Another year is now over and it's truly been one to remember, a year that overwhelmed us with amazing games. It's had its share of good and bad moments but now it's time for me to celebrate what 2023 had given us within gaming and award that which deserves praise. I started doing these blogs back in 2012 and 2023 like all other years found a way to be unique. Feel like I got to play most of the games that I wanted this year and those that I've yet to play don't make me wait with this blog. As always there will be spoilers. Now lets get this show going and first out is..

The Anticipated

The top 5 games that I looked forward to this year that got released this year and which I had the chance to play:

5: Baldurs Gate: 3

4: Like a Dragon: Ishin!

3: Fire Emblem: Engage

2: Final Fantasy 16

1: Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom

What game lived up the anticipation the best?

Final Fantasy 16 - High expectations I had and high expectations were warranted and high expectations this game cleared by then some which is why this game wins this award. I had higher expectations of Zelda but it didnt clear them or surprise me as much as FF16 ended up doing. The game isn't perfect but the contrast between what we got and what I expected this game can be seen as a huge success. It delivered by and large what I had hoped and did so in such a manner that it felt rather easy to hand out the award to this game! Square Enix knows how to develop memorable games and I have high hopes and expectations on future games from them!

The largest disappointment

Assassin's Creed: Mirage - This game is a return to the old formula and I quite liked that decision. That's also where a lot of what I like ends or really starts running into "I like this but..." the game got flaws. It's narrative is mediocre, the story and antagonists are lacking, the cast of characters cant really be called characters and the gameplay is a mix of old and new in a poor match. Fortunately game was cheap.. fortunately it was short. Fortunately Ubisoft can do better next time!

Places 10-8

10: Like a Dragon: Ishin! - Had wanted for so long to get this game to the west, to get the chance to play this amazing game and to return to the world of Yakuza/Like a Dragon in whatever shape possible. Had higher hopes than the game delivered but it's by no means a disappointment, it is a good game, great even but in a year like 2023 that only leads to 10th!

9: Bramble: The Mountain King - The indie game that could! It's a short, pretty game that deals incredibly well and respectully Nordic folklore and as a Swede I appreciate that a lot after recent years less respectful treatment. As a game it's not perfect, a bit simple but where the game needs to be strong, it's instead incredible. Truly an example of why I love indie games and always try to play some every year. Game got one of my favorite parts of the year in it!

8: Star Wars: Jedi Survivor - Shocking to see this game this far down the list but 2024 is that kind of year where even small weaknesses can mean lost positions. The game got a great story, lovely characters and beautiful worlds but it was not daring enough for me, I wanted a game that delivered more than the same.. just greater. But Star Wars will always be a win in my books!

The Unexpected

Alan Wake 2 - Given that before October of 2023 I had never played a single second of any Alan Wake game it's incredible that the game is even here but thanks to dear friends giving it good praise I started my journey and played Alan Wake and Control before tackling this incredible game that showcases how much you can deliver as a developer with skill, love, brilliant leadership and making each euro count! The game is deserving of all the praise it's been getting, all the love and so to is the developer and Sam Lake. This is proof that games are more than entertainment, games are marvelous pieces of art when done right and this game shocked me on how good it is. Fucking amazing!

Places 7-5

7: Fire Emblem: Engage - Ya know.. I didn't really fancy this game when it got announced. Even joked for a long time that the protagonist looked like toothpaste! But man I got to swallow my words when the best gameplay I've experienced in a Fire Emblem game was showcased. The game is beautiful with great characters but it is the gameplay here that rules. It is beyond exceptional in the area it needed to be the most. In a year like 2024 that means a strong 7th position!

6: Like a Dragon: The Man Who Erased His Name - It kills me that this game only ends up in 6th position this year. This game deserves better because of how amazing the entire package is. We get an awesome story, we get to see Kiryu at his best again and we get to kick so much ass that I can confidently say this game better than almost all others in the series showcases why Yakuza/Like a Dragon is so dear to me. This game is exactly what I needed, this game can never get enough love!

5: Resident Evil 4 - It will be a theme for this year, amazing games not ending up in finer positions. This game is a candidate for my all-time favorite Resident Evil game! It offers spectacular amounts of fun with strong gameplay, strong characters, and really beautiful visuals that showcases how far modern games have come over the years. The OG is amazing and is worth a play just like this one. Together they deliver fun in spades! Oh Ada mi amor <3

Best Soundtrack

Final Fantasy 16 - Was so tight between two games for this award. This year din't have the best OSTs I've heard but it doesn't mean there weren't some awesome tracks and FF16 wins because it had the best tracks at the right moments in the story and that resonated strongly with me when I played the game. It got the emotions and feelings going!

Most Impressive Aesthetic

Alan Wake 2 - Stiff Nordic competition for this award this year. Ended up with Alan Wake 2 because given the budget the devs worked with the game got no right looking this amazing. It's a visual feast no matter what area of the game you play in, weather it's dark or if it's bright.. it doesn't matter, the game looks incredible, the animations are strong, the characters look fantastic and the areas are worthy of an award by themselves! The way it uses color, the way it uses light and just the life it manages to conjure up through its aesthetic is inspiring and remarkable! What a truly beautiful game this is!

Place 4

Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom - WHAT!? Only 4th!? Yepp! That is the kind of year we're dealing with here where a game that deservedly get as much love as this one has gotten only manages a 4th position and that is a shame! The game is an upgrade from Breath of the Wild but not enough to warrant a higher position. I had hoped they would make better use of the sky world than they did but that aside the game is flawless and a safe game to buy because one don't get disappointed here, there's a beautiful world to explore and many fun battles to be had as we once again rescue our princess!

Best Expansion

Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Libery - First time I have this award and this game is the reason. I couldn't stand the idea of doing this blog entry without getting the chance to gush about how amazing this expansion is and how it's the icing on the cake of the redemption story CDP has been on ever since the disaster launch of Cyberpunk 2077. The game is amazing now, and this expansion is the best the game can offer. This expansion is the GOTY of expansions in recent years. It offers fantastic gameplay, the best story and characters possible with a beautiful and "ugly" world that only a Cyberpunk game can managed. This is why I play video games, this expansion makes me unimaginably excited for what CDP has in store next, the same way I was before the original release of the game. For Songbird I will walk a thousand miles, for Songbird I will walk a thousand more!

Best Game Played That Was Released In The Past

Metro Exodus - I never in a million years expected this game to be here! This game was the first game I played in 2023 and it's amazing, gave 2023 the best damn start to a year I've had since 2017 and it very nicely captures why I love Metro as a series. You never really know what awaits around the next corner.. or next sand dune. Artyom and his band of merry lunatics are characters I can't wait to get back to, I cant wait to play this series again and be blown away by the horrors of war and nuclear armageddon that this series drives home. A stark reminder after the year the world has had in 2023. We must be better and in Metro Exodus they are, let's be like Artyom, like Anna! Let's brave this dangerous world like they did becuase they really drove home how epic it's to fight for a better world, a better life for the ones you love and I'm a softie for those stories!

Place 3

Final Fantasy 16 - Ends up in 3rd, against some incredible competition this year of the games I've played this game managed to get onto the podium by how incredible the experience of playing the game was. I couldn't put down the controller when I played, I couldn't be more in awe over the boss battles I experienced and that's in the end a lot of the reasons why I play video games. I want to get awed, I want to feel like a big goddamn legend and the issues this game got are valid but they don't matter much when the strengths the game has are in the areas I deeply needed the game to be strong in and therefore there is no doubt in my mind why this game very much deserves to be in top 3, why the game deserves the praise it's been getting. I love this game, it is FF and it's amazing!

Best Side Content

Like a Dragon: The Man Who Erased His Name - The Yakuza award as I jokingly call this award once again goes to a game form the series. They often get this award because they often deliver the best side content that enhances the experience of playing these games, why I can get so many hours out of them and why I always am so happy to play mahjong each time! The whole arena stuff this time around took time and I loved it because it dealt with some of the best parts of the game, it's amazing combat! I could actually fire up the game just to play the side stuff and I got the platinum so it wouldnt even be to get that!

Best Gameplay

Marvel's Spider-Man 2 - It felt so good to be back swinging in this game! It felt so good to be back at kicking ass and it really felt so good to be Spider-man again, both versions of him! The gameplay is this game true strength and it got many strengths! The both Spider-men deliver similar but different playstyles that made the entire experience of playing this game an absolute joy! I finished, I platinumed the game in no-time and much of that comes down to how FUN it was to play this game and how FUN each new addition to the gameplay was and in the end gameplay matters for video games. Sometimes much and sometimes not, for Spider-man if the game play had been bad I'd have awarded the disappointment award instead.. but now it gets this award and much deserved!

Place 2

Marvel's Spider-Man 2 - For the longest time this game was my GOTY winner but it was only at the very end of the year it got dethroned and to be honest only when writing this blog it lost to the winner. That's how much I love this game and how amazing I think the game is. The game is an exceptional package, maybe the best package deal of the year for me but sometimes being overall amazing just isn't enough and not even the gameplay, the visuals, the animations or the action-packed story can give you the edge. Sometimes you can do everything right and still not win. A life lesson that rings very true here. The game did everything right, it deserves to win..

Character of the Year

Saga Anderson - IS THE WINNER! Another award that went down to the wire between two very deserving winners but she edges it out by virtue of being in my headspace the most this year of all characters. She is a badass as a "normal" person. Her special gift aside she feels like someone you can actually run into and that makes her achievements, her success and her challenges hit all the more and I couldn't wait to get back to playing as her when I wasn't. Each hour with Saga was a true blast as we braved that horror of a world she was forced to deal with, in that horror story she was written into. She did her Swedish heritage proud! She made me proud! I love Saga, always will!

Game of the year

This years Game of the Year award goes to ALAN WAKE 2! - THIS is the game that kicked Spider-man 2 of the throne by the smallest of margin, this is the game that won as I wrote this blog. This is the game I didnt have on my radar until October of 2023.. this is the game I played two other games for just so I could enjoy it more and when you put in that effort, when you put in that time and hear so much good about a game it's a relief, a magical feeling getting to play a game like Alan Wake 2 and it more than any other game perfectly captures why I believe video games to be the best medium we have! It can do things no other medium can.. it can merge other mediums into it and achieve spectacular things. Alan Wake 2 is a survival-horror game that made being tense fun. It made wondering what that fucking shadow in the distance was hiding.. it made trying to dechipher all the clues I had and get the deductions at the end a mental stimulation unlike any other this year. I love this game because it was developed by people that had fun, they were likely stressed as fuck developing the game but I can tell they had fun. If nothing else have you guys even seen their dancing/singing at the actual awards show this year? Watch it and then you will understand why in the end, this award couldn't go to any other game than Alan Wake 2. 2023, a year with more amazing games than many other, where I got to play only some of them Alan Wake 2 saw off fiercer competition than most years since I've been gaming and that makes this award all the more magical.. like a story one can't believe Alan Wake 2 won.

Wow, and so comes the end of another blog. I've now been giving out this award for over 11 whole years now! Time really flies and 2024 looks promising for gaming and should hopefully be able to deliver some reprive for us that are around to deal with a world gone mad and mader and madest and madester and madesterest than ever before. Until then, bye-onara!

Another year is now over and it's truly been one to remember. It's had its share of good and bad moments but now it's time for me to celebrate what 2022 had given us within gaming and award that which deserves praise. I started doing these blogs back in 2012 and 2022 like all other years found a way to be unique. Feel like I got to play most of the games that I wanted this year and those that I've yet to play don't make me wait with this blog. As always there will be spoilers. Now lets get this show going and first out is..

The Anticipated

The top 5 games that I looked forward to this year that got released this year and which I had the chance to play:

1: Horizon: Forbidden West

2: Elden Ring

3: God of War: Ragnarök

4: AI: The Somnium Files - Nirvana Initiative

5: Xenoblade Chronicles 3

What game lived up the anticipation the best?

Xenoblade Chronicles 3 - When this game made the list, even the top 5 I had actually only played Xenoblade Chronicles 2 and wasn't super into the series. That changed a fair bit when I played Xenoblade Chronicles 1 earlier this year to get ready for this game. Having played both of those great games made me feel anticipation for this game. It made me believe that maybe we're in for a treat and holy shit what a treat we were in for! This game blew my anticipation out the water, it showed that I can never really be sure on what will rock my world and what will get the largest grin on my face. The developers of Monolith Studios did themselves real proud with this game. It crushed it!

The largest disappointment

Saints Row - It's been a few years since there were a truly worthy winner of this award. Kinda felt bad about handing it to pretty decent games that just didnt match their fierce competitors. This time however, the award very much goes to a worthy winner, this time I played one truly disappointing game that honestly should cause the involved people to question themselves. The developers likely did all they could but man this game.. is truly not worth the money anyone would ask for it. The story is oof, the characters are unimaginative and a waste of potential and the combat just dont feel good at all. Just.. nothing about this game really gives me hope for the series going forward. I for one won't be all too eager to giving it my money, it will have to earn it, bloody fucking earn it.. So to anyone that's not played it yet, if you really must play it then please wait for a sale, preferably a good 75% sale or something. You deserve better!

Places 10-8

10: Victoria 3 - Maybe a sign I missed some great games this year as while Victoria 3 is a good game it's lacking a lot of the stuff a game that deals with strategy, nation building, economics and politics really needs. It's fun, don't get me wrong here, the hours can fly by at an insane pace when you really get into it but the game can be much better and that's why it only is 10th on this list.

9: The Quarry - The successor to the famous Until Dawn game and this one delivers! Enjoyed it way more than I thought it woukd, it shows that the developers learned a fair bit from Until Dawn and while Until Dawn maybe was spookier this one felt as a more complete game, a more complete experience where the characters were more developed and not only living from being scanned from famous actors. This game really made me look forward of what is to come!

8: Pokémon Legends: Arceus - This is the first Pokémon game I play in well over a decade, since the age of Ruby, Sapphire and Emerald. This was a return to a series that means everything to my childhood and I'm glad that when I finally returned to it I returned to a game that gave 2022 a good start in terms of gaming and gave me a chance to once again love the silly world that is Pokémon

The Unexpected

A Plague Tale: Requiem - When I put this game on the list of anticipated games it didn't make the top 5 cut as I had only played the first games at the dying hours of 2021, finished it on new years eve and I was hooked. Couldn't believe I had looked past it. After that I maintained som anticipation for the game but with the fierece competition seen clearly by the list above it wasn't the main game on my radar for this year, not actually all that close to being it. So it had the chance to cause an upset and what an upset it did cause! This game completely blew the competition out the water for this award. I did never in a million years think I'd enjoy this game as much as I do and this is why gaming is so awesome. You think you have an idea on what games will rock your year but somehow the medium always have the ability to throw a wrench into the mix and this time that wrench is an amazing experience delivered by Asobo Studios and its hard working and skilled staff. Very, very well done to everyone involved! They delivered on all fronts and should rightfully feel very proud of what they achieved here. I love surprises like this! Gonna be talking more about this game later in the blog so stay tuned!

Places 7-5

7: Horizon: Forbidden West - This is a great game so don't let its position here fool you. It's more a sign that from here on the competition is insane! Horizon: Forbidden West struggles to step out of the prequel's shadow and while it developed Aloy, gave other characters some screentime and improved the combat it just didn't blow my world the same way the first game did. When the third game comes however, I will be there with open arms. I love this series!

6: AI: The Somnium Files - Nirvana Initiative - The first game really wowed me and once this game got announced I was all about it and in a way this game is better, it manages to step out of the first game shadow and it establish its own but similar style of weirdness that makes it very endearing and fun to play. A game that manages to combine smart mystery writing with goofy almost childish sillyness. Just showing that games CAN be both and can be both at the same time!

5: Triangle Strategy - I still can't actually believe that this name is its actually name.. but as silly as the name is the game is incredible! The visuals are a feast for the eyes and it got the cute animation a game of this kind needs. Really made it a wonderful time to keep the eyes on everything that happened. The music doesn't fail either, it got some absolute bangers and the key tracks that play at crucial moments are exquisite! The gameplay is complex but simple enough that anyone really can play it and for those that want to master it there's enough depth to keep the player busy for a while. The characters are some of the finest 2022 has to offer and really elevate the story and narrative with their personal struggles, beliefs and goals. The story and the narrative.. please play to find out why they're so amazing! I almost wish I could place this game higher!

Best Soundtrack

Xenoblade Chronicles 3 - Yepp, time for a new award to this game. It was some SUPER fierce competition for this award this year. Had to step away for a few hours to make a decision here and in the end the power of the flute wins it for Xenoblade Chronicles 3. This is the game where I at any given time can remember the most tunes, the most moments when the music blew me away and for that the game deserves the award. Not only that but it's kinda a core part of Xenoblade Chronicles games to have really awesome music so about time I could give the award to the series! So consider the music one of many reasons why you should play this game and why video game music should garner more respect and appreciation than it do now. The artists that made this soundtrack outdid themselves and are worthy of more than respect, they should be awed!

Most Impressive Aesthetic

Triangle Strategy - Mentioned it before but there's something about the aesthetic of this game that draws me in more than any other game this year and could compete with the best games I've played in the last few years in this aspect. The way it uses color, the way it uses light and just the life it manages to conjure up through its aesthetic is inspiring and remarkable. Feel like it manages this best when the game took place ina city or in the desert where it was an actual feast for the eyes. Sometimes it really isn't about how powerful the graphics are how bombastic the aesthetic is, instead it can come down to how considerate and careful the artists involved have been in making the art piece we all got the chance to play this year. This is not a game, not an aesthetic just anyone could do!

Place 4

God of War: Ragnarök - The game couldn't repeat the GOTY win I gave its predecessor managed but don't take that as a sign that this game is worse. It's not. It's instead in many aspects an improved experience than the previous game. The story I feel is better, the characters are without a shadow of a doubt better this time around. The visuals are as great as always and it's music.. did the game have music? Jokes aside the OST is it's most glaring weakness. I can't for the life of me actually remember a single tune. The gameplay is solid, of high quality but it's not all that different from the previous game and I will have to admit that after a while it got a bit boring, a bit lacking. The game didn't have a single challenging fight for me which the previous game did so that's why this amazing game only end up 4th instead of higher, that and the 3 games left are some of the best I've played in a long time!

Best Game Played That Was Released In The Past

Hollow Knight - WHY DID I NOT PLAY THIS GAME SOONER!? Past me is an absolute fool for not having played this incredible game before! This is among the top 20 games I've ever played and I'm beyond grateful to past me for adding this category so I can award this game something, to give my praise to it in public because this game is perfect! This game got one of the most amazing aesthetics I've ever seen, it got some of the most beautiful visuals I've ever seen and I explored this game for hours just to see what other beautiful views it had to offer, and each time it outdid itself. But the game is much more than a feast for the eyes, the game offers a challenging, but fair gameplay that encourages the player to keep trying, to overcome the challenges the game and we as players put in our way and the feeling of managing to take down a diffuclt boss is the kind of feeling I chase at all times, why I play games that can drive me mad. Hollow Knight also sport a really interesting story that is told with great care through clues, through observations and in small part through words. For those that love only gameplay this game is perfect, for those that love story this game is perfect. For those that love the medium that is video games, this game is perfect. Man I fucking love video games...

Place 3

Elden Ring - Woah, only 3rd?! Yeah, the competition this year is pretty crazy when a game that is as amazing as Elden Ring actually is only manages 3. Only manages is kinda harsh for being 3rd is a sign just how good the game is and that the developers should be proud for having achieved to take the Dark Souls formula into an open world setting where it always was an adventure to be had, always some fight to be had and some view to see that would take your breath away. Elden Ring wont dethrone Bloodborne for me but it's another phenomenal addition to the already insanely good series of games that FromSoft keep producing. These guys just dont stop giving us players amazing experiences and with Elden Ring entierly new audiences got the chance to see why so many of us absolutely love FromSoft games and why getting your face smashed in can be so much fun. The gameplay felt good, want to try magic next time I give it a go and see just how powerful and almost broken I can be! And that's where a lot of fun with Elden Ring comes, finding what works for you as the player and drawing upon all the strength that comes from perfectly clicking with a style and the many bosses that will fall to us, the players when we do our best. This game makes me want to keep trying, to learn, to be better and with a good OST, amazing visuals, great combat and an interesting story that gives context to our many fights Elden Ring never really stops being an outstanding way to spend my time.

Best Side Content

Horizon: Forbidden West - Wasn't sure if I'd hand out this award this year as no game really had this area as their strength but I make this blog in part to remember the past, how each year was and that still is possible to achieve this year by giving Horizon the award this year. The side content isn't amazing but there is plenty of it and what is there usually is pretty fun. One can hunt, platform, explore and just do the things that a big quality open world will let you do and I will come back to the game in part just for that, and to hunt the trophies assoicated with these side contents. I am as always an absolut slut for trophies...

Place 2

A Plague Tale: Requiem - Hope you all survive the surprise of seeing this game here, all the way in 2nd place ahead of games like God of War and Elden Ring! Games that for most people will be GOTY or 2nd place but for me this year everything clicked when I played Requiem. I love this game, I absolutely love it and wish I could wipe my memory of it just so I could play it fresh once again. This game got an amazing story, gripping scenes with some actually good characters with Amicia the protagonist being more than just outstanding, she's a candidate for top 10 favorite protagonists of all the games I've played. She's however not carrying this game all the way to 2nd by herself. She is helped by some great visuals that really drives home how beautiful southern France can be and how much I adore games that involve the seas as much as this game does. A lot of the game takes place on an island that time and time again offers amazing views and solid challenges with its gameplay where combat and puzzles never outstay their welcome but elevate each other and gives the player a break from each other as to never get too much of either. Requiem is not a long game but it's a game where each hour is quality, where each hour was absolute enjoyment for me and I couldn't be happier than to see a game that's not AAA make it this far, to challenge for GOTY and come agonzingly close to winning it. So thank you developers for making this game, for giving my fall of 2022 memories really worth treasuring.

Character of the Year

Eunie - Holy shit do I adore this character, I adore her voice, her lines her story, her everything! Without Eunie I absolutely believe A Plague Tale: Requiem could've won GOTY but Eunie stood strong and gave me a seemingly endless amount of hilarious scenes, great dramatic scenes and just covered all the areas that a great character should. Eunie wasn't only blessed by a great voice actress and amazing lines but also given a design that just speaks to me. I love black her outfit seen in the image but more than that I just love how most outfits look on her! She never stops growing and developing as a character andI've said it before this is a favorite part of video games, of stories in general and Eunie at the end of the game is both the same amazing character she was at the start of it but also so much more. She's a complete character in every sense of the word and her writers gave her a kind of energy that you just don't find often enough. Eunie gave me life each time I saw her, each time she spoke and she's the absolute highlight of this year in games for me. Eunie is the bus!

Game of the year

This years Game of the Year award goes to Xenoblade Chronicles 3! Anyone that makes it this far into the blog knew it was coming, no game this year thrilled me as much as Xenoblade Chronicles 3 did, no game got PLAYED as much as Xenoblade Chronicles 3 did, no game better captures why I love video games than Xenoblade Chronicles 3 did. Chapter 5 on its own offers something that no book, no music, no TV series or movie ever can manage and I invite you to figure out why. Xenoblade Chronicles 3 offers the best story I experienced this year, the most enjoyable gameplay mechanic this year with its chain attack that honestly made me addicted the same way I suspect drugs or gambling can do to people. I had to get a new highscore, I had to! It was at times almost impossible to put the controller down when I was in the grove and hunted higher damage numbers. On top of this the game offered the best cast of characters this year and a cast that can stand toe to toe with the casts of any game that I've played the last 10+ years. Eunie is a well-known favorite by now but Mio, Lantz, Noah, Taion, Sena and worthy honorable mention Ashera achieved incredible things together. The cast of characters in this game is huge and I cant mention them all but it's very much thanks to the cast of characters and the writers behind them that the GOTY this year goes to Xenoblade Chronicles 3. I can't wait until I get enough free time to get back to playing this game, to complete more stuff and to one day replay the game. This time it won't shock me with its twist and turns but instead I will get the chance to appreciate how cleverly developed the characters are, the story is and all it turns it takes. You dont get games like Xenoblace Chronicles 3 all that oftne but when you do, I make bloody well sure to appreciate the shit out of the game. This game drew from its two predecessors and reached greater heights thanks to those two games and this award is in a way also a nod to Xenoblade Chronicles 1 & 2 for their brilliance that allowed Xenoblade Chronicles 3 to not only walk, not only run but to actually fly! So in case you've not played this game please do, please give this series a chance that it so very much deserves. Give some of gamings finest your hard earned time, it won't disappoint.

Wow, and so comes the end of another blog. I've now been giving out this award for over 10 whole years. T E N years! 2023 looks promising for gaming and should hopefully be able to deliver some reprive for us that are around to deal with a world gone mad and mader and madest and madester than ever before. Until then, bye-onara!

Another year is now over and it's truly been one to remember. It's had its share of good and bad moments but now it's time for me to celebrate what 2021 had given us within gaming and award that which deserves praise. I started doing these blogs back in 2012 and 2021 like all other years found a way to be unique. Feel like I got to play most of the games that I wanted this year and those that I've yet to play don't make me wait with this blog. As always there will be spoilers. Now lets get this show going and first out is..

The Anticipated

The games that I looked forward to this year that got released this year and which I had the chance to play:

1. Resident Evil: Village

2. NieR: Replicant

3. Tales of Arise

4. Atelier Ryza 2

5. Lost Judgment

What game lived up the anticipation the best?

Lost Judgment - While I did enjoy playing the first game it didnt wow me as it did for many other people and ended up being a pretty decent game. So went into this game with moderate expectations that got completely blown away! This game is in every way better than the original and a game that lit a desire in me for the studio to do more games like these that take place in an authentic world that isn't focused on the Yakuza. They got a fantastic talent in capturing humanity and all the struggles of modern life and I wish to see them do such justice to other topics as they did with many within this game. Outside of that the gameplay is more enjoyable now than it was before and of course with the added depth the game offers more to experienced people to master which is so important! That a game from a studio that I got high expectations on somehow managed to beat them while overcoming doubt from a previous underwhelming game is remarkable. Well done! Gonna be talking more about this game later in the blog so stay tuned!

The largest disappointment

Resident Evil: Village - It almost feels a bit unfair calling this my largest disappointment when the game itself didnt actually disappoint me as much as it just didnt live up or overcome expectations as well as the other entries previously mentioned. The game is good, great even and got some amazing moments and characters within it and I suppose that is also where the slight disappointment might be found. The best character of them all is taken out of the plot awfully quickly and while other portions after it manages to reach high peaks it still felt like a lot of missed potential with the best of the cast not being there. So for this year it isnt a disappointment getting an award here but a case of missing out on maximizing potential. Village is great, could've been better!

Places 10-8

10: Shin Megami Tensei V: Actually not entierly done with the game at the time of writting this but with so little left I feel comfortable putting it on the blog instead of it never making it. The game is good! First time I play this series and with the game being from Atlus it didnt take long to get into the swing of things. The game is beautiful with some pretty amazing scenery that make the world that much more interesting and this is the game strongest point. The gameplay of course is pretty enjoyable despite being harsh, what drags the game down is a meh story and characters that just dont really do it for me, except Nuwa.. always Nuwa!

9: Resident Evil: Village: After such an awesome game as Resident Evil 7 it was always going to be a tall order for this game to outdo it and it never really got that close either. Village is a great game but it isn't scary, it isn't making the player concerned about what will be found in the next room. It's however a very fun game if you just want to blow shit up and.. blowing shit up is always fun!

8: NieR: Replicant: Awesome story, awesome soundtrack and awesome visuals at key moments make this a very captivating game to play and one I feel like everyone should give themself the chance to play at some point. I'm thrilled I finally got to meet legendary characters such as Kainé and Weiss, to get more familiar with Emil and to see what Automata talked about. Just.. gameplay and other parts of the game could've.. been less of a bother.

The Unexpected

Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart - A series dear to my childhood that managed to blow my expectations out of the water. I did think it'd be good fun to play, maybe even be among the better games of this year but I did not expect to find the childhood series achieve the same kind of joyful excitement I had so many years ago when I played other games from Ratchet & Clank. This game managed to take on and overcome nostalgia, that is no small feast! Certainly do help being on the latest generation but technical stuff will never be the main reason a game surprise me as much as this game did, it will only be an aiding force to what I'm gonna talk about later in this blog!

Places 7-5

7: Tales of Arise: I badly wish this game was divided into two full games. It tries to do too much and therefor exposes weaknesses and missed potential. This is my real issue with the game, missed potential because the game itself if I just look at the amazing characters, good story, very enjoyable combat and beautiful visuals and music, Arise is absolutely a game every JRPG fan must play!

6: Metroid Dread: Shocking some of you to the core I'm sure to find it only at 6th. This was my first Metroid game and I really did enjoy it, its gameplay is exquisite, the visuals look actually great and Samus as a character proved to be just as much the badass I hoped she would be! I think the genre isn't ever going to be a favorite for me but despite that Metroid Dread proved that quality in all the areas that matters can make a fan out of anyone, even someone that dont love the genre!

5: Life is Strange: True Colors: Game of uneven quality, the lows are pretty low but the highs reach the stars. This game reach as far up as it does for my ranks because it nails the character interactions and that's the most important part in almost any game for me. If I love the characers I will likely end up loving the game itself despite obvious issues in other areas. This game does more than the characters well, it does the world the story takes place in very well, it does some great music and visually it's the best Life is Strange has ever looked.

Best Soundtrack

Library of Ruina - Goooood lord the music in this game is out of the world amazing. It got more 10/10 tracks that any game I've played since 2017. Ruina just don't do mediocre when it comes to music and it got no weak tracks. Outside of magnificent "normal" soundtracks that you can find anywhere in the game the cooperation with Mili gives this game a handful of 20/10 tracks that I will never stop gushing about. Ruina is an absolute feast for the ears and they've been blessed a lot this year with Ruina playlists going on in the background on most of my days!

Most Impressive Aesthetic

Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart - Being of the latest generation do give this game an advantage games on older generations got issues competing with but reality is that this game looks absolutely fantastic in its own right and utilize the advantage it got to the best effect an early game in a generation can. I never stopped smiling seeing new impressive sights hour after hour playing this game. It faced fierece competition for the award, so many amazing looking games out there to be enjoyed! This game is more than just beautiful, it's a promise of greater things to come!

Place 4

Persona 5: Strikers: No secret I love Persona games and looking at it from that angle it's no surprise this game made it that far but when taking into account the new genre and that fact that I had no experience of this genre it got a lot more uncertain but the series and the cast melt into its new mold without wasting time or effort and delivered instead a fantastic game that was non-stop fun to play. It was also awesome to get to spend time with a gang of characters that I fell hard for back in 2017 and will take every chance I can get to spend more time with. The fact that the game is a bit of a sequel is another win for the game as the characters now got a chance to grow from the events of Persona 5 and nothing ever beats seeing characters you love grow. Throw in some great music, awesome visuals and nail the gameplay and you get a game that got it all. No weaknesses to be found here and it speaks highly of games later in the blog that managed to beat an otherwise fantastic piece of media!

Best Game Played That Was Released In The Past

13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim - I AM SO HAPPY that I can give an award to this game that I never got the chance to play last year when it got out so playing it this year was a top priority and h o l y shit is the game incredible. It's likely the GOTY winner of last year if I had played it then and I know people have gushed about this game a lot and I'm joining them this year to make sure that no soul on this planet don't know how amazing this game is, how fantastic its characters are, how fascinating the world it takes place in is, how the narrative is a masterpiece, how visually charming it's, how captivating the music is, how absolutely GODDAMN PERFECT THE GAME IS so please play it, please please please! I'm going to give it a replay sooner or later, I need to get back to meeting Yuki, to meet Nenji, see Ryoko, Shu, Tomi and the rest. These kids are more than diamonds, they are all part of a genuine masterpiece

That you should play, yes

Please

Place 3

Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart: Yeah, this game is THAT good! It's unrelentlessly enjoyable to play, doing exactly what a video game should do and provide incredible quality in its entertainment! This game is among the most fun games I've played in years and it doesn't need the most amazing story or characters though they're pretty great, Rivet especially is a 11/10 case. This game is made by insanely skilled, hard working and passionate people. I don't know them personally but it's clear by the result of all their effort. The game speaks for them and it's always a privilege to play a game that ooze fun in everything it does, in everything it lets me, the player do. This game is F U N!

Best Side Content

Lost Judgment - A category that almost exclusivly seems to go to games made by this studio of devs. Wasn't that fierce competition for it this year but even if there were I'm absolutely confident that this game would win it anyways. These games thrive on quality side content, its quality minigames, side stories and the stuff that doesn't make the story or its characters reach new heights. The side content in this game brings life into the world that it all takes place in on top of being so much fun! It's not rare that of the total playtime half if not more end up being spent on the side stuff and that's when you know the stuff is good, when the OPTIONAL content brings the player back time and time again!

Place 2

Lost Judgment: There was absolutely nothing saying before release that I would love this game as much as I do. This game is among the finest the developers have ever made with possibly the strongest story they've made full of engaging twists and turns and a world populated with from beginning to end fantastic characters that brings life into the drama. Without this phenomenal cast of characters the magic wouldn't hit as hard as it does but now they're there and Lost Judgment tackle serious topics with grace and doing so while still making a very enjoyable video game. The gameplay is better than in the original Judgment game in almost every way and throw in the previously mentioned side content and it's an absolute bargain of a game full of quality content to enjoy!

Character of the Year

Angela - She was already good in Lobotomy Corporation but it's in Library of Ruina that she evolves into the extraordinary character that she is now. She in no small part is what makes both of these games as incredible as they are. She is at the very center of everything, of the more than one hundred hours it took to finish Library of Ruina and not for a single second, not for a moment, not for a scene is she anything less than perfect. Angela brings sass, she brings venom, she brings intelligence and she brings emotions. She never stops growing and developing as a character and like I've said, this is my favorite part of video games and at no point did any other character in either Ruina or other games manage to outdo Angela. She is a Magnum Opus of a character

Game of the year

The game of the year is Library of Ruina! - Where to start, it's among the best games I've ever played, easily making it into my top 20 and quite easily into the top 10 best ever games I've played. Library of Ruina is the sequel to the awesome Lobotomy Corporation and I can't recall seeing a sequel use the work of what came before it as well as Ruina does. It takes the hard work and creates divine quality in all its parts, in everything it touches Ruina achives excellence rare to be seen in not only video games but in any media, in movies, music or books etc. Ruina got no weakness that can detract from the unimaginable levels of enjoyment I had playing this game. The gameplay is super engaging and at times really harsh, making me swear, making me almost despair but with some quality help I overcame its many challenges and each win was like an oasis in the desert pushing me forward to the next challenge to overcome. But it's not the awesome gameplay that achieves the GOTY win for Ruina. Its music has already been mentioned as mong the finest in gaming and the same goes for the aesthetic and visuals of this game. This game just as easily could've also won that award and some days I will think it should've won it. The game is a feast for both ears and the eyes! Yet it's not the gameplay, the visuals and the music that are all peak in their area that does win the GOTY award for Ruina. The story builds upon hte fruitful effort of Lobotomy Corporation and evolves endlessly towards even greater heights the further into the game you get. The stakes rising and rising and rising and always doing so in a way that makes sense, that the reality of the situation of the narrative can keep up with what is happening. The world building of Ruina carries a heavy burden but it seems to do so almost effortlessly, without dropping the ball once and then enters the characters. The characters of this game are worthy of an award each and every one of them. The main cast is reason enough for me to entertain the idea of a mindwipe so I can meet them fresh again! Angela, Roland, Hod, Binah, Chesed, Gebura, Tipereth, Malkuth, Hokma, Yesod and Netzach all add their own magic into the mix and together they are an unbeatable team of class and excellence. The story and the characters that take the stage are what really set Ruina apart from the rest of gaming this year. They are among gamings finest!

Wow, and so comes the end of another blog. I've now been giving out this award for 10 whole years. T E N years! 2022 looks promising for gaming and should hopefully be able to deliver some reprive for us that are around to deal with a world gone mad and mader and madest than ever before. Until then, bye-onara!

Another year is now over and it's truly been one to remember. It's had its share of good and bad moments but now it's time for me to celebrate what 2020 had given us within gaming and award that which deserves praise. I started doing these blogs back in 2012 and 2020 certainly found a way to be unique from all other years before it. Feel like I got to play most of the games that I wanted this year and those that I've yet to play don't make me wait with this blog. As always there will be spoilers. Now lets get this show going and first out is..

The Anticipated

The games that I looked forward to this year that got released this year and which I had the chance to play:

1. Crusader Kings III

2. Final Fantasy VII Remake

3. The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel IV

4. Animal Crossing: New Horizons

5. Nioh 2

What game lived up the anticipation the best?

Final Fantasy 7 Remake - This is the game that handled whatever expectations I held the best and outdid them the most. Before this game I hadnt been much of a Final Fantasy fan but with such a legendary title having a remake the interest was there and while I didnt expect too much what I did expect got blown out of water and what was delivered was one of the finest games of the year and maybe even of recent times. I had an absolute blast playing this game from it's combat, visuals and many other aspects working so well together and created a fantastic game that's made me delve deeper into the FF series and made me truly look forward to what comes next for this magical franchise!

The largest disappointment

Crusader Kings III - Now the title makes it seem way worse than it actually is. I actually quite enjoy this game and play it every now and then so the question is why does it get the award despite this? Simply because the catergory exist and someone gotta have it and this isnt the first time the award goes to a game I picked up and enjoyed. Maybe it's simply a sign that I've gotten better at avoiding true disappointments over the year and 2020 would signal that to be true with an obvious candidate being Cyberpunk 2077 which I massively looked forward to yet didnt pick up at launch which seems to have been a smart deicison. What Crusader Kings III has dragging it down is that this game is the base game that attempts to compete with its predecessor CK2 which got many years of DLCs and balancing helping it out making it from the start an impossible battle for Crusader Kings III to win. Still with that said I somewhat expected a bit more as right now the game is fun but not fun enough to sink in the hundreds of hours a title like it should make me want to do

Places 10-8

10. Animal Crossing: New Horizons: First out is Animal Crossing! A game that came out in the time it was the most needed. Rarely if ever has a game been timed so well and this without any intention from its publisher or developer. I took the chance to jump onto this series and see what it was about and what I found was a relaxing and enjoyable game that while not as much to my taste as for others was still a welcome experience to handle 2020. Picking stuff, building, just taking my time doing things without feeling like I had to do something was a truly wonderful feeling

9. Hades: Always been a fan of Supergiant Games and loved all their games and Hades is no different. Not been completely captured by the game as of this moment but it's something that will happen in due time. That said it's possibly the best game that the developers have made and they should be proud of this beatuiful, entertaining and challenging game that tried to be unique and having success doing so. I'll for sure play it many, many, many times in 2021 and see it to the end!

8. Nioh 2: The first Nioh was a nice challenge and a good attempt at the formula and to challenge FromSoft but it felt like the developers could do a lot better and that's what they did with Nioh 2. Everything about the game is superior to the original Nioh and at times by a great margin. The bosses, the average enemy are more interesting this time around and with a character creator of incredible quality it's possible to create your perfect character that will be with you throughout the entire game. I love this game and while I wish the protagonist had a voice it's an acceptable lose if it means the well-developed character creator. Still got the DLC to play and I've heard plenty of good about them so.. I'll be back Nioh 2!

The Unexpected

Yakuza: Like a Dragon: Is the game that surprised me the most this year and I say that as an avid fan of the series. This game is a bold decision by the developers where they go for a new protagonist and a new combat system and to be honest the system was my largest concern and a reason why I held off getting the game until I could hear the opinions of people I trusted. With that extra time I came to realise that this game might have something for me and that it absolutely did. This is exactly the game that Yakuza as a series needed and exactly what I needed in 2020. The game that dared to embrace the nature of being a video game more than any other and said screw it, lets have a monkey drive a digger and be a boss fight! THAT is what I need more in my video games. Balls to the walls crazy should be embraced more often!

Places 7-5

7. Crusader Kings III: Already covered this a little but to go more in-depth the one thing this game has nailed better is making combat, the actual warfare much more enjoyable than it was in the past. Otherwise it's laid a very good foundation for the developers to build a game to overtake it's older sibling but until then it's just lacking that "thing" that makes me want to go "one more ingame month" and to see the hours fly past. It's good but it's not addicting yet!

6. Ghost of Tsushima: A game I also waited on picking up as money was tight but when I did pick it up I realised the praise it had achieved was well earned and within this game I found the perfect samurai powerstory. The game is clearly very beautiful but it's so much more than impressive graphics! It got a fitting and well crafted soundtrack that draws you in but what truly did it for me wasnt the story or the character but the gameplay which made me look forward to taking on my foes with ever growing enthusiasm and fun. What does it matter if I face 20 enemies! Just means I need to get a bit better at its mechanics and with time I did and so increased the enjoyment of this game. Enjoyed it so much I had to pick up the platinum trophy and at no point was that hunt a drag!

5. The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel IV - 2020 was the year I finally caught up with this series and a lot of the reason for that is because I wanted to enjoy this game as much as I could. Didnt care much for whatever reputation it had among some people. I knew this game could be amazing and to be honest it at times was just that amazing. It brought with it an awesome OST with some real bangers and visually it wasnt all that bad either. Gameplay was the same as usual and the story and characters were what I had become to know and love from Trails. Could technically talk about this game all day discussing its strengths and weaknesses but to put it briefly it's a decently long game that I for the most part enjoyed a great deal! A game with many high highs and a handful of low lows!

Best Soundtrack

Hajimari no Kiseki - No absolutely clear winner this year. Several strong candidates but the OST that I enjoyed the most belongs to this title. The OST is vast with varied quality so not every piece of music is all that great but most of the OST is damn good and the best tracks are phenomenal. I've had some of them playing almost non-stop since I finished the game just a few days ago as of writing this. What those tracks is bring back the memories of relevant scenes and the feelings I felt during those scenes and it's a blessing to be able to re-experience certain parts of the game the way that the OST of Hajimari allow me. The soundtrack got a song or music ready for every situation the game throws at us and some of the soundtracks in this fantastic soundtrack are so very good that I will listen to them for years to come and that is how I know that a soundtrack is a step above the others. I have a feeling this wont be the last time that a Trails game will be a winner of this category over the years to come!

Most Impressive Aesthetic

Final Fantasy VII Remake - An award that's often gone to Supergiant Games and their titles and almost did once again but the game that impressed me the most was instead FF VIIR and this isnt about being the most lifelike or anything but about pulling me in with the visual stuff and that's what this game did the best of every game played this year. This is a very beautiful game and is that without compromissing anything else about the game and it's how you use this strength that in the end separate the winner from the others.

Place 4

Persona 5 Royal - Wasnt sure how to approach this game in this blog post as it's the first time since I started in 2012 a game that's very much similar to its original form with a fair bit of additional content. Would I judge the entire game or would I judge just the new content? I went for simply judging the new content and the changes made to the old content. Persona 5 won my GOTY back in 2017 and this game is actually as a whole better with the addition of two amazing characters, a fantastic third season in the game so the new stuff is very, very good but not enough to reach further than 4th. Not every change is an improvement and Royal in a way showcase that this is the best that Atlus can do with this formula and for future releases I want something very different than what P3-P4-P5 have given us. Persona 5 Royal is a very good game in its own right and a worthy purchase for certainly newcomers but for many returning fans of Persona 5 that want more of what made them fall for the original.

Best Game Played That Was Released In The Past

Final Fantasy X - The remaster version in my case and my third ever Final Fantasy game. Always wanted to play it but never found that push I needed to make the leap but 2020 was the year where I finally did it and this game is a gem. It's aged not so well in some areas but where age hasnt affected the game is its characters. Some funny, maybe even charming character moments aside that's affected by when the game was made the character in this game are phenomenal and I feel not only for Lulu, Riku, Titus etc but more than anything I fell for Yuna and her story. It's what pulled me in and made me overlook the age of parts of the game and instead focus on its positives and the charm the game carries with it. The game is pretty too and not to mention got a fantastic OST with absolute diamonds such as "Return to Zanarkand" as maybe one of the best tracks I've ever heard. So if you want to give Final Fantasy a go and dont know where to start.. this is certainly not a bad place to start!

Place 3

Final Fantasy 7 Remake - The first podium position goes to this fantastic title. It's a position earned through a very enjoyable combat system, fantastic visuals, strong soundtrack and most importantly the good story with the essentially incredible characters that give the game, the world, everything the life a truly incredible game requires. What more than anything made me love this game is the characters. Tifa, Aerith, Cloud, Jessie, Barret and every other member in this game are crucial components in making this game as good as it is. Take one character away and it starts to fall apart and lose the brilliance it's worked so hard to build up.

Best Side Content

Yakuza: Like a Dragon - Yakuza games always got good side content and this game is no different. I probably by now have spent almost twice as much time doing the side stuff as I spent doing main content such as the main storyline and I dont regret a single moment. The management system, the can collection, the school, the racing.. everything comes together to create a very entertaining game that respect the players time by always attempting to find new ways to be fun.

Place 2

Yakuza: Like a Dragon - Wait.. more Yakuza!? Well yes it's such a good game that it managed to not only earn itself two awards but also work itself up to 2nd place among the best games I played in 2020 and it's by the smallest of margins it falls short to win it all. I've said it before but it's worth repeating, this game embraces being a video game better than most other games. Some try to be movies, some try to be serious so much they lose what makes games fun. All of that couldnt be further from the truth as Yakuza: LAD combines serious storytelling during the main story where complex questions and issues are tackled with due respect with the fun natured sillyness that video games are uniquely well-placed to embrace with its combat, side content and all the stuff around the main story and its characters. This game and Yakuza series has walked this line between serious and silly for so long they can do it in the sleep and still nail it. This game just nails it better than most of its predecessors and certainly better than the industry at large!

Character of the Year

C - Hajimari spoilers incoming, been warned! C or otherwise known as Rufus Albarea is the best character of 2020 for me. There've been many challengers but none as amazing as him. Hajimari took a well-developed character with insane potential yet to be filled from the end of Cold Steel 4 and when Hajimari was over I had experienced a truly remarkable character journey where a husk of a person had grown fully alive and full of vigour. I could gush on for ages about Rufus and the journey he did but it's a journey best experienced rather than read on some blog. It would be a grave injustice for me to spoil any detail.

Game of the year

Hajimari no Kiseki - Is the winner of 2020 Rah GOTY award and it just by the smallest of margins won over Yakuza: LAD. In the end the last game I played in 2020 ended up being the best game of the year. Truly ending a miserable year on a high! The story is really good, engrossing like no other this year for me. It completely absorbed me and in turn made me spend almost every free hour I had for just over a week on this game, the characters introduced in this game are some of the best that I have ever seen in a game and old favorites return to shine once again, some brighter than ever before. Not to mention the gameplay which is really enjoyable and about as good as I believe Falcom can make it with the current formula. The game is the best that the Trails series in my opinion has ever been and utilize the previous games and the work they put in for the series in a truly masterful manner which does all the hard work great credit. I cant wait until the west get this game localized so many, many others game enjoy this fantastic game. I imported a copy from Japan and with a spreadsheet done by heroes of the fandom experienced this game earlier than I otherwise would've and that in some part played a role in giving Hajimari the award it so well has earned. Well done Hajimari no Kiseki, well done Falcom. G O T Y!

And with all of that this blog is done and over. 2021 looks promising for gaming and should hopefully be able to deliver some reprive for us that are around to deal with a world gone mad and mader and madest. Until then, bye-onara!

Another year is soon over and it's truly been one to remember. It's had its share of good and bad moments but now it's time for me to celebrate what this year has given us within gaming and award that which deserves praise. I started doing these blogs back in 2012 and 2019 has found a way to be unique from all other years before it. Feel like I got to play most of the games that I wanted this year and those that I've yet to play don't make me wait with this blog. As always there will be spoilers. Now lets get this show going and first out is..

The Anticipated

The games that I looked forward to this year that got released this year:

1. Kingdom Hearts III

2. Fire Emblem: Three Houses

3. Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice

4. Total War: Three Kingdoms

5. Resident Evil 2

What game lived up the anticipation the best?

Fire Emblem: Three Houses: To be completely honest I didn't look forward too much when it comes to this title which sounds so unreal to me now. But back before it released Fire Emblem while still having released good games like Awakenings had also released Fates and had dabbled in fan-service that really didn't encourage faith in the franchise. So it was with low faith and little hope that I picked this game up and today I couldn't have more hope in the future of this franchise. The game perhaps more than any other title before crushed what anticipation I had and delivered bettter than I had reason to believe. It took an ambitious concept and did exceptionally well with it but more than that made be believe that the developers learned a lot from this project and will make even better games in the future from the lessons learned. Until then, I'll be replaying this, time and time again. So thank you to the developers for crafting this magnificent game and for managing to deliver upon the expectations of your many fans.

The largest disappointment

A shock to be mentioning this but the award goes to Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice. Now the shock is mostly because I imagined two things, that something else would be released and take this result but also that.. I didn't actually enjoy the game all that much. It's by no means a bad game, or a game that needed more development time. It's simply that the game and I just don't get along all that much. It had its moments and delivered on what it promised but sometimes things don't work out and that's what it took this year to be awarded this award. If anything it just shows that I didn't play any truly disappointing games and Sekiro suffer from that. See if you can find it's end rank among the 10 games of this list. Still a game worthy of being picked up and given a chance. Maybe it will find itself a home in someone elses heart because it really does excel at what it want do do and I just know there is a big market out there for these games. For those that ended up loving the game I congratulate them.

Places 10-8

10. Judgment: Had a bit of hesitation towards this title simply because I love the Yakuza series so much and wasn't convinced the developers could truly capture the things that I love about Yakuza. Partially I was right but also wrong. They captured some but also found new things for me to love. Different storylines and characters previously not possible made this game find its magic and as a result a very good game was released and I hope to see more games like this from not only the developers but the industry at large.

9. Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order: Is this real? Did we actually get a good singleplayer Star Wars game? Yes! It is true and it's still hard to believe but after many years of waiting and so many not good games we finally got it. This game is far from perfect and I wish there was more Star Wars and less Tomb Raider in it but even so it still managed to entertain me from start to finish and hopefully gather enough sales to poke the right people and grab their attention so games with good characters, entertaining combat and good visuals like this game get their chance at glory, they deserve it and so do we all that play games.

8. Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown: Played these games when I was way too young to be good at them and as a result grew frustrated. Now many, many years later I decided to pick one of them up and finally can I say that I truly love them. This game finds a mix of seriousness and arcady fun and as a result it got all it needs to be a really fun game to play and also challenging if one desires to increase the difficulty without it feeling cheap. The game lives and dies with its gameplay and it truly delivers an exceptionally fun experience with all the right ingredients it need to be full of sensible controls, good action, epic moments and this combined with awesome OST and visuals makes you really feel like you are there, kicking ass with your fellow squadmates. Squadmates however is an area in need of improvement as it did feel a bit like I never did get the chance to grow close with the characters. Fix that and the game will truly be Ace!

The Unexpected

Total War: Three Kingdoms: Well, this truly was unexpected. The Total War franchise is a difficult beast to know what to expect from. It released Rome 2 in 2013, a game that won my largest disappointment award, but it also released games such as Warhammer 2 which I picked up late and can say is utterly amazing. Three Kingdoms (3K) didnt have the most encouraging start in marketing either and it was only very close to release that I started to believe that it would be a good Total War game and it truly was. Perhaps the best Total War game at release and that gives hope that with good support from the developers it can be even better. The game is gorgeous, the gameplay is incredible and very polished. However, the replay-value is not all that great and I was lucky that the one full playthrough I did have was such an awesome experience that it managed to carry the game all this way. First DLC wasn't what I wanted either so I hope and believe that things will improve with this game because a Total War game in such a cool era in Chinese history deserves the best. The characters in this era truly are incredible and so much fun to play with. The OST also needs a mention for not only being good but also very skilled at capturing the era which adds to the immersion!

Places 7-5

7. Kingdom Hearts III: A mixture of disappointment and absolute joy keeps following this title for me this year. After having played through so many other Kingdom Hearts games to be ready for this I hoped it would do a bit better than it did. Now the game isn't bad. I however developed two major issues with it that significantly impaced my enjoyment of the game. But outside of those two the game really did deliver and got a DLC coming out soon that seems to fix all my issues so I am hopeful. The visuals and especially the music in this game are out of this world exceptional. The story is very Kingdom Hearts like and anyone that has played a Kingdom Hearts game know what I mean by that. The gameplay was all too easy however as I never did die on the hardest difficulty available at launch which does impact the narrative and how fearsome the bad guys are. But even so, they were fun to fight!

6. The Walking Dead: Final Season: Like the walkers in the story, this game rose from the dead and I couldn't be happier that it did. Thanks to everyone involved in making this game and making the revival happen. It would've been heartbreaking never finishing Clementine's story and thankfully I did and what a journey, what a game this was to finally see it all come to an end. It's the best game in the series since the 1st one which says a lot, especially as the 2nd season somehow won a GOTY award from me. Shows how different the quality of the games I play in a year can be. This game should stand proud as number 6. It did good.

5. Astral Chain: One of two games that made me pick up the Switch console this year and I am so very glad I did. This is PlatinumGames doing their thing. The gameplay and combat are to die for and with a good OST, nice visuals and an alright enough cast of characters and story capable of letting the stronger parts shine delivered this gem of a game. Always an itch there making me want to get back in and kick ass and just enjoy the fluid combat. I want more, I need more and hopefully when we do get more, because we will, the next installment is even better!

Best Soundtrack

Fire Emblem: Three Houses: It's not the first time and wont be the last time that a Fire Emblem game got a stellar soundtrack. Even games that generally aren't all that good seems to at least have a soundtrack worth listening to and Three Houses is more than an alright experience and the soundtrack is more than worth a listening to. It's been by far the most played soundtrack this year for me and despite Nintendo trying to shut channels down on Youtube it seems many are determined to share the amazing soundtrack with everyone willing to listen. The soundtrack got a song or music ready for every situation the game throws at us and some of the soundtracks in this fantastic soundtrack are so very good that I will listen to them for years to come and through them be taken back to the time that I played the game the very first time. That is how I know that a soundtrack is a step above the others. It was not easy to pick this year with many strong candidates but the soundtrack of Three Houses got both quality and quanity to see any challengers out.

Most Impressive Aesthetic

Resident Evil 2: This game needed its aesthetic to be good for the horror to reach the level of scary that it needed it to be and thankfully that did end up happening. The aesthetic in this game is not only very well done but well used. Just being good in this category won't be enough in a year with many worthy candidates, it is how you use this strength that will separate the winner from the others and Resident Evil 2 did just that. It didn't half-ass it, it with care and determination developed the right aesthetic and with experience and understanding of what was required utilized it better than any other game that I played this year.

Place 4

Total War: Three Kingdoms: A bit of repitition of what I mentioned before perhaps but this game truly deserves such an elevated spot by how good it actually was at release and that I quickly spent over 100 hours into it which is rare for me to do these days. I grew to adore the faction I played, the characters, the generals and the units that made my ultimate victory as the undisputed ruler of China happen. Finally did I get to lead armies and meet the characters that I had seen from TV series and read in books and just live the dream and what is gaming if not just that, living a dream from when we fire up the game? Perhaps that is exactly why this game is 4th, it managed that one aspect so very well that I can't wait to get back to this game and lead armies to glory. Forward onto GLORY!

Best Game Played That Was Released In The Past

Zelda: Breath of the Wild: I humbly throw myself to the ground and beg the world for forgiveness for not having played this game earlier. On one hand I am glad that I didn't as it left me something incredible to play this year and also.. 2017 already was hard enough to give awards to that adding this game to that mix would've made it impossible! This game manages to challenge Ocarina of Time as my favorite Zelda game and I never thought that would happen, that the day would come that I would doubt the supremacy of Ocarina of Time but now I do. Maybe I do love this game more. The story for a Zelda game is great and the way I got to experience the story was different from usual in Zelda games and that, "different from usual" is this game in a nutshell. Nintendo wanted to see what a Zelda game could be without being too bound to tradition and as an industry and as lovers of games we all benefited greatly from that. The OST is amazing, the visuals and aesthetic both rule the day as highlights of this decade and the open world was done better than almost all other open worlds ever done. This game isnt perfect, I will never like the durability system but that feels almost silly to say in comparison to the greatness and grandeur of this title as a whole. I am dying to see the sequel released so I can play it. Until then I will replay this game, and fall in love with it once more. Thank you Nintendo, thank you.

Place 3

Resident Evil 2: As a general rule, I don't include remasters and remakes in this list. But I have you say and that is correct. To be an exception a game needs to have underwent serious development, improvements and changes as to feel as if it could be a new game or a sequel and this game does that. It takes an already well loved and excellent original and expans and modernize it. Some wont love it but I certainly do. I love the story, the characters, the gameplay, the horror and terror. I love the visuals, I think the OST nails the creepyness factor but more than all of this, the game was and is really, really, really fun to play. I have yet to earn the platinum trophy for the game but I will do it, I will because the game deserves it and because it gives me further reasons to play this game again. I've spent many hours in it and there's always been something new to appreciate with each playthrough and new things to try out and see if they make for a smoother experience with less fuck ups and a better end time as I push myself on certain runs to be better than the previous run. Speedrunning I wont do but this game made me further appreciate that aspect in gaming and that is a small thing in the grand scope of things but small things like that can help a game get a leg up on a competitor in both the market and this GOTY awards blog. Claire Redfield and Sherry Birkins deserves a podium spot and that's exactly what this game got. Glorious 3d!

Best Side Content

Judgment: As if any other title could win this award. The developers behind the Yakuza series obviously would include quality side content into this game aswell and that baloons the time one will spend in this game and most of that side content in one way or another end up being enjoyable and fun to play. Makes the world feel more alive and real than it otherwise would be and in a game such as Judgment that is far more important than it would be in other less realistic titles. By making the world more alive through the side content the main storyline became even better as the stakes felt more real, the characters more real and the story more real. Side content can be silly and fun but this game shows that more than that it can make the game more holistic and as a result enhance the whole.

Place 2

Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel III: A series that I had not played a single second in before april of this year. Had heard good stuff about it but never really made the jump before this year and with the two games before this one played and currently two other Legend of Heroes games played I embraced this Cold Steel 3 title with all I had and I loved it, every second of it and this series has become a favorite mine with this being the best of the Cold Steel games. It got the best story, it got the best characters, the best visuals, gameplay and just like the two games before it an exceptional OST. This is a series and a game in particular that got many of those anime traits that will turn some people away and that's perfectly understandable. I don't love them all but somehow in this game they felt less annoying than usual, more alright and felt almost like they had to be there for the game as a whole be as good as it ended up being. It's so good that the wait for the 4th game to be localized could be 1 second long and it would be an unbearably long second. This game shows that you dont need the biggest budget or the largest development studio behind you. With skilled developers and lots of passion magic becomes real and experiences like this one become divine. I mean the game makes me appreciate characters with a pathological need to be super nice and helpful, I NEVER LIKE THEM and yet here I do. Game just does its thing and I dance to its tune.

Character of the Year

Edelgard Von Hresvelg: As soon as I meet her, I knew this would be how things would go. She is a divisive character that will make people love and hate her but it just isn't possible to not feel something when hearing her name, when thinking of her. She is an axe-wielding character that got a goal she is willing to set the whole world aflame to make it possible to achieve that goal and that's exactly the kind of character that I fall completely for. She is however much more than that, she is a very complex character that is just so incredibly well written that it baffles me even now how they managed to create her. Just to hint, things like PTSD, lifespan and nobility/religion on their own and combined all act as a great reminder that characters can be very complex, just like us real people. That sometimes it just is not possible to say that someone is good or bad. Sometimes light and dark, right and wrong, yes and no don't cut it and Edelgard more than any other this year and in recent years for me truly made me think and ponder on a wide arrange of topics and issues and as a result understood myself better and people around me better. So not only do I love her in the context of the game but I appreciate her for making me a better person and that works as proof as how awesome gaming can be. That it helps us as people grow, just as the characters, just as Edelgard did during the game, during the several routes, hers in particular. For Edelgard, I would overthrow a church and set the world on fire. And I would feel good about it.

Game of the year

Fire Emblem: Three Houses is my pick as Game of the Year: 2019!

Fire Emblem: Three Houses: Before this year I had no idea what game could stand here as the winner. Some years I do suspect, such as I did with Persona 5 in 2017 but with 2019 there was no clear leader. That, until I played Fire Emblem Three Houses and fell completely for it. The game is by no means perfect, goodness it got issues but they don't bother me as much as the good sides completely captures my heart and mind when I play the game. The story is really good, engrossing like no other this year for me. It completely absorbed me and in turn made me spend almost every free hour I had for weeks on this game, the characters are some of the best that I have ever seen in a game and the gameplay is really enjoyable, even on harder difficulties and each won battle felt like it was well earned. The OST is just incredible as already mentioned and the visuals and aesthetic overall are of high quality. There are areas to improve on but for a game that tried so much new, and reinvented much old and made it more modern, this game managed to achieve an astounding amount of stuff. What this game also achieved was making discussion with fellow players fun and educating. So many aspects to talk about and each discussion brought new perspectives that I hadn't considered and new topics that I aswell had no idea about were a thing and that in turn made playing the game even more fun. It takes many serious topics both in the past and now and make them worthy of examining and discussing. This game gave me so much more than my money's worth and as I grow older those things start to matter more and more. I will always give my GOTY to the most enjoyable game to play but even so, small things like that can elevate one enjoyable title from another and this year Fire Emblem Three Houses delivered on all fronts a quality experience through the quantity it offered. It's no small game. Well over 100 hours spent in this game and not one hour felt wasted. With DLC and more story content coming out in the future I am excited to see how the new content add to the whole and how they change things, making new discussions worthy of being had and more reasons to replay the game to find new things to love. I love this game, I really do

And with all of that this blog is done and over. 2020 looks promising for gaming and should hopefully be able to deliver some reprive for us that are around to deal with a world gone mad and madder. Until then, bye-onara!

Another year is soon over and it's certainly been one to remember. It's had its share of good and bad moments but now is the time for me to celebrate what this year has given us within gaming and award that which deserves praise. I started doing these blogs back in 2012 and 2018 will be a year that will be remembered if for nothing else than the year that had to follow up the incredible 2017. Feel like I got to play most of the games that I wanted this year and those that I've yet to play don't make me wait with this blog. As always there will be spoilers. Now lets get this show going and first out is..

The Anticipated

The games that I looked forward to this year that got released this year:

1. Valkyria Chronicles 4

2. Red Dead Redemption 2

3. The Banner Saga 3

4. Persona 5: Dancing in Starlight

5. Far Cry 5

What game lived up the anticipation the best?

Valkyria Chronicles 4 is this years winner and I couldn't be happier to give this award to this game in particular as it is the long awaited return of a franchise that once thought dead in the west. It herald that there's a point to hope and that just because a franchise get a few poor titles it doesn't mean that it always will be poor. No, instead VC4 is the franchise at its best by building upon what made the original Valkyria Chronicles game great. Once again I get to award a game that managed to stand up against my over anticipation that's been built up over the years and for that I'll be forever grateful. This is a title that will stand the test of time well due to its enjoyable combat, great soundtrack and most importantly it's beautiful art style. So thank you to the developers for crafting this magnificent game and for managing to deliver upon the expectations of your many fans.

The largest disappointment

The winner of this "award" can be no other than Far Cry 5 and it didn't take long for me to pick this title. This decision was made the same day I finished the game and it's a most deserving winner of being the largest disappointment. Here the developers had the amazing opportunity to make points, create storylines and interesting characters with rural white religious nutcases and yet when I was done with the game and put it down for good.. I couldn't see any of that in the game. They managed to take potential and squander it so badly that cardboard got more character than anyone in this game. It's such a letdown that this is what the development lead to. Maybe they simply should've been given more time because I just cant fathom that this is the best of the skills at hand for those developers. This is a case where the Ubisoft formula once again breaks and where the lesson they should've learned with Assassin's Creed: Origins should've made a difference. Give. Your. Games. TIME

Place 10-8

10. Persona 5: Dancing in Starlight - Was a bit hesitant to pick up this title since I generally don't play this kind of game but decided to give it a go considering Persona 5 itself is my favorite game of all time and that I've always loved the Persona music. If nothing else this title provided a good entertainment that could be picked up and experienced for short sessions where starting up any other title wouldn't be worth it and that's the kind of title I've been looking for and finally found. That and I'm simply a sucker for great music and this game got that in droves!

9. Atelier Lydie and Suelle: The Alchemists and the Mysterious Paintings - A surprise to find this game on this list at all since I've never before played an Atelier title and this title would in most years not make it on the list but it took advantage of the time I had during this time of the year and made an incredible job with what it had. The game is such a happy thing to experience! Bright colours, happy music, warm characters and just so much positivity which is exactly what I needed in 2018. This game wont win awards at shows but it doesnt have to. It made a dark and nasty world a bit brighter everytime I played it and that's the best award I can give it.

8. Batman: The Enemy Within - Another TellTale game makes it onto my GOTY blog and this title is an improvement of the first Batman title they made. This is a title that highlight both the good and the bad with TellTale games and that's their decisions and the consequences that follow. At times this shines and the game feel really immersive but often it falls short of this and that means the rest of the game got to carry the slack and this is one of the better titles from TellTale in doing so. I completely fell for their interpretation of Harley Quinn and their design of her is just so phenomenal that I could almost forget that the game was focusing on Batman and Joker. Just give me one more scene with Harley, please!

The Unexpected

Assassin's Creed: Odyssey: When I learned that Ubisoft wasn't going to give the next AC title an extra year as they did with Origins I felt an icy feeling in my stomach. Had they learned nothing? And where they going to ruin this amazing chance they had with Greece? The answer to both of those questions are yes and no. Yes they had learned a lot and Odyssey is proof of that. It had been given the time it needed with and could build upon Origins meaning that it didn't need that year extra. They didn't ruin Greece, far from it! What we got here is one of the best games made that take place in Greece and what that comes down to is how well they manage to capture what modern people imagine and think when they hear Athens, Sparta, Leonidas and Persia. The game is beautiful, there's no other way to put it. I could ride around the valleys of Greece for days and never get bored of how beautiful it is. The music is typical Assassin's Creed meaning there are a few good tracks among an in general unremarkable OST. The combat is Origins but improved since they quit trying to balance the assassin and the warrior that previous titles have tried and instead leaned heavily towards the main character being a warrior of Sparta. This means that players that want a sneaky old school AC game wont find it here but everyone that want to feel like an epic character on an Odyssey will find their desires fullfilled. The players get to pick the gender of the main character and as always I opt for female when given the chance to make up for being forced to play male in many other titles and in Odyssey that's simply the best way to play this game with Kassandra being an utterly incredible character with her voice actress doing some sorcery with every word spoken because I've fallen completely under her spell. How can someone sound THAT fantastic?

Place 7-5

7. Detroit: Become Human - Probably the title I'm the most confliced about this year. It's the best game that David Cage has managed to produce with his team, it's also a game that so heavy handed deals with topics that requires a silk touch. The game is however so very beautiful with 3 main characters that offer a wide variety of experiences. Connor, the best one hit the perfect sweetspot between being not-human but with human qualities and interactions. If the game was more like Connor I know I'd have given this game a much higher spot on the list but as it stands a problematic, enjoyable and weird title can stand proudly among the other titles of this blog.

6. Monster Hunter: World - This title is not for everyone. This title might not even be for me. This title is fantastic when you get into the mindset it needs and embrace it's quirks. The game makes no apologies for its rough nature that ask a lot from the player if they want to see it all. Best to get yourself a friend that's experienced with Monster Hunter or understand that getting good is your path to walk. The world is pretty, the characters are excellent in their simplicity and the story is far from remarkable but it's perfect for this game. So pick up your weapon and get ready to hunt magnificent beasts for their hides or pelts. You got armor to fashion!

5. Banner Saga 3 - A game that came out much sooner than anticipated and maybe a bit too early given the bugs I encountered. But with that said I'm in love with this franchise once more and I can honestly say that I had a fantastic time playing this game after having spent so much time with many of its characters in previous titles. The developers have learned so much throughout this trilogy and most aspects of the game are superior to the ones in the previous titles. The game got a fantastic art style that's meshing so well with the story, the characters and the music which leads to an overall authentic experience that I hope more people are willing to give a try. We dont have that many games dealing with Norse culture and it would be great if we could support those that do explore it.

Best Soundtrack

Detroit: Become Human: It's not the first time that a David Cage title has a strong OST. It was not easy to pick this year as there were no oustanding titles in this area and instead many pretty good ones that all had their strengths and weaknesses. So the deciding factor had to be what soundtrack could I the most clearly hear in my head at will and that's the soundtrack of Detroit that got a strong selection of soundtracks that are well placed within the game for good emotional effect. The game is a great example of how the soundtrack can make up for mistakes in other areas and smooth over rough edges and in Detroit scenes that otherwise could've felt awkward became more human thanks to the music.

Most Impressive Aesthetic

Red Dead Redemption 2 - I suppose when you blow a trillion dollars on graphics the game should be able to win this award because it's a game that from every angle possibly look just fantastic. RDR2 simply dont believe in doing things half-assed and it shows when you can be walking through a forest and see the light fight through the bushes and the trees to reach the ground. It's noticeable when you experience rain with the rain appearing as a force of nature that it actually is and that it can turn the dirt into mud that you later slip in and turn your nice red jacket into a brown one. Game simply look fantastic and very much deserve this award for pushing the limits on what video games can achieve.

Place 4

Red Dead Redemption 2 - I don't ever expected that RDR2 would find itself outside of the top 3 on my rankings and still while writing this don't know how it actually managed to find itself here but I don't regret putting it here. Make no mistake, RDR2 is a phenomenal game and one that people really should try. The game got a fantastic cast of characters that I'll meet again at some point and it will warrant perhaps more than one playthrough just to meet them again and again. The combat is the old system from the original RDR which means it feels both unique.. and very old. That there is how I will summarize many aspects of RDR2. It's a unique title that at times feel a bit old, a bit to fascinated with its own magnificence and where priorites got mixed. This is a game that really takes authenticity to the maxiumum which is incredible for the first 20 hours of playtime which is not halfway through the game. It's a really long game with so much content that's both so much fun to play but also at times a reminder that too much of the good stuff can by itself spoil the dish. RDR2 is a game that needs to be given time and space to be experienced properly but dont be afraid to put down the controller and play something else because this is a game that can wear out even the most experienced gamers.

Best Game Played That Was Released In The Past

VA-11 Hall-A - I'm so happy, so very happy that I can give this award to this title in particular. It hits all the right spots for me with its story, characters, gameplay, visuals and the OST. All of them are of the highest calibre and would warrant a serious chance at being GOTY if I had played this game in the year it was released. This game also nails that X-factor that you cant really put your finger on what it is but everyone knows what it is when they encounter it themself. I found this game at the right time in my life and it said the right things when I needed to hear them the most and I look at this game as some of the most fun I've had playing games in years but also as proof that video games very much are art, because this title moved me with the force of an earthquake and I'm a much better person for having played it. Thank you for existing, time to mix drinks and change lives!

Place 3

Valkyria Chronicles 4 - A contender for being GOTY in a very even year. This game fullfilled all my hopes and expectations when it arrived with all of the improvements imaginable. I had some fantastic 30+ hours playing this game and I will get back and spend more hours before 2018 is over. The story is great with plenty of reasons to be engaged in what happens and the characters are a mix of quirky and complex. I did not at all expect to find myself new favorite characters at the rate I did with this game and it didn't stop there. It made me enjoy playing missions that takes place in snow! I hate with a passion winter and snow so for this game to manage that speaks loudly of how well crafted this piece of entertainment is and how it manages to make the most of what it brought to the table. The art style is polished and unique, making it almost feel like you're watching some documentary and that we're actually there as events unfold which is instrumental for this game with the kind of game they want the player to experience. It doesnt glorify war for one second and instead give their due to both the heroism that takes place but also the brutality and inhumanity that makes monsters out of us all. A much deserved spot on the podium!

Best Side Content

God of War - Quality side content is the kind of content that doesn't feel like it actually is side content and that's the case with God of War. I wanted to do the side stuff and actively went looking for more and more of it to do. Endgame stuff was some of the most fun I had in the game since it allowed me to explore and expand upon the stuff that I had learned while playing the game. Fighting against bosses and foes far harder than anything you encountered in the main game made me feel like a proper badass and that was partnered with feeling like I learned a lot when hearing stories of Norse legends and ties into my own ancestry which isnt something I often get to see happen in any medium. So to say it once again, quality side content doesn't feel like side content and here it neverdid.

Place 2

Assassin's Creed: Odyssey - This is my favorite Assassin's Creed game and it's also one of the least assassin like games of them all. This is however a title that manages to provide some incredible entertainment for over 60 hours that I've played this game up to this point of writing and I've been enjoying this game so much. I am in love with Kassandra as a protagonist and as mentioned her voice is the voice of godesses themself. With its beautiful world the game crafts a tale worth experiencing and a tale worth embracing. Classic Greece carry a special meaning for the western civilizations and I'm so pleased to tell that they didn't ruin that legacy and instead managed to do some part of that legacy justice in their own way. This game has made me dig into documentaries and books that I since long had thought I'd never visit again and that's partially why I play these games that take place in ages long gone. AC: Odyssey got some of the best moments that I've experienced in AC titles and they are the result of well crafted subplots and over-arching narrative working in tandem with other aspects of the game. And I've not even mentioned the combat yet! It start off a bit slow but once I found my style and my weapons of choice it didn't face me at all and as you grew stronger and unlocked abilities I could genuinely feel like I was the mythical character that people saw when I approached them and that's a feeling that I will never grow bored of. The game isn't perfect and I look forward to where they take it from here but until the next title arrive I will be re-visiting Sparta, Athens and other parts of Greece with Kassandra.

Character of the Year

Arthur Morgan - Rockstar creating a main character that I actually really like? Is this further proof that 2018 has gone completely mad? While that is quite possible I'm also going to explain why I think so highly of Arthur and that is his journey. He's not just some gunslinger, he's a man that has made bad decisions, keep making bad decisions but isnt for that a bad man. Arhtur throughout the game keeps thinking, re-visiting old memories and might be the character that best showcase the power of the redemption story. The Arthur I see towards the end is not at all the same Arthur I started the game with. He poses intelligent questions that made me think about myself and also how I look at other people in the world around me. Arthur proves to me that actions, intentions and consequences are all things that I need to keep in mind when passing judgement and I always appreciate when games can make a better person of myself. I look up to Arthur as a role model despite his murky past and the various bad things he has done. He is a complicated man in a complicated world and in the end we are all humans and therefor it's to be expected that things wont always go the way we want them to and Arthur is a man that knows that better than most and through his example I now know ways to handle situations I otherwise wouldn't. Rockstar did something incredible when they created Arthur and I hope they realise that for when they make new main characters. I hope they learn as much from Arthur as I did.

Game of the year

God of War is my pick for Game of the Year 2018

God of War: Had a suspicion that this would be my GOTY when I played the game at release. It just got that special something that stuck with me when I played and when I was doing other things, that feeling that I was experiencing something outstanding and above the normal. God of War does magical things with its heritage and with the Norse faith and culture. God of War deliver a story that's intimate and very engrossing, it doesnt need the bombastic bells and whistles and instead work on a more emotional and human level. God of War is about bonds and the one between a father and his son and their quest to accomplish something very dear to both of them. The game sticks out from other titles on this blog by having very few characters in it and the game dont need more characters than it uses. This is a game about Kratos and Atreus and the characters that are there help build upon the journey that is taking place by giving space for character development to happen but also to build up this new world that God of War as a franchise will spend several games in. It's a journey within a journey and as a first act in that greater journey this game is perfect. God of War is also a good first step in trying out new things, the combat system is not the most expansive but it's well developed and feel very tight when used. I always felt in control of Kratos and his moveset which lead to being able to take down very powerful foes which is something that I strive to do in all games. I crave that challenge and God of War with its new combat could provide a different version of that than its previous titles. God of War is an incredibly high quality title and that can be noticed in the graphics that look fantastic and the art style they went with is just the right one for the Norse world they are entering, the character designs are on point for Norse mythology and I can't wait to see how other important characters of that mythology are designed if this is how well they managed this time! And that is something that I want to echo about all aspects of the game, if this is what they managed the first time around then how good will future stuff be?!

And with all of that this blog is done and over. 2019 looks promising for gaming and should hopefully be able to deliver some reprive for us that are around to deal with a world gone mad. Until then, bye-onara!

Another year is soon over and it's certainly been a year to remember. It's had its share of good and bad moments but now is the time for me to celebrate this years gaming and what an incredible year it has been. Without a doubt the best year since I started doing these blogs back in 2012 but it might also be the best year since I started gaming. This was the first year where I felt like I couldn't play all the games I wanted and not like previous years where I almost played some just to have something new to play. As always there will be spoilers. Now lets get this show going and first out is..

The Anticipated

The games that I looked forward to this year that got released this year:

1. Persona 5

2. Nier: Automata

3. Danganronpa V3

4. South Park: Fractured but Whole

5. Horizon: Zero Dawn

What game lived up the anticipation the best?

The winner is Persona 5 and it beat some really tough competition. Were many candidates for this award which made it a pleasant trouble to decide on who would come out on top. Persona 5 is a game I had been anticipating for so many years and after several delays it was finally 2017 that it came out and what a game it was that arrived. When you look forward to a game for so many years and really embrace the concepts that the developers present there is a danger that the game just possibly can't live up to the image conjured in our own heads. It was a concern of mine that Persona 5 with no mercy made short work with and I couldn't be happier about it. This is a game that more than lived up to the anticipation but also crushed it and set a new standard for what I expect of games that want to challenge the very peaks of my hall of fame for games. It's a most outstanding game in all categories where the flaws are minor and at times hard to remember.

The largest disappointment

The Walking Dead: A New Frontier: Is not a bad game but it is a game that left me more thinking on what I would've rather prefered than me thinking on what it did right. After having spent 2 games with a favorite of mine in Clementine where I got an immense interest in as a character and their development it was unsettling at times to play as someone else and suddenly care about a completely different family and have Clem be in my vicinity acting on her own, to an extent as the girl I helped grow but still her own character. As a game it delivers a good experience but not the experience I wanted and that is enough to qualify for a disappointment in this year. Just didn't encounter any games that left me with disgust or serious frustration.

Place 10-8

10. Life Is Strange: Before the Storm: Was not sold on the prospect of a prequel. They usually don't work with me because of the constraits they have to deal with, and by that I mean that there are games later in the timeline that exist on certain premises which these prequels just are not allowed to change. What Before the Storm managed to do for me was to make me not care about this at all. I played entierly for the characters and the small differences in personality that I could make. It's a game made in the same spirit as the first season and a good appetizer for the second season coming in the future.

9. Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice: A game that proves you can get near AAA quality for half the price. What it takes is skill and the dedication to know what you're working with. Hellblade achieved a lot of what it set out to do. It's a game that properly showcase how a mind works and how it can be when the mind isn't working properly. It also managed to do this while remembering that it's a game meant to provide some kind of entertainment. An educational piece of entertainment that is most welcome in these days.

8. South Park: The Fractured But Whole: A much awaited title that provided many hours of silly fun. It's not as good as the previous title but it was still a game that ended up being worth every coin I paid for it. It's South Park through and through so a person that normally enjoys SP would enjoy this game. I'm not a viewer of SP but still capable of appreciating its satire and commentary on popular things of our world.

The Unexpected

Horizon Zero Dawn: There were many reasons to be careful when looking at this game. A studio with no experience with these kinds of games. An open world game is hardly new either so could be the same old.. but it never was. This was a breath of fresh air for a genre I'm tired to even acknowledge and it did it through intelligent world design. The story was told through so many avenues in which my favorite is that the world changed as I got further and further into the story and sometimes it changed because I learned something new that adjusted my view on things. It could transform in many ways and undergoing these changes with it and the protagonist Aloy was so many hours of fun. The game is also so beautiful with well crafted music further making the world it tries to show me being a world of beauty. The gameplay is up my alley with Aloy being a really fun character to be as in combat, when discovering and when experiencing the story. HZD is an excellent start for a new IP and I am really looking forward to what comes next!

Place 7-5

7. Danganronpa V3: Killing Harmony: It's a hard act to follow when both the games before you are much appreciated but that is something I would say V3 managed. It might not be the series best entry but it is an entry that is much fun with characters that are worth remembering and it's also a game that just hit my need to place mental puzzles. As long as Danganronpa lets me do that, I will let Danganronpa into my wallet.

6. Assassin's Creed Origins: This game exist as proof that taking an extra year to work on a game might make all the difference. AC as a franchise no longer intersted me by the time Unity and Syndicate got released. But Origins has given new life to my interest and it does that my removing old traditions it followed and introducing a much smoother experience. It might not be the best AC in any category but it is one of the most fun I've had in AC. Egypt is always a good place to visit. More games are welcome to take the hint!

5. Pyre: Supergiant games just can't seem to fail with me. If this game had been released in any other year it would've been further up because it is my favorite of their games with the best story, the best visuals, the best characters they've ever done. OST is even of exceptional quality which for Supergiant games always seems to be the case. This is a game I will be playing for years to come.

Best Soundtrack

Nier: Automata: Never before have there been so many candidates for this award and for most of the year I had no idea who to give it to. But after much thought I'm giving it to Automata because it's the game where most of its tracks got the ability to evoke emotions or just take me away to some other world where it's just me and the music. This game got period the best music any game that I've played and it has set a completely new standard for what I consider a great OST. It got tracks that are capable to make me feel such strong emotions where I actually cried a bit and that's just never happened before with music. It also knows how to make good use of the music by placing them in good scenes and letting the game involve the music in what's going on. The soundtrack that play during the credits when you finish up the game is going to remain with me for years to come. An exceptional moment unlike any other in gaming.

Most Impressive Aesthetic

Pyre: It's an exceptionally pretty game. I could give this award to many games this year but the winner will be Pure just because it was the game that more than others wowed me with the aesthetic it provided. A game can be beautiful but pretty easy to forget. Pyre is never that kind of beauty and instead it's the beauty that remains with you for a long time, the beauty that you can see when your eyes are closed and when you hear the word art.

Place 4

Yakuza 0: Ever thought "This game is so Japanese" That was something I thought I knew but Yakuza really proved I knew nothing. It makes you feel like you really are in Japan and it does not try at all to make you get any other experience and I love the game for it. Yakuza 0 can one scene be the most serious game you know and be unbeliveably good at it and then the other scene you're singing karaoke with a hostess you're trying to help get better at their job. The game don't make any mistakes here either. It's a game that just does not want to be anything but a fantastic entertainment product. It really is a game that with a smaller budget than many competitors set out to achieve much more and this is something it completely manages to do. It leaves an impression you can never forget and I am now a massive fan of the series and just can't wait until I can play more of the games. It even makes me want to understand the very Japanese minigames it got and they are very, very, veeeeeeery Japanese.. and I love them for it. Challenge me more Yakuza, never grow dull, never grow old!

Best Game Played That Was Released In The Past

Fire Emblem: Awakening: For years I wanted to play it but could never convince myself to get a platform where that was possible. 2017 was the year I made the jump and this game alone can carry the cost of the new handheld. A burden it luckily don't need to carry alone. The game is amazing where the story isn't revolutionary but is very engaging and let me and the character I take charge as become a vital part of and feel at home. I made many jokes like saying "I will bang this royal for power" and then end up loving that character and the results from that union. The game is also pretty to look at with some cutscenes being breathtaking and making me throw money at the screen for a proper animated show. The music, oh yes the music is more than worthy of being part of the top 10 best music I've heard from a game. It was good enough to carry me to pass an exam I felt no interest in studying for. A game can't recive much higher praise than that.

Place 3

Horizon: Zero Dawn: Already said much that can be said about this game so will keep it shorter here. But it is not often that a completely new IP manages to capture my interest and attention the way Horizon did. That it did that with a female protagonist who was given much love and attention during development to make sure that they are just as good as any other character gives me hope that the future in gaming might have more of this. A larger variety of protagonists can only be a good thing

Best Side Content

Yakuza 0: Didn't touch much upon this earlier but this game got enough quality side content to warrant a much higher price tag. I spent as much if not more time doing these things than doing the amazing main storyline. Running a hostess club as Majima or buy property as Kiryu soaked up dozens upon dozens of hours and this is not even covering the many side quests or other mini games that this game carry with it and they are not crafted to fill some quota. No they are there because they are good enough to be there. Race with toy cars? Heck yeah I will! With a good system in place something like that feel like something I want to do and not something I can do. In there lies the key, make me want to do it and the disk will be found in my console for much longer than it otherwise would.

Place 2

Nier: Automata: If released any other year that I've been doing this GOTY blog it would've won and won with ease. 2017 just happens to be that one magical year were godlike titles can come in 2nd and it's the greatest disservice I can do to a game of this calibre. Automata got the best OST ever, it got amazing visuals which togheter with the music create some absolutely memorable scenes for things to play out. Walking among ruins that look completely abandoned and hear some calm, a bit melancholic music play in the background makes it a memory strong enough to withstand the many months that's gone since I played this game. Automata don't stop there and also within this game can one incredibly satisfying combat system be found where you feel like a complete badass and feel like you're a machine created for this sole purpose of getting the job done. It makes me feel powerful through skilled use of the abilities given to me and not through cheap tricks or overpowered nonsense. All of the things previously mentioned create a strong foundation for the games characters and story to take place and the characters might not initially appear as the most well written or the characters with a lot of depth but this is all a facade. In Automata a depth like the mariana trench be found and the characters, both side and main are of the highest order. When characters are that good the effects of what happens within the story become that much more profound and this leads to more and stronger experiences and memories that will stand the test of time. Automata also managed to carry itself throughout the game, from start to finish without dropping the ball once. The ending might be the best one ever in a game and one I will carry with me for years to come.

Character of the Year

Haru Okumura: Obviously I'm going to say Haru. Found her to be precious, warm, caring. Being there for her and help her find her own courage and strength is just so rewarding. Seeing her take charge of her life for the first time and hear her say that she'd be stuck in a horrible life with her horrible fiance if not for your support in her growth warms my heart. The icing on the cake is her clearly stating that she's so happy to be in love with you and that she look forward to a future with you.

Her wanting to open a café that focus on giving the most pleasant experiences that are full of warmth and love also worked so well with me since I always envisioned my MC to work in just that kind of café after all the time spent in Leblanc.

Haru Okumura is the kind of character I always wanted to meet. There is a depth to her that just isn't normally found in gaming. Not given enough time she still make up for it by being the best character I've found in a Persona game and they are full of characters all worthy of having that being said about them. Also who can say no to a sweet girl that can carry the most amazing of facades but when allowed to let loose in combat gets happy and excited to hear her foes scream. I. Love. Haru.

Game of the year

Persona 5 is my pick for Game of the Year 2017

Persona 5: I'm happy beyond words to finally be able to give this award to this game. It's been a long wait and after first being announced for winter 2014 it finally arrived. This is the closest a game that I've played has come to perfect to this point in time. It was a candidate for every award handed out in this blog and I almost felt like I robbed it of some because it is just that good in all categories. The OST is one of the best ever created and with so many tracks that I can listen to for hours without coming close to getting tired or sick of them. It got soundtracks for all possible situations and they are all given the love and attention they deserve and need to excel the way they do. But music need a partner and the visual department of P-Studio that create this amazing gem is skilled beyond belief. This game is gorgeous in all ways imaginable. It's a stunning experience to look at it for all the hours you need to complete it and I completed it twice this year and constantly found new things to look at and just accept that they all impressed me. Some scenes have with this magical partnership between music and visual become iconic to me and what I will hold games in the future to. Can they match or come close to this then they will be worthy of awards in the future, Persona 5 has quite frankly stolen all the attention I can give to a fandom or artists or anyone or anything that are tied to this game. It's made a permanent mark on my life and that for the better. I've meet amazing people thanks to it and I will continue to do for years to come. Persona 5 is that kind of game.. and I've not even talked about half of it yet.

The gameplay is smooth, it's perfect! The dungeons are more fun than ever, not once do I feel bored playing through them and even in the weakest of the dungeons I still have more fun that I've had in most other games that offer the same kind of combat or gameplay. There is always something to consider and think about so when I need to beat my way through some less fun foes Persona 5 got me covered with a scene or a visual that got deeper meaning. Persona 5 does not just satisfy itself with these things but it sport characters that are by far the best in the games that I've played in the series and some of the best I've been fortunate to encounter in ANY medium. It's predecessor previously held this position but it was helpless in resisting and has now been forced to accept that being almost perfect no longer is good enough. The characters in Persona 5 appeal to such a wide variety of people that there's a great chance someones new favorite can be found here. I found mine afterall! Even minor characters or side characters that got little impact on the main events of the game carry with them a larger purpose and makes the time I spend with them be larger than the sum of its parts and that's really hard to manage. Finally the story of this game is for the most part of the most exceptional quality that can be found in a game and only towards one of the later acts do Persona 5 find it hard to follow up on its previous acts but that drop is as noticeable as it is thanks to how good the game has been throughout and continue to be during and after this slip. This is a luxury problem to have and I suppose games like Persona 5 need to have something to remind them that they are mortal. Nothing is ever perfect and Persona 5 make a good case that the industry is making strides to get closer to being perfect.

And with all of that this blog is done and over. 2018 looks promising even if the world may be ending. Hope we are all around next time around this time of the year when the next blog is coming out. Until then, bye-onara!

Another year gone by and this one is one to be remembered for a long time and mostly for not the best of reasons. Luckily gaming has been there to help make it a bit less terrible. One common theme for me in gaming this year are the delays. Several of the games I wanted to play this year were delayed into 2017 which made this year a lot weaker than I first expected it to be. That said, 2016 is once again a step in the right direction and leaving a few weaker years behind it.

The Anticipated

The games that I looked forward to this year that got released this year:

1. Dishonored 2

2. XCOM 2

3. Dark Souls 3

4. Hearts Of Iron 4

5. Overwatch

What game lived up the anticipation the best?

What we have here is less a title that lived up to the anticipation the best as much as it completely overshadowed what anticipation I had at the time. Overwatch is the game I've spent the most hours playing this year and without checking also with a fairly large margin. Game is still so much fun even after several hundreds of hours into it. It got interesting lore, great animations and art. A solid OST and most importantly, some absolutely amazing gameplay that through patches, updates and new heroes continues to change and evolve yet remain at incredibly high quality.

The largest disappointment

The Walking Dead: Michonne - I did not have a true candidate for this catergory this year but after somethinking I went with The Walking Dead Michonne as the winner of this award that once had several contestants. I knew this game would not be up to the level I expect from the The Walking Dead or TellTale so that it was lacking in every way was something I expected going in. That I was correct and that it at times even lacked more than I expected it to makes it probably the best candidate I got and a reminder that disappointing games can be found everywhere, even from developers that have won my GOTY more than once

Place 10-8

10. Hearts of Iron 4 - I'm always going to be happy it got released since it was the entry that allowed me to enjoy and experience this era of the Paradox titles. I did try HoI 3 and never got into it. Just too complicated to figure out despite me knowing what awaited once I did. HoI 4 was easier to understand and once I got past the basic stage of learning the game got more complicated and the enjoyment of the title increased as such

9. Stellaris - Paradox with another title on the list! I looked forward to this title for a while and the version that came at launch was fun enough but I got bored before ever coming close to completing my first playthrough. It was 6+ months later when I returned that I came to like the game so much. Gone were almost all of the things that bothered me and instead were tries to make a fun experience. It didn't nail all the aspects but it was a much better experience and a game that I will play more in 2017!

8. Deus Ex: Mankind Divided - At first I didn't plan to play the game before a sale but due to unexpected amount of free time around release I picked it up and quite enjoyed it. This is however a game that pales to the games before it and that's a shame since if not for them it might've been appreciated a lot more. That said it was fun to be back dealing with hard topics and a not too unlikely future if things go so wrong for us. All parts of the game were decent and with room to improve I hope that future titles can learn from this game

The Unexpected

Stardew Valley - Me.. playing a farming sim? In previous years that would just not happen but this year was the best time for Stardew Valley to be released and all of March was dedicated to this game alone. Coming from nowhere and saving me from the spring exams makes this game well loved by me and I look forward to returning to it one day when updates have been released and maybe when the co-op once talked about has come out. Would love to play it with dear friends!

Place 7-5

7. Civilization 6 - Civ 5 is one of my most played games on steam so following it up was always to be a tricky task and it managed. This is the best version of any Civ game at release and that is incredibly promising since Civ 5 went from chaos to awesome with extra development and if Civ 6 start of good, then the question is how great can it become? I look forward to finding out and until then I will be there playing and getting better at it. Had so much fun playing at release and friends got to experience what fun stories I could tell from just meeting Gorgo!

6. Stardew Valley - Already mentioned a bit about the game above so will instead talk about how fun it was to be part of a tiny village with colorful characters. Trying to get the best crop, making sure I always had enough gifts for my friends and my lover in the game. It made going into caves something fun and that's absolutely an aspect that often is less than fun in games.

5. Rise of the Tomb Raider - It's part of this list soly because this year was the earliest it reached a platform possible for me to play on and such I deem it a 2016 title. I like this game a lot and it is an improvement on the first game and what it delivered was an engaging story with good characters, fun combat and lovely visuals. I look forward to what comes next since the Lara they've created through the 2 games now is really awesome

Best Soundtrack

Dark Souls 3 - The soundtrack of this game got almost everything. Calm tracks, hectic tracks, tracks that make you feel like zero, tracks that makes you feel like hero. The OST might not be the greatest ever made but it got single tracks that are some of the best I've heard in a long time. The track when fighting the last boss, or the princes are both utterly amazing and tracks I keep listening to every now and then.

Most Impressive Aesthetic

Firewatch - This game provided the best visual moments of this year for me. Walking through valleys, forests, fires and finding some really dark stuff were all made that much better through the hard and talented work of some great artists and the aesthetics alone are continously making me want to play through the game one more time.. and one more time. There's not much greater praise I can hand out to a game. Making me want to re-visit it just to see what I've seen before is terrific

Places 4-2

4. XCOM 2 - I adore this game. It through some story but mostly gameplay and the player is able to create some of the most amazing moments of the year. Naming soldiers after friends, family or whatever and then putting them in the line of fire and trying to always make sure they get home safely makes every fight that much more awesome and that much more tense. The last fight in the game I still remember in excellent detail, the final shot with 23% chance of hitting saving the day and the life of the squad since we were on the ropes with none yet dead but everyone in dire situations

3. Dishonored 2 - Is this game very similar to the first one? Yes. Maybe too much for many? Yes. Do I love it? Yes! I love playing as Emily, I love sneaking, I love not killing and through hard work manage to achieve my goals. If not for a bugged achievement I'd gone the entire game without a single kill and that's an experience I wont soon forget. It's the gameplay and Emily that elevate this game so high for me. If neither of the two had been so good the game might not even have made it into the top 10 list but luckily they are both so good that it manages to even get into the top 3.

2. Dark Souls 3 - A worthy winner in every year since I started doing this thing. Story, characters, visuals, OST and gameplay are all of the incredibly high caliber one now come to expect to have by the developers FROMsoftware. It was the first title I played in the Dark Souls series after having finished Bloodborne and it made me want to play the others and I did. All of May got dedicated to the first two games and while they were not close to being as fun. I will re-visit this game once all the DLC has been released and once again kick the serious butt I did the first time around. This game cemented my style and I look forward to improving on that and gather more great kills and this time take the extra time to read more, listen more and watch more of what the game offers. There are secrets yet to be uncovered

Character of the Year

Mei - A winner where the story of the character is yet to come out in full force. What I know about her I love deeply. Her personality is just a-mei-zing through and through. This loving, friendly woman got a kickass attitude. She stands up to bullies, she wants to save the enviroment and by extention the world. She want the world to be a better place and yet the community deem here worty of the title "Satan" since she terrify them. That Blizzard the developer has taken that into account and given her a few lines that make her sound scary just further increase my love for her and she will always be my number 1 in Overwatch no matter who gets released. We are just too much meant for each other.

Game of the year

Overwatch - Comments are not required but I will still provide some. I love this game. I love the gameplay, the story, the moments I've had alone and with friends. I love the moments I will have and the experiences that will come in the future as the game gets better from the development by the great guys at Blizzard. This is the game that took 2016 and made it stand above 2012, 2014, 2015. It made this year worth remembering as a year of good games. It was able to stay above Dark Souls 3. This game provided the best enjoyment in hours, in the cost for the game and the best enjoyment I've had in a game with friends in it since I quit hardcore raiding in Wow so many years ago. This game made me want to play multiplayer again without feeling like it would be a complete waste of time. This game is fun!

And with all of that this blog is done and over. 2017 looks promising even if the world may be ending. Hope we are all around next time around this time of the year when the next blog is coming out. Until then, baaaai

After the horrible gaming year of 2014 there were a few improvements in 2015. Still not an amazing year but at least it can be considered an improvement. A large step behind the great year that was 2013, a year that it was never going to be able to challenge even if the games that got delayed into 2016 had actually been released this year. 2016.. looks great!

The anticipated

The games that I looked forward to this year:

1. The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt

2. Fallout 4

3. Starcraft 2: Legacy of the Void

4. Star Wars: Battlefront

5. Bloodborne

What game lived up the anticipation the best?

The Witcher 3: This game had to bear expectations and anticipations that would break most games. After the huge success that was The Witcher 2 nothing else than amazing would be unacceptable. It managed to live up to close to all the expectations in a manner that lend it great merit. The visuals were sadly downgraded before release but outside of that the story, characters and OST were of the quality expected.

The largest disappointment

Star Wars: Battlefront: It feels a bit wrong to give it this award when I've never played it but it managed to put me off before I even got the chance to play it. The visuals are great, about that there's no doubt but it has not managed to make me want to play it through its combat and gameplay or the fact that it doesn't come with the well liked space battles that made the other Battlefronts so much fun for me. I'm uncertain how I feel about the lack of a singleplayer campaign like the second Battlefront had. As of late those singleplayer campaigns have been kinda awful. The campaign in BF2.. it was quite fun and I would've loved more of that! So this game

Place 10 - 8

10. Cities: Skylines - This is what SimCity should've been. A blast to play and it didn't come with any stupid limitations that's the result of bad design decisions. This game allow the player to create some absolutely stunning cities and creative solutions to a large variety of problems. Just look at the more shared cities and you will find some amazing creations that only a well crafted game would allow

9. Game of Thrones: A TellTale game Series - It's always so difficult to hope that a game made form a very popular license to actually be worth the money and time invested. TellTale has proven to be very capable and they do a good job with this game aswell. It suffers from wanting to be too close to the books and Tv serie which limit the creativity that the creators could apply. That said, they managed to craft a fun experience that looks to continue in a second season at a later date

8. Heroes of the Storm - This is the first MOBA that I have enjoyed to play. The familiarity with the Blizzard franchises make a huge difference and the different modes that the game use make for a more varied experience and less likely to bore me out of my mind. The game also had a smaller amount of toxicity in the community when I played and that can't be underrated.

The unexpected

Tales from the Borderlands - I had no prior experience with Borderlands before this game so I really couldn't care any less when this game was announced. Didn't get the first episode until later and oh man did I not expect it to be that much fun! It really manage to make the wait between each episode worth it and sometimes the wait was very long indeed. The story is really not that remarkable but it got some really funny twists and turns that make me not care about the overall quality of the story and just have as much fun as possible. The characters are just fabulous, perhaps my favorite cast in any TellTale game to date and with Fiona in the lead. Laura Bailey add a terrific voice to a very well written character and the end result is magical. Rhys and the other characters are not bad at all either and should get honourable mentions for their work. Without them this game just wouldn't be nearly as good as it is!

Place 7-5

7. Life is Strange - This game managed to win over my increasing apathy towards episodic games. The wait is sometimes just ridiculous and this game didn't do well with that. What it did well was to craft great bonds between characters and add a really fun gameplay mechanic in the rewind button. Not only that but it was also quite fun to try to find every photo spot in each and every episode. Not that hard but a challenge well worth doing!

6. Until Dawn - Horror games have been done and released for way too long so it was close that I never gave this game a chance. But I'm really happy that I did! It's a game that takes inspiration from so many classic horror movies but also work with the butterfly effect which make for an interesting experience even if the twists and turns are expected. The game managed to create a spooky aura that lasted for the entire game and I was at several points on the edge already prepared for the next scare

5. Starcraft 2: Legacy of the Void - This game managed to have a really good main campaign that fixed the many issues that the HotS campaign had. It was at times even a bit difficult which never could've been said about HotS. The mechanics to that came with the Protoss made for some fun decisions before each mission trying to be at my best. The epilogue is shite and a bit insulting which drag the game down quite a bit. Multiplayer is said to be better and the few games that I played did show some promise.

Best Soundtrack

The Witcher 3 - A truly great OST with many amazing tracks that I've listened to often. In a year that didn't have that much competition in this department I can still say that this OST would've been able to offer a good challenge in stronger years for the award. The OST got good diversity and got good tracks for every situation that the game provides. Just listen to some of the tracks that are played when you're on Skellige and you will understand!

Most Impressive Aesthetic

The Witcher 3 - Even with the unnaceptable downgrade in the graphics department the game still look terrific. I'm not able to play it with the highest settings so there's still room for improvement on my experience and if it manages to wow me with less than 100% that says something and I look forward to the day when I can experience the best it has to offer. Truly a beautiful game and CDProjekt has done a fantastic job once again. Looking forward to the magic they will provide next!

Places 4-2

4. Rocket League - A smash hit this game. It became my go-to game when I wanted to play something and didn't have that much time on my hands to spend. A quick game just over 6-7 min or a longer session. Both situations this game could handle with ease and several hundred of games completed I still find it just as enjoyable as I did at the start. Doesn't matter that I only score aerial goals by mistake and never when I want to..

3. Fallout 4 - Not gotten into Fallout before this game so I had no prior experience or knowledge about what a Fallout game should provide. I had just so much fun playing this game and actually didn't experience more than a few glitches and bugs in my playthrough so it was a stable experience overall. The game provides an overall great experience on all departments besides the OST that I honestly can't remember a single tune from. It did however make me want to play New Vegas.

2. Tales from the Borderlands - A decent enough story with the Borderlands graphics and TellTale art in addition to the at times fantastic OST but that's not mentioning its greatest strength, the characters with Fiona one of the two protagonists being the brighest example of the skill at TellTale and its writers department. The game got amazing writing when it comes to its characters and all the situations they end up in. I could spend so many more hours with everyone of them, Fiona especially. Being cunning and sarcastic with her might be the most entertaining experience of this year in gaming.

Character of the Year

Fiona - TellTale got a knack for writing characters and especially female characters. Fiona follow the proud tradition set by Clementine from the Walking Dead and she do that tradition proud. Fiona is a character almost written for me. The sarcasm, the snark, the cunning wit and the ability to care deeply for family and "friends" make her a really fascinating character and one I hope to be able to spend so much more time with in the future. I can't state enough just how terrific Fiona is and she alone would be a great reason to play the game. The interactions she has with her fellow characters are some of the best gaming moments of this year and could make such a list in most years. With Fiona I had to deal with a vast amount of different situations and TellTale allowed me to pick between several glorious options. Laura Bailey did a terrific work with Fiona and nailed the character perfectly. It's a match made in heaven!

Game of the year

The Witcher 3 - This years winner is The Witcher 3! A much stronger winner than last years, a winner more deserving of being called GOTY! The game comes with a good story that despite failing at certain aspects, political mostly.. still manges to provide viable reasons to experience new enviroments and meet new characters. The characters themself are just awesome and it was so good to finally meet Yennefer that took so much space in the Witcher 2 without actually being on the screen. I really enjoyed her relationship with Geralt and both of their relationship with Ciri that was so important in this game. This game managed to do a good job in the crafting of bonds and relationships between characters with the one between these three almost looking like a genuine family. The antagonist of the game was quite weak which is a shame since it makes it harder to compare this game to some other fantastic titles. If the game had a solid antagonist it would be possible to call this game overall fantastic. That said it's still a fantastic game with the flawes considered and a game that make this year worth remembering in gaming. I look forward to the glory that I hope to be in 2016 and compare this game to the tiles that was meant to relase in this year.

Now it's time again to do a summary over this year in gaming. Every year is special and some will be remembered as amazing years and looked back on fondly while others will be quickly forgotten as mediocre or worse. 2014 for me was perhaps the weakest year in gaming with a never seen before low of interesting titles and the average quality of the games that I did play were much lower than in recent time. Hopefully 2015 will be much different!

The anticipated

The games i looked forward to the most this year were the following:

1. Transistor

2. Dragon Age: Inquisition

3. Sims 4

4. South Park. The Stick of Truth

5. InFamous: Second Son

What game lived up the anticipation the best?

Transistor: After a very memorable game and experience in Bastion I had much hope that Transistor would be equally as good if not better but as always the danger of expecting much from a game is a lot of disappointment. That did however not happen with Transistor that not only lived up to my expectation but also above it. It got an amazing soundtrack in addition to great visuals and gameplay. The story and the characters in the game are exactly what I expected to find. Quality!

The largest disappointment

Sims 4: This year had not real disappointments like previous years so I've had to think differently this year to make up for that. Sims 4 is a decent game that offered a decent experience but it was very shallow compared to the previous installments and it really felt even more so due to Sims 3 having the benefit of many expansion packs filling it to the brim with content. Sims 4 lacked a lot of features that it badly need and therefore it's given the disappointment of this year!

Place 10 - 8

10. Plague Inc: Evolved - Had far more fun with this title than I expected that I would. The fun I had making humanity die from various diseases and the like is hard to really put to word. The frustration of falling short and having to come up with a new strategy to exterminate humanity is this games real strength!

9. Diablo 3: Reaper of Souls - Unlike the vanilla Diablo 3 this game worked with me and the time spent in it felt worth it instead of like a waste and it was a much more enjoyable experience than Diablo 3 itself was. Blizzard took the criticism to heart and made a better game from it. This is what Diablo 3 should've been from the very start.

8. InFamous: Second Son - For being an early PS4 title InFamous: Second Son still felt like a good game and worth the time and money spent. A bit short and lacking in many elements are made up by fun gameplay and pretty visuals, it was a game that made my PS4 be used this year and that's not too common!

The unexpected

South Park: The Stick of Truth - The danger of licensed titles are well known by now so I went into this game with almost no expectations at all and for the longest time didn't think about getting this game but I did and I've not had any regrets about it. It's a very good game that felt true to South Park and just was overall a blast to play and a worthwhile investment that clearly made me want more of this, more of South Park!

Place 7-5

7. Sims 4 - While the disappointment of this year it still managed ot be fun to play and beat out a couple of titles this year. It got potential to be a much better game and I advise people to wait and see if the developers managed to have the game fullfill that potential.

6. Middle-Earth: Shadow of Mordor - A title that made me appreciate just how important I value good combat and gameplay in my games. The story and the characters are not worth speaking about but the gameplay can be mentioned a thousand times over. It's enjoyable and made better through the "Nemesis" system that the game has.

5. The Wolf Among Us - TellTale did it again and delievered another remarkable title that after a slow start managed to capture my interest for a long time and made me come to appreciate TellTale's approach to storytelling in another way now when they dealt with something else than the brilliant Walking Dead. Bigby is a great lead character and I look forward to more!

Best Soundtrack

This years winner is Transistor! Not the largest surprise really considering just how amazing Bastion was in the soundtrack department and Transistor does the legacy justice with even more amazing soundtracks that really could be considered masterpieces. "The Spine", "Paper Boats" and many more soundtracks are common in my playlists. I can't say enough good about this soundtrack and hopefully more like Bastion and Transistor quality soundtracks are in the near future!

Most Impressive Aesthetic

Transistor is the worthy winner here. That game is so impressive in how it look that it would be a strong contender many of the last few years. The contrast between the colours used end up letting the player see things that really show that gaming is moving forward in terms of quality. Supergiant games know what they're doing and they do it so very well!

Places 4-2

4. South Park: The Stick of Truth - As already mentioned at this point it felt true to South Park and not only that was a blast to play and made me want more delivered just like this game was.

3. Dragon Age: Inquisition - Bioware finally managed to deliver on a title after a few years of less than stellar games from the Canadian studio. Inquisition is a very good RPG that made the Dragon Age world feel more interesting than ever before. The game got amazing characters and soundtrack. The game look great on the Frostbite engine and hold a lot of promise that Bioware can do better with more experience with the engine. Future looks bright once more!

2. Transistor - A worthy successor to Bastion that entertained me just as much as Bastion did with it's great visuals, awesome soundtrack and solid gameplay. The story and characters made the world in Transistor very much worth the time spent in it and it's a title that I look forward to playing again in the future. Can't wait for what might come next!

Character of the Year

Dorian Pavus - Bioware really nailed Dorian with him being a mage from Tevinter and giving us completely new information on this nation that we've always heard so much about but never enough about. Dorian come with a fabulous personality, sarcastic and sassy jokes and never ever felt dull to be around. He also wear his facial hair like a boss which only make me approve of him even more. His personal story really touched me and made me understand much more the struggles some people go through in life and I've thanks to Dorian become a better and more understanding person. Dragon Age: Inqusition would be a much poorer game without Dorian and I just can't see my party without this amazing man!

Game of the year

The Walking Dead: Season 2 - This years winner is The Walking Dead: Season 2! 2014 was a very weak year and it's reflected in the fact that the winner of this year is the somewhat weaker second season of TellTale's "The Walking Dead" Now don't get me wrong this game is absolutely amazing and I was so pumped and happy to be playing as Clementine who is a character that I adore unlike any other at this date. She really is the star of The Walking Dead. The game was just like the previous season full of tension and hard choices and I can honestly today not say if I ever knew what I really were doing. TellTale did far better than I could hope for them to make me play as a child a worthwhile experience and I'm once again in their debt for making gaming a hobby that I can support with so much energy. I'm really excited for the future TellTale games and I really hope for more The Walking Dead and especially more Clementine. At this point I'm not sure if I can really play a Walking Dead game that doesn't have her in it.