This is a list of my 10 favourite 'new' games from 2021 (by new, I mean new to me, they didn't necessarily release in 2021).
In actuality, I spent a large chunk of this past year re-immersed in Destiny 2 and playing Dota 2 regularly again. I didn't include them because they've already made this list in previous years but both games sucked me back in after long breaks and have been given new life playing with new and old friends.
I enjoyed the original Nioh when it released and found it added some pretty cool things to the souls-like genre (such as highly technical combat and loot) but I never ended up finishing it. As a result I kind of slept on the sequel until I picked up the remastered PS5 version and it really grabbed me to a degree I didn't expect. Nioh 2 feels like it improves on almost every aspect of the first game and offers a huge amount of satisfaction derived from the depth of its combat along with its difficulty. I do wish it didn't take so long to dole out the most interesting loot but it does help keep things fresh and interesting even in your 4th+ playthrough.
I admit I'm still working my way through the numerous expansions for FFXIV. But my experiences with it just based on the outstanding Heavensward expansion felt warranted to include here. As it's pointed out in many fan recommendations, a sizeable chunk of the original (re)release, A Realm Reborn, can be a very slow burn with a story that really takes it's time setting up characters and events, as well as trickling out new skills and ways to play your class. The payoff for this, however, is a slew of interesting characters, well written dialogue, engaging storylines and (depending on your class) challenging and technical gameplay. I'm excited to reach the Shadowbringers expansion which is generally regarded as the high point in a critically acclaimed game.
Returnal is one of those games that just feels incredible to play thanks to the visuals, the sound and the feel (both responsiveness and also literally the haptics used with the controller). The addition of an interesting story and setting with the main character lost on a very giger-esque alien world is also compelling and helps create extra incentive to work your way through the challenging levels. My only real disappointment with Returnal was the lack of item/equipment variety leading to a bit more familiarity between runs than I would have liked from a rogue-lite.
Resident Evil Village does a great job at keeping you engaged from start to finish and knows not to overstay its welcome. Despite being billed as a [campy] horror game it has one foot squarely set in the action-adventure genre as you destroy swathes of monsters on your quest to save your daughter. It also features an exceptional cast of characters (primarily the villains) that keep things interesting as you make your way through the story.
I hold the Mass Effect trilogy in pretty high regard and The legendary edition was a great reason to revisit it and reacquaint myself with the incredible characters across the 3 games. The first game in particular really benefits from the improvements as it had aged the least gracefully since its release. The Legendary Edition has also been a great way for me to experience all the DLC that I never actually played on my original playthroughs so it's been nice having some surprises included in my nostalgia trip.
When Valheim exploded on Steam earlier this year my friends and I decided to jump in and check it out. Despite not being a great fan of survival games, Valheim circumvented a lot of the more frustrating aspects of the genre in really smart ways, and its emphasis on playing with friends made for memorable adventures and amazing collaborative bases and forts. The simple but flexible building system was actually a real highlight of Valheim for me and I'm interested in revisiting down the road closer to its final release to see how it's improved.
Lump me in with everyone else on the internet who saw the initial trailers for Guardians of the Galaxy and thought 'Well, that's an easy pass'. But after it released, a constant buzz about the quality of the story and writing finally intrigued me enough to check it out. I ended up enjoying the characters and story in the game version of Guardians of the Galaxy more than I did with either of the two movies. Characters develop wonderfully and touching moments are allowed to breath without being punctuated every time with snappy quips and zingers which I grew really tired of in the second movie. What I didn't love about the game though was the actual gameplay and combat, which was pretty stale by about the halfway point. It speaks a lot for the quality of the writing and acting that I still felt compelled enough to push through tedious battles to find out where the story was going.
Forza Horizon 5 is incredibly gorgeous, it sounds amazing, the driving is fun and feels good and this year's iteration features an amazing open world set in Mexico. My biggest wish, though, is that the Horizon games would feature a better sense of progression or working up through the ranks. Instead it goes with the kitchen sink approach where you're given more cars than you know what to do with almost immediately and cash comes fast and easy. I understand they want to have a mass appeal and just get people racing the 'fun' cars as soon as they want...but I think I would be far more invested in the game if I felt like I actually had to work for more of it.
This was a bit of a random discovery- Before Your Eyes is a short, narrative game where your primary interaction with it is through a webcam by physically blinking your eyes. It sounds pretty goofy and gimmicky but it utilizes this in some cool ways, including some that actually enhance the emotional impact at certain points of the story. I really appreciated Before Your Eyes' personal, moving story about your character recounting their life in the afterlife.
Outriders looks a bit like Destiny but it's probably closer to a 3rd person shooter version of Diablo. You can work your way through the discrete story campaign solo or co-op, levelling up your characters and your equipment along the way and getting more ridiculously powerful, finding crazy combinations of perks and abilities that just shred enemies. It's a ton of fun and actually features a really compelling story (one that doesn't exactly put its best foot forward) and while there's technically a repeatable endgame, I didn't find it very engaging and just enjoyed Outriders as a fun, one-and-done romp.
