Board 8 > transience's top 100 games -- 2020 edition.

(+) Yeah! (+)

Hey everyone. Hope you're all doing well, whoever is still around these parts.

I'm not sure if many people still actually visit this mostly dead board but I've been posting my games lists here for something like 15 years. Even if no one actually posts, I'll still finish this because it's a goddamn tradition for me to write about my top games here.

I did a crazy thing in 2019: I wasn't really that into any of the games coming out so I went all in -- and I mean all in -- on playing my favourite games. I ended up playing over a hundred of my top games, including 92 games that made this top 100. I made it a point to play a significant/representative portion of every game in my top 50 that I could possibly play. (My 3DS's hinges broke about 40 hours into Etrian Odyssey Nexus in February and I haven't replaced it yet so I couldn't play anything exclusive to the 3DS.) The end result is probably the most well-prepared list that I will ever make. It kinda feels like I should never try to make another one again after this one, but of course I will because I'm crazy.

Anyway, this will be the usual - short to medium writeups for each game, probably about 10 per day. For those who don't know me, I mostly like jrpgs, platformers/metroidvanias and indie games. I don't get into 3d games/shooters as much because they often make me motion sick. (I would love to love Metroid Prime, but alas.) I'm going to try to wrap this up by 2020 so you can take this as the 457th "game of the decade" list on the internet as well if you care about that kind of thing.

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Hype level maximum.

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I'm in

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1. Desert Golf

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desert golfing, thank you very much

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To each their own, but I found this to be a very strong year for games

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dont think I can 100% predict your lists anymore like I could 10 years ago!

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I think it's more a me thing than a 2019 thing. there were a few games that I liked that made the list, but I usually play a bunch of games and a lot of the ones I was looking forward to got pushed to 2020.

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100.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FgDmU7Pb96Y

2015
PC

I love me a good command line. I grew up with them and still use them regularly, be it at home or at work.

Hacknet doesnt go as far into the command line game as I would like its far too simple but it has the look and feel to make up for it. All it takes is a good presentation layer to get me all in. When you start pumping in electronic music and gives me all sorts of x-server themes, Im all in.

Theres also a few really interesting fourth wall breaking mechanics in this game and the DLC that hit me in just the right way. Hacknet is at its best when the game fights back against you and, well, literally hacks the game.


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Hello tag

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99.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uqtSKkyJgFM

2008
360/PS3/PC

A decade after its original release, I think I actually like Braids tone and feel moreso than Braids puzzles. Theres an eerie sort of silence to the game as it shows off its various bonkers mechanics. Its soundtrack doesnt feel very typical, probably because its all licensed music. It works really well in establishing the kind of place that youre trying to comprehend.

Speaking of those puzzles, theyre pretty good at tricking you, and I largely feel that theyre intentionally designed to deceive and/or troll you. Theyre clever, but sometimes the solution is a lot simpler than what you might invent in your head. Thats really interesting, and some of them can produce genuine eureka type of moments, but there are some mechanics in Braid that just arent that fun to deal with. Its interesting that the puzzles are obtuse enough that I can come back years later and just have no idea how to solve any of them. Kudos to the game for that, I guess!

One thing that I struggle with when I replay Braid is that Tim cannot jump to save his life. Nothing reminds you that this is not a platformer like trying to get his ass over a two pixel gap. It can be so frustrating to just miss jumps over and over. On the other hand, the games climactic moment is an action sequence and thats handled about as well as any game can handle an ending. Braid soars at the end, but isnt always 100% smooth getting there. Its a damn memorable game though.

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Hey you're still alive

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Is Braid one of those games that's really meant to be played on a mouse/keyboard but no one actually does or am I thinking of something else

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Time to comment on the games Ive played as you go!

Braid is probably what got me into modern puzzle games. The kind where the mechanic of the game itself is built upon and tweaked over time to frustrate you and then make you feel like a genius. Several of my top games recently are firmly in that pool so thanks braid.

My thoughts on the game itself are the same as yours though I cant help but have a slightly negative opinion of it because Im not a fan of Blow, and hes very tied up in the game. Hes no Notch, but still.

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Braid could be played on a phone and you'd probably get the same thing out of it. it isn't at all complicated mechanically.

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98.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=edaLZ5zs3J4

2009
360/PS3/PC

Arkham Asylum really defined one-vs-many combat for the rest of the 2010s. The way that you flow from enemy to enemy has a rhythm to it that feels real good when you master the combat and get chains going.

That combat feeling is actually secondary to the literal stalking that you do as Batman in the rooms where the enemies have guns. Arkham Asylum takes the stealth genre, a genre that centers around your character being weak in order to create gameplay balance and tension, and turns it into an empowering experience. Arkham games give you so many fabulous toys to play with, down to the heart rate monitoring of criminals, that makes the whole thing an absolute delight.

On the flipside, theres a lot of story and dialogue that quite honestly gets in the way of the fun unless youre a DC nerd. Joker and Harley Quinn are taunting you the whole time and it adds nothing but a bunch of pointless banter that has kind of crushed the atmosphere of big budget games in the last 10 years.

Asylums the best of the Batman games because it gives you a sense of place that the open world ones lacked. The almost metroid-like map is pretty cool for a big budget 3d game like this.

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97.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2ohjyhICYco

2010
360, PC, Wii U, Switch

Super Meat Boy is manic platforming distilled into the purest possible form. Theres no enemies and the gameplay is stripped down to the most basic elements: youre just running and jumping through hundreds of levels, usually at warp speed since Meat Boy plays super fast.

The game also has this everyones here feel from the indie perspective since they packed it full of cutesy references from other games of its time. It actually feels kinda funny to go back to it and see platforming mascots from the 2000s since so many have come along since then. An updated Meat Boy would be interesting to see given how many thousands of notable indie games have come out since then. Notable indie games werent as plentiful in 2010.

This game is completely up my alley. Unfortunately, I also kinda dont like the weight with which Meat Boy moves. Theres so much gravity and inertia working against you here. Meat Boy ends up feeling kinda like Sonic, a game where you can go fast but never really have a lot of control over what your character is doing. Well, I shouldnt say that. You *do* have complete control over Meat Boy. Its just not the kind of movement that I want. I still like this game despite it, but it limits my enjoyment.


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Tag

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tag! won't have played any, but still enjoy just being in the topic

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96.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-cO_DIVuSyQ

2007
PC, 360, PS3

This was a triumph. No game feels more stuck in the 2000s than this one. Every Glados line that once felt at least halfway clever now feels super forced and awkward. Games writing has come a long way in the last 10 years, in large part due to the original Portal.

Despite that, the game holds up. Very few video game mechanics are as satisfying as momentum flinging in the original Portal. Like Braid, Portal makes you continually feel smart as you figure out obtuse solutions to simple puzzles.

I much prefer Portal 1 to its sequel due to its limited scope. Portal 1s focus on test chambers is very simple, but I really prefer the simplicity than what Portal 2 tried to do with more natural FPS environments.

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Oh interesting so you feel like meat boy is too heavy? I can definitely see that.

I went through and beat all the normal stages and some number of the extra ones and felt like I got my moneys worth. I think the most frustrating parts were definitely the physics of the fans, and the boss fights.

also I had no idea all those other characters were from other games at the time. Just how out of the loop was I back then? Wow

portal still holds up huh? Im surprised it doesnt give you motion sickness. Its just on the border of doing it to me (and like you, I cant do Metroid prime).

I think some of the most clever portal puzzles have come in games paying homage to portal itself... and Yes Im thinking of what the golf as I say this. But other games too I think!

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Absolute tag

I've stumbled upon some of your own lists and we have very similar taste so I'm curious to discover something new here.

An old list of yours is the only reason I ever discovered Bleed & Bleed 2.

Tag!

Ive always been super impressed by how quickly you finish your lists

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tag tag tag

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I played Super Meat Boy for the first time a decade after it came out and it's a borderline top 5 2D platformer ever for me. Better than Celeste!

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You are now tracking this topic.

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always enjoy seeing the old faces resurface for topics like this

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merry christmas everyone. my kids woke me up at 5am because of course

RoseChevalier posted...

portal still holds up huh? Im surprised it doesnt give you motion sickness. Its just on the border of doing it to me (and like you, I cant do Metroid prime).

my struggle mostly comes with whipping the camera around in action games. Portal's momentum might be bad for a second as you fly, but a lot of it is just walking around. I can handle that.

one game that was on the last list but missed this one is mirror's edge, and I really like that one's movement despite it being a nightmare once you get moving at high speed. I just didn't try to fight any of the guards and beat it pacifist.

LadyVyxx posted...

I've stumbled upon some of your own lists and we have very similar taste so I'm curious to discover something new here.

An old list of yours is the only reason I ever discovered Bleed & Bleed 2.

heck yeah. both of those will be on here, and won't show up today


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95.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uiCm88Me_3U

2008
Wii/PC

There are very few games in this world on World of Goos level when it comes to sound design. The sound effects that play when youre building a goo stack are as good as it gets. The sound is so good that it makes what could be a simple flash game feel truly momentous. There's a level early on where you can fly off the main island and it's always amazing every time.

This game has one of the greatest oh god oh man feelings because youre always teetering on the brink and one mistake can be so painful. But when you nail it, man, it feels great.

World of Goo works so long as you dont get stuck on a single level because doing them over and over isnt fun at all. If youre almost failing at every level then its amazing, but if youre actually having to start over and rebuild after 5-10 minutes of effort over and over then the whole illusion of fun breaks. You're better off playing this one with a mouse than a Wii Remote.


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94.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UAO2urG23S4

2017
PC, PS4, Switch

I struggle with Hollow Knight because its a game of high highs and low lows. For example, the games movement and combat systems, the two most important pieces of a metroidvania, are great, maybe even exceptional. It feels great to just move around and the give and take of recharging your life is completely unique for a game like this. The audio design of this game is strong and theres an isolation to it that even Metroid cant hang with.

But then theres the other stuff. The easiest flaw to point out is the map system. The game seems to be begging you to be lost, and if you have a sense of direction like I do, you need to be looking at a map. Hollow Knight pretty much gives you the finger until you find a map dude somewhere deep into the level and the game even makes you spend currency in order to unlock an upgrade to pinpoint where you are on the map.

The character upgrades are few and far between, and dont add a whole lot in terms of movement abilities which is a big thing for me and metroidvanias. The game is heavily focused on the combat, which makes sense given how damn good it is, but I come to the genre for traversing a big world and Hollow Knight keeps the movement basic throughout most of the game. This isnt necessarily bad because the core movement is so good, but it does feel a little stale going back and forth between hub areas.

Hollow Knight really commits to its black and white aesthetic but it ends up making every area feel the same, enhancing the feeling that youre always lost. I think this is a design decision by the team to make you feel like youre fighting against the game, but its not my favorite thing.

And yet, despite all its flaws, Im really looking forward to the sequel.

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hell yeah world of goo

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The Mana Sword posted...

hell yeah world of goo

My thoughts exactly.

Happy holidays everyone by the way

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93.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OCEOBlyUdqY

Mario World is a classic when it comes to standard platformers. The moves at your disposal, the types of enemies and the simple way that you accelerate and decelerate feels right. Mario World is deeply ingrained into the gaming world's collective DNA. Its platforming 101 and everyone knows every level intimately.

The flipside of platforming 101 is that I kind of dont think this game, or really 2d Mario, is very interesting from a level design perspective. I like my 2d platformers to be either hard or fast and Mario World isnt really either.

The game is super competent in every way, and I obviously respect the craft. But indie games may have exposed this game because it felt like the gold standard for a long time but now it just feels classic -- and by classic, I mean just kind of old. Good, but old.

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I would say Mario 3 has good level design. That's why I've always put it over World.

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I wouldn't. I mean, it does, but it's not anything that I find interesting.

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Yeah, I wouldn't say it's peak level design or anything, but I think it's good.

DKC2 is where it's at if we're talking old school platforming design.

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92.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BpCarkGGoxI

2017
PC

Heres a stupid thing that I made in Mega Maker:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u1PTXwtYc5Q

Mario Maker is very well designed but it doesnt really move the needle for me because I think that 2d Mario, while technically excellent, is fairly boring. Mega Man, though? That game design palette is much more my thing.

This fan game has so much effort put into it that it feels official. It certainly feels authentic. Put this thing on Switch and it's a huge hit. Theres content from Mega Man 1 all the way to 11 with the devs continuing to add new content more than two years after release.

Like Mario Maker, the mixing and matching of mechanics across Mega Man games, along with the infinite content that you could play, makes this an easy one to come back to every few months to see what new has been added and what crazy levels are out there.

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Need an MMX Maker too

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91.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QPcIDmgz4d8

This game punches way above its weight due to being in the original PW trilogy. Characters feel fresh and scenarios still feel novel. That accounts for a lot with this series because the original trilogy is really special.

Unfortunately, this game isnt really all that good until you get to the last case. That last case alone carries AA2 from being a disappointment to being pretty good. It might not be on the level of the first or third games, but it manages to hang with them, or at least not feel out of place, based on the emotional strength of case 4.


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2-4 still the best

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I think the map system is the most common issue I hear other talk about with regards to Hollow Knight. I enjoyed it wvwm if sometimes it was quite frustrating. Being lost and one hit away from death only to hear that guy humming his familiar tune.

I think the best way to solve part of the issue would be simply to not have him charge you for the maps. Once or twice i found him in despair and didnt have enough Geo.

Tracking

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I think JFA is straight up a bad game until 2-4, which is easily the high point of the entire series. Weird game.

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90.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N--8ff2cbmU

2000
N64/3DS

The opening minutes of this game - skull kid laughing at you while you turn into deku link, with really bizarre sound to match the visuals - is legitimately terrifying. But the most terrifying is that this is the followup to Ocarina of Time, the great game brought to us from on high.

Majoras Mask is the strangest rom hack ever. It feels like something that a hacking community came together and made out of the broken remains of a classic, yet its somehow an official thing.

Theres a lot of emotion to take from the desperation that is omnipresent and unfixable in this game. Everyone is always terrified because the moon never stops despite your best efforts. That feeling of inevitability within the game world is a really key moment of what makes this game work.

But more than that, I just love the machinery. The clock ticks, always, and the world runs in slow motion while you zip around it trying to get ahead of the inevitable. That groundhog day feeling and the daily, minutely minutia of the townspeople that you get to explore and know is unique, and it feels weirdly intimate to intrude on lives and change them by knowing what will happen. This game feels like someone made a new game plus mode for Zelda and gave you a ton of variables to play with.

Ultimately, I love how much this weird game trusts the player to explore the world and offers no olive branches to carry you along. Most Zelda games arent like that. There wouldnt really be another one like that until, well, probably Breath of the Wild.

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Tagg

KamikazePotato posted...

I think JFA is straight up a bad game until 2-4, which is easily the high point of the entire series. Weird game.

Yeah, I've got the unpopular opinion that 2-2 is a good case and 2-3 isn't really that bad, so I like JFA overall.

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Majora's Mask is what you get when a game's dev team, halve it, tell them they have a year to make a sequel (while re-using assets), then basically let them do whatever they want.

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89.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w_uODiwbJWc

2015
Wii U

X is all about exploration and not really about anything else. If youre coming to this for what youd typically come to a JRPG for, its very easy to be disillusioned by what X offers. The story here is paper thin outside of the beginning and the end.

Instead, youre basically playing this like a strategy game almost, farming resources and exploring the vast very vast land of Mira. The highlights of this game are usually trying to sneak in and plant a probe so you can see more of the map. Its not thrilling narratively, but it can be enthralling to just exist in this fantastic, gigantic unexplored land.

The best part about X is how fast you run and how high you jump. You haul ass in this game as you try to scale mountains and peek into the worlds cracks.

The rest of the game isnt very good and Im okay with that. This game probably gets forgotten over time because it basically cant exist without the Wii Us two-screen setup and all the online features are dead now. But Ill always like just exploring the fascinating world of Mira.

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okay, thats the end of my first tier of games. I have 10 tiers so well call this one tier j. the next set of games are ones I consider a clear step up from everything so far.

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