2021 was certainly a year of mixed emotions. While it was filled with probably more downs than ups the bright spots really shone through. Visiting family and friends safely for the first time in a year, getting out of the house more, and leaving my old job and joining the Games engineering team at RV (Still wild that I get to say that). And through it all, I played a ton of games. So, let's just get to it. Here's the games that stuck with me the most in 2021.

Best Game That Took Me Multiple Years to Finish - Nier Automata

I finally get it. Nier Automata is fantastic, and I was wrong to wait so long. I bounced off of this back in 2018 fairly early on. I wasn't connecting to the characters and the combat was somewhere between okay and frustrating. But after years of being told to "stick with it" I sat down and got through the main story and the multiple endings (6 I think). The story of 2B, 9S, and YoRHa finally clicked, I found my groove with the combat (still not great but better than I initially thought), and the music. My word that music. I was so very wrong to sleep on this and it's a game that has left a bigger mark on me than I ever expected.

Best Unexpected GB-Related Moment - Jan making the joke about my name I've been waiting for someone to make

I've been proud to be a part of Team GB during Extra Life for the last 5 years now and have been doing these marathons for six years total. But this past year I had the privilege to be added as a part of the "main block" or at least my name was next to Jan, Rorie, Danny, and the Nextlander crew. Since my buddy Paul and I always do 24 hours, our stream ran a bit parallel to Jan and Rorie's 12-hour stream. I wasn't able to watch at the time but getting to watch the chaos of the chat gave me a good idea of what I would need to catch up on. What I didn't expect was Jan to finally make the pun/joke I've waited for someone to make. I can't remember the exact timestamp but it's the "I'm glad we get to Sho-mo' of Chris" line. If I get to meet Jan in person, I will shake his hand for that.

Best Announcement of a Game that Won't Be Done for Years - Alan Wake 2

I love Remedy games. I love Alan Wake. More Alan Wake but now it's a survival-horror game? Yeah, I'm a little more than excited for this. Playing though Alan Wake: Remastered this year reminded me that while there were a lot of rough edges with the core gameplay loop, the story and setting were just phenomenal. After Control, I have nothing but confidence in Remedy and I can't wait to see Bright Falls again.

Top 5 Games of 2021

5. Deathloop

This is my first Arkane game and I dug my time with it a lot. The setting was interesting and stylish. Colt and Julianna's banter was amusing and fun. And I liked having the time to explore in each block of the day without worrying about the strictness of the time advancing. Whether it's qualifies as a timeloop game or not, I don't really mind. This was a good surprise.

4. Animal Crossing New Horizons: Happy Home Paradise

I feel like in another life I would have been an interior decorator. At least this is what I'm led to believe after playing Happy Home Paradise. I'm still playing it now and there's nothing I find more relaxing than clocking in, picking a random villager, and try to build the vacation home of their dreams. Plus, Wardell. Wardell is great and you can't take him from me.

3. Inscryption

I was aware of Daniel Mullens from Pony Island, so when I heard he released a deck-building game I was intrigued. Deck-builders are not usually my jam, but I became ensnared by this game in a hurry. Not only is the core deck game incredibly addicting (seriously just give me a real version of this and I would buy it), but watching the meta story unfold was incredibly satisfying. Act 2 can drag a bit but the final act more than makes up for the momentary lull. This was the most surprising game I played all year and loved just about every minute of it.

2. Hitman III

Hitman 2016 was absolutely great. It opened my eyes to the series, and I had a blast trying to bend the rules as much as I could while finding my targets. Hitman 2 was great as well but lacked the staying power of the first. Mainly because it was the middle child, and it felt like the team abandoned this one early to work on the finale. Finally early last year Hitman III arrived and it has been a mainstay of my PS5 home menu ever since. I loved the new levels (Dartmoor being the best of bunch), the experimentation with the formula with the final train level, and the team at IO Interactive have done a fantastic job of keeping the game alive with new modes, contracts, and elusive targets. While I look forward to how they handle James Bond, I'm in no rush to leave behind Agent 47 yet.

1. Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart

Call it the game I bought to justify my PS5 or call it one of the best character-platformers. Whatever way you lean, I had a joyous time with Ratchet and Clank. Apart from it attaining "Pixar Movie graphics" (I mean it's way nicer looking than Toy Story. Have you watched that lately? Lifeless eyes all around), it's the ultimate realization of the Ratchet and Clank games. Rivet and Kit are both wonderful additions to the story (Jennifer Hale's performance as Rivet is especially great). The gameplay and platforming are as tight as they've ever been. And the story was really well executed. This game consistently put a smile on my face, and I couldn't ask for much more than that.