Best of 2010
ZeroCrescent: Best of 2010
List items
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I couldn't bring myself to continue very far past the beginning of the first AC, but I absolutely loved the second. ACB managed to surpass my expectations for an ACII sequel by fixing all of the annoyances that were in ACII. Combat was further streamlined, making battles quicker and more stylish as you are able to chain-kill enemies. Memories could be replayed at any time, with bonus objectives to increase difficulty; the Desmond scenes were more interesting in this installment than in the others; previously-annoying collectables like flags and feathers could now be displayed on the map. They fixed all of the problems from ACII, and they added a unique and fun multiplayer mode that manages to bring The Ship-style gameplay to the masses with that AC flair.
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I was bored when I played GTAIV, and Red Dead Revolver felt somewhat like a chore. Yet, Red Dead Redemption managed to succeed where other Western games have failed, bringing us a living, breathing Old West sandbox. The previous king of the Old West sandbox, Gun, had quite a few problems, primarily a story that moved too quickly and the severe shortage of things to do after the story was finished. For better or for worse, Red Dead Redemption's storyline lasts much longer than Gun's, giving a wide variety of characters that manage to break free of the usual Wild West stereotypes. RDR's world was also teeming with life, with numerous side tasks to perform, gambling games to play, animals and treasure to hunt, and random encounters to experience.
The replayability of RDR was compounded by the excellent multiplayer mode that combines online interactions with the sandbox, and further increased by DLC, particularly the Undead Nightmare expansion. Yes, when UN was announced, I joined in the groans, but when I actually played the expansion, I was impressed by the story, the style, and the well-executed gameplay combination of open-world sandbox and survival horror. Of course, even without the DLC, the experience of RDR cements it as one of the top games released this year.
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I only recently finished this, yet VVVVVV feels like an experience that I will remember for a long time. There's only one mechanic in this Metroidvania-style game, "flipping" Captain Viridian's gravity. Using only this mechanic, the developers managed to wring their brains for numerous level ideas. The result is a bunch of creative applications of this mechanic, the type of game where, just when you think you've seen everything, the game manages to throw something new at you while using the same tools. Your progress in the game is further encouraged by generous checkpoints and one of the best chiptune soundtracks I've heard all year. Oddly enough, I loved the story, characters, and atmosphere, even though they were sparse and simple, they still oozed with a certain charm.
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I love space games, so Infinite Space was a no-brainer for me when it was announced. The deceptively simple combat system looks like a paper-rock-scissors thing at the beginning, but starts to really shine when you gain more actions, like fighters and special attacks, and when you are forced to consider more advanced strategy involving distance and the weapon resistance factors of armor. This leads into the most impressive part of Infinite Space, the spaceship equipment modules. Basically, your ships have limited storage for your Tetrinomino-esque modules that confer different benefits. Do you want the parts that increase weapon power, the parts that increase the ship's armor, the parts that increase the crew's morale, or a mixture of the three if you can fit the pieces? Once again, this system starts off simple, with small Destroyer-class ships and few module types, but eventually explodes in complexity as bigger Battleships and Carriers and new types of modules are introduced. There's also crew members to recruit, and you need to decide who takes what position in your fleet, as every crew position confers even more bonuses depending on the character's stats and abilities. All of this is framed in a lengthy and entertaining space opera storyline, complete with side-missions and branching paths.
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This is the perfect example of an "old meets new" kind of game, as the classic Dragon Quest art-style and mechanics are married with elements of games like Monster Hunter and Diablo, creating something that manages to be familiar and unique at the same time. Though the storyline is simple, told in a somewhat episodic manner as you go from village to village solving their problems while tracking down an over-arching goal, and the party characters are silent protagonists, the potentially addictive gameplay shines in this one. Battles are still frequent and turn-based, but the game manages to find a happy median between random and scripted encounters. Monsters will randomly appear in areas as the player walks around, but they only appear on the map, giving the party a chance to avoid the monster encounter completely, sort of like the World Map in Zelda 2. The Job system also makes a return, allowing your characters to gain levels in different professions, earning new abilities as they progress. What truly shines is the amount of stuff there is to do outside of the main quest, such as the over one hundred side quests listed in the quest log alone. Downloadable side-quests are also added to the quest log, but what really hooks people are the grotto dungeons and other dungeons. These randomly-generated dungeons are found via treasure maps, which can be obtained in a variety of ways, including the DS tag mode. Inside these dungeons are strong monsters and bosses, including bosses from the previous Dragon Quest games, and of course, "phat lewt." There are countless types of equipment for your characters that changes stats and their appearance, allowing you to make your characters look heroic, silly, or like previous Dragon Quest heroes.
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This may just be an expansion on the original Mount and Blade, but Warband is jam-packed with content. The extreme open-endedness of this game is what attracted me, as you are thrown into a medieval world with opportunities galore. In the beginning you can grow your army, win tournaments to gain attention, take missions from lords and villages, level up yourself and your army, or just go around and raise some hell. Later on, you can court the daughters and sisters of lords to gain prestige, swear your allegiance to one of the land's kings or true kings, rise through the ranks, fight in the land's many wars, or you can opt to take some land and declare yourself a king. All of this can be done via Mount and Blade's unique physics-based medieval combat system, which takes speed bonus modifiers into account and encourages accuracy with both long and short-range weapons. Of course, it is also worth mentioning the multiplayer that was added to Warband, which takes the battle system, replaces computer armies with human players, gives you only one life for the round and the ability to upgrade your equipment as you make kills.
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Hey, it's Mario in what is quite possibly his best 3D platformer yet. Much like with Assassin's Creed Brotherhood, the changes introduced in Super Mario Galaxy 2 are more evolutionary than revolutionary, and this has the effect of SMG2 fixing most of SMG's problems while adding in some nice new features. Camera problems are practically non-existent in this one, as great level designs reduce the need for playing around with the camera. Speaking of the levels, they are the star here, as old mechanics like Yoshi and the Giant World make a triumphant return, and new mechanics like the drill, cloud suit, and the post-story unlocks, add new challenges to the standard platforming. Add in excellent graphics and a jaunty orchestrated score, and you have a great package.
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High-octane action movies in the vein of Schwarzenegger, Stallone, and Willis are a blast to watch, but it has been difficult to make a game that is able to accurately capture the wild excitement that these movies elicit. At least it was until Just Cause 2 came around, and put a grin on my face thanks to three things: an easy-to-deploy parachute, a grappling hook that could be attached to just about anything, and lots and lots of EXPLOSIONS! The ridiculous, unrealistic, and extremely-over-the-top presentation manages to capture these action movies perfectly. The presentation also allows Rico Rodriguez to go about causing chaos in Panau however he wishes. You see an enemy base up ahead: Do you drive in through the front gate? Fly a gunship and cause damage before bailing out to finish the job? Fly INTO a target, bailing before impact? Grapple to a good vantage point in the base and pick off targets? Of course, the end result would likely be the same: Explosions.
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Telltale returns to the Sam & Max series in what is in the running for their best Sam & Max season yet. Without spoiling too much, Max is unexpectedly endowed with strange psychic powers involving magic toys, an evil space gorilla is trying to use this power for galactic domination, and this is connected to a mystery that was pursued by Sam & Max's... Well, I've said enough. All of this is presented in a fashion that combines a Noir atmosphere with the usual zany world that Sam & Max inhabit. Max's powers represent a noticeable gameplay shift, as there are times that players may need to switch to Max to solve puzzles or just to teleport (fast-travel) to another location. Episode 3 was my personal favorite of this season due to the great beginning segment. And more Flint Paper is always a good thing.
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An awesome soundtrack, great 16-bit style artwork, lots of classic game references, and plenty of replay value puts this on my list. As a fan of River City Ransom, the RCR-inspired beat-em-up gameplay attracted me, and the rest of the package did not disappoint. Particularly surprising is the replay value, as the four initial characters play noticeably different, and each has their own ending. The boss fights are the real stars of this game, breaking up the usual "beat up everyone" gameplay with their unique powers and patterns. Once again, the sound track is awesome, as Anamanaguchi provide excellent chiptune beats to accompany you throughout your quest.
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