11. Assassin’s Creed: Revelations (Action, Adventure / PC, PS3, Xbox 360 / Ubisoft)
The third installment of the second installment of this series (…wait, what?) improves, in many ways on its predecessor, Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood, but mostly fails to fully measure up. If you’ve loved the series, like I have, many plot lines tie up as others unfold; it is a must play for those who want to learn the fate of Altair and Ezio, while slowly developing Desmond. The story is full of well-realized and interesting characters, fun and exciting plot devices and wonderful locales, but where AC really shines is in its gameplay. Not much has changed from its previous iterations, which is a welcome return to the fluid, mostly intuitive and occasionally frustrating environment traversal AC fans have come to love. In my opinion, the most glaring error in this installment was the addition of a tower defense game, thrown in as a punishment for losing previously captured sections of the city. Was this the best Assassin’s Creed, no, but it was a mostly fun and well-crafted gaming experience.
10. Deus Ex: Human Revolution (Action, Adventure / Mac, PC, PS3, Xbox 360/ Ubisoft)
I think what I love most about Deus Ex: Human Revolution is the aesthetic. You’re placed in a future world where gold neon and augmented humans rule. You are forced to choose a side in the war between those who choose to augment their bodies with cybernetics, and those who think the act is an abomination. Full of fun, stealthy combat and story-affecting choices, the only real problem with Deus Ex are the boss battles. Farming out any of your gameplay to another company rarely works, and here, you are punished for playing the game in the way Ubisoft intended, a mix of stealth and evasive combat, by having to trudge through these fight-or-die bosses. Besides a disappointing PowerPoint ending, Deus Ex has a real “human” story to tell. It looks beautiful, and is worth any gamer’s time.
9. Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception (Action, Adventure / PS3 / Naughty Dog)
I don’t know how Naughty Dog can crank out the best Indiana Jones movies year after year, but they do. The set pieces and over-the-top action really shine in this heart-pounding and always entertaining action shooter. We finally get some real character development between Drake, Elena and Sully, that pulls at your heart while it satisfies your trigger finger. Unfortunately, the shooting mechanics were a pain to master, and I found myself having to play through sections many times before making any progress. It is punishing, but you are rewarded with intense and beautiful locales, fun platforming sequences, and great adventure. Indie would be proud.
8. Superbrothers: Sword and Sworcery (Adventure / iOS / Superbrothers and Capybara Games)
You know what I love about indie (as in “independent”, not “Indiana Jones”) games? They are allowed to take chances. Sword and Sworcery did just that. With its 8-bit look and gripping synthy music, S&S is more like playing a finely crafted piece of art than a game. Did I mention the music is awesome? The story is pretty basic, acquire the item, kill the beast, save the peoples, but it is told in such a fun and funny way, it feels completely fresh and engaging. It is sometimes dark, sometimes hilarious, sometimes sad, and sometimes magical. If you are a fan of Braid, Bastion, Limbo, and daring indie titles like these, this game is a must play. Did I mention the music is amazing?
7. Saints Row the Third (Action, Adventure / PC, PS3, Xbox 360 / Volition)
Saints Row the Third is disgusting, sexist, childish, ridiculous, asinine, and one of the most fun games I have ever played. Where to begin… I had to drive 80mph with an angry tiger in the passenger seat without hitting anything so he didn’t scratch me to death. I had to save a pimp from an S&M club using him as a horse in a gimp-style chariot race. I had to kill bunny mascots while avoiding death traps on a reality show called Professor Genki’s Super Ethical Reality Climax. I had to throw myself into oncoming traffic repeatedly to rack up insurance fraud cash. I drove a car that sucks up pedestrians into a giant cannon and used them as ammo. One of the characters speaks every line with auto tune. And spoiler: BURT EFFING REYNOLDS! This game is so shocking and hilarious; you have to see it to believe it. Volition’s philosophy: Is it fun? Keep it in. Is it tedious? Take it out. Why don’t more developers think this way?
6. The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings (RPG / PC, Xbox 360 / CD Projekt RED)
You know how most RPGs give you “important” choices to make, later to find out they had little to no impact on the story (Dragon Age 2 ring a bell)? Well the Witcher 2 does not have that problem. I never played the first Witcher, but was easily able to get into the world. The story of the Witcher is rife with interesting lore, grey morality, and tough decisions that completely change the game. For instance, early on you are asked to side with one faction or another. Depending on this choice, you will have a completely different story, characters and locales. This is for 10 hours of content; it’s basically two completely separate games in one. The gameplay is challenging and doesn’t hold your hand in the early levels. You are forced to play defensively and learn to use all of your abilities even against lesser enemies. The look of the world is breathtaking and really shows off the graphical divide that is happening between PCs and current consoles at the end of their cycle. I’m very glad I got to play this game and would highly recommend it to gamers who love RPGs with real consequences.
5. Star Wars: The Old Republic (MMORPG / PC / Bioware)
Bioware really knows how to tell a story. I’ve played over 100 hours of this game and feel like I have barely seen any of it. Taking place a thousand years before the movies, you are asked to side with the Galactic Republic or the Sith Empire. Within these factions you are constantly making choices for good or ill that affect your character and the quests of which they are involved. The main story for each class is unique and wonderfully told, with twists, betrayals and shocking moments a plenty. The gameplay is your usual MMO fair, yet the animations add weight and a visceral impact to the combat. You have many ways to play with others, from groups of 16 working together to kill a world boss, down to the great solo play with your computer-controlled companion. SWTOR is more than an MMO, it’s a great game, and I am
looking forward to hundreds more hours experiencing it.
4. Bastion (Action / PC, Xbox 360 / Supergiant Games)
Bastion is something special. It is 15-bucks on Steam, stop reading this and get it right now… Go ahead I’ll wait... Back? Okay. The story is told quite literally by a lone drifter with a gravelly voice that narrates your every action. This sounds annoying, but it is wonderfully executed. You are a kid from a broken world, trying to build your home back to its former glory. The story is told through its music as much as its narration, introducing tragic and hopeful characters along the way, and an ending that will always stay with me. The music is such a magical blend of dusty guitars, melancholy vocals, break beats and eastern-influence, it oozes style. The gameplay is basic, yet very satisfying, giving you a myriad of ways to slay your foes, and many challenges along the way. Bastion is one of those special experiences I put up there with Limbo, Portal, and Sword and Sworcery. This is a game gamers will refer to for many years to come, don’t pass this one up.
3. The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim (RPG / PC, PS3, Xbox 360 / Bethesda Studios)
Skyrim should have been my game of the year, but I played it on the PS3. Despite its game-breaking bugs, Skyrim is one of the greatest games ever made, period. Boasting over 300 hours of content, the world of Skyrim feels so alive and real, you forget you are not actually a Norse man hunting dragons. The systems in place to run this game are mind-boggling. Every NPC has a job, eats when it’s hungry, sleeps in its home, interacts with others, and generally acts like a real person would in most situations. This makes a game that is wonderfully dynamic and always changing. I’ve never had so much fun just walking around and discovering things. In my near 70-hours played I have barely touched the main story line; there is just so much to see and experience in Skyrim. It’s much more than a game, it’s a world.
2. Portal 2 (Action, Adventure, Puzzle / PC, PS3, Xbox 360 / Valve)
Not many games are truly funny. Not many games make you feel smart. Not many games are this fun. Portal 2 is the complete package. Spot-on gameplay? Check. Dazzling story with even better characters? Check. A world that is unique and compelling? Triple check. Everything from the pacing, the humor, the mechanics, the voice acting, the music, you name it, has such a polish, Wheatley could see the gleam from space. Portal 2 takes place in a long-abandoned scientific testing facility controlled by a ruthless AI named GLaDOS. You must escape using your wits and diverse and challenging game mechanics. You never feel so smart as when you figure out the solution to a room that has been irking you for hours. I don’t know how Valve does it, but Portal 2 is such a wonderfully fun and funny experience, it is an absolute joy to play.
1. Batman: Arkham City (Action, Adventure / PC, PS3, Xbox 360 / Rocksteady Studios)
Let me preface this by saying I am a Batman fan… ok maybe that is too tame… I am a Batman super fan; he is my favorite superhero, hands down. In 1989, Tim Burton first showed me his take on the Caped Crusader, and 20 years later, Rocksteady’s Batman: Arkham Asylum took me to a whole new level of affection for the character. Since then I have been scouring the streets of Gotham, reading “The Killing Joke”, “Hush”, “The Dark Knight Returns”, “Year One”, and the current series of comics. “The Dark Knight” is in my top 5 favorite movies of all time. Why am I telling you this? I want to make my bias clear up front. It is one factor into why Batman: Arkham City was my 2011 game of the year, but it is by no means the most important. Here it what is: this is the most fun game I have ever played. The controls are perfect, tight, intuitive, responsive, and the actions feel like they are supposed to. The combat is sublime, and always make you feel like a larger-than-life superhero. The streets are teeming with villains, and the story is one of the very best Batman stories ever told. If I had a complaint it would be that sometimes I felt like I was being pulled in too many directions at once, with TOO MUCH to do, but what a great complaint to have. Mark Hamill and Kevin Conroy give Oscar worthy performances as the Joker and Batman; Hamill won this year’s Spike VGA for best voice actor. This is a game I rushed through because I couldn’t wait to find out what happened next, but at the same time, always wanted to linger to discover all of Arkham City’s secrets. Rocksteady shows a real care to detail and polish that so many games don’t have these days. I am excited to play this again and again, and can’t wait to see what Rocksteady has in store for us next.
Well, that does it for my 11 of 11. What were some of your favorite games? Did I miss anything you think should be on the list? Did you agree or disagree with any of my selections? With excellent games like these and what we have in store for 2012, damn it feels good to be a gamer!
