Miami warrants a space this year on everyone's list for the incredible soundtrack. Never has a game's music ever more properly informed gameplay - dying over and over again while trying to figure out how to kill all the goons in a room, the frantic dance/techno sounds will anger and turn you into a brutal savage. Oh, and the game itself is okay too, with a slick 1980's/cocaine-induced pastiche.

  • As of right now, the best game on WiiU. Yeah, it is a minigame collection, but damn if it isn't basic fun and easy to pickup. The best games in this title are Yoshi's Fruit Cart, Mario Chase, and Donkey Kong's Crash Course, but the others aren't slouches. The only duds are Balloon Trip Breeze (then again, it is hard to make Balloon Fight interesting for more than 5 minutes) and Metroid Blast, which has overly complicated controls. It makes you wish Nintendo will do fun and interesting with the franchises these minigames are based on (fingers crossed!).

  • What a surprise on PSN straight from Japan. A survival adventure game where you play as different species of animals in an abandoned Tokyo, this game is weird and addicting. It is too bad the levels don't change that much, but foraging and hunting for food in a game has never been this challenging or fun. I hope they take they hint and make a sequel to this game or do something else with the interesting premise they built....I would play another survival of the fittest game in New York, Chicago, Rio, London, Cairo, or any other big city.

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