Game of the Year 2016

This year may be a record year for me when it comes to finishing games (about 30 in total for 2016). As this is a blog devoted to tackling backlogs and exploring everything gaming has to offer, my Game of the Year consideration is based on the dates that I beat games rather than the date of release. This year's candidates had release dates ranging from 2006 - 2016. So without further adieu, on to my Top 10 Games of 2016:

 #10: Fire Emblem Fates (3DS)
This handheld strategy epic was my constant companion throughout the entire year. While at times the content of this three-game-spanning behemoth felt like it was being stretched a little thin, this title ultimately coalesced into a satisfying package.

#9: Just Cause 2 (PC)
In a year like 2016, sometimes one just feels the need to blow up some stuff, and boy, did Just Cause 2 deliver on that front. Being the star of a cheesy action movie by soaring through the air, commandeering all manner of vehicle, and causing massive collateral damage was exhilarating from start to finish.

#8: Final Fantasy XII (PS2)
Standing as the beginning of a bold new direction for the classic franchise as well as a showcase of what the PlayStation 2 can do, I'm really glad that I went back to finish Final Fantasy XII this year. Though it had a few issues that I'm hoping get ironed out in the upcoming remaster, I still had a great time playing it and would recommend that anyone who considers themselves a JRPG fan give this charming adventure a try.

#7: Freedom Planet (Wii U)
Inspired by classics like Sonic the Hedgehog and Gunstar Heroes, Freedom Planet shows that the student can surpass the master. This was a thrilling 2D action platformer with a surprisingly in-depth story.  A must-play for any fan of the 16-bit age.

#6: Xenoblade Chronicles X (Wii U)
While not quite the focused RPG masterpiece that was the original Xenoblade Chronicles, Xenoblade Chronicles X provided an astonishingly massive world to explore; a world that completely absorbed me for more hours than I care to admit among polite company. Even though this was the first game I finished this year, I often found myself thinking back on the time I spent on the alien world of Mira.

 #5: The Witcher 1 & 2 (PC)
For the purpose of this list I'm counting both games as two parts of a whole. These games were my first foray into Western RPGs since the original Diablo, and I was definitely impressed. While some of the gameplay elements could occasionally be a little shaky, the world of The Witcher is a fully realized place full of interesting characters, complex societal issues, and hard decisions; it's a grim place, but a joy to inhabit none the less.

 #4: Undertale (PC)
Many indie games  are content to either feature a novel gameplay concept, or deliver a heartfelt story: Undertale does both. I know for many people the plot and characters were what resonated the most, but for me, it was the combination of the innovative gameplay and superb music that set this game apart. It's a solid turn-based RPG with loads of creativity and personality packed into its short run time.

#3: Doom (PC)
This was easily the biggest surprise of 2016 for me (at least as far as gaming is concerned). Doom was fast and frantic in a way that was as stressful as it was thrilling, and I loved pretty much every minute of it. The mixture of the non-stop action of the combat sequences combined with intricate levels to explore cemented Doom as one of my favorite single-player FPSs of all time.

#2: Life is Strange (PC)
Of all the games I played this year, Life is Strange is the one whose story and characters stuck with me the longest. While the narrative certainly leans heavily on the melodrama, it contained some plot twists and emotional gut punches that I won't soon forget. This game is probably the best example of story-telling in a point and click adventure game I've ever seen.

#1: Tomb Raider (PC)
This game has it all: a combination of exploration, platforming, RPG mechanics, and tight 3rd person shooting that was like pure crack to me. It's rare that a game manages to pull off all these different elements well, but Tomb Raider absolutely nails it.


Honorable Mention
It pained me that there were a couple of great games that didn't quite make the cut for the Top 10 this year, so here's some quick acknowledgement for those titles:

•  Ib & Eternal Senia: These little indie games really opened my eyes to what can be accomplished with RPG Maker.
• Shantae & the Pirate's Curse: A beautifully crafted 2D platformer. Another gem from WayForward.
• Runbow: A challenging platformer with great music that supports up to nine players.
• Tokyo Mirage Sessions #FE: A charming and stylish JRPG that would have benefited from some streamlining. 

2016 has been a great year for gaming, and I wanted to thank everyone who's joined me on this backlog journey! I'm curious to hear what everyone else has been playing this year, so please feel free to leave your own top 10 in the comments below. Happy Holidays and have a great New Year!

Demo Hotness: Mercenaries Saga 2

Mercenaries Saga 2 is a tactical RPG that plays somewhat like a stripped-down budget version of Fire Emblem. The game alternates between brief story scenes and turn-based tactical battles on an isometric grid battle field. While compared to Fire Emblem, the story, graphics, and music are all a pretty significant downgrade, the core game play is fun and engaging. The menus and interfaces are a little clunky, but not to the point where they significantly hamper enjoyment of the game.

The demo includes the first 5 missions of the main game, and I found myself quickly hooked by the game's quick small-scale battles. Since the full game is $5 (USD) on the eShop, I can pretty much forgive the game's shortcomings in terms of presentation and UI. With solid tactical RPG game play and such an incredibly low price, I'll probably be picking up Mercenaries Saga 2 next time I get a craving for some turn-based strategy on my 3DS.

Acknowledgement: I became aware of this game after seeing Michael Cunningham (@FinalMacstorm) singing its praises on Twitter. The man definitely knows his handheld RPGs, so when I saw him get this excited about a budget game, I knew I had to give it it a shot. You can find articles by him at RPGamer and Pocket-Console.

Demo Hotness: Kirby Planet Robobot

As a fan of the Kirby games from back in the Super NES days, I was pretty intrigued when I heard all the praise heaped on Kirby Planet Robobot earlier this year. Considering that Kirby Super Star for SNES would easily be one of my desert island games, this new Kirby would have a high bar to reach, but I decided to give the demo a spin.

The demo offered two stages a "Normal Stage" and a "Robobot Stage", and the first of the two was certainly true to its name: the most bog-standard basic Kirby stage one could imagine.  The very basic layout of the stage did give me the opportunity to admire how far Kirby games have come in terms of graphics, however. While the music was a pleasant arrangement of a classic Kirby tune, I was somewhat disappointed that I wasn't greeted with an original composition. It was pretty clear from this stage that any gameplay innovation that could be present would be entirely concentrated in the Robobot stage.

The Robobot stage definitely delivered. Once Kirby acquires his mech, the whole game really comes alive. Controlling the mech and destroying enemies and obstacles was very satisfying. In addition to the upping the intensity of the action, the mech gameplay also incorporated some light puzzle-solving elements, which was a nice touch. By selectively destroying objects and powering up the mech appropriately for the environment, Kirby is able to find secret areas and gather some extra collectables. I was also pleased to find that boarding the mech causes the background music to change from a classic Kirby piece to a catchy new jam.

After playing through both stages, I was definitely impressed with the gameplay enhancements the titular Robobot provides, but was left wondering what the ratio of normal stages to Robobot stages would be in the full game. As much as I enjoyed the cute presentation of the whole package, if the mech gameplay doesn't make up the bulk of the game, there might not be enough new stuff here to draw in a long-time Kirby player like me, especially without the co-op mode that was a key feature of the classic games.

Witcher 2 Impressions

Despite recommendations from friends that I skip it, I played The Witcher 1 earlier this year and really enjoyed it. At this point I've sunk about 15 hours into The Witcher 2 and have found that while the same great characters and world from the first game are back, there have been some significant changes that have taken me some time to get used to:

• Compared to part 1, The Witcher 2 has a much more fast-paced combat system that heavily relies on rolling, dodging, and blocking. In the first game, the combat system was one of the weaker parts of the experience, so I'm hoping this more action-oriented style with stay fresh throughout the whole adventure. So far I've had a couple of dramatic boss battles that far surpass anything from Witcher 1, but I have been finding myself fumbling with the controls a bit during the more intense moments. I might try switching from keyboard and mouse to Xbox 360 controller to see if that helps.
• The interface and menus have also changed dramatically, in this case for the worse. In an effort to make the second game more console-friendly (part 1 was PC exclusive), the amount of information visible on screen in any given menu has been greatly reduced. This makes for some cumbersome switching back and forth between pages.
• I really liked Jules de Jongh's performance as Triss Merigold in The Witcher 1, so I'm disappointed that she didn't return for the sequel. The new voice actress's delivery feels flat in comparison.

In spite of some difficulties adapting to the changes, I'm finding myself just as hooked on The Witcher 2 as I was with its predecessor, so I'm looking forward to playing more.

Demo Hotness: Pokemon Sun & Moon

I haven't played a Pokemon game since Pokemon Ruby (i.e. about 13 years ago), and thought that now would be a fine time to check in with the series and see if enough has changed to pull me back in. This is another case where I'm really glad that Nintendo has started posting demos in the eShop.

Similar to the Yokai Watch 2 demo, I was immediately struck by the beautiful graphical presentation; Fire Emblem Fates, Yokai Watch, and now Pokemon Sun/Moon are real showcases of how far the visuals and audio of portable games have progressed. I'm guessing that the lack of stereoscopic 3D in this game is a result of the graphics pushing the 3DS hardware to its limits. I especially admired the use of varied camera perspectives in towns and battles that helped bring the world of Pokemon to life. The music featured in the demo sounded great and complimented the graphics and gameplay quite nicely.

Unlike the Yokai Watch 2 demo, the Pokemon Sun/Moon demo is structured in a way that guides the player through a good vertical slice of the gameplay. Over the course of an hour or two, the player can wander around through town, battle Pokemon in the field, meet some seemingly plot-essential characters, and face off against a boss trainer. While I enjoyed getting to sample these different aspects of the game and see how they've changed, I wasn't really able to get a feel for the difficulty or strategy of Pokemon Sun/Moon since the starting Pokemon in the demo is so overpowered that I was able to one-shot pretty much every enemy I encountered. Thankfully at the end of the main quest of the demo, the player is free to explore further and there are some additional trainers to battle that do manage to put up a decent fight, so there may be some potential for a challenge in the full game, though I suspect the plot-critical quests will be deliberately easy for the sake of younger players.

Overall, this demo impressed me quite a bit and piqued my interest to play the full game at some point. My favorite upgrade to the classic Pokemon formula is the ability to summon a Tauros to use as a mount as well as break through large rocks. This helper Pokemon mechanic eliminates the need for items like the bicycle and HMs like Rock Smash and Cut; this is the exact kind of streamlining Pokemon has been needing and it makes me optimistic that there will be other quality of life improvements throughout the full game. One concern I had was that I noticed that the demo seemed to rapidly deplete my 3DS's battery (after playing for 2 hours I went from fully charged to 25%). Other than this one issue and some concerns about the difficulty level, I think that I found enough to like here to consider returning to Pokemon, but I will probably wait for the rumored Nintendo Switch version, Pokemon Stars, so that I can enjoy the improved graphics and sound of this Pokemon generation on a larger screen when I'm playing at home.

Rayman Origins Review

A challenging platformer that compensates for frustration with charm

Having played so many open-world exploratory games lately, it felt really good to sink my teeth into a traditional linear 2D platformer. Hub worlds are nice every now and then if they really add something to a game, but otherwise I definitely appreciate a simple map screen or level select screen that cuts out the fluff and allows me to get straight into the action.

Rayman Origins was generally a really satisfying play-through, but was punctuated by some of the most frustrating moments I've experienced in a game in quite some time. Thus, I'll start with the negatives:
Right off the bat, I didn't like the way Rayman handles. Having grown up with the pixel-perfect precision of classic platformers like Mario and Sonic, Rayman feels floaty and clumsy to control. Everything from his momentum, to his bounce, to his attacks just felt wrong to me and took a while to get used to. Many of my deaths in the early part of the game were the result of Rayman slipping off a platform or not landing where I would expect him to after a jump. Mercifully, the game provides infinite lives and frequent check-points in order to keep any one death from being a major setback. This mercy is especially important in the later part of the game, in which the level design becomes especially brutal. The last few regular stages and most of the challenge stages are so unforgiving that they essentially come down to trial and error coupled with rote memorization. It was in these stages that I often came close to putting down the controller and walking away from the game, but I somehow always managed to pull victory from the jaws of defeat and progress forward in the end.

The negative factors of Rayman Origins are compensated for due to the abundance of two positive traits: charm and creativity.
The UbiArt Framework used in making this game's graphics really brings the colorful cartoon characters of Michel Ancel to life. The stages these characters inhabit are also works of art, both in terms of visual appeal and level design. An example of one of my favorite levels is a Mexican food inspired stage in which enemies attack by squirting napalm-like hot sauce at Rayman. I also appreciated that levels feature variety in terms of play style: traditional platformer levels, forced scrolling racing stages, and shoot-em-up aerial battles. Bringing all these elements together is a fantastic musical score that has the full range from whimsical to epic. Some of my favorite pieces sound as if they're being sung by the game world's inhabitants encouraging Rayman to press on.

Ultimately, the moments of joy I experienced playing Rayman Origins were enough to motivate me to persevere through the tough spots and come away with positive feelings about the game. Players that have a lot of patience and are looking for a platforming challenge will find a lot to like. However, platforming novices or those who get discouraged easily may find themselves over their heads with this one.

Score: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Completion Time: Approx. 18* hours (Main story plus all unlockable stages)
*Uplay doesn't have a play clock, so this is a very rough estimate

Demo Hotness: Yokai Watch 2

With the new Pokemon games due to come out soon, I decided to check out the one game that was said to give the Pokemon series a run for its money (in Japan at least): Yokai Watch.

I'll just come out and say it: This may be one of the worst demos I've ever played. While it starts out perfectly fine with a wacky cartoon theme song and some silly opening dialog that I can see appealing to children, there is nothing else here to convince someone to get the full game. After going through some brief dialog, the player is directed to walk a very short distance before immediately getting pulling into a cut scene. The cut scene then drops the player into a battle with only the most minimal explanation of the combat mechanics. I found myself just clicking around through menus aimlessly until the enemy was defeated, but I'm not even sure to what extent (if any) my input had on the outcome of the battle. With the battle completed, there's a few more lines of dialog that presumably are there to set up the core mystery of the plot, and then the demo abruptly ends. So that's it: some dialog and a single poorly-explained battle. The only thing I positive I can really say is that the demo was a nice showcase of the game's graphics, which are pretty impressive by 3DS standards. Other than that, this demo utterly failed to show me anything that would put Yokai Watch in the same league as Pokemon.

Bottom line: Don't waste your time or your memory card space on this incredibly underwhelming demo.