Before I start, I'll quickly say that these are only games that I have played myself. Some honourable mentions go to games such as Gears of War 3 and Uncharted 3, and probably also Modern Warfare 3 to some extent, I'm sure the multiplayer is just as addictive as ever. You can knock CoD for not trying enough, but you can't deny that when all is said and done, they are very well made games. Anyways, here we go:
10. Dead Island
That trailer really left us expecting something great, although what the game turned out to be was unexpected to most people. Whether that's a good or a bad thing depends on your view, but for me it turned out to be a pretty enjoyable game...and I'm definitely not the biggest fan of this new zombie craze that has been around for the last couple of years. I will say that if I had played Gears or Uncharted, then perhaps this and the next game on the list would have been replaced, but that's not to say they don't deserve their places here.
So in this game you kill zombies...lots of zombies. Alright, not as many as in Dead Rising, but still, a lot. It could be primitively described as Dead Rising with multi player and RPG elements, but it's a little more than that. The story is as follows: You are holidaying on an island, you go to sleep, wake up, and then oh no! Zombies! You choose your character based on whether you'd rather be using ranged or melee attacks and set off in search of other survivors and a way to escape.
There's a coloured loot system that you would normally associate with mmorpgs...but that's almost what this game is. There's an open world, quest givers, loot, you level up and choose talent points, and you can jump straight into a game with up to three friends (providing they're not further progressed in the story than you).
The stand out feature of the game though, is the combat system. There's never been a more visceral zombie killing experience. You're breaking bones, chopping off limbs and quite literally shredding their flesh as you fight your war through the environments, and it rarely gets old.
The game is also gorgeous, particularly the opening sunny beach resort area...your typical dark and dreary living dead game this ain't. It's not without its fair share of bugs and glitches though, and the story isn't much better than any other standard zombie story already available. I feel if the developers had spent maybe six months to a year longer on the game, it could've been brilliant, rather than just pretty good.
9. Battlefield 3
Being probably the best multi player experience of the year, it's a shame that the single player didn't live up to it... again resulting in a game that isn't quite as good as it could've been. Although contrary to many critics' opinion, I didn't think the single player was that bad, it was compelling enough for me to finish it anyway.
I was playing on the PC, which mean I could take full advantage of the 32v32 player servers in all their glory. Some people aren't a fan of such games, and prefer the smaller, more strategic maps...but I just love the chaos and carnage that results from sixty-four human beings let loose in a playground of big guns, and a variety of vehicles which range from small Jeeps to fully blown fighter jets. Great fun.
8. FIFA 12
I had my doubts about putting a sports game on this list, given the general prejudice against them from both industry professionals and "hardcore" gamers. So I've limited the amount on the list to one. Happy?
If you've played a Fifa game before, you'll know pretty much what's going on. This year the main change is defence. It's a little harder and a little more nuanced than previous games, and takes quite a bit of getting used to at first. At the attacking end, the pace has also been slowed down a bit, with more emphasis on working the ball around than you're used to. There's a new impact engine, which makes the animations look a bit smoother, especially in the tackles...although it isn't perfect yet. About once a game or so, there'll be a "wait...what?" moment, as the physics on a player spiral out of control, quite literally.
For fans of the series, and of football in general, it remains the best version of the Beautiful Game you can play without lacing up your boots and heading down the local club on cold Sunday mornings.
As a side note, NBA2K12 is probably a superior game, I just haven't played enough of it yet for it to definitely make an appearance on this list.
7. Dead Space 2
#&*!, what was that?!... #&*! where did it go?... #&*! why won't you die!?!
These are all things you'll frequently hear if you're sitting in a room with someone playing this game. Although they are making the mistake of not playing it alone in a dark room, late at night with some good headphones on (it's a scary game, not what you're thinking from that).
Equal parts jumpy, not-quite-sure-what-that-was-but-it-didn't-look-friendly, and flat out in your face monster horror, Dead Space 2 is a well paced action game, with some fantastically satisfying third person combat. Main character Isaac Clarke returns from the first game, but this time with a face (maybe only to set up this horrifying minigame later on in the game)! As you'd expect from a game like this, you don't need to know much about the story other than: Monster-alien-zombie things, kill them and run.
The action is close to relentless, and when you do get a moment's respite, you're left wondering exactly when the next thing is going to jump out of a wall at you. Nearly always, it's exactly when you expect it's going to...but then it scares the hell out of you anyway. The standout moment of the game for me was the train sequence, which I won't spoil for you by posting a link if you want to actually play it...otherwise I'm sure you'll be able to find it on YouTube. By the way, if you are going to play it, I'd advise you to fail as often as possible, the mini death sequences are superb...look up those too if you're still not going to play it.
6. Portal 2
It seems as though game developers are beginning to understand the idea that their audience actually wants a decent story with good writing, and that this isn't just limited to films and books. Portal 2 is an example of great writing and storytelling, made even more impressive by the fact that there are only a handful of characters. The worry was that the creators couldn't come up with a character as good as Glados from the first game...not only does she return, but she brings with her two new characters that are just as good. I feel a particular connection to the 'friendly' robot you meet at the start of the game as he is voiced by Stephen Merchant, a graduate from my university. That's a lie, I don't feel that connection, but it is a nice little claim to fame.
So we're back to 'Thinking with Portals', and now with quite a bit more. New mechanincs include anti-gravity tubes, light bridges, and different types of gel with make you run super fast or which you can bounce off. Some of the puzzles are just as fiendish as the first game, and still leave you with that real smug sense of achievement when you complete a particularly hard one. I'd also advise finding someone to play the co op with, as it is just as good as the single player, except now you get to troll your friends.
5. LA Noire
I just love that the incredible face capture technology they used in this game means you can actually recognise the actor playing the part.
LA Noire captures everything you know about that film-noir post-war Los Angeles style, throws in an excellent story, great detective work, and some decent shooting and driving sequences, and spits out a fantastic game at you that's very hard to put down. Unlike most detective games, there is no black and white, good or evil outcome to each case, you decide who you think the culprit is, and put them behind bars. Even if your boss would rather you put away the alcoholic homeless man, rather than the upstanding, well known businessman.
The main complaint would be the lack of things to do, given the open world setting. Beyond a few "random" quick side missions, there's not a real point to driving around the city, other than just to explore and experience it the first time round. The open world isn't really needed, just stick to the main story line and you'll be rewarded with thrills, spills, and plenty of kills.
4. Bastion
I'm sure you've already heard me wax poetic enough about this incredible indie game, so I'll just let you read my review if you haven't already, and request that you please, play this game.
3. Batman: Arkham City
Once again, I've written enough about this game in my review. It's good, by the way.
2. Saints Row: The Third
Apparently I review games I really like. I really like this game.
aaaaaaand finally...
1. The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
I also really like this game, but I haven't got round to reviewing it, and perhaps never will because...where do you begin with Skyrim?
I'll give it a go...I'll start with that bit where I...wait that reminds me about when...but then also that bit with the... This isn't working...
The Bethesda open world rpgs have been around for quite a while now, and they've always been pretty good, although I think many people look back on Oblivion with rose-tinted glasses...It was a fine game, but was certainly aided by the fact that the 360 launched with barely any good games, and Oblivion was the first one to come along with something new and interesting. Anyway, Skyrim is by far the best attempt at this style of game that anyone has ever created. It's still not without it's fair share of bugs, magic resistance and backwards dragons aside, but that's almost accepted as a quirk of the genre at this point.
Skyrim is a phenomenal achievement, which gives you the greatest amount of freedom ever seen in a video game. Think of something you'd like to do within the bounds of this style of world. Okay, you can't do that, think of something less weird... How about rolling two and a half thousand cheese wheels down a mountain? Why? Why not?!
The amount you can do is staggering, even after spending just a few hours in the game, your map will be littered with dungeons, towns, keeps, bandit camps and towers, and you'll feel compelled to visit all of them, because chances are there's a fantastically involved short quest involved with the area. You could spend literally hundreds of hours in the game without even touching upon the main story quest, and there are vast areas of the map you will never explore if you stick to the main missions, which is amazing in a modern video game, especially one which takes so much effort to make. Skyrim probably has the best main story questline out of any previous effort from Bethesda, Fallout games included. Do you like dragons? Do you like killing? Mmhmm...
I do hope Skyrim is an example of what is to come from more video games, especially with a new console generation looming, I for one can't wait.
Turns out 2011 was a pretty good year for games after all, here's to 2012 being even better.
Happy Holidays everybody, thanks for reading.
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