GOTY 2014
Still in progress, and definitely not in order yet.
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I had a really difficult time deciding whether I wanted to include Valiant Hearts in my list. I bought it because I have read several books recently about WW I, and I was interested in a war game that’s not about killing. The historic information included in the game was excellent; I learned some new things, particularly through the collectable items in each chapter. Unfortunately, I feel that it’s ultimately a flawed game, with simplistic puzzles and a cartoony German Baron as its villain. I spent the first few chapters wondering what everyone was talking about when they called the game moving. The ending really got me though, especially in light of the slightly cartoony style of the game leading up to that point. I appreciate any game that can provoke an emotional reaction – it’s so hard to do within the framework of the medium.
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When I bought Fantasy Life, I assumed it was going to be a life sim on the order of Animal Crossing, with some RPG elements. To my surprise, it turned out to be my most played game this year (70 hours, and I haven’t finished the DLC yet.) In Fantasy Life you choose your “life,” ie job, and then are assigned quests to complete in order to rank up in your life. Lots of games have this system, but what makes Fantasy Life unique is how interconnected the lives are – you might need to be a woodcutter, in order to get lumber, so that you can rank up your carpenter’s life. You can then take the items made by the carpenter and use them in your other lives. It’s an incredibly addictive system, and that’s speaking as someone who never liked crafting in RPGs before. The world of Fantasy Life is also very charming, with many funny characters to meet and recruit to your party. If the game has a downside, it’s the storyline, which consists largely of following arrows and reading text. Luckily, the story can be experienced in small doses (I only progressed the story when I needed access to new areas for my various lives).
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