GOTY 2014
Close:
South Park: The Stick of Truth
Child of Light
The Banner Saga
Tales of Xillia 2
BioShock Infinite: Burial at Sea Episode 2
Couldn't finish in time:
Bayonetta 2
Dragon Age: Inquisition
Far Cry 4
This War of Mine
List items
-
I'm a big fan of the Lord of the Rings series from the get go, so playing this game wasn't a hard sell. I found it a more technically sound game than its contemporaries the Batman Arkham series and the Assassin's Creed games, and simply more fun to play too. I got 100% in the game, something I'd stopped doing frequently years ago, with the backlog of games to play always growing.
Played on PC
-
A hugely impressive game. One of the best looking titles I've ever played, and one that fortunately ran flawlessly on my PC after getting it to work in the first place. The sound design is noticeably meaningful and impressive, and all throughout Isolation homage is payed to the film series, primarily the original Alien, my favourite of the series.
A few stealthy sections were really frustrating, and harshly checkpointed, though they were the exception. The Alien has never been so well characterized in a video game in my opinion. You're not gunning down swathes of them as they give a quick shriek, you're truly weaker than the Alien, and hiding is almost always the best option when encountering it.
The game was generally impressively true to the source material, even the mini-games felt appropriately thematic. The atmosphere the game creates is excellent, and as scary as the titular Alien. Alien: Isolation really is the answer to: "What if they made a game of one of my favourite films, and did it right?".
Played on PC
-
With Season One of The Wolf Among Us complete, I think it belongs on this list. While it started in 2013, the lion's share of the episodes were released in 2014, obviously along with the culmination of the first season.
It certainly fits within the Telltale episodic formula, so it's not so much a revelation as it is just a very solid game, with an interesting story and aesthetic. The Wolf Among Us improved technically upon the original Walking Dead season, making it a more fun and intuitive game to play, with better pacing. I don't know whether I prefer it to that first Walking Dead season or not, but I definitely preferred it to the second - and in the near foreseeable future, my favourite Telltale series in a year is likely to feature highly on these Game of the Year lists.
The game has a strong aesthetic look and did an excellent job of explaining a world new to most players. It had more work to do than The Walking Dead did in that regard, and did it well. I found the story engrossing, and hit up forums immediately after finishing the series, and some individual episodes. I even wanted to start reading the comics, but don't want to spoil upcoming series. As my favourite potentially(?) ongoing series, I can't wait for another season to start.
Played on PC
-
Such a fucking awesome game. Incredibly hard, in a pretty unique way. I don't know whether I really like "hard" games, I like overcoming challenge, but I'll freely rage at major difficulty. I aggressively banged my head against some levels of Gods Will Be Watching, spending a relatively long 17 hours to beat the half dozen odd levels.
I can't remember the last time prior to this game, that I felt the need to draw maps by hand - maps that became obsolete every time I failed the level no less.
I'm really proud for persevering against Gods Will Be Watching, a game so difficult the developers added easier options as an update, and one wherein the developers wholeheartedly endorse a difficult option, rather than playing on the easier one that was available at launch.
Played on PC
-
I was a huge fan of the first Season of The Walking Dead Game. I expected nothing when watching the first episode on Twitch, it's a licensed game after all. It couldn't have impressed me more in that first viewing, and despite watching the first season through online, watching other peoples' reactions and choices I endeavored to get the first season, play through it all, make my own choices and play the second season blind.
The second season started strong, making necessary changes from the first season and improving the technical aspects to make it more fun to play, akin to The Wolf Among Us. While I don't think it was as strong a season as the first, or as engaging as The Wolf Among Us, it was still a continuation of a phenomenal game.
I really enjoyed playing through the second season, though as much as I like it, I think I'd prefer fewer Telltale games - they now have 2 active series, 2 between seasons and another announced. I'm currently invested in 4 of their series, and it'll likely be at least a year before any of those finish a season, much less reach a conclusion.
Played on PC
-
With the closure of Bizarre Creations several years back, I'd thought one of my favourite game series gone for good. The first was a game that kick-started my interest and involvement in the Xbox 360 and its Arcade games. A simple, striking and impressive looking game, with enough depth and challenge to last dozens of hours easily.
The sequel added a lot more content to the mix - while it wasn't as concise or quite as addictive as the first game, it introduced some of my favourite modes in the series, including my absolute favourite Pacifism.
Geometry Wars 3: Dimensions does the impossible, it does a revered series justice while expanding upon its legacy in some interesting ways. Its announcement amazed me, I was practically in disbelief, and again when it was released I was pessimistic, but had to see for myself what this new Geometry Wars game was. Needless to say, I was hugely impressed. The progression system was very welcome and it represents what a Geometry Wars game would need to be in 2014.
Played on PC
-
What an awesome game. Due to some platform bias, I hadn't paid much attention to the game before launch, or been especially excited - which is doing the game a disservice. It looks phenomenal, runs incredibly well and is just a hell of a lot of fun to play. The story impressed me too, and dealt with my biggest complaint about the previous inFAMOUS games, namely a huge part of the cast being thoroughly unlikable and impossible to shake. If I had to complain, I'd say the game felt a bit short. Maybe Dark Souls II has skewed my
expectation of game lengths, but I'd rather play this for longer. I may do another run, a "good" one, to see the differences and try out the other powers and such. And/or 100% the game. The game also made interesting use of the PS4's unique features, which didn't seem
absolutely necessary for the game, but give it a nice exclusive flavour over every other platform.
Played on PS4
-
This is for the DLC Left Behind for The Last of Us.
I can honestly say I preferred the DLC to the original game. I still had my problems with the combat, though they only really cropped up in one particular occasion. I was enamored with the story in Left Behind, it really felt meaningful and formative for Ellie - whilst showing several sides to her experiences and some welcome backstory.
While some of the story beats were probably predictable, I didn't entirely see them coming and was gratefully surprised. I've yet to play The Last of Us on PS4, but I'm sure that'd be an even better experience.
Played on PS3
-
Pretty cool. I never decided whether I liked or hated the original Dark Souls, but it's safe to say I like and enjoyed this one. That could be due to the changes, or due to knowing what to expect this time. Some changes were really welcome, but this is still a weird, quirky and often clumsy game. I far from think the Souls games are the best that exist, but I'll admit to really enjoying it and having many great challenges.
The balance was really impressive - sometimes I skipped through the game, progressing and beating bosses with little trial, other times it beat the ever-loving shit out of me constantly. Most everything seemed surmountable, or avoidable. Sometimes I felt the game was too easy, specifically a few boss fights - but the majority comfortably crushed me time and time again. The puzzle element to bosses was one of my favourite in the game. Patterns, equipment, strategies and tactics and stats all play in to most bosses.
I did cheat during Dark Souls II; specifically, I looked up where to go next late into the game and how to get a ring I'd missed. I don't regret the former choice, screw being lost for full days due to something cryptic that needs to be done somewhere in the game you've
not been to in tens of hours. That all said, I never summoned anyone for help, beating all bosses solo. I killed every boss I found, including optional encounters.
I liked the levelling system more than I remember in prior games. I never grinded either.
All my levels were attained via my trying to progress, and deciding to spend what I had rather than venture into the unknown with a lot of souls on hand - which isn't really in my control in Souls games. I used a Dex build - for no real reason, despite a few minor advantages Strength must be far superior.
In summary: cool game. It did its legacy proud. It destroyed me very often, but I did manage to beat it. I'm glad to play a Souls game to completion while it was in the zeitgeist.
Played on Xbox 360
-
This is for the DLC Burial At Sea - Episode 2
An amazing send out to Bioshock. Loved the Ryan Davis tribute in the credits. I think some of the character models could use some work - though that's a stylistic choice. Some of the effects and environments look absolutely stunning, which owe a lot to the game's art, as Infinite wasn't the most technically impressive game. The stealth was decent, one of the more consistent gameplay challenges. The gameplay isn't my favourite, but I'm pretty sure Bioshock is my favourite game, and Rapture's a big part of that. Tying everything from Bioshock and Infinite together in the way they did was great.
With the team gone I suspect that this is the swansong Bioshock deserved.
Played on PC
Load Comments