Game of The Year 2016
After a year off, I give my 2016 Game of the Year list!
List items
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I think one thing I've learned over the last year is to go in with low expectations on games as when they're amazing, they become even better when you come in with the expectation that it's not going to be much. I don't think I've had as much fun with a game as I had with Doom in a number of years. I was watching a video on Youtube the other day about games that make you feel like a badass, this game was no.1. Other than Kratos in God of War I couldn't agree more. This game makes you feel like the ultimate badass. Not only does it feel incredible, it runs butter smooth and has some of the best mechanics in a FPS ever! Loved every minute of this game. The music was also arguably the best I've listened to in years as well.
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The first Uncharted since the first to not be my GOTY. Which is not to say I didn't enjoy it. Naughty Dog still know how to make a game. Nailing both graphics and gameplay yet again and coupling it with a more compelling and heartfelt story as well. I really wish we could have one of these games every single year as the experience never gets old.
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The biggest surprise for me. I have bought NBA 2K for the last few years but never really put much time in beyond the first couple of weeks, always sticking with FIFA as my go to sports title. This time due to various factors (one being a co-worker who is obsessed with basketball!) I have been playing this just about every day since it came out. I was looking at my MyTeam stats and I've played about 120 games on MyTeam and I'm also 35 or so into a MyGM career. It's just such a phenomenally well rounded game. Incredible commentary, beautiful graphics and faultless gameplay. The amount of individuality they bring to every team and player is a task I literally don't know how they do it.
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Another surprise. I wasn't really on the bandwagon with this until seeing some positive responses for the single player campaign. I played and finished the campaign, which was surprisingly entertaining despite being fairly short. But it's the multiplayer that has kept me going back. Battlefield 1 is the ultimate team experience of 'war'. It feels so incredible when you're off on your own part of the map in a battle while you have teammates hundreds of metres away fighting their own battle their too and ultimately you're both working towards the same goal of winning the match. This is the best multiplayer experience for 2016, if not the last 10 years!
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A magnificently told story. This will be a game that sticks with me for a long time to come. A game that really focuses on character, not through words, but by physical actions. Trico is a wonderfully created beast with all the mannerisms you'd expect from a real world animal. The story that Trico and the boy go through over the 12-14 or so hours is full of heaps of highs and lows and you really feel every one of them along the way. I'm truly glad I didn't listen to the reviewers who knocked points off due to Trico not controlling perfectly, when in fact it's perfectly designed to be that way. Expectations have been lived up to for once with this brilliant title.
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Human Revolution was a massive shock for me when it was free on PS+ and I gave it a go. Turned out to be one of my favourite games from the PS3 generation. So I was already excited for this when it finally hit the shelves. There was no disappointment to be found. Offering an incredible gameplay experience, while the story was relatively lacking the gameplay more than made up for any holes. I would've liked a slightly bigger playing space (I'd say Human Revolution felt a little bigger overall?) but otherwise this game had a lot going for it.
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Surprises all round in this list. Titanfall 2 wasn't a game I was overly interested in. I always said I'd buy a game from Respawn if it had a story as IW always knew how to make a good story. Well, they delivered. The campaign was incredible fun, offering a great mix of several different types of games that made this really unique. The multiplayer is very fun too. It seems that they've basically done exactly what the COD series has been trying for, for years now. Using verticality in a way that doesn't annoy and also keeping a mode fast and exciting but not too quick that you don't know what's going on. The titans feel nicely balanced within the gameplay too.
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A terrific horror game. Wasn't near my radar but it was cheap and had good reviews so I gave it a go. Basically taking influence from PT, creating this weird "shit's going on and changing before my eyes" gameplay where you literally have no idea what's going to be around the next corner. Although short, this was a really impactful horror title and I hope the devs move onto something similar in the future as I feel they've hit on a great concept and style.
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A surprise? You don't say! I looked at this game on the PS+ list and dismissed it pretty quickly as another 8-bit looking indie platformer. Only after getting a recommendation did I boot it up. And boy did I have a lot of fun with it! The characters are brilliant and unique, the gameplay is snappy and easy to get used to. The twist halfway through that changes up the gameplay as well is incredibly effective. For a free game I couldn't have asked for much more.
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Watch Dogs 2 feels to me like a real workhorse game. It's not bad, it's not fantastic, but it's solid. Solid mechanics, solid gameplay, solid story and missions. It's enjoyable if there's not a lot else out there. I enjoyed it enough when playing it and there were some really enjoyable missions. It's just not ultra compelling in trying to get me back to play it.
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For a time there this was a captivating game. It had the worlds attention, it had my attention. And for mine, what was there was definitely fun for a good amount of time. There probably just wasn't enough meat on the bones in the end to keep the attention span going for long. It was one of those weird games where when I was asked about it I'd say "I'm not really sure if I like it, but when I play it, I put about 3 hours in!" so it was definitely compelling enough while playing it. I do want to go back after this latest update to see if what's been added really adds more to the experience. I don't think this game has been worth the absolute barrage and hate that the devs received for it, in my opinion as they did still create a game well outside their wheelhouse and weight as developers.
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