Best game of 2021 so far?

We're 3 months down in 2021 so far and I think it's fair to say that major releases have been fairly light on the ground up to now and, given the rumblings from various industry sources, it doesn't sound like this is going to change much in the foreseeable future. For me, the only games I've played that actually released (sort of?) this year have been Valheim and Loop Hero, both of which I played fairly heavily and then suddenly dropped off. I enjoyed my time with both but neither are really striking me as games I'll look back at at the end of the year with massive fondness.

With all that being said, what have you played so far this year that's grabbed you?

Loop Hero for me! I completed it and am extremely satisfied. It also was some of the most nail biting fun I have head in years. And there is something beautiful about filling out a full map in that game with tiles. This lovely meandering river surrounded by mountains, all encompassing a terrifying death trail of vampires and spiders. Absolutely loved it .

Monster Hunter Rise.

Hitman 3 and my KOTOR 2 replay.

Bowser's Fury. Super Mario 3D World is an old game so doesn't qualify, but I think Bowser's Fury is basically a new game and I really loved it.

I completely forgot that Hitman 3 came out this year.

Hitman 3 and 13 Sentinels Aegis Rim were both excellent for me.

1. Hitman 3

2. Monster Hunter Rise

Valheim grabbed my whole regular group in a way a game hasn't in a really long time. Even though we've all fallen off hard, that was after we each (group of anywhere for 4-7 people) put over 100 hours each into the game, finishing all the current content in the game.

I thoroughly enjoyed my time with that game, and can't wait until full release so we can do it all over again.

Persona 5 Strikers and Monster Hunter Rise are both games that give me more of a thing I already knew I liked.

Not much has stood out to me so far this year. Maquette might be my favorite thing I played so far, but that's more due to the lack of games I've played, than it is my actual enjoyment of that game.

The Steam version of Nioh 2.

Loop Hero just came out of nowhere and sucked up a lot of my time. Kind or reminded me of the one more run feeling I got from Slay the Spire and Monster Train, granted it's not a CCG.

There is a lot of good games to play already :

• Valheim
• Loop Hero
• Binding of Isaac Repetance
• Dorfromantik
• It takes two

Obviously most of these didn't come out in 2021, but this is what has grabbed my attention:

• Loop Hero
• Apex Legends
• Control: Ultimate Edition
• Remnant: From the Ashes

I've also dabbled with Star Wars: Squadrons, Anthem, and Outriders but haven't felt very compelled by any of them so far. Especially disappointed in Squadrons; I just can't get the controls to feel right. It's hard to put my finger on it but it just doesn't feel smooth. Like I am always oversteering or orienting in a way that makes me feel out of control. I need to mess with the controller layout I think.

Definitely Monster Hunter Rise or Valheim. I'm expecting GG Strive will take the lead come June though.

If we're allowing games from late 2020 that I only got finished this year then it's 13 sentinels, easily. Nothing else compares.

Monster Hunter Rise for me. Valheim is very promising, but I'm holding off from truly diving into it until it is at, or near, full release.

This has been a weird year so far, i've mostly only played PS1 and 2 era games and WRC8, i was going to suggest Cyberpunk but whoops that's a 2020 game...
I might pick up GG Strive but i really don't get on with 2D fighting games, i don't even know what else i'm looking forward to.
...
The RE4HD mod? That might wrap up this year
Radio the Universe
Brutal Fate
Whatever Epic exclusives come out on Steam

Yeah, I've been picking at Squadrons (mostly inspired by me and my girlfriend watching all of the Star Wars movies over the past few weeks as she'd never seen them) and the default control scheme for a controller is so weird coming off stuff like Ace Combat. Not intuitive at all.

The only two new releases I've played this year are the PC release of Nioh 2 and Monster Hunter Rise. Both are excellent, but I have to give it to Nioh 2. Just absolutely perfected what was already extremely good gameplay from the first game. Switchglaive for life.

The only true 2021 game I played so far is Hitman 3, which is of course great but not surprising per se... oh, I also played Bowser's Fury but I don't know if it counts. It's been an especially light year so far.

Hitman 3 for me also. I just wish it was a little longer.

Hitman 3 for me also. I just wish it was a little longer.

Ys 9, Hitman 3, Gnosia, and Disco Elysium: Final Cut are what come to mind for me. I was very into Disco and ended up completing my first playthrough already. Also I have been meaning to check out that Mundaun game that Alex mentioned he is playing. That game totally sounds like my sort of thing.

Hitman 3 for me. My time has only been on the starter pack though and did the Dubai level plenty of times. Its really fun finding new ways to take out the targets.

Idle Monster TD on Kongregate (I think it's on Android as well.) I have 46 days and 17 hours (and counting) into it.

i've beaten three games that came out this year and I'd go Genesis Noir, Bowser's Fury, and the Medium in that order. The most excited i am for anything this year is an expansion to a 17 year old MMO and the Mass Effect remaster. Something will inevitably show up on steam or Game pass and blow me away, much like Hades did last year, or at least i really hope so.

Hitman 3. Looking forward to IO's Bond game.

Hitman 3 for sure. How I went from being pretty sour on Hitman 2016 at its initial release (the first handful of episodes) to absolutely adoring the World of Assassination trilogy upon its conclusion is crazy. It illustrates the great strides IO went to during this series's development over the past five years. It is just a shame it still has the cloud over its head regarding its nature as an always-online product and its confusing release strategies to newcomers.

Hm, I feel like not a lot has come out this year. But Loop Hero is fantastic.

Disco Elysium: Final Cut is the only game released in 2021 that I've purchased so far, but I'm waiting for patch 1.2 to see if it fixes the glaring issues with the PS4 release. Real bummer.

Detroit: Become Human, 13 Sentinels, Madden NFL 20, Burnout Paradise, Yakuza 0, XCOM 2, GreedFall, Nier: Automata, Civilization VI, Kentucky Route Zero: TV Edition, Injustice 2, Burly Men at Sea and Middle-earth: Shadow of War have been the games I've played this year, plus Breath of the Wild and Hades over on the Switch.

Of all of those, I think 13 Sentinels left the strongest impression on me, though I probably had the most fun with Yakuza 0. GreedFall was a total flop, the first under-an-hour uninstall I've had outside of demos and betas. I had decent hope for that game with the PS+ cosign but...woah, bad! KRZ was a great one night stand, but I gave myself some space between Acts I-IV and Act V and didn't find it to stick the landing as much as others did. I'll take its level of nuance over something like Detroit any day, however, even if Detroitis more fun in most ways thanks to its unintentional humor. Burly Men at Sea is an old PS+ offering I pulled off the shelf and...the music is killer, yeah? Neat little art piece otherwise, I don't have the patience for the time loops. Madden seems like its in a fine spot, honestly, and Burnout Paradise is still comfort food - thanks for the $0.99 month of EA Play, EA!

XCOM 2 felt way more brutal from the beginning than XCOM was - I was constantly having to scramble to the barracks to buy new squaddies and just didn't feel like my boys and girls were progressing at all. I could've started a new game with that knowledge but I just don't think I have the XCOM bug right now. Nier had some incredible set pieces and concepts, unfortunately I didn't find the humor in all the gimmick endings nor fully click with the idea of playing in a sort of time loop. The story structure was never fully apparent to me, but overall it was a great ride. Give Yoko Taro a budget (and the Platinum A-Team)! Civ is Civ. Injustice 2's story is absolutely batty, gave me exactly enough of a schadenfreude cool down on the heels of Zach Snyder's Justice League. I think some of the fighters really suck in that game, though, and I don't have much need for a fighter outside Netherrealms' story stuff. The concept of the branching storylines and Multiverse seems really cool but I won't ever see it through.

I'm really having fun with Shadow of War when it clicks, but I'm finding it all more than a little directionless? I'm the sort of person that feels strongly compelled to finish what I start, but this strikes me as the sort of game you could put either 30 or 400 hours into...and with a story this bland, it's hard not to tell myself I might be topping out on orc slashing goodness. Perfect PS+ game, though. Breath of the Wild I've said more than enough about on these forums for now, but I still haven't picked it back up since putting it down about a month ago. I put in around 60 hours pretty quickly and I was at the point I could raid Ganon's castle, and I'm intrigued by Eventide and the Master Sword, but...I didn't love this game, and that kinda makes me resent it, weirdly.

Hades is my true Game of 2021, and as I presumed last year it would've been my Game of 2020 if I'd had access to it.

Based off my personal play list of the year:
1. Dead Cells (hey turns out that game is pretty good who knew?)
2. Dark Souls 2 (really its DS1 but I played that in December...)
3. Hitman 3

Here's hoping that a,) more current games make the list and b,) that Dark Souls 3 is higher than DS2

Hitman 3 is the only actual 2021 game I've cared about, just diving back into destiny and civ otherwise

Hitman 3. Could’ve been amazing with a few more maps, but it’s still a great game that I tend to check back on, at least whenever a new Elusive Target comes out.

There’s really not that many other 2021 releases I’ve played (and finished). Really yearning for the end of april, at which point Returnal, RE: Village and Deathloop all come out within a month.

I've had a ton of fun with Valheim and continue to be surprised by how much it's stuck with me.

But Omori is the best game I've played this year, (even if it technically came out Xmas day 2020.) In a more normal year there would be a rando Gamespot reviewer called into an office to justify the 10/10 they gave it.

Narita Boy! Neon Abyss. The Ancient Gods.

Disco Elysium : Final Cut without a 2nd thought. Nothing else has even come close

I really like Hitman 3 game, besides that I'm playing some other games: PUBG MOBILE, Clash of clans LDPLAYER

Hitman 3, with a tendency towards Tales of Arise.

Won't get as into the minutae of my thoughts this time around since I may as well just save it for GotY at this point, but if I were tasked with writing out a tentative list right now...

1: Psychonauts 2/Kena: Bridge of Spirits

2: Hades (I played it this year, and besides, this game doesn't really have a release date in my personal opinion!)

2: MLB The Show 21

3: Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart

4: Disco Elysium: Final Cut (with the caveat I set the game down months ago despite really, really enjoying it and need to go back to before year's end, maybe just reset with a different personality in mind to really see what that engine can do, but because I didn't finish it it'd feel wrong to drop it any higher than last for now)

5: NBA 2K22 (I'll be saving my annual 2K rant for December, but I'm pleasantly surprised for the first time in years!)

6: Scarlet Nexus (which makes it by virtue of being the last game from this year I've played so far)

And the games I'm looking forward to but waiting for discounts on or just aren't out yet that I think could slot here...

Chicory, Lost Judgement (which I have to play Judgement first, so it likely won't make it), Guardians of the Galaxy, Metroid Dread, Returnal, Jett the Far Shore, The Forgotten City, House of Ashes (I skipped the last two Dark Pictures games, but the audacity of this one's premise has my ears perked), Last Stop (maybe?) and Alan Wake Remastered because it never came to Sony platforms. Hopefully I can get to them all!

1. NieR: Replicant

2. Voice of Cards

3. Monster Hunter Stories 2

4. Resident Evil 8

5. Ender Lilies

6. The Good Life

Resident Evil Village so far. Metroid Dread couldn't top it for me.

Spent most of this year tackling old games in the library. But out of the few I have played it would definitely be Psychonauts 2. Not my typical kind of fare however it was rather refreshing after finding myself pretty burnt out on the stuff I usually go for. Dived into the Yakuza series this year as well. I'm just cherry picking the ones I want to play but I've enjoyed my time with them immensely.

Hitman 3 is still holding the crown for me this year with Resident Evil Village a close second.

Haven't played too many games released this year but maybe Hitman 3. I played that early on and had a lot of fun with it. Actually, now that I think about it, it might be MLB The Show 21. It doesn't do anything too crazy or new but I've found myself playing it daily and having a lot of fun.