Good day, fellow kids. It's 2016 and that means 2015 is no more and since it was the last 2015 we'll ever be a part of, I would like to tell you all about my 2015 in the world of video games. And the best way to tell you all about 2015 is to rank the games I played in some numerical order, typically from 1 to 10, but in reverse. So 10 to 1 looks about right. Gotta build it up to the grand finale, eh? So let's get started.

As a side note, there might be spoilers and I cobbled this together relatively quickly so forgive any grammatical errors and misspellings, if there are any.

10. Alphabear

This could be the game I actually played the most this year, but it's not because it was the best game, but the most accessible game. Mobile games are just easier to pick up and play for short bursts... it's just how nature intended. Alphabear is a word game/meme generator/bear collector with a cutesy charm and enough procedural humor to keep me from playing Desert Golfing and Threes (my past mobile go-to games) for minutes at a time. Alphabear is a great timewaster while on the road or at work or before going to sleep, or all three at once, depending on what you do for a living. Alphabear is neat. Try it out.

9. Rocket League

I'm a latecomer to Rocket League having only played it for the first time just before Christmas, but Rocket League sucked me in. Rocket League is not a game I expected to enjoy since I'm not a soccer guy or a car guy, or even that much of a competitive multiplayer guy. With that said, Rocket League is fun. Scoring a goal feels great. It's simple to learn, but difficult to master. I will play more Rocket League in the subsequent days and weeks ahead. eSports!

8. Ori and the Blind Forest

The Metroidvania genre is saturated at this point, but Ori found a way to stand out above the rest in a number of ways. Ori is a solid platformer with the traditional Metroidvania hooks, but the game's biggest strength is its beauty and atmosphere. The world of Ori just looks stunning in every way imaginable. And the story is a bit of tearjerker, but I have yet to finish the game so there's an ending I need to check out. So it's a Metroidvania game, but a good one, a pretty one, a pretty good one.

7. Just Cause 3

Explosions: The Game is all about blowing things up. You shoot objects to make them explode. The bigger the explosion, the more awesome it is. Okay, so Just Cause 3 is not a game that has some underlying deep meaning or complex combat system. What Just Cause 3 is to me is the guiltiest of pleasures. Rico Rodriguez is a one-man army/navy/air force that can destroy a country's infrastructure in a matter of hours. 40 hours of this and yet it never gets old, but the game is not without faults. Upgrades are locked under short, but annoying challenges and the upper half of the island is sparse and unfinished, but overall Just Cause 3 is a worthy successor to Just Cause 2.

6. Dying Light

You guys remember Dead Island? Despite that game's jank, I loved Dead Island for reasons I can't explain right now. However, I need to explain Dying Light because it makes the list. So the good Techland decided to take Dead Island and mix in some Mirror's Edge and a hint of Assassin's Creed. And all those pieces all work together so well. Dying Light's most notable change from Dead Island is the parkour element that gives your character a sense of mobility that is more fluid than any other game of this kind I've played before. There's a sense of satisfaction when fleeing a horde of zombies at night as you jump across rooftops and climb buildings to escape. And they make good use of the parkour in the various missions that feel much less repetitive than in a game like, oh, the game I ranked number 7. I even liked the story overall, but perhaps it's because I found a little bit of glee in how your character, Kyle Crane, is always willing to help, often begrudgingly... often sighing or quipping sarcastically along the way. Dying Light is a pretty cool zombie game and if that's your bag, try it out.

5. Cities: Skylines

I need to play more Cities: Skylines. I fell off this game after a few weeks, but what I played is incredible. Back in 2013, SimCity disappointed me to the point I fell back into SimCity 4, one of my all-time favorite games. Then Cities: Skylines comes in and promises to bring the city building genre back to normalcy, but also add a modern twist. And they nailed it! Cities: Skylines is now the current champion in this niche genre. The tools given to you to make the city of your choosing are robust and easy to work with. There's no right way to play Cities: Skylines... whether you're the type who plans ahead and tries to mess around with concepts like a modern day Ebenezer Howard or just someone who builds on the fly with no regards to continuity or flow. Colossal Order did what Maxis couldn't do this time around.

4. Axiom Verge

Since Nintendo is unwilling to make a 2D Metroid game, a man by the name of Thomas Happ took matters into his own hands and created this faithful homage to Metroid and I am so glad he did. Axiom Verge doesn't mix up the Metroidvania formula, but builds upon its core systems and brings it into the present day. The movement is tight, the combat is smooth, the bosses are tough, but not frustrating or cheap, the look is ugly in the best way possible. If Nintendo made Super Metroid in 2015, it might look like this. So it's a Metroidvania game, but a great one. Possibly the best one of these in recent memory.

3. Splatoon

This is weird Nintendo at its best and most experimental. Splatoon takes the competitive online shooter and gives it a Nintendo twist that is unlike anything on the market. Props to them for making a shooter that doesn't focus on shooting other players, but everything else around you. Props to Nintendo for making it work well online with very few hiccups. No voice chat? Whatever. I feel more peaceful playing with strangers when they're not yelling obscenities and slurs. Props to Nintendo for keeping the game fresh adding new modes, maps, weapons and armor on a regular basis. Props to Splatfests, even if I've been ignoring them lately. Props to the style, the music, the look. Splatoon is the most universe in a video game this year right down to the clothes. Maybe in a few years Splatoon 2 will be a reality and there will be a Splatoon cartoon on Nickelodeon which we'll all watch at least once.

2. Undertale

I can write a 5000 word article on why everyone should play Undertale and how it made an emotional impact on me like no other game since Earthbound, but now isn't the time or place. What I will say is that Undertale hit that part of the brain that feels love and affection, but also hatred and self-loathing and a myriad of other feelings. Undertale is meant to be played a few times to get why people have such a cult-like obsession for this quirky turn-based RPG/bullet hell shooter/platformer/dating sim. People compare it to Earthbound, but to do so dismisses the other 90% of Undertale that is its own game. Yes you meet a number of memorable characters with unique personalities along the way. Yes you play as a child who wears a striped shirt. Yes the humor is somewhat similar in nature. Despite all that, Undertale plays around with mechanics in a way rarely seen in video games and the personality of the characters are portrayed in the combat. It's a game of memorable moments and one-off bits that all come together in the end. I was actively rooting for the monsters at the end of my pacifist run! I felt terrible when I went full-on genocide! You should play Undertale. Now! Go!

1. Super Mario Maker

Level creation is often burdensome. It's a neat concept in some ways, but building a decent level can be daunting to the average consumer. and then there's Super Mario Maker. Everybody knows Mario, how certain objects work, how enemies behave, etc. Now you can make your own with the most user-friendly interface... or just play the millions of other levels created. Super Mario Maker is a blank canvas waiting to be filled with your own simple levels for the novice or gimmicky automatic levels or Dan Ryckert hellscapes or an adventure featuring Sonic or Wario. There's always something new I learned from playing user-created levels and I try to implement that into my own levels. It's all about tinkering around with the tools at your disposal and the possibilities seem endless even though there are some enemies and elements missing from Super Mario Maker. I want Chargin' Chuck, but not having Chargin' Chuck doesn't ruin the experience because Nintendo had the decency to add more content like ghost houses across the 4 game styles and Kuribo's high heel and Bullet Bill launchers that shoot giant winged Goombas and all sorts of nonsense. Super Mario Maker is an absolute triumph in gaming and could lead to a new generation of budding game designers, but most importantly, it's infinite Mario and if I get sick of that, I'll just make a Mario of my own.