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WatanabeKazuma

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Best of 2011

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I was ideally waiting for GB to start taking in user votes for GOTY before compiling any sort of list of my own, failing to realise that this was never going to happen. So here I am adding my own list amidst the flurry of those who have already beaten me to the punch with their well reasoned and elaborate blog posts, Bah! But seriously though this year more than any other I've genuinely been surprised at what has appeared on everyone else's lists. Many have even managed to fill me in on some titles that I missed and now intend to check out in the near future. So if anyone happens to actually stumble upon my modest list and it serves that same purpose, I will be doubly happy!

As of writing this very sentence I am desperately wracking my memory trying to remember if I actually have played ten games that have been released this year, it would be fairly embarrassing if I couldn't even muster the traditional countdown from 10 but I'll give it a shot. Anyway lets get this show on the road and see if I can hit the elusive mark...

EDIT: As it turns out I managed it, reaching a completed list that is. Unfortunately I had to leave out a few really strong games in the process. Just thought I'd add this disclaimer for anyone who thinks I would settle for the first games that happened to spring to mind. Because truth be told, I genuinely did start writing this on a whim during this rainy English afternoon.

List items

  • I am still shocked that this was released this year, I remember thinking that coming out of the gate so early would unfortunately cast it out of peoples minds as much as it could be overshadowed by other releases that were to follow . So it goes without saying that it must have left a significant impression on me for it to even be appearing here.

    I would honestly nominate it as this generations Resident Evil 4, everything about it is just so polished and refined. It is one of those games that in almost every aspect of it design and execution I can point to it as an example of what the consoles can achieve when pushed to their limits. Its a very pretty game despite the subject matter.

    It retains the originals great sense of atmosphere and builds upon it, the necromoprhs as well as Issac return more twisted and dark than before.

  • I'm going to come straight out and say that I don't think Dark Souls is a particularly hard game. It does have its moments, but I always felt that it was just trying to encourage a methodical approach rather than a bum-rush assault. It does have a barrier to entry I will admit, but certainly not to the extent that the marketing would have you believe. Which I think is a shame, not for me personally, but rather those who would be potentially scared away from experiencing this great game for those reasons.

    This is my first experience with a Souls game so I had a rude awakening early on when I was killed by one of the first genuine enemies you encounter. It was strange though that I met death not with frustration but rather a wry smile. I knew that failure would mean I would have to retrace my steps through the previously cleared area, but I didn't care. I was just excited about replaying the same sequence and putting my new found experience to the test.

    The game puts a premium on your life, and as such it lends a real credence to the world

    around you. Instead of treating the environment like pretty trappings you instead take in your surroundings, being careful not to rush into a encounter or helplessly fall to your doom. Any new location was treated as an event for me, not just because the environments are greatly varied but also because I knew that I had to master everything that proceeded it just to reach that point.

    The combat itself is fantastic, nuanced and fair, probably my favorite in any game that I can recall. But this is also carried out in such a well realized world, everything down to the characters right down to the music fits so well together with its twisted and lovecraftian vision.

    Its a game you learn to embrace, and one which greatly rewards you for doing so.

  • I don't really need to say much about this, if anything for that matter. Its already been endlessly discussed but its just so fun that its hard not to gleefully recount the insanity it brings.

    Its a game which is definitely stupid, but cleverly so. You only need to look at a game like Duke Nukem Forever to see the same principle executed poorly. This is an experience that fully makes use of the medium, in that its a game first and foremost, a brilliantly bonkers one at that.

  • This game scratches a few particular itches of mine, it seemed to be a game almost designed solely around my interests. The looks, the music, the gameplay, everything instantly grabbed my attention.

    It would have been so easy for everyone to savage this game, after all it had the albatross of the ordinal game Deus-Ex hanging around its neck. But it must have succeeded for you never see it uttered in the same hushed tones reserved for the of the black-sheep of the family, Invisible War.But animal analogies aside this game is able to stand alone as a compelling world wrapped in well worn and familiar game mechanics. Thats not to dismiss what this game has to offer, after all you have to appreciate the fact that its possible to complete the entire game without having been spotted or killed an enemy, well apart from a few notable exceptions. Not even the infamous boss battles or a disappointing final act are enough to completely ruin the experience.

    Its executes its dystopian future so well that you begin to wonder why more games don't utilize the steam punk aesthetic nearly as often, or effectively for that matter.

  • Huge, expansive, intimidating. Those some of the thoughts that crossed my mind upon being unleashed to the vast expanse of Skyrim for the first time. I thought New Vegas had put paid to any desire for me to play through a Bethesda RPG at any point in the near future but I was quickly won around here.

    For as creaky as their game engines have been in the past, I have had a remarkably smooth experience with Skyrim, barring one incident where I became forever lodged inside a waterfall. These games have always been brimming with content but I always thought the presentation side undercut that somewhat. That problem has been addressed to a degree here, as this is a game looking decidedly more professional on all fronts.

    It does encounter the familiar problem of the main storyline not being all that engaging, but when you can be a cat wizard who can shout a dragon out of the sky before turning invisible to rob a town full of people does it really matter?

    The setting may not be intriguing as the Fallout universe to some (myself included), but its a still game that you should experience regardless. This is a game which is testament to a developer being at the peak of their powers.

  • At this point I doubt my words will convert those who still haven't succumbed to the charms of Kazuma and his band of merry friends but that doesn't mean I still won't try!

    Its a game about absurdities, but ones which are portrayed as deadly serious by all involved. Its one of the reasons I find this series so fun.

    Sure, its still running on the same engine that stretches back as far as the first game but that is not to say there isn't some craft hidden beneath that. The devil is in the details and the streets on which you walk are testament to that. Its the same locale we've seen before and although there is no denying that it has gotten more than a little long in the tooth at this point, its one of the most well realized recreations you're likely to see in a game.

    There is at least some effort to freshen things up in the form of new characters. Even if fail to feel as complete as Kazuma in terms of gameplay, the new storylines they bring with them more than make up for that shortcoming. Its a refinement of all that has come before it and it thankfully avoids the ridiculous slow-burn of an introduction that 3 forced on you. For that reason its probably the best starting point for the curious few.

  • Being a port of a PC game that is almost a decade old , the sums don't really look up to much but the result is still impressive. Its alarming how much of a hotbed the PSP has become for RPG's as of late, but for someone who is still a fan of the traditional JRPG its a trend that I welcome with open arms.

    This is not a game which breaks new ground, but its certainly something which is greater than the sum of its parts. The combat while unoriginal is still engaging and has depth to it, but the highlight here is the story itself. The translation is fantastic, funny and with emotional weight, it lends the character and the scenarios a real charm. I wouldn't really want to divulge too much as its something which I hope people will experience for themselves.

    Singing the praises of this game is almost bittersweet. Trails in the Sky is the first in a trilogy. One which I don't hold much hope for Xseed bringing over in its entirety. This slightly morbid closing aside, I still heartily recommend it.

  • It built on everything it had already laid in the previous games in a meaningful way, whilst also throwing in a few suprises along with it. Not least of all the campaign itself.

    Although its novelty quickly wears off, Beast Mode is still some of the most fun that I've had in multiplayer in a long time. Its additions like that which didn't really need to be there but exist as great little extras for the fans. I mean you get to play as the Locust!

    Since GOW2 Horde Mode has been intimated endlessly I was expecting not to really be as enthusiastic about it as I was back then. So it was exciting to disover that The originator is still at its best here, and its only been improved with the addition of upgradable equipment and fortifications, not that the experince needed that extra layer of addiction layered on top.

    Its the closing of a trilogy and it really feels like it, the wealth of content on offer is staggering and this is coming from someone who doesn't even play the competive multiplayer. It is the age of sequels, but I feel as though the GOW series is one of the few that actually manages to justify its existence in a meaningful way.

  • Despite all the backlash it seemed to garner after the early pre-release hype had settled, I still found myself liking Catherine. Which is odd as I was hopeless at the parts where you actually, you know, played the game. But I concede that was something which was equal parts my inability to puzzle solve as it was the game itself having some niggling control issues.

    When boiled down to its core gameplay mechanics its nothing special, but as anyone who played the game will likely attest to, its the unique premise in which it is wrapped in that grabs your interest. The characterization and the story (even though it did suffer from a weak conclusion) is what you expect from Atlus, and its the reason that I enjoyed my time with the game despite its obvious flaws.

  • This has made a very late run (pun not intended, honest!) for a place on my list but not for want of trying. I simply never got round to playing this on release due to not really having the time, games related and otherwise.

    Its easy to dismiss this game, and I wouldn't really blame you. After all, Sega's track record would point to yet another false dawn. But the reality is anything but, its an amalgamation of all the positive aspects of some of the more recent games twinned with the classic platforming of the original 16-bit era heyday. The result of this is a game which feels like a genuine tribute to the series, the nostalgia hits all the right points from the stage design all the way down the fantastic music.

    I don't think I will ever be completely happy with the more modern Sonic trappings such as the homing attack, but I feel like this somehow manages to strike a balance between some of those mechanics in a much more convincing way than has been done so previously. The main criticism I do have is that the whole experience is far too brief, it an effort to hit all the high notes the game only has a handful of stages from each game. As a Megadrive fan from back in the day it left me a little sad that stages like Icecap Zone & Casino

    Nights were nowhere to be found, even if the music itself is still present. You'll hopefully forgive me then for thinking someone at Sega is (successfully) trolling me.
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