2013 was a pretty rough year for a lot of us, especially here in the GB community.
I know that I fell off gaming for quite a while somewhere mid-year, and couldn't bring myself to play much.
I've tried catching up with what I've missed. It's slow going, and I feel like most of the excitement has been on handheld this year instead of console and PC which adds its own myriad of snags to the equation.
As a long-time fan of the Fire Emblem series, I was ecstatic to learn of a legitimate North American release of the series.
Solid story, backed with solid gameplay, refined mechanics and an easy mode for those who are turned off by the concept of perma-death, the wide-reaching appeal of this entry to the series should hook newcomers and fans alike.
It occurs to me that I don't play this game like any other. I mean- I've put somewhere along the lines of 10 hours into Rogue Legacy, and haven't beat a single boss. I tried once or twice near the start of my adventure, but my time has been spent snagging upgrades and filling out the family/tech tree. I put this game on when I've got a bit of time to kill and go for a run or two through the dungeon. The procedural generation and seeming unimportance of death has been more than enough to keep me coming back for more punishment.
I had some pretty high hopes for the sequel to Link to the Past, which is one of my absolute favourite games- to the point where I re-play it once a year. A link between worlds does not disappoint. It's like cozying up beside a warm fireplace and reminiscing with an old friend- rehashing your previous escapades. The newest Legend of Zelda instalment is a safe, comfortable, and surprisingly fresh adventure. While nowhere near as mind-blowing as the 1991 predecessor, it does great service to the name and memory of it.
I highly recommend it to fans and newcomers alike.
Think about it for a moment- You appear to be the last humans in a world ruled by anthropomorphic animals. Where did you come from? Where are the rest of the humans? How did this happen? Why the hell are there so many dinosaur fossils buried about 4 feet deep in the Earth, and why are you the only one capable of unearthing them and putting them in the museum? Why did they just command you to be mayor of some town you've never been to before without so much as a single vote involved in the process?
I like to think that someone is in a coma, and this is the world their mind has made for them- a brief escape from the pain and horror of the real world, hooked up to monitors and respirators, slowly and steadily beeping while your family and friends sit by your side and weep quietly.
Or you're a kickass mayor of animal-planet towns. Either one.
A spiritual successor to my top game of 2010 ZHP: unlosing Ranger vs. Darkdeath Evilman with improvements all across the board.
Name a marvel property. Go ahead. I'll wait. Now see if it's in this game. Unless you named Ultron, or something horrifically obscure (accepting for Squirrel Girl) to try and be a dick, then chances are that it's in here. There's 155 playable characters (not including DLC, but does include the 8 different Iron Mans, and other alternate skins). I mean, they've even got Howard the Duck.
The story is pretty absurd as is the case with most Lego games to date, which it revels in. If you're looking for a laid-back, easygoing romp, there are worse ways to spend your time.
Some good, dumb fun. Again. For like the third time.
While painfully short, and not very challenging (thanks to your matrix-style superpowers), it still retains some of the humour and style of 3, but has some rather glaring issues looking back on it. Namely: Gat is back- used to little, or no effect. And there's not really any purpose to where the story takes itself. It's feels mostly like a "ha- we totally did it." and then is pretty well ignored for the entirety of the game.
That said, it's a fun if not bittersweet swan-songs to one of the best dumb series, and the Toy HeadQuarters.
StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty was a fantastic entry to the series, and HOTS continues the lineage with the Zerg campaign. I've lost many hours (and matches) to the online, and will continue to do so with the Protoss.
The Year of Luigi kicked off with a bang. A great successor to the gamecube original. This game Oozes charm out of every single ghastly orifice.
While I was not disappointed in the updates that Brave New World brought to the table, it didn't capture the same magical time-vortex effect that siphons entire evenings away, causing me to look up from my "one more turn" and realize that the sun has arisen again.
