Top games of 2011
There is one game pending that could possibly make this list, The Witcher 2, but I am not sure when I will get around to playing it so I proceeded to make the list without it.
List items
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One of the best games I have ever played. Period. It takes me back to the NES days when I didn't have money to buy new games so I would constantly replay the same game over and over again. Of course I don't live with this monetary limitation anymore, yet the quality of this game brings me back to my old ways. I've ran through the campaign 8 times, or was it 9 times? Exactly.
The mastermind behind Dark Souls has produced such a visceral world unlike anything you have experienced in a long time. A story without much of a narrative, fascinating weapons, characters driven to madness fight you in the nude, I can go on and on. From world, character, to weapon design this is an encompassing vision that games should aspire to achieve. A rare dark beauty.
If I were to pick one highlight of this game it would be its "open world" design. Here is an example of a truely unique open world where design matters. The unique connectedness of the open world along side the level design within each "section" is something awe inspiring, literally making me say "ahhh, that's crazy". The game's open world has been burned in my head that I can visually map out this "open world" with my eyes closed, that's how striking the level design is...how many open world games can you say have done this? Shout outs to The Painted World of Artimas for being a map that you could probably recreate as a legitimate 1v1 map in competitive FPS games.
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Dead Space 2 takes what made the first one great and makes it even more ridiculous. Awesome set pieces, awesome weapons, just awesome all around. This is quite possibly the best Sci-Fi game in the industry (maybe along side Mass Effect 2). Visceral and relentless till the very end, an exhilarating in your face experience. Play it.
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Grasshopper Manufacture is constantly in a "we don't care what you think" mode and the result is always something fresh. In this case it's delivered in vision...and MUSIC. The world of shadows of the damned is fantastic and of course it doesn't hurt that it has competent third person shooter mechanics and the gamplay in general is solid. I am not a big fan of videogame soundtracks, in fact most of the time it's a peripheral aspect of the game that obviously adds a dimension to the experience, however it generally doesn't leave much of a personal impact. However, Shadows of the Damned's music is downright superb, absolutely blew me away, and is something that I will always use as a benchmark to great music when discussions of video game OSTs arise.
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A fascinating realized cyber punk world that that totally absorbs you in it's believable and meticulous presentation. Complimented by a strong story and an unbelievable flexibility in choice make Deus Ex one of the best of the year. I did not get a chance to play the original Deus Ex games but I was very impressed with this game. It had a slow start, it took me 1-2 hours to get into the game, but after that the rest was history.
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A beautiful game through and through. A lot of passion was put into creating this game and it's immediately apparent. The voice acting, music, and lush children's fairy tail visuals are superb. Unforgettable.
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Yakuza 4 is my first experience with a Yakuza game and what an experience it was. The story is something of beauty, unmatched by any sandbox game. Interwoven between characters, outstanding pacing, and constantly engrossing making it quite possibly the best story I've ran through in 2011. That said, Yakuza will probably be hit or miss with most people, although that doesn't say much for today's generation who has adopted a hit or miss, black and white, critiquing still with no compromise. However, Yakuza fits that mold and in this case it was a hit...more like a slap across the face saying "wake up, this is how you tell stories". I will never sleep on Yakuza ever again.
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Classic platforming reborn. Beautiful graphics? Check! Amazing music? Check! No game has made me smile as much as Rayman Origins, that's how much love was put into this game. Some make games for money and some make them because of the love of the craft, Rayman falls in the latter. One word...STUNNING!
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In many ways, what makes Crysis 2 so great is similar to praises given to Deus Ex: Human Revolutions (spoiler!), flexibility and choices. There are so many ways you can tackle areas, pure stealth, run-n-gunning, ninja style and the great level design will guarantee many options to execute your style. In an era of first person shooters that are linear and have tight scripted corridors, Crysis 2 stands above the rest. The developer doesn't hold your hand through the game, It actually takes thinking to execute in this game, a sign of creative and innovative development. Keep them coming Crytek!
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Here is a game that should not be on the list but managed to convince me otherwise. What Dead Island does really well is make an open world RPG, ala Elder Scrolls/Borderlands, with zombies. In fact I would say it does the open world better than borderlands because it feels more authentic and real in presentation. The island of Banoi is stunning and beautifully realized. You will not find anything particularly complex in terms of the RPG elements, your basic green, blue, purple, gold weapon tiers, crafting, and a skill tree but this doesn't stop it from having an element that is forward moving for the industry. The last game I played where FPS melee combat was relevant and well executed was Chronicles of Riddick, but Dead Island has taken the cake and by MILES. No other game is even close to having such visceral and polished FPS melee combat mechanics. There are long range military weapons in the game but the melee is so good that I found myself not caring about shotguns and magnums and just waking people with an electric hot-wired machete. It's revolutionary really and that's why it makes the list.
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Props for making something so fresh. The point system is outlandish and great. Made me remember why I liked FPS games in the first place.
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