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AleeN634

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Best Games of 2021

2021 was a strange year. The first part of the year shows most of the big budget games that had mostly finished development during the pandemic and released in a good fashion. The second part of the year had multiple releases that showed big budget games developed during the pandemic but needed more development time. While the bigger developers had issues, this gave a lot more room for the indie developers to shine.

Things tried to get back to a form of normal this year, from having a digital only E3 to major releases for all the big franchises (although some worked better than others). But, there were also some things that were not normal like the reminder of the abuse scandals at several major developers to ongoing supply shortages for the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series consoles.

It also goes without saying that it was a major year for GiantBomb as well with the departure of 3 of the main staffers. Thanks for all the fun and memories Vinny, Alex and Brad!

List items

  • I'm so happy Age of Empires IV shows that real time strategy games can exist in the modern gaming era. The amount of work that went into the campaign made me particularly happy. History channel style full motion video cinematics between missions that both setup the missions and provide brief teaching moments for their related civilizations. Each campaign also emphasizes and encourages the user to play in different ways. From raiding and pillaging as the Mongols, building up the palisades of the kremlin in Moscow to fighting multiple civil wars as the English the campaigns are great at teaching different game strategies but learning history as well.

  • Resident Evil Village is a different beast. Village ramps up the action with a little less focus on the creeping horror (outside of a marionette sequence). The game moves quickly between different types of horror and scenarios with none of them overstaying their welcome. Well polished and executed, Resident Evil Village definitely perfects the new first person Resident Evil style.

  • Hitman 3 finishes the trilogy started with the Hitman reboot in 2016. The most polished of the Hitman games, Hitman 3 also mixes up the formula by playing with how stages are done. From a murder mystery to opening a stage with no objectives and slowly revealing them as the story progresses, Hitman 3 isn't afraid to mix up the formula established in the previous 2 games. The only thing preventing the game from ranking higher is the final stage puts story first but is too linear for a series that usually emphasizes relatively open and imaginative gameplay.

  • For as stressful and crazy 2021 was, Unpacking was a breath of fresh air for the usual action games that generally populate the last quarter of game releases. The thing that make unpacking work is the behind the scenes story as the years change. From seeing which items make it to the next sequence and those left behind, there's something fun about discovering what has changed and what hasn't as time passes. The puzzle of placing every item in its place is equally satisfying especially in the later chapters as the story comes together.

  • While releasing a year later than planned Halo Infinite proves the old addage, "A delayed game is eventually good, but a rushed game is forever bad." The game the Halo formula and manages to mostly successfully reboot the Halo sequels after the ending of the first major arc in Halo 3. Jettisoning the bloated story of the sequels for a more focused plotline helped narrow the focus of the overly convoluted story arc. Adding a medium sized open world segment and a grapple hook help shake up the formula but best of all, it still plays and feels like traditional Halo despite the additions.

  • Guardians of the Galaxy came out of a middling E3 presentation to pleasantly surprise me with a solid game. The story is probably the strongest point giving some characters like Drax a very complex arc when compared to the movies. The game also looks great with the team as Eidos Montreal really playing up the alien-ness and presenting colorful and unique worlds.

  • I didn't realize how much I missed Ace Attorney until I started playing The Great Ace Attorney. Ditching the modern day for a steampunk aesthetic, the change in era helps Great Ace Attorney stand out from the older games. Not as flashy as some of the other games on the list, Great Ace Attorney shows that solving a good mystery is always fun.

  • Rift Apart is a solid addition to the Ratchet and Clank series. Looks great and plays well, Rift Apart is a great showcase for what the PlayStation 5 is capable of.

  • Dorfromantik is a chill tile based city/countryside builder. Matching edges to expand cities, forests and farms the game is simple to understand but difficult to master. A great game to unwind the day with.

  • 2D Metroid is back and a fun adventure. Metroid Dread doesn't really do anything super new outside of some chase/stealth segments with E.M.M.I robots (that kind of got annoying by the end) but the core of exploring and unlocking new upgrades remains as compelling and fun as ever.

  • The 2021 re-release of Super Mario 3D World included a mini campaign called Bowser's Fury. Bowser's Fury gives a sneak peak as to how an open-ish world 3D Mario game would work. If the bonus mode had been a little longer Bowser's Fury could have been easily made the top ten.

  • If someone told me that an updated or remake of Actraiser (an almost 30 year old game) would be released in 2021 I would have never believed it. While not every change worked Renaissance does attempt to update the game by adding more action sequences and a new world. Getting Yuzo Koshiro to do both a Super Famicom and orchestral soundtrack is the best bonus.