It was a pretty rough year for video games, bringing us some highly anticipated titles that may have been triumphs in marketing but failed in terms of game design and polish, abysmal online launches and industry shakeups in the form of companies disbanding, losing personnel or being targeted by pesky hackers. While the industry wasn’t able to deliver on its bigger promises and match up to some of the truly marvelous games of 2013, I do feel this allowed some of the smaller fish to swim in the larger pond. Okay so fair enough, none of the games on my list are really from struggling garage developers, but I feel the greater half of them show you don’t have to be a AAA title to be a killer app.
What kid doesn’t grow up thinking of super powers? In fact, I bet if I asked you right now “What super power would you most want in the world?” You would come up with an instant answer. As Delsin Rowe you don’t get one, but four different super powers. He’s a guy that’s truly having fun in his open world setting, and Delsin having a good time makes it easier for you to have a good time. Sure the powers sound a bit silly at first, such as “Video” or “Concrete”, but they work in action and look damn pretty doing it. The game’s biggest pitfall for me is there just wasn’t enough of it, so short I ran through both karmas, got the game’s platinum medal and dropped money on the DLC without a thought. Otherwise it was a hell of a pretty game, probably the best looking title of the next gen so far, some thoughtful actually film-like camera angles for cutscenes, some pro acting (with everyone’s favorite Troy Baker as Delsin), and remembering the first tenant of open world that the player should just be able to have a blast are all great examples of why Second Son tops my list.
Few emotional roller coasters exist in this world like the Walking Dead. Seriously, I’ve gotten over death and heartbreak easier than I have some of the choices the series has forced upon me. Season 2 was a bit more action oriented than season 1, so it seems like the illusion of choice they typically give you disappeared for a bit, but it came back in full force by the season finale and really gave you a mindfuck by showing your happy go lucky survival party bonding together before reaching into your chest and pulling your heart out like a Mortal Kombat fatality. The game had its share of memorable characters, and characters you wouldn’t mind killing, and maybe did. However in all of this you can’t forget little 10 year old Clementine. Clementine the Barbarian of the South. Clementine the Queen B. A vote against Clementine is a vote against living. Of all the despondent dictators we’ve seen this year, Augustine in Second Son, the Pirate King in Shantae, Ultimate Despair in Dangan Ronpa and Pagan Min in Far Cry 4, nothing frightens me as much as what this little girl is capable of.
4) Shantae and the Pirate’s Curse
I’m about as surprised Shante made my GOTY list as you might be, but it speaks to the game’s solid design and the well packaged experience on the 3DS. The story is simple but effective, and the characters fun and lovable. The game gallivants about with a certain amount of genre awareness that allows it to pull some pretty effective jokes. And that’s to say nothing of the tightly crafted design. If you have a Zelda or Metroidvania itch you can’t quite scratch this year, Shantae does it nicely, with the pirate gear she uncovers from dungeon to dungeon powering up her journey across the seas. Plus I really really love pirates, and belly dancing pirates are all the better.
3) Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair
I think it’s rare you see a “perfect” sequel, a game that reinvents itself just enough that it feels fresh but doesn’t break the formula that made you fall in love with it. Danganronpa 2 is in my opinion, a perfect sequel, new enough that I was well entertained but still retaining everything that I enjoyed in the original. If you haven’t noticed from my prior three GOTY picks I’m a whore for some good character work and Danganronpa 2 has a cast of 16 characters I’ll probably carry with me for a long time (Ibuki Mioda for life), and it’s the first game to ever make me think getting into arguments with someone could be fun. With over the top comedy, some new gameplay modes, (I personally enjoyed such as the Logic Dive, though “Improved” Hangman’s Gambit can take a hike), plenty of fanservice and some insane “whodunnits” to solve, this was a great game to carry around in my Vita through the summer.
2) South Park: The Stick of Truth
The most surprising thing about this year is perhaps how many games attached to television and movie franchises ended up being pretty high quality, because you know those are typically terrible. If there’s any “king” this year it’s perhaps South Park: The Stick of Truth, a game best known for its numerous delays, and though delays are usually bad news, it turns out for once the developers weren’t lying when they said it was to ensure quality. Matt Stone and Trey Parker (South Park’s head honchos in case you’ve been under a rock), really infused this title with humor and story true to the show, and it might even elicit more of that South Park freshness than the show itself has had in awhile – Sorry my former employees at Comedy Central, please rehire me! But here I am gushing as a South Park fan, how does it work as a video game? Pretty damn good, though there’s a few obvious restrictions and a teensie bit of simplicity, it really pays homage to the Western and few Japanese RPGs it takes after. A fully customizable character (yes you can’t be a girl but you can cross dress into a convincing one), plenty of sidequests, summons, and enough gear to make you more of a badass than you thought a paper cutout kid could be. Also intestinal gas based magic is always great for a cheap laugh.
1) Far Cry 4
I’ll admit, this game did its work to win me over. It came out the gate a bit unimpressive, and off the back of a pretty miserable year for Ubisoft overall. Fair warning it’s not as major of a departure from 3 as Ubisoft would like you to believe, but the game does provide lots of addictive fun. By the time I was done with the main campaign I looked at my achievement list and the requirements for skill and weapon unlocks and decided “Why the heck not go platinum?” The real joy of the title is just all the crazy nonsense that can happen out in the world thanks to the game’s random event generators. There’s plenty of fun to be had using an elephant to knock soldiers off cliffs, setting bait in an outpost and letting a leopard do the work for me, and (forget the gun porn) donning knife fingers and slicing your way through camps. Then there’s raining death from above in the gyrocopter lest we forget. That same frantic fun was doubled online when playing with friends and other Slime editors. The main story is kind of meh, but the game also gives us the most memorable villain of the year in the form of the delightful Pagan Min and a fun extended cast, who make up for their weaker cast mates Amita and Sabal.
