LogFAQs > #932108797

I'm actually trying and failing to finish one more horror game before I call it a night. But other than that, I think I'm done for this year.

I'm going on a vacation tomorrow and I won't be back till the last day of the year which may or may not be midnight so. I just wanna break down my faves:

Best Games Played This Year:
Iconoclasts (PC) - A true labor of love. It has every right to join the pantheon of Cave Story and Iji for an awesome solo-developed game. Alot of people will probably steer clear of the plot which starts rather normal for a platformer like this, but it just deconstructs and changes up about a third in and its a beauty to see.

A Hat in Time + 2 DLCs (PC) - Oof, just a fun little throwback. It was really easy, and I would've liked some Gex 3 kind of complexity but it's a small studio and it's got charm and solid gameplay. Favorite part: The Cruise Ship DLC.

Stasis (PC) - Smalltime adventure game with alot of cliches, but it's hard to find a game that a) pits an everyman into some catastorphic danger and pulling it off well, b) deconstructs the very plots that make Event Horizon and Dead Space Work, and c) punch you hard with melancholic and absolutely disastrous scenes and characters; heartless villains, complicated circumstances, pitiable but un-saveable victims. It's a shitshow and I love it.

MO: Astray (PC) - The pixelized setting, the minimalist cast, the unique boss fights given that you are just a tiny slime, and the unfolding lore and story. It just fits together pretty well and gives me hope that 2d Platformers can still be a good genre on its own.

Resonance (PC) - I initially just wanted to get through this to get to Wadjet Eye's latest Unavowed. There wasn't much PR for this entry and no reviews I've seen. But I think it beats Technobabylon just a little bit, and is a fine contender for Gemini Rue as well. Just a minor issue with the interface but all in all a very solid modern sci-fi thriller that unfortunately ends in a cliffhanger and the developer losing the interest in telling a future story.

Bad Games Played This Year:
The Hong Kong Massacre (PC) - Hotline Miami wannabe that outstays its welcome after the first (of five) acts. No change in enemy design, repetitive music, and the camera is actively working against you. Its refusal to stretch out like HM does is often the cause of many unfair offscreen deaths.

Nibiru: Age of Secrets (PC) - Broken Sword wannabe that seems to just take everything that makes BS good, and strips everything else. There's no wit. There's no substance to the lore. There's things happening in the game that's only happening "because Broken Sword did it". Absolute Nonsense. Later on I would play Memoria 1 and 2 and at least those games had some kind of Supernatural element going on.

Photographs (Android) - Given its author's track record, I expected something amazing when I heard it was a serious game but it boiled down to be one of those "Story content gatelocked with an abstract Puzzle" games. But the cheapshot came at the end when you are given no choice to save and must unlock only 1 of the game's 5 possible paths. Such bullshit that forces you to replay the game 4 more times for longevity is beyond cruel.

Best Underrated Games Played this Year
The Aquatic Adventure of the Last Human (PC) - Melancholic tale told through presentation than exposition. Awesome boss battles, some of which are of the Shmup variety. And doesn't overstay its welcome.

BYTEPATH (PC) - If I had more time to tinker with this one I'd do it. That skill tree is just insane, for an Asteroid clone. This is how to modernize a retro game.

Tri: Of Friendship and Madness (PC) - It has its flaws, such as the absurd length of each of the levels; terrible pacing, but matched with an oddly addicting soundtrack and enough leeway to play around with triangles in the game, which I always thought was something Portal was bad at.

Football Game (PC) - It's very short and a little predictable, but it has a distinct style which somehow invites a sense of dread to an otherwise innocuous event.

A Plague Tale: Innocence (PC) - I don't know if this is truly underrated but I don't see people suggesting it enough or talking about it. It's a solid clone for The Last of Us with its own distinct style. I'm really hoping I'm right about the way the title is phrased to imply that there will be more than one "Plague Tale".

Beaten "Ghosts" from Last Year:
Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice (PC)
Assassin's Creed Chronicles: Russia (PC) -
Yomawari Night: Alone (PC)
Resonance (PC)

New "Ghosts" for Next Year:
Borderlands 2 + All DLCs (PC) - I stopped because I got bored grinding but all that's left are some solo raids, the latest DLC connecting to the next game, a few sidequests from DLC3 and 4, and UVHM. Then I'll never revisit this again. Best Funnest Class is Krieg hands down.

Metro: Exodus (PC) - It was going great then I got bored halfway into the Autumn part of the campaign. The open world aspect is great, and I'm not complaining. But this is so not a Metro game not like the rest.

Yomawari Midnight Shadows(PC) - Gives me the fucking creeps. They're doing a good job one upping the previous game that's for sure.

Dragon Quest 8 (3DS) - I was on a roll and I just had a burnout I guess after beating all the DQs in a row. I will say thought that I'm glad I started this series in order because if I started with 8, I would never have gone back for the others because this one is just so good. Also, what a coincidence to become a fan before the Smash Bros Reveal!

Happy New Year Everyone!

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It's not so cliche anymore when it's happening to you.