2019 was a kind of bizarre year in games. At the midway point of the year I thought the industry was in sort of a drought, but by the end I realized there was way too much good stuff for me to find the time to play it all. With that said let's get to it.
2019's 2018 Game of the Year
Celeste was my favorite game of 2018 and looking back my decision to call it game of the year last year was absolutely right, so this category needs some adjusting.
How about this wholly not contrived title?
2019's 2018 Game of the Year that wasn't Celeste and that I played late in the year thinking it was a 2019 release when it wasn't.
Wandersong - I remember when I first heard about this game. It was just some random post I saw on Twitter. I liked the cute look of it and put it in the back of my mind as something I want to get around to playing at some point. As with many games on the my personal backlog of doom I just sort of forgot about it and moved on with my life. Then one day it showed up on Gamepass.
I didn't know what to expect aside from a very cute visual aesthetic coupled with a story about a bard out to save the world, but as it turns out what I found was an audiovisual tour de force with great characters and surprisingly clever game mechanics.
The aesthetic is more than just cute, it does things visually that are legitimately impressive in terms of portraying both scale and emotion. As the game plays out it never ceased to amaze me how much genuine emotion the rendering of a mountain or a city could pull out of me. It's something I'm not used to having happen to me in a videogame.
Of course as quick as I am to credit the look of the game for generating those emotions it had considerable help from both the writing and music. The writing of the central cast in this game, and some of the side characters, I think it might be the best I've ever experienced from the medium. Sometimes the game is hilarious or hopeful, and often, it's heartbreaking. It puts you through the full gamut but it always has you feeling something.
This is a game about music (among other things) and I'll be honest, I'm not really qualified to talk about music. I will say that I'm going to be carrying a lot of the more mournful melodies the bard makes in this game with me for a long time, but aside from that there is more than just sadness in this games music there is also a great deal of hopefulness or celebration.
I won't elaborate at length on the mechanics of the game except to say that my first impressions of the game ended up being wrong. Early on I was under the impression that all you were going to be doing in this game between exploring the world was a sort of rhythm game-esque matching of onscreen symbols, and while that remains a staple of the game it has more to hang its hat on than that. It's not long before the game starts working in new mechanics and light puzzles along with a few sections that are just total curveballs.
TLDR: Wandersong is really great and you should play it.
Quick List of non-2019 games I enjoyed this year that aren't Wandersong and are listed in no particular order:
Yakuza Zero, Rocket League, Ding Dong XL, Dragon Ball FighterZ, Human Fall Flat, Yakuza Kiwami, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Danganronpa 1,
Danganronpa 2, #IDARB, Super Blood Hockey, Yakuza Kiwami 2
Most Disappointing Game of 2019
I'll preface this by saying I actually enjoy these games for their gameplay, but man, what a freaking letdown. The original Borderlands was legitimately something unique and alongside my pal @fazzle we had a ton of fun playing through it together. Hell, I even enjoyed it solo. Borderlands 2 was basically Borderlands but more. It was fine for a sequel, but a bit disappointing since it felt like the first game had so much potential. I think back then I was hoping for Borderlands 2 to be the game that eventually Destiny ended up being.
The Pre-Sequel was a game done by a different team. I didn't play much of it, but it seemed fine.
This game though, don't get me wrong. I'm having fun with it, but it's such a massive disappointment that this game is basically just Borderlands again while bringing virtually nothing new to the table. So many years have passed since Borderlands 2 that to release as this site likes to call it, "another one of those games," is just patently disappointing.
The writing is somehow worse than ever. This game could have, and should have, been so much more than it is. It's a shame. I'll still have a good time with it, but man this could have really been something. I guess Gearbox decided to play it safe given what an unmitigated disaster their non-Borderlands productions have been.
Runner-Up: Untitled Goose Game
Okay, okay, please put down the pitchforks. I enjoyed this game well enough. It was cute and everything, but it just felt so static. It needed to have more variable ways to achieve your objectives. The way the conversation around this game was framed I went in expecting this to be a more family friendly Hitman, but instead it was a game thats charm helped cover up the fact that it was a pretty mediocre puzzler.
And with all that out of the way my top 10 games released in the 2019 Calendar Year.
10. Gears 5
As someone who has enjoyed the entire Gears of War saga, even Judgment, I was excited for this game. Gears 4 left the story in a cool place and I was ready to see where this game would take us. In the end I'm left ambivalent on this game.
The multiplayer suite is better than ever. I don't do a ton of multi in these games but when I feel like dropping in I always have fun. For a lot of people this is all that matters with this franchise and good for them they will have a great time.
The traditional Gears style missions in this game are as good as they have ever been and still a total blast, but the open world stuff. My god, the open world stuff. At first I was fine with it, but in the end you just spend so much time traversing a barren wasteland devoid of anything interesting and your reward is a micro-Gears experience when you find an area to play. I appreciate that they tried something different instead of just making another Gears, but they tried and failed. If they decide to do an open world again they need to find a way to populate it with stuff to keep players interested. As it is the traversal isn't fun and there's just so much of it.
The conspirator in me wonders if this empty open world was a way to pad the length of the campaign. We don't know what Gamepass has done to budgets, but it's hard to imagine it's a deal where Microsoft isn't bleeding money in the short term. Either way, this game is still fun but it could have been better. Here's to getting it right next time.
9. Apex Legends
These types of games don't really hold my attention very well, but alongside @fazzle I had a good time with this one. I was a huge fan of Titanfall 2 and this game has its smooth controls and fast moving gameplay. Would I have vastly preferred a Titanfall 3? Yeah, but this is still a fun game. I've long since dropped off, but I do hear generally positive buzz about the new characters that have been added and I still look back fondly on my time playing it. Maybe I'll return to it someday?
8. Mortal Kombat XI
I didn't get to play as much of this in multiplayer as I wanted to this year. I just got distracted by other games, but I had a real good with this while I was into it. I enjoyed the story and am excited by the opportunities the ending presents.
The actual fighting in this is probably the best it has ever been in the series. I think I could do without the borderline Final Fantasy summon length cut scenes for the desperation attacks at this point, but other than that I think this game felt super solid all around and again, hopefully I find some more time to play it.
7. Neo Cab
And now for something completely different! Neo Cab was a game that called out to me with it's cyberpunk aesthetic and near-future premise of a world where autonomous driving vehicles have almost completely taken over. The gameplay which is almost entirely having conversations with people riding in your cab, was filled with really interesting, sometimes bizarre exchanges that despite occurring in this cyberpunk future are still relevant in today's society. The overarching main plot, while not as compelling as many of your passengers own tales is interesting enough to drive the game forward.
I think it's also worth shouting out the game's graphical style. The camera angles and character art are very well done and definitely memorable.
Overall I can recommend Neo Cab as one of the better visual novel type games I've played in recent memory (alongside Doki Doki Literature Club).
6. Super Mario Maker 2
It's well documented at this point that the interface for level design in Mario Maker 2 isn't quite as smooth and snazzy as that of the original, and that this game is more a half-step than a true sequel, but it' still a lot of fun to make levels and drink of the bottomless content well that this game is. Anyone who knows Mario knows what you're getting with this game, and that's still a great product. Hopefully in the near future Nintendo does something to better serve the game's community, but I'm not gonna hold my breath on that one.
5. Tetris 99
I respect and love Tetris, and my appreciation of this game and its brilliance has only grown with age. I never imagined that this game would be Nintendo's entry into the Battle Royale field but I've loved every second of playing it. The fairly priced DLC pack adds a suite of single player modes to round out the package that makes this a great product. Also, I can think of no better podcast game released this year. Will definitely be playing a lot of this in 2020, and maybe just maybe I'll finally win a game. Certainly had more than a few heartbreaks at this point.
4. Cube World
Didn't have a good title shot so here's an image of some weirdos watching me sleep.
Anyone who knows me can testify that I often champion the virtues of Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind as one of the greatest games of all time. It was the first game where I felt a real sense of wonderment at exploring and ever since then it's a high I've been chasing. Cube World? It doesn't quite reach that height, but it offers a ton of adventures to be had across multiple continents in a massive world. Unlike most games of its ilk the mechanics of Cube World ensure that no sooner do you reach the top of the food chain that you find yourself back at the bottom of it. The basic loop of the gameplay is discovering quests and completing them to build your gear up, but no-sooner do you become mighty and solve the mysteries of the area you're in it's time to go to the next area, and aside from certain specially marked items nothing you carry over from that zone you were in to the next has any real power. For some people this is a turn-off, a massive one, but for me it just means the adventure begins anew. This game is freaking awesome and people are sleeping on it.
3. Ape Out
Ape Out is short. The game takes no more than an hour or two at most to blaze through start to finish, but it's such a visceral experience. I think of the games on this list, this more than anything is on here because of its intertwining of gameplay and music. Playing this game I felt my very being merged with that of the titular ape. My only focus? Survival at all costs. This game is just so intense and certainly had the best "game feel" of any game I played this year. I need to play it again.
2. Dragon Quest XI S - Definitive Edition
One question I've litigated to myself, re-litigated, and litigated again over the years is the question of which Dragon Quest game, 5, 7, or 8 was the greatest in the series? With the release of Dragon Quest 11 S - Definitive Edition that question becomes much easier to answer, because it is not only the best Dragon Quest game I've ever played it's also the best JRPG I've ever played.
It plays to the same visual strengths that Dragon Quest 8 had in terms of the world being vibrant and the characters, particularly your cast of heroes and the enemies you face in battle, being full of life and personality. Honestly the strength of these things alone is enough to carry it into the top 4 games in the series, but it does a number of things to separate it from other Dragon Quest games and put itself at the front of the pack.
The crafting system in this game is brilliant, particularly here in the definitive edition where you can craft from almost anywhere in the world. It's not just gather a few items and forge an item from that, instead you can craft and or upgrade items playing a mini-game using the forge. As the game moves along you get new skills to make your performance in the forge more consistent. I really enjoyed this and thought it was a fun new pillar to consider when making my equipment decisions in the game.
The actual story is so much better than any other Dragon Quest, even VII, which I have a lot of respect for. The start is traditional enough, but the execution is superb and I feel like this game does a better job of raising the stakes than any other game in the series. Where it ends up going genuinely surprised me. They packed more and better adventure into this game than ever bfore, and that's to say nothing of the new material they added to the main story for this definitive edition and the fun subplot of the 8-bit world.
The combat system is very traditional Dragon Quest in that it's fast and offers a great deal of variety for approaches to combat. The character skill trees they used for this particular iteration of the game in place of the job system do a quality enough service of giving you some choice throughout much of the game, but are rendered somewhat moot by the true end game as you'll have acquired virtually everything. Even so the characters each have a unique feel to them and you can approach end game situations in any number of ways.
In almost any other year this would have been an easy choice for game of the year, but this year saw the release of a product that I think is transformative.
1. Ring Fit Adventure
I'm a running freak. Running has for a long time been my primary method of exercise, and really, the only one I've been able to stick to. Over the last several years I've ran 4-6 miles a day on 3-4 days a week on the regular with some significant periods where I'd do more than that almost daily. Treadmill, outside, often even in brutal winter conditions I'd go running. However, exercise, much like stocks, is something you should diversify. The singular focus on running had me deal with a lot of injuries over the years until I finally figured out how to listen to my body, and even then taking appropriate rest between sessions has been a struggle that has caused me undue anxiety.
Early in 2019 I tried to get into weightlifting, but balancing it and running and not having the funds to afford a true fitness professional in my life I found it to easy to injure myself, and much more severely, than I would in running. So I put down the weights after a few months and just went back to running.
When this game first appeared on the horizon I took notice, but didn't give it too much mind share since I figured this would be something along the lines of Wii Fit in that it's not a true workout, but as its release approached it sounded more and more like this might be a valid second pillar for my fitness strategy. It'd be something I could do on my recovery days from running.
As it turns out this has been an excellent low-impact addition to my fitness plan that I use even on running days. It has allowed me to scale back my running on certain days which has saved me a great deal of physical and mental exhaustion and helped me get a quality workout on areas of my body that running doesn't address. Perhaps more surprising than that is that the game wrapper for this fitness program is really fun.
Both the execution and presentation of this game is very strong, and it's that tandem quality that makes it feel less like work and more like a game. Much like a classic JRPG as the game unfolds your experience gains unlock you new skills and powers and you have to start making decisions about your exercises you have equipped at the time and your inventory of potions. Eventually you even unlock a skill tree, and then an expansion of it.
The world being so bright and colorful and the music being kind of catchy helps to distract from what would normally be a monotonous inside workout. The game has the good sense to someone provide context clues to your workout if it senses something wrong with your form in both voice and text on the bottom of the screen in-case your listening to a podcast while playing the game.
Even the game's goofy story is better than I dared imagine it would be, but honestly the fact that they managed to craft a product that lets me have fun while doing what would normally be an incredibly boring inside workout is an achievement. This could be a one-time thing or it could be the dawn of an era of actually quality fitness games, but no matter what the case, and no matter how much horrifying slash fiction this game's story mode results in, it's certainly my Game of the Year.
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