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My 2021 game of the year is Death’s Door. Everything I’d seen prior to release had me excited to get my hands on this game. So before I walked a step in our hero crow 's shoes I expected to like the game, but I had no idea how much I would like it. I played a little of Titan Souls, Acid Nerve’s previous game, but unfortunately it never clicked with me. As a fan of good boss fights, Titan Souls seemed like it’d be up my alley. Ultimately it let me down and while optimistic about this game I was reminded of Titan Souls so I didn’t want to over hype myself only to be disappointed again. However, this time they developed a fantastically solid game that I almost immediately fell in love with.
The combat feels incredible and fluid. Swapping between spells and slashing enemies makes for a fun time and leads to unique combat scenarios. Boss fights are tense, difficult, but fair for the player. Death’s Door gets a lot of comparisons to Dark Souls and while I personally don’t agree with them I can see the argument when it comes to the bosses.You will die a fair number of times in these encounters and whilst dying rarely is fun the key is to take those deaths and learn boss patterns. Then use those learned patterns to eliminate the boss the next time, or the next time, or the next time because execution is also key.
Combat is not everything Death’s Door has to offer though, much like Zelda games, there are “dungeons centered around an item or spell to help you progress through. Backtracking to grab collectibles opens up with new abilities as well. The level design is phenomenal. Something about going back through the world and grabbing the collectibles I was missing felt weirdly relaxing. It’s a sensory pleasing game that looks fantastic but not only that, the music and sound design in this game is tremendous and lays a great backdrop as our crow hero is on their journey.
Acid Nerve hit a grand slam with this one, while not perfect (no map system being my biggest issue), it truly is a complete package of a game. The combat, dungeons, puzzles, bosses, music, NPC’s, story, look and feel are all flat out fantastic. There was not much debate in my head as I played through Death’s Door that it would land at #1 on my list this year.
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If you have ever wanted to take a rollercoaster ride through a horror game that is filled with some best parts of its sub genres and those containing with their own twists, turns, and tropes. Resident Evil: Village is exactly that. Ethan Winters, main protagonist, is thrown almost immediately up shit’s creek when an old friend shows up and murders his wife and kidnaps him and his baby. That all happens in about 20 minutes and lays the foundation for the story. The intro was very effective and had me invested and intrigued on the journey ahead. The game is structured with 4 different lords and each of their “levels” are playing with a different aspect of the horror genre. Lady D’s castle for example plays much like Resident Evil 2. It’s a labyrinth full of puzzles and a constant threat in Lady D looming around the corner. This leads to what I think might cause friction with some players in the tonal whiplash from area to area. I personally loved it as it felt spot on balancing the campiness of Resident Evil while also providing plenty of hair raising and goosebump causing moments.
VIllage is special in another way because it was the first “next-gen” game I played on my Series X and visually it looked stunning while running as smooth as butter. The shooting felt tight, the puzzles felt very Resident Evil, and the messed up body horror is definitely here in this exciting chapter in the Resident Evil franchise. I don’t normally play a lot of DLC after I’ve finished a game, but while the credits were rolling I was itching to get my hands on more. So, whether you’re hiding from a very tall and very deadly lady or running from a giant baby while frantically trying to get the elevator to start, it's a delightfully dread-filled trip.
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As I’m writing this I’m only about 3 hours into Chicory but this game is incredibly wholesome and delightful that I knew immediately it would land at least in my top 3, and the year’s not over so watch out Ethan Winters. I am NOT an artistic person at all but Chicory makes me feel like I might have a very, very slight amount of talent. The story in short, is you play as a dog not named Chicory, who inherits the paintbrush. The world is devoid of color and that’s where you come in. The paint brush is magical and re-colors the world and those who wield it are considered heroes. The writing is fantastic and touches on the subject of mental health, namely depression, in a lovely way. Chicory, the old brush wielder, is dealing with depression and your character is doing their best to help not only Chicory but the world as well. Interactions are charming, funny, and really help draw me into the world of Chicory.
Painting the world is hitting some part of my brain in a pleasant fashion. It gives me a zen like vibe when I get a certain part looking exactly how I want it to. This leads to times where I just paint the world for about 20 minutes before I realize I should probably move on in the story. Your brush is not only used for painting for pleasing your eyes. Clever mechanics help you solve puzzles, traverse to new zones, and even fight bosses. When you beat bosses you strengthen your bond with the brush which in turn unlocks new abilities to help reach secrets, mostly fun outfits, and new areas.
As I said in the beginning I’m still under 25% through the game, but it’s a game I wholly recommend to people who play games a lot and those who might not so much. The accessibility options are great, even a mode for lefties like myself, but can help tone down difficulty for boss fights. Crunchwrap, my dog, and I have a long way to go but in this case I’m very much into the journey so I’ll take my sweet time painting the road to our destination.
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Much like Death’s Door the marketing of Psychonauts 2 had me very excited but I was still slightly hesitant going in. A couple years back I tried Psychonauts 1 and enjoyed the humor, style, and writing. The actual playing though felt dated and sadly it landed in the “did not finish” pile. I love 3D platformers and the thought of a more modern one was appealing. Thankfully for Game Pass I got to play this game without having to drop any money, but after playing through about half of it I happily would have. At this moment in time I have not finished Psychonauts 2 due to my Xbox time being limited, but I fully intend on going back because it is 100% my jam.
Just like Psychonauts 1 this game oozes style and the writing is working for me. I find myself laughing along with Raz and his ragtag group of interns. The story has something to say about over abusing your power even if you believe it’s for the right reasons as well. It does this in a wacky world with colors that pop and characters that charm.
Unlike Psychonauts 1 the gameplay feels great. For those that know Double Fine know that this is usually where things can fall apart. The platforming, while not perfect, is up to date with other 3D platformers of recent years and finds inventive scenarios to showcase your psychic abilities. My favorite so far is a cooking show that takes place in the mind of one of the staff members where Raz interns. That is not the zaniest place either, but I could not stop smiling while I hopped around gathering ingredients and throwing them on the chopping block or dropping them in the blender. So far, at the end of each level you fight bosses that incorporate the ideas or themes of the mind you are in. These have all been wonderfully crafted and working through the stages I try to imagine what sort of end encounter will ensue but usually am so far off, probably for the better.
Growing up playing a lot of 3D platformers, I was pleasantly surprised that Psychonauts 2 turned out wonderful after all the delays and Microsoft buying Double Fine out might have helped play a role in getting it out the door. If you like style, good writing, and messing with peoples’ minds I recommend giving Psychonauts 2 a shot, and if you have Game Pass why not.
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Nintendo finally did it. They released a new 2D Metroid game. I have not played a lot of core Metroid games, honestly I’ve only played Super Metroid. I played that in preparation for Dread and it was fine. I know that is blasphemy but I’ve played a lot of modern versions that have done things better. Being down on Super Metroid worried me a little about Dread and whether or not I’d enjoy it but it’s damn good.
It nailed all the things I wanted it to in a Metroid title. The combat is cool, traversal is fun and gets even better as upgrades come along, and exploring the planet is worth your time. I think the design is tight and plays in the favor of the player. Where in Super Metroid the next move was obscure, Dread does a great job at pointing players in the correct direction by placing enemies or items in spots that makes it obvious that you can get there somehow and puzzling that out worked for me. I never felt safe as it can be difficult, but I also never felt hopeless.
The reason it’s not higher on my list are the EMMI’s. While playing I was not sure how much I liked them. The further I went though the killer robots in outer space hindered my enjoyment as they became more dangerous. I am rarely a fan of one hit kill enemies and in Dread the window for escaping the instant death is just a little too small. Dying over and over to the same EMMI can become extremely frustrating. The load times for dying is basically non-existent, but it’s still a step back in your progress that almost turned me off. On the other side of the coin, when you finally kill an EMMI it’s an incredible relief. The area is now filled with enemies but you have the freedom to explore the once danger zone and gather secrets/upgrades aplenty.
I’m happy for the Metroid fans that have waited years to get their hands on Dread. As someone who has played basically no other Metroid games I had a tremendous time. Curiosity has me wondering where the series goes from here, but first can we get Prime 4?
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