2013 Games of the Year

A Tradition Unlike Any Other: Spending my New Year's Eve writing the Top 10 instead of partying, getting drunk, or sleeping. I feel the need to get this in before the next year rolls around in three hours and change. Principles, I has them.

We're not going to spend a whole lot on hating what didn't go right in 2013, because there was a bit. Instead, we'll dive right on in and talk about what did go right in the last 364 days, 20 hours, and 40 minutes, because there was a lot. 

This year's top ten was pretty unanimous at the top, but diverse near the bottom. There were quite a few good games that came out this year (though not many from the next gen consoles -- I'll give that a free pass, though). 

TOP TEN FOR 2013

10. SAINTS ROW IV (Multi)

This game is fucking ridiculous in every way that makes it awesome. The series decided to say fuck it we're going to take this franchise from a Grand Theft Auto ripoff/homage to elevate things to the insane. The result? Insane fun. We're not going to get Keith David to voice a character, we're just going to get Keith David. When the game thinks purple dildos were going to be too outrageous, they just decide to make it longer, more wobbly and more pleasurable.

9. ZELDA: A LINK BETWEEN WORLDS (3DS)

from EGM: "A Link Between Worlds recognizes that it’s not tacked-on stealth segments or waggling a controller to roll bombs that makes Zelda tick—it’s the unbounded exploration and freedom found in the NES original, and it’s finally back in full force here. Every Zelda fan needs to play this game."





8. BROTHERS: A TALE OF TWO SONS (PC)

from Lord Bling: "I started to type a synopsis of what this game is about, and then I deleted it. Just play it. Take some time to get used to the 'two player co-op on one controller' setup, and let it draw you in. You won't regret it. The comparisons to 'Ico' and 'Journey' are valid in a lot of ways, and the last 30 minutes are some of the best in any game I've ever played."








7. BATTLEFIELD 4 (Multi)

This is the like the high school kid drafted into the NBA purely on Potential. He has no real jump shot, he can't get to the basket but he has out of this world athleticism! Battlefield can be one of the best shooters of the next generation. However, the game is pretty busted on Xbox One, not great on PC, but I can manage to get a few games in before crashing on PS4. This is still a better multiplayer experience than Call of Duty Ghosts, but until EA/DICE can focus on making the game stable, this may still toil in the D-League.





6. ANIMAL CROSSING: NEW LEAF (3DS)

I can't really fully explain the addictability (just made up that word and it works) of this game. This is the first Animal Crossing game I've played in any great detail, but it is something I can both play with my 7 year old daughter and my 33 year old co-worker. The game changes with you as you play, and gives you the ability to be Urban Planner, Interior Designer, Bell (the game's currency) farmer, Hedge Fund Manager.





5. ASSASSIN'S CREED IV (Multi)

from Lord Bling: "A major improvement over the last installment. They took what was best about part 3 (the boats!), removed all of the nagging tutorials, and just hand you the keys and say 'Have fun!' I have minor complaints about some scripting and bugs in some missions, but it's nothing that we haven't dealt with in previous games in the series. I can't wait to get back on the seas and start pillaging again."






4. GRAND THEFT AUTO V (Xbox 360)

from Lord Bling: "This is what a very talented group of developers can do when they have access to an almost unlimited amount of time and resources. Was it worth the wait? From a technical standpoint, yes. It's massive, and runs as stable as any open-world game on a console to date. However, we get three playable characters, yet not one of them is even remotely sympathetic. Each is a step back from Nico in part IV, and I found myself not wanting to spend time with any of them. Also, the online mode was hugely ambitious, but by the time they got it working properly, I'd moved on to something else."





3. TOMB RAIDER (Multi)

The Franchise may be 15 years old, but this reboot is as good as ever. Visceral, engaging, and gorgeous, we get to see the humble, violent, beginnings of Lara Croft's transformation into Tomb Raiding bad-ass, even if there isn't a lot of... Tomb Raiding. Crystal Dynamics didn't just use the reboot to set us up for future endeavors, they made the iconic character all her own.







2. BIOSHOCK INFINITE (Multi)

Taken into the air from Rapture, the latest installment is storytelling at it's best. One of those things where you go through to the and am like "WHAT". The ride is fantastic, thrilling, challenging, and thought provoking.









1. THE LAST OF US (PS3)

This was the Unanimous Game of the Year by not only every contributor, but pretty much every gaming site everywhere. If you haven't played this game already, do so; it isn't too late.

The Last of Us is a step in to then descent that goes with loss, and among utter devastation, when one slowly and abruptly one loses their sense of humanity, how one thing is worth holding onto, fighting to the death for, and even making decisions that make for water cooler discussions and rationalizations.

Naughty Dog doesn't usually fail to meet expectations, so the bar had already been set pretty high. However, from the opening sequence, you are thrust into an immersive environment with incredible visuals and virtual voice and movement performances that are worthy of live acting recognition.

This game is a must play for everyone and not only the best of 2013, but one of the best games of this console generation. 

TL;DR Top Games of 2012

Wow, a year does go by pretty quick, doesn't it? In what has become a yearly tradition, I sit here at my in-law's New Years Eve party pounding out this blog post instead of participating in some inane family gathering that involves kids screaming, some sporting event I don't care about, and the eventual countdown to a New Year where I resolve myself to write more blog posts, only to not come close to doing so.

2012 was an odd year. A new console released this year, one that will defy expectations of failure like its predecessor, despite being only on par with consoles seven and eight years older in terms of technology and selection of Library. A new handheld released this year, with all the technological promise to challenge perennial handheld king for its crown, and yet falling flat due to no creativity when it comes to unique IP's and games.

There always appears to be a bit of a lull in the year before major console releases, and while Microsoft and Sony made some efforts, everything seemed to just be waiting until February 2013 when Microsoft is rumored to unveil the next Xbox, or May/June where Sony is rumored to follow suit. Still, We were hit in the last quarter with some quality titles, worthy of filling up a top ten of the year. This list really isn't all that different from other bests of lists and does not vary greatly from lists of years past; chalk full of franchise sequels, franchise adaptations, and remakes. Only one original IP made the list this year. While I am a little disappointed that there weren't more original IPs that made the list, I am hopeful that maybe they were saved for the next console generation or maybe a value game that can be picked up next year and enjoyed.

A quick note about our panelists: This year, this list is a compilation of six people's input. While I will not name them specifically, I will state that I am the only member of this panel that does not work in the video game industry: Two people work for first party companies, one for a top tier developer, one for a prominent mobile game company and one for a prominent accessory company. Each provided me with their top games of the year, with a point value assigned to their choices. The tabulations were made by order of final point tally. So, without further ado...

The contributors of TL;DR present:  Top Ten Games of 2012

10. New Super Mario Brothers (WiiU/3DS)

I have a soft spot for New SMB. Some will say that the 3DS version was way too easy, but Nintendo just keeps proving that if it isn't broken, don't fix it. Maybe this is my sense of nostalgia getting the best of me when it comes to this franchise, but with every iteration of Mario out there currently, just going to the basics of jumping around with the raccoon suit, flower power, or mini mushroom just does not cease to get old.






9. Journey (PS3)

(From Lord Bling): "Probably the best $15 you can spend this year. It contains not a single word of dialog, and yet inspires more emotion than almost every other game I've ever played. Until Fumito Ueda can finally deliver The Last Guardian, I'll be playing through this again."







8: XCOM: Enemy Unknown (Multi, PC)

This is merely an updated version of XCOM: UFO Defense that came out in the mid 90's on MS DOS. However, this version is allowing gamers to discover what I loved then, being the first game to keep me up into the wee hours of the night. This squad turn-based shooter involves elements of managing the XCOM project, keeping governments happy, researching, manufacturing, then going out on missions and killing aliens. The gameplay is addicting as it was almost 20 years ago, the seamless tutorial into game is fantastic. Just make sure you save often.





7. Halo 4 (Xbox 360)

Eyes rolled a bit when this game was announced; with majority of us thinking that Halo was going to be gone when Bungie moved on, and there may not have been equal faith in 343 to carry on. However, we were pleasantly surprised with a good Single Player and multiplayer that both added a needed upgrade while maintaining the integrity of the game most of us all started out loving.







6. Call of Duty Black Ops 2 (Multi)*

This game comes with a bit of a caveat: This game was voted on and included mainly on its multiplayer. The single player campaign is a hilariously ridiculous romp that continues to be the overlooked part of the franchise. I was a large hater when this game came out, but too many people had fun with multiplayer I famously caved and bought in on the fun. Again, Treyarch doesn't reinvent the wheel, here: they just continued with fast paced, multiplayer action.





5. Forza Horizon (Xbox 360)

One of those games that kind of flew under the radar, Horizon pissed off the racing sim purists, but for me combined the more fun elements of racing with the Burnout Paradise style play through. You aren't penalized for taking corners too sharp (as you can rewind your screw-ups). You are also able to play "ghosts" of your friends' races, creating an interesting competitive co-op as you play on.







4. The Walking Dead (Xbox 360, PC, PS3)

(from Lord Bling): "If video games ever expand into a larger art form, we may look back on this as one of the turning points. Even though it's more of an interactive novel than a traditional game, Lee and Clementine are the most 'real' characters in any game I've ever played. Struggling for their survival will have you making moral choices that you'll think twice about, and then you'll second-guess those choices after the fact. By the end of the final episode, I was an emotional wreck. This game had me excited for what this medium can eventually become."





3. Far Cry 3 (Multi)
(once again from Lord Bling):

"I punched a shark in the face. 

Just when I thought I was burned out on open-world games, this one delivered more 'holy crap' moments and genuine laughs than anything else I played this year. It made me feel like the star of an action movie. The first two Far Cry games were ambitious but uneven. This one corrects all the wrongs, and has a blast doing it. The tagline of 'Skyrim with guns' isn't too far off. While there are many ways to get around the massive island (cars, jeeps, jet skis, patrol boats, ziplines, hang gliders, wingsuits), exploring on foot while hunting was just as much fun. The "L.A. trust-funder turns into jungle mercenary" story is enjoyable (especially by normal shooter standards, even if it starts to tail off near the end), and the voice acting is stellar. The side missions are varied too, and are short enough to not overstay their welcome.

The AI is fairly random, which leads to some memorable moments. Sometimes while trying to capture a base, I spotted a caged animal inside. You can shoot the cage door lock and let the animal out, and it will distract the bad guys. At one point, I was observing a base through my camera when a black bear came out of the jungle and started attacking everyone. Instead of firing at them, I just watched as they screamed in horror and tried to kill it, and failed. The bear ripped every one of them apart, and then I got credit for capturing the base. I was in the right place at the right time. And I couldn't stop laughing. Besides a lengthy campaign, and tons of post-game exploration and side missions, there is also a decent co-op campaign, a full competitive multiplayer, and a map editor. It's not all perfect though. The graphics on Xbox aren't as sharp as I'd like, but I suppose it's a fair trade for drawing such a huge open map.

 The multiplayer feels a little floaty when compared to other AAA shooters. However, I think the biggest omission is not being able to start a "New Game Plus" and carry your unlocked perks and weapons over into a new game. But, these are all minor complaints in my book. It's the most fun I had with a game this year."


2. Mass Effect 3 (Xbox 360)

Everyone talks about the end, which was initially panned when spoiled on the internet. However, once you went through the game, which was a long goodbye wrapped in an action packed finale, you accepted the end. Still, Bioware went back to and amended an extended ending that gave fans more satisfaction. I had always been a huge Mass Effect fan (was my personal Game of the Year this year, as ME2 was my Game of
the Year in 2010), this game said goodbye to long time friends, solidified Shepard's mission to save an Earth under siege. The voice acting is top notch (I love you, Jennifer Hale), the story gives you difficult choices, and the game is actually pretty difficult.

This time around, Bioware incorporated a co-op Multiplayer element that was no only fun, but crucial to the Single Player campaign in effecting the eventual outcome.


1. Borderlands 2 (Multi)

This was the near-unanimous Game of the Year. Gearbox took all the fun, gameplay, story, humor, and enjoyment of the first Borderlands and turned it up to 11. This game was challenging, hilarious, and encouraged a full 4 player party with diverse classes in order to take down the big bosses. Downloadable DLC add ons were available not long after the game released in September. We all found ourselves running around talking to NPC's, frantically looking to finish every mission, laughing at most, but even taken back by a few outcomes.

The playability of this game will continue far beyond 2012 with the promise of new DLC down the road, and going back and trying to finish all the missions on the increasingly difficult "True Vault Hunter Mode". This game is the personification of what makes cooperative multiplayer a near necessity for future games. From the more coherent story and hilarious dialogue, to the improved gameplay, inventory, Borderlands 2 is the clear class of 2012.

TL;DR Top Games of 2011

Well holy shit, you guys; where has the time gone? Where have all my blog posts gone? I swear I've been dropping three or four posts a week for the last six months, what is this I don't even.

OK FINE. I haven't been around. Sorry, but it really isn't like those who read this know that I've been busy, and that everyone else apparently has as well. However, since this is New Year's Eve, I suppose I shall grace this Earth with a Top 10 of the year, even though the shelf life on this list is about another six hours.

This list is a compilation and combination of what the contributors of this site (or, just the list) have provided. I have some perspectives on some games, others I haven't even had the ability to get into yet because I've been so busy playing other games on this list. One of my resolutions for next year is to be more diligent about wasting time reviewing games that you've already played and won't even read this. However, here goes anyway:

Now the Contributors of TL;DR present:

 TOP TEN GAMES OF 2011

10. L.A. Noire

Earlier this year, I was torn between the awesomeness of the presentation and beginning of the story, and the eventual letdown and WTF moments in how that story unfolded at the conclusion. Even if you could boil this game down to Grand Theft Auto of the late 40's playing good guy, that really isn't a bad place to start.

9. Dead Space 2

Some of us really liked it, some of us didn't, but Visceral Games' follow up to a Sci-Fi horror classic is back for more with less frights and more action. I, for one, was perfectly fine with less fright because I can now sleep at night. While the multiplayer is very forgettable, the campaign doesn't disappoint. 

8. Deus Ex: Human Revolution

(from IGN): 

"While Deus Ex: Human Revolution can't be the revelation that Deus Ex was in 2000, it's an achievement nonetheless. It's a visionary, considered piece of work, and while my thoughts drift to the things that could have been and the compromises made due to the possibilities of video games in 2011, they're just as quick to consider playing through it again. Human Revolution is a smart, rewarding piece of transhumanist noir that does justice not just to Deus Ex, but to the fiction that inspired it"

7. Dead Island

I mean, come on, who can hate a game with ZAMBIES? Dead Island was almost exactly like Borderlands for me; a game that came from out of no where when I was waiting for other games to come out. It pretty much is Borderlands. On an Island. With Zombies. The game was insanely addictive from start to finish, as I pretty much went to look to upgrade killing utensils. By the way, in playing this, prepare to die: A LOT. 

6. Uncharted 3

(from Lord Bling): 

"Here's a franchise that lives and breathes set pieces.  No matter where Nathan Drake is in the world, expect everything to go tits-up and you'll be racing to escape a crashing airplane, a sinking ocean liner, etc.  They also included some multi-segmented MP maps, which felt different from everything else I've played this year.  So why isn't the game higher on this list?  Part 2 was #2 in 2009.  Unfortunately, this one doesn't live up to the gold standard of that game.  The campaign's story and dialogue aren't nearly as sharp, and weakly ties the set pieces together.  The aiming and shooting mechanic was tweaked, and now it felt a lot sloppier (Naughty Dog has since patched this, but I haven't replayed any of the campaign since).  Worst of all, I wasn't really rooting for Nathan in this one.  His motivation is largely selfish and stupid.  But wow, those set pieces."

5. Gears of War 3

Another in my failure to get on the 'reviewing games' ball. Gears was one of those games that kind of got lost in the flood of games that came out between September and November.

Gears was a very satisfying conclusion to one of the better shooter sagas of this console generation. Both single player and multiplayer were solid, as I finally got to enjoy Gears' multiplayer instead of being pulverized by people running around using Host Shotguns to their advantage. Horde Mode was great, but the best part was the 4 player co-op campaign. Finally, as the franchise concludes, Epic gets it. 

4. Batman: Arkham City

Batman is so hot right now. But in seriousness, Arkham City is a great expansion of Arhkham Asylum of a few years ago. One of our contriubutors, who will not be mentioned, put this game as their number one game of the year.

(from GiantBomb):

"If you want to be reductive about it, Arkham City is more Batman, and if you want more Batman, there's no question: you should play this game. But there's more to it than that. In the two years since Arkham Asylum, there hasn't really been anything like it until now. Getting another chance to use Batman's considerable combat talents as you engage in one of the best fighting systems going today is a joy. The city looks terrific, like it's one step away from just bursting into flames as criminals crawl across every single surface doing... whatever it is that criminals do when they're locked in a city-shaped prison. The interior areas look just as good, giving you a sense that, again, this is a realistic place that's been overrun. The voice acting, featuring plenty of the same cast members that performed so perfectly last time around, is incredibly sharp, with writing that fits what you'd expect from most of the different characters you face. But to sum it all up, it's hard to imagine any fan of action games coming away from Arkham City disappointed. It might not rewrite the book on Batman video games, but when you're building off of such a strong position--and you're only shipping the second game with such similarities, rather than a third or fourth--it's hard to bicker too much about what changes the developers did or didn't make."

3. Portal 2

(again, from Lord Bling)

"Expectations can be a bitch.  When The Orange Box was released, Portal was the sleeper hit of the year, and for good reason.  The first-person puzzle gameplay was one-of-a-kind, and the writing was whip-smart and laugh-out-loud funny.  It not only told a compelling story, but did so in about two hours.  So here comes a sequel, which is around six  to eight hours long, and adds a meaty 2-player co-op mode.  And people still flooded Metacritic user reviews to complain.  "It's too short!  It's not worth $60!"  Wrong wrong wrong wrong WRONG.  They added to an already deep and rich universe, with new gameplay mechanics that somehow don't break what had been established previously.  That alone is worth celebrating.  And then there's Wheatley, the best character in a video game in a long damned time.  I had very high expectations for this game, and it met every single one of them."

2. Battlefield 3

This is THE BEST Multiplayer Shooter of the year. I don't care if the single player campaign is dull, un-original, short, and forgettable. There isn't a better place to squad up and shoot other people in the face. The fact that many here will still be playing this game well into 2012 is one of the reasons we all voted this game so high on our lists. Gameplay is well balanced between classes, you actually HAVE TO PLAY AS A TEAM, and kill-whoring basically gets you nowhere. Did I mention, you get to fly FUCKING JETS?!? 

1. The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim

(from Joystiq):

"This is the deepest, loveliest world ever created for a single player to explore, and one that no one should deny themselves. This is a game about following Emerson's advice, leaving the trail and finding that the most powerful force on Earth or Tamriel isn't fire or sword, but the ever-insistent desire to know what lies beyond."

Let us all be honest with ourselves: this comes as a surprise to precisely no one, considering Skyrim is pretty much on everyone else's GOTY lists.
Bethesda pretty much writes its own ticket when it comes to these type of Role Playing Masterpieces. This game is like Second Life with Dragons; you can engross yourself in the world of Skyrim for hours upon hours, and not even touch the main storyline. Some complain that there is somewhat of a lack of overall story, but I disagree: Skyrim is a world where you can dictate your own story, at your own pace. Do you want to mine ore and smith? Ok. If you want to affectionately count blades of grass, and cultivate flowers? No complaints. People have leveled multiple times over without having killed a single creature. Skyrim is what you make it; and for us, we've made it the best of 2011. 

TL;DR Top Games of 2010

This was a good year for games, folks. It was kind of hard to put together a top list because there were a few REALLY good games, a lot of pretty good games, and even the disappointments weren't terrible, they just had a lot to live up to and didn't meet our lofty expectations. I was going to put together a top list for each individual contributor to the site, but (gasp!) I got lazy and decided to consolidate things into one big list. 

One thing that didn't surprise me is that between the contributors that submitted top tens to me is that there were about five games that were universal that we enjoyed, there were a few others that we all enjoyed that others either didn't get a chance to play or just missed out of our top ten. That is a pretty good thing considering there was a lot of lesser titles that came out that actually performed well. 

Before I reveal the site's top games of the year I wanted to highlight some of the games that let us down this year. Lord Bling did a good job of outlining a few of our letdowns but I wanted to highlight a few more that didn't float our boat:

• Modern Warfare 2.  If we existed last year, this would have been the game of the year, but the implosion of Infinity Ward, combined with overpriced map packs, and not doing anything about getting rid of hackers and exploiters really made the game unenjoyable into 2010. 
• "VIP" Code Bullshit. EA packaged codes to access multiplayer content in their new games, forcing those to buy used to pretty much pony up an extra $10 to access stuff that was already on the disc. 
• Crackdown 2. The first game was originally one that we all bought only because of the Halo 3 beta, but what we found was an enjoyable experience. Maybe we should have kept those low expectations going into the sequel. It very much seemed like Crackdown 1.1 with more orbs and no real story. Fell very flat.
• Star Wars Force Unleashed 2. Maybe we (by we I mean apparently mean just me) actually fooled ourselves that the first game was good enough that the next one would be worth investing. It really wasn't. There was nothing new, it was short and it wasn't very challenging. 
• Medal of Honor. One of the few games that actually improved the more one played, this was just a lot of hype that it was going to be the CoD killer. It couldn't even surpass EA's other military shooter of this year in Bad Company. The fact that one studio handled the Single Player and another handled the multiplayer just did not work. 
• Handhelds. Here's a spoiler: No hand held games made this year's top 10, which is really disappointing for that market. With the Nintendo 3DS and PSP2 supposedly on the horizon, maybe studios are waiting on developing good games for those platforms. There really wasn't any that were developed for these. 
• Destructoid. Usually a great site, some reviews were purely irresponsible and stupid for putting ridiculously low ratings for some under-performing games, while giving undeserving high ratings for over-hyped titles such as:
• Splinter Cell Conviction. We said so earlier this year. 

Here are a few games that had a good year but that just didn't quite make the cut:

• Alan Wake. An overtly Stephen King story in a video game. It was very inventive in its story telling. I had a review written but never posted. I'll post it here soon.
•  God of War clones. Games like Dante's Inferno, Castlevania, Nier were pretty solid titles that followed the whole hack and slash, mystical, mythical, quick-time-event formula pretty well. Most will be pretty affordable and enjoyable now or in the near future. 
• Racing Games. Need for Speed Hot Pursuit. Blur. Gran Turismo. Mod Nation Racers. Although none made our over all top ten, if you wanted anything from Arcade to Sim, you were well served by this year's crop of good racers. 

Now the Contributors of TL;DR present:

 TOP TEN GAMES OF 2010

10.  STARCRAFT 2: Wings of Liberty. 

This was the only PC game that made the list and it took over ten years to finally drop. Blizzard really didn't reinvent the wheel and they didn't have to. 

Even though this is technically just episode one of at least a three part series that will encapsulate the second Starcraft, this one improves upon what made the original great without screwing up. The single player gives a bit of choice in the story with some great tech upgrades, and the multiplayer provides a good mix of quick and campaign long games. While you may need to upgrade your PC just a bit from your 1998 Compaq that ran the first game, you won't have to wait another decade to enjoy the next installment of this saga. 

9. LIMBO.

This Xbox Live Arcade title is an inventive platformer that really entertained, scared, and challenged us. I really enjoyed its simplicity and while being delightfully disturbed. Presented in a chillingly beautiful black, white, gray, soft focus and clear, you are a boy in shadow with creepy glowing eyes traversing a sometimes dead silent landscape. Sometimes the puzzles don't really present themselves until you're wondering why you've died three times or so in the same place, then you need to figure out what you need to do to escape your predicament. Your eight legged freak friend is also your constant nemesis who will not cure your arachnophobia. 

8. BAYONETTA.

No, its not an over the top Devil May Cry ripoff, its its own over the top game with a ridiculously hot protagonist doing ridiculous moves in a beautifully orchestrated bloody romp. I actually had this and Vanquish at a tie on my top ten since they are both developed by Platinum Games, but Bayonetta was the longer, higher received game so it makes the list. 

One other thing about Bayonetta is that it can be painfully difficult to traverse. At some point I had to drop the difficulty down to Easy because some of the stages were ridiculous to try while you were down to next to no health and didn't have the points to buy more healing potions. 

7. HALO: REACH

Not a perfect or life altering game like the first few Halo games were. It also lacked Master Chief and any progression in the Halo Universe (spoiler: its actually a prequel).

What it was, ironically, was a fitting ending to Bungie's run in the game that made Xbox. Much more polished than Halo ODST, you were placed in an elite squad that is the first encounter with the Covenant on the Planet Reach. It was a great mix of face pace and slow and steady. 

Multiplayer provided a lot of variety from co-op firefight to a few game variants that provided balanced character classes that needed more skill than just one overleveled character dominating everyone. 

6. GOD OF WAR III

Kratos is back and kicking ass again. 

With great graphics from beginning to end, Kratos roid rages through Gods and whores. I kind of wish this game was called Gods and Whores, by the way. Who wouldn't buy it? 

5. ASSASSIN'S CREED: Brotherhood.

Picking up pretty much immediately where the last game left off, you are left to take care of business in Rome. 

Merely the fact that this game sticks to AC2's award winning blueprint is enough to make this one a top 10, but what really kicked ass is the implimentation of a whole new style of multiplayer. 

Not that stealth multiplayer is a new concept, Brotherhood adds a lot of suspense in who is trying to track you down while you are trying to kill a target yourself. The only knock on multiplayer is trying to get a party together in a game, otherwise Ubisoft delivered another great chapter in the Assassin's Creed universe. 

4. BATTLEFIELD: BAD COMPANY 2

Probably the most complete military shooter of 2010. DICE really did a great job of blending a funny and challenging Single Player campaign (even taking a few shots at Call of Duty) along with a great multiplayer system that actually had some skill needed to take long shot kills (Bullet Drop: a novel concept video game developers)

Battlefield then released a Vietnam expansion last week that created only added to the multiplayer experience. You get through there and you can tell your friends that you were truly in the shit. (No offense to those who were actually IN the shit.)

3. CALL OF DUTY: BLACK OPS

Before this year, whenever you saw a Call of Duty title and "Treyarch" on the box, you either groaned or was in no hurry to make a purchase. I will totally admit, that most of us were dead wrong on this. While the Single Player campaign was both ridiculous and short, Multiplayer has actually become more enjoyable for me than Modern Warfare 2. Nevermind the fact that you are using red dot sights and scopes during the Cold War, or you are acutally using a crossbow with explosive tips, or can throw a tomahawk across a map to kill another human, Black Ops is not only a lot of fun, but with the Theater feature you can post all your bullshit kills onto Youtube for your title as internet tough guy of the world. 

2. MASS EFFECT 2

Probably the best Role Playing Game of the year, Bioware continues to improve upon its award winning space opera that surpasses the original. 

You return as Commander Shepard reincarnated and assembling your badass team to take on the Reapers who are pretty much going to destroy everything in your universe. 

Mass Effect 2 is a superior story with superior characters; each one unique in its backstory and each character is brought to life by remarkable voice acting. I found myself entertained to the maximum exploring each character's abilities and talents. The decisions you make in this game will impact not only how the game concludes, but will carry over into Mass Effect 3, as were the decisions you made in the first game carried over into ME2. 

(By the way, Mordin singing Gilbert and Sullivan and offering interspecies oral sex tips are pretty much one of the funnier and greatest moments in video game history.)

1. RED DEAD REDEMPTION

Though this is technically a sequel and one can argue that this is Grand Theft Horse, 

Red Dead offered a great mix of role playing, action and a great story about one man's journey of trying to find peace in the chaos and tumult of the old west. 

John Marston is one of those memorable characters that you really feel for as he goes through some crazy adventures through New Austin and Mexico.

If the main story wasn't good enough, Rockstar added things like Multiplayer Poker, and the Undead Nightmare DLC pack, which is its own alternate universe style Zombie story which is both entertaining and challenging. Red Dead Redemption claims the top spot after being no lower than second on everyone's top ten list. If you don't own it you really need to. 

____________________________________________________

Individual Top 10's:

 Miles

1. Mass Effect 2

2. Red Dead Redemption

3. Call of Duty: Black Ops

4. Battlefield: Bad Company 2

5. Starcraft 2: Wings of Liberty

6. Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood

7. God of War 3

8. Limbo

9. Halo Reach

10. Platinum Games (Bayonetta/Vanquish)

NIN

1. Red Dead Redemption

2. Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood

3. Mass Effect 2

4. God of War 3

5. Halo Reach

6. Enslaved

7. Heavy Rain

8. Battlefield: Bad Company 2

9. Call of Duty: Black Ops

10. Need for Speed Hot Pursuit

DIRTY GMR

1. Red Dead Redemption

2. Call of Duty Black Ops

3. Mass Effect 2

4. Alan Wake

5. God of War 3

6. Fable 3

7. Bayonetta

8. Limbo

9. Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light

10. Singularity

Lord Bling's Top Ten Video Games of 2010

Just in time for the end of 2010, here is my top ten video game list for the year. Looking back at last year's list, I think I would've made one small change. At the time, I had no way of knowing that Activision would charge $15 for each downloadable map pack for Modern Warfare 2 (with 40% of each one being old content). Map packs up until that point were never more than $10, so the higher price and the old content put a bad taste in my mouth. I also had no way of knowing that Activision and Infinity Ward would have a soap-opera-like falling-out which is still taking place today. Whether it was directly or indirectly because of it, the level of technical support and online bug-squashing would not be comparable to Call of Duty 4. With this knowledge, I would have to say that Uncharted 2 was my favorite game of 2009. That's what makes these lists fun. It's a small snapshot in time of my favorite hobby. Speaking of time, I have to caveat this list by saying there are a few games that I regrettably didn't get the chance to play this year, so they were not considered for this list. Those games are:

-- Enslaved (I liked the demo, and Ninja Theory told a great story in Heavenly Sword)
-- Need For Speed: Hot Pursuit (Loved the original on PS1, and it got good reviews)
-- Alan Wake (I got a copy for Christmas, so I'll be diving into it soon)
-- Singularity (a highly overlooked title from the summer that got some Bioshock comparisons; it's on the way from GameFly now)
-- Gran Turismo 5 (Reviews were hit-or-miss, but you know what you're getting with this series, and what you're getting is a top-quality racing simulation)

Okay, so the caveats are out of the way. Let's dive into 2010!

10. Pinball FX2. I absolutely loved Pinball FX when it hit Xbox Live Arcade a few years ago, and the sequel is just as good. They gave a free table away if you download the game launcher, and free is awesome. They also put out a Marvel table 4-pack recently, and the tables are all fun, but very different from each other. The only negative I can put on this is a couple of tables (Rome, Biolab) have a female voice actor who's really bad, but I just stream my own music so it's not too distracting. Voice acting notwithstanding, this is the best video pinball simulation ever made, and will be sapping a LOT of my hours in 2011.




9. Halo: Reach. I had very low expectations for this game, because I didn't care for ODST. I liked what they were trying to do with the pacing, and the score was fantastic, but the hub world was beyond annoying and killed the entire experience for me. However, since this is Bungie's last Halo game, I figured it would be more of a love letter than an experiment. Fortunately, that's exactly what it is. The story isn't a surprise to anyone who's paid attention to the canon, but it was handled well, and has some nice ties back to the original game. I also liked the different loadout choices in multiplayer, as they enhanced it without radically changing the experience. It's not a shooter I'll 'reach' for very often, but I could still hop into a game right now and enjoy it.



8. Bayonetta. So THIS is what happens when a famous game creator goes to an S&M bar after taking a near-lethal dose of LSD. At least, that's how I imagine the first production meetings went. This game makes Devil May Cry look like digital Lunestra. There's a story, but like most Japanese action games, it's not worth paying attention to. How much story do you need to be ready to punch a god through a galaxy? The controls are tighter than the slots at the Vegas airport, and the level score leaderboards can really hook the perfectionist crowd. Even the end credits are different and brought a smile to my face. Full disclosure: I work for the publisher that made this. However, a good game is a good game.



7. Amnesia: The Dark Descent. Think of a survival horror game. Now take away all the weapons! Yeah, this game is INTENSE. They took the best parts of H.P. Lovecraft and made them interactive. It's not a run-and-gun like most other survival horror games, and it's all the better for it. The contrast between light and dark is what really makes it great. The longer you stay in the dark, the more insane your character becomes (and the screen fades in and out and sound is warped, as if it's happening inside your head). Staying in the light gains back sanity, but stay in it too long and evil beings might track you down. The sound design is flawless, and if you have a good pair of surround sound headphones, it will destroy you. I'm not kidding. During my last session, I heard something behind me, and I turned around and had this staring back at me. As you might understand, I can only play it in 20 or 30 minute increments before it becomes too much to handle. It may not have any replay value, but at $20 (or less if you catch it on a digital promotion), fans of intelligent horror will find it worth every penny.

6. Fallout: New Vegas. Yeah, it's 'Fallout 3' in Nevada. Yeah, it shipped buggier than an Alabama August. However, Fallout 3 may be my favorite game of this console generation, so being 'more of the same' is hardly a strike against it. The Vegas setting isn't as compelling as D.C., and aiming down the sights isn't as big of an improvement as I'd hoped. Still, it delivers on almost everything else. The weapon modification system is better than the 'blueprint' system in the last game, and the ammo creation is deeper anyone could've hoped. Also, the standing you'll have with different factions leads to a lot of second-guessing and 'what-ifs' before choosing quests. I haven't put nearly as much time into this game as I'd like, but I've been saving it for later, like a rich chocolaty desert.


5. Mass Effect 2. This is at or near the top of many other people's lists for 2010. However, because it's so story-driven, I don't find it has the replay value that other people think. I have a version of the story that I played, and to play it again for other endings feels like a 'choose your own adventure' book instead of a great role-playing game. Speaking of, in many places, the sequel feels more like a third-person shooter than an RPG. Having said all that, I can still put it this high on my list because it's THAT good. The graphics and audio are top-notch. The story is worth the price of admission alone, and being able to load your completed save from the first game and have it affect what happens in part 2? That's a real game-changer. They recently announced the final opus in the trilogy, and like many of my friends, I'll be there the day it releases with my sixty bucks in hand.


4. Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood. I didn't get to play Assassin's Creed 2 in time to make my Top Ten list last year. It was a shame, because I would've made room for it. The first game had potential but didn't quite deliver, but the sequel improved upon it in every major category. Now, a year later, we have another sequel, but it follows the same character from part 2 in the same country. Is it worth your time? If you played part 2, absolutely. The story picks up right where that one left off, and eventually takes you to Rome, which was teased at the end of part 2. Rome is a phenomenal setting, and the playable map is gigantic. A few of the later missions are too 'trial and error' for my tastes, but by that time, you'll be invested enough in the story to want to push through. Plus, if a mission is too hard, this time you have assassin recruits that you can summon to assist you. It gives the player a feeling of power that's quite addictive. The swordplay controls have been tweaked again, and are even better. Then there's the score, which is another masterpiece from Jesper Kyd. On top of all this, there's a new multiplayer mode, which is different from the 'shoot first, ask questions later' that we get in so many other games. Unfortunately, that part still needs some work. Many matches feel controlled by luck and random spawn points than skill, and the party system is iffy. Since this year's Splinter Cell lacked a true PvP mode, I was hoping this would take its place, but it's not ready for that. Still, as a first try, it's promising. If you found anything enjoyable about Assassin's Creed 2, you should pick this one up.

3. Call of Duty: Black Ops. This might be the biggest surprise on my list. Considering how much of a mess the last Treyarch CoD game was, Black Ops is a big improvement. The single-player campaign uses a flashback format, which brings a nice variety to the level design. The 'Nazi Zombie' mode is more complicated, and the 'War Room' level you get after you beat the campaign is full of lulz. Then we get to the competitive multiplayer, which is the true meat-and-potatoes of the series. At this point, I can't honestly say it's an improvement over Modern Warfare 2. Most of the maps are just big squares with lots of entry points. That, combined with the nerfing of long-scoped weapons, leads me to believe that Treyarch has zero-tolerance for snipe-campers. As someone who snipes in most first-person shooters, "I resemble that remark!" Still, there are some improvements. Having to buy weapons after you unlock them isn't ideal, but gaining XP and CoD cash is addictive, especially with the Contract system which can add a whole new level of pressure to games. Treyarch has done a commendable job of patching online glitches, and I would even say they've done better than Infinity Ward did with MW2. Then there is the Theater mode, which allows YouTube video uploading of any footage from your last week's worth of games that you choose. This is by far my favorite feature that came out of gaming in 2010, and I've waxed poetic about it already on this site. My YouTube account is filling up with great kills and funny moments, and I couldn't be happier. Activision announced the first downloadable map pack coming to Xbox in February, and it doesn't look like old content will be in this one, so I will probably be paying the $15 for them. If that's not a compliment, I don't know what is.

2. Red Dead Redemption. The haters were vocal about this one as soon as it was announced. "It's Grand Theft Horse!" "No one buys Western games!" True, and up until May 2010, true. Then this game finally shipped, and every other game that released that month felt the ripple effect from this juggernaut. The RAGE engine that made GTA IV look so pretty AND intentionally ugly works even more wonders here. The story, while lagging a bit in some of the Mexico levels, is still worthy of Peckinpah or Leone. The soundtrack is perfectly evocative of both the untamed West and Mexico. The multiplayer took what worked in GTA IV and added an improved level progression system. It's hard to say if this game is as good as GTA IV, but it mainly comes down to the player's taste. However, I can say that the last couple of hours in the single-player campaign are flawless. I wouldn't dream of spoiling it, but I'll just say that you won't expect to be doing what you're doing, but it makes perfect sense and adds a ton of gravitas to the final mission. Then they pull a switcharoo that will have your head spinning until the credits roll. I was so impressed with the ending that I kept playing afterwards until I got 100% completion. If a few hours in Mexico hadn't dragged, and if I'd spend more time with the multiplayer, this could've easily ended up at the top of my list this year.

1. Battlefield: Bad Company 2. When this game came out in March, I was quietly impressed, but didn't expect to spend a lot of time with it. Fast forward nine months, and it's the only game from the first half of the year that still gets regular play.

I've been a fan of the Battlefield series for a while. I really liked Battlefield 2 on the original Xbox. It was the first console game to bring sprawling maps and a variety of vehicles into a modern military shooter. It was a little buggy, but was unlike anything else out there, and got a LOT of my gaming time. The next console game in the series was Bad Company, and it was worthwhile. It introduced a level of environmental destructibility that hadn't been seen in a shooter since Red Faction. However, it released in the wake of Call of Duty 4, which flipped the script by bringing role-playing level progression to the shooter genre. All of a sudden, blowing a hole in a wall with a noob tube came in second to unlocking the next weapon or emblem.

As any regular reader of this blog can attest, I played Call of Duty 4 for two years straight. However, since then there's only one FPS that's had a comparably long shelf life, and that's Bad Company 2. The maps are enormous, and sniping across them feels amazing (especially since the gravity of the bullet is taken into effect). The advance-and-retreat style of play in Rush mode feels more like real war than any other game type in any other shooter out there. The enemy spotting system has completely changed the way I think in-game. I find myself pushing the back button while aiming at opponents in other shooters, then cussing at the developers of the other games for not having a tagging system. And then there's the four different character classes, which are as balanced as any shooter since Team Fortress 2. You're given as much XP for doing class-based team actions as you are for getting a kill, and sometimes even more so. The level progression system isn't as polished as some other games, but that also means the higher-level players aren't playing it for achievements or new weapons, but because it's THAT fun. DICE has done a great job of supporting the game with free content, and there's the Vietnam expansion that released last week, which will have me playing long into 2011.

What keeps me coming back to this game? Everything feels rewarding. Playing as an Assault class soldier and dropping ordinance for appreciative teammates who have been defending a position? Spawning as an Engineer and planting mines that destroy an incoming tank, or using your repair tool to fix an attack chopper while it's in-flight? Controlling a UAV mini-copter and slamming its blades into an opponent's face? Playing as a Medic and using defib paddles to revive a recently-deceased teammate? Being a sniper and calling in a mortar strike on a building that houses an objective, then watching the building collapse, taking out the objective and every opponent inside? Strapping explosives to a four-wheeler and driving it into a broken building full of bad guys, then leaping off at the last second and pressing the detonator? These are the most satisfying moments I had in gaming this year, and for that, Bad Company 2 deserves to be at the top of my list for 2010.

HONORABLE MENTIONS (in no particular order):

-- Vanquish -- It's a short ride, but a very fun one. Rocket-sliding up to a robot and flip-kicking it is just as fun as it sounds.
-- Metro 2033 -- While it's basically S.T.A.L.K.E.R. without the RPG elements, the graphics were immersive and the story was surprisingly affecting.
-- Super Meat Boy -- Comparable to N+ in terms of difficulty, but with a lot more personality. Some levels felt like the devs weren't playing fair, which is the only reason why it didn't squeak into the top ten.
-- Alpha Protocol -- Could've been a big hit if it didn't ship so unpolished and buggy. The story was solid, and some of the dialogue was laugh-out-loud funny. Steven Heck gets my vote for Gaming Character of the Year.
-- Limbo -- This year's Braid, without the rewinding. Minimalist graphic style works very well. If you don't hate spiders now, you will after playing it.

BONUS LIST -- MOST DISAPPOINTING (in no particular order)

-- Splinter Cell: Conviction -- In what felt like an attempt to gain more mainstream sales, they tried to make it a run-and-gun stealth game. They also took out the cult-garnering-yet-high-learning-curve Spies vs. Mercs mode from the multiplayer. As a humongous fan of the series, these were both very bad decisions. Let's hope they get Sam Fisher back on track in the next one.
-- Medal of Honor -- Devs who worked on the original Medal of Honor games left EA to form Infinity Ward, who made Call of Duty. Call of Duty became immensely bigger than Medal of Honor. Now was EA's chance to respond with a revamped modern-day game. They hired DICE to do the multiplayer, which got a lot of peoples' hopes up. What we ended up with was a spotty single-player campaign and a weak Battlefield-lite multiplayer with fewer character classes and no destructible environments.
-- Kane and Lynch 2: Dog Days -- I'm one of the few people who defends the original Kane and Lynch. The controls were a little loose, the cover system wasn't very good, and the squad mechanic was worthless. However, the story was one of the best in this generation, and the longer version's ending was worth getting to. So I had a small level of enthusiasm for a sequel. I shouldn't have. The grainy YouTube video look of this one is cool for about five minutes, but doesn't replace the lack of plot, and the controls are still weak.
-- Just Cause 2 -- The most bug-filled game I played this year. It crashed so many times, I brought a broom into my game room so I didn't have to get up from my chair to reset my Xbox. Audio dropouts during cutscenes are so common, you'll think you're playing a silent movie. Then there's a save glitch that wiped out almost seven hours of gameplay. I don't know if they've fixed any of this stuff since then, but considering I paid full price for it back in March, I don't really care anymore.
-- Dead Rising 2 -- Another sequel to a promising game; another epic fail. Once again, the save system and mission structure get in the way of the fun. The multiplayer is only good for campaign cash farming. It's still surprising to me that someone can make such a beautiful looking game about killing zombies in unique ways and make it such a chore to play.
-- God of War 3 -- It looks great, sounds great, and plays great. So why is it down here instead of up higher? Simple: They turned Kratos, one of the greatest characters in video game history, into a one-dimensional rageaholic. You might think this is a minor complaint, but as video games become more and more of a story-telling medium, connection to the lead character is important (especially when it existed so strongly in past games). Fortunately, the PSP game that released this year (Ghost of Sparta) helped reinstall his pathos while still maintaining most of his anger.
-- I almost added Fable 3 and Crackdown 2 to this list, but I finished both games so I'm giving them a pass (although both were completely phoned in).

I'm looking forward to seeing the lists from the other contributors, hopefully in the next week or so. Happy New Year, bitches!