And, hey, when you go out to buy the stuff you didn't get for Christmas... maybe you'll think about some of this stuff first!
Disappointments
I'll start with the five games that weren't as good as they should have been or I thought they would be or didn't live up to the hype. Why tell you about the worst games? You can tell just by looking at 'em! Careful with these! Also, the "hits" go second so I can end on a high note.
5. Witcher 2: Enhanced Edition
 |
| Review |
Sort of cheating to include this since the XBox version came out this year, but this game already existed on PC. I don't think I'd qualify this entirely as a "bad" game; I'm happy I played it. But with the amount of love I was hearing for the game and it's writing and universe, well, this is the definition of the word "disappointment," folks. Well, The Phantom Menace is. But you get what I mean.
4. Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning
 |
| Review |
The best feeling this game gave me was when I completed it. Not because it was a satisfying ending to an amazing journey, oh no. But because it was a freaking nightmare that wouldn't end and I had to beat it! This is like being wrongly accused of murdering your best friend and finally getting acquitted. That feeling of, "It's finally over." Except your best friend is clearly still dead. Hm. That was a rather over-the-top analogy. Uh, that's the definition of "hyperbole." I'm... teaching you words now, I guess.
3. Assassin's Creed 3
Okay, so unlike Witcher 2 this is definitely cheating. Whatever. The point is that nothing I saw in the game made me want to play it. And this is a HUGE franchise that everyone loves. I hate that I am missing out! But I hate these games more! Ugh!
2. Borderlands 2
After continuing to play this game after the review went out, finishing DLC's and a second playthrough, I really wanted to like this game more. I loved the *potential* the first one had, and I wanted to see where it would go. Where did it go? Down the toilet. I've actually agonized over changing my review to one star. I decided to leave it at two because it's an easy enough recommend to a wide range of people still. But... damn you Gearbox! We're not friends any more!
1. Diablo 3
Sigh... I already mentioned Phantom Menace, so I'll compare this to Duke Nukem Forever. Ten plus years since Diablo 2 and this boring, lazy, mediocre, detached thing is what comes out. And there's still no console port! Why? It's not like this game is at all complicated like a lot of PC games can be! And what you may not know is that Diablo 2 was like a first true love to me. I'd been playing games for a long time, but I was in DEEP with that one. I did consider that maybe a lot of that had to do with being a semi-poor teenager. You know, you tend to play a game a lot more if it's the only one you get in a year. But, well, the game at the top of the next list challenges that notion...
Hits
Call these the "best of." But like the previous list, these are more personal. While they may not be the most mass marketable games out there (there's a distinct lack of Black Ops 2 on this list, see), these are the ones that just made me solidly happy.
5. Avengers Alliance
 |
| No review available. |
Facebook games don't count as true, full-blooded video games! But good Goddamn if this one doesn't come as close as I think they ever will. It's still repetitive as hell and tries every cheap gimmick possible to steal your real world money, but I play this fucking thing like crazy. Here's an honorary spot on my list, you son of a bitch.
4. XCOM: Enemy Unknown
Admittedly, I didn't play through this game more than once. Considering the game is meant to be played multiple times and I felt I didn't spend any extra time playing it other than that first thorough sweep, you could argue this doesn't belong here. But that's just because it's stressful, and I can't take it! This thing is an accomplishment and a unique experience. Much love, yo.
3. Transformers: Fall of Cybertron
Robots! That turn into other things! And shoot lasers at each other! It's everything it should be! Nothing more to be said, next game on list!
2. Prototype 2
.jpg)
Check it out, my second highest spot is a game with only two stars. Weird, huh? Well, I had a blast with this game. It didn't do everything right, clearly, but the things it did do right were fucking great! This is one of those games I just reflect on now and then and think, "Should I just play it again? I already did everything, but... I don't know..." The problem with playing it again, though, is that it would cut into time I could be spending on the next game on this list.
1. Mass Effect 3
Ohhhhhhhh! You knew this was coming! Yeah, buddy. This game has so much to offer! Engrossing characters, a living universe, gameplay, decisions, an addictive multiplayer mode. Ridiculous! It sets the bar so damn high for everyone else! There are still bumps, of course: the ending is silly, some bugginess, humans look weird, multiplayer feels slapped-together at times, maybe some other stuff. I'm still playing this game months later! Take THAT, doubts that a game could be as fun as it was when I was a dumb kid. And then there's free DLC? This game wins, no one else ever even had a chance.
Quick Bonus Crap!
One more list! Here's five games I still haven't played, but I'm betting should have weighed in on these lists somewhere:
5. Hitman: Absolution
Will it show Dishonored how stealth is done? Or are the sexy nuns really too big of an unnecessary distraction?
4. Warriors Orochi 3
KOEI released another of their bullshit hack-n-slash games. Been a while since I've been suckered into playing one of these, and I did just start a Gamefly account!
3. Max Payne 3
No Markie Mark? Maybe it's got a shot!
2. Spec Ops: The Line
Apparently this game has something called a "story." I'm not entirely sure what that word means. After all, this is a video game. Pretty sure video games don't have those. The question is, though, will that make up for the game being undeniably a "realistic shooter?" Those games tend to be terminally boring.
1. Halo 4
Self-explanatory, heh.
No comments:
Post a Comment