020 - GAME OF THE YEAR
It's time for the game of the year awards. Previously, I would share this list on Giant Bomb and call it a day, but this time around, I decided to make it it's own episode of the podcast. I don't know if this episode will be good. But I will preface by saying the text version isn't the same as the audio version. But the listing is still the same.
That being said let's get started.
10. Marvel Snap
I didn't expect mobile games to make my list. Mostly because I have quickly dismissed them. I know there are good ones out there like League of Legends and Rocket League that's like a mini version of the game you know them from. But, personally, the day we decided "free to play" models were the way to go and you can't go through a candy crush puzzle or a level in Angry Birds without getting some real messed up games featuring the creators barely disguised fetish, means i put it off.
But, I wanted to see what "Marvel Snap" is all about, and it brought back all that joy I had, no ad breaks, the in game currency is just for cosmetics, there is no "pay to play" mechanics, so everybody is on a somewhat equal playing field, as they build decks to figure out the best min/max in each round.
It's been simply put, one of the best card battle experiences, I understand the love of Yu-Gi-Oh, Pokemon, and Magic the Gathering, but when it comes to digital, I was really into Hearthstone for a while, and this takes mechanics of hearthstone, simplifies them, throws in Marvel IP (including Cyclops & Miles Morales) and makes it easy to understand, difficult to master and also requires strategy in addition to luck to survive. And there is a "slight" gamble mechanic with the cubes, that it creates a confidence game in the process.
9. Kirby Dream Buffet
Happy 30th Birthday to that lovable pink puffball from planet popstar.
My best friend, the Kirby!
This "secondary title" (with it's $20 pricetag) this year was a really fun online experience for me this year. Because you play Kirby, and the objective is you get to munch!
It plays in 4 rounds. A race, a mini game, a second race and then a final battle where you bonk into each other as big puffy Kirby's hoping to change the scoring.
It's not really Mario Party, it's not really Kirby's air ride, it is however a very fun ten minute game experience where you try and race on a giant hamburger to eat strawberries and then later eat chocolate to be thwomp blocks and smush other Kirbs.
It's also, very cute! And makes me very happy.
8. Escape Academy
2022 is a year of Escape Room style games, it makes sense. Pandemic happened, escape rooms were mostly shut down, they still have popularity, so it's an attempt to bring them to the home that's not just a board game.
Escape Simulator is one of those that I think is really clever and I've been playing that so much, lots of community creations to keep it going.
But I picked Escape Academy, mostly because of it's ability to balance different aspects of escape rooms, from puzzles to search and finds, with a simple story about a magical school that's better than that other book.
Of course, I do need to remind everybody that escape rooms and the search and find puzzle are building blocks of early adventure and I think it's a really good building block for what could end up creating the next Myst or Secret of Monkey Island.
7. Neon White
Another game that I think people might forget, but I really enjoyed was Neon White. A speedrun-style action platformer where you hack and slash (or shoot) enemies to make it to the finish line in the fastest times.
The voice acting from Steve Blum gives it that 2000s anime vibes it was aiming for (and the plot as well) but I love a game that can let you continue playing where you left off and not feel like you need to redo everything. One thing that's a pet peeve is the game gets harder as you progress, and if you take a break to do something and return, you'll forget and suddenly, oops.. you're getting destroyed and it's no longer fun. This game just holds your hand when you need it, and it's fast pace is very welcoming.
6. Jackbox Party Pack 9
Another year, another Jackbox party pack. I do wish I could play more of this. And unfortunately, this year I barely had the chance to. And yes, I'm deeply saddened by it. But these games are for friend groups and streamers and I'm a sad, lonely person.
Anyway, Fibbage 4 is fantastic and I love the look of it! I also enjoy the improvisation skills in Roomerang and in Junktopia. There is great cooperation skills needed in Quixort and even wavelength-inspired Nonsensory asks the important question "how tasty is flavored lubricant?"
It's one of the better party packs that have come out. I do recommend you check them out.
This is probably where I'm going to remind people to go check out the Patreon for the after show about Games I didn't play this year and my "Worst Games" list of the year.
5. Windjammers 2
Windjammers is Back! I think this was quickly forgotten, and I'm blaming all of this on the fact there is no In-Studio Unprofessional Fridays anymore, and Jeff Gerstmann is no longer apart of that company. In fact, I'm also blaming SEO data on this one, because for a hot moment, that game was making the rounds at the closing stage of Playstation 4, and then we saw all these attempts at a disc game, and now there are all these esports out there.
Where is my Windjammers League?
4. Arcade Paradise
If I could give a minor award for "best soundtrack" this year, it goes to Arcade Paradise.
It's one of those games that meant so much to me, because it harbors all those insecurities we all hold - that juggle of doing what we love vs that corporate business world to please an antagonist parent.
It isn't "Neon Arcade" it's a different game without roms to throw in, but amazing how you have to juggle the grind of a laundromat with playing arcade games, before slowly becoming an arcade at the end. Spoilers.
One thing I want to see from this is more dlc from indie developers, and use this place to showcase their arcade talents.
Even if you don't want to play a bootleg super hexagon or air hockey or virtual air hockey, do yourself a favor and check out the soundtrack, for amazing songs like "8-Bit Almanac" and "The King Is Dead". It's just a great game!
3. Atari 50
A long debated subject is if "collections" count as games to include, because then, you're arguing for "retro games" that could already be successful.
But we're not talking Sonic Origins, we're talking Digital Eclipse.
The studio that's behind the must-own Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Cowabunga Collection has also taken it's concept to the next level (I'm also sick of that gaming pun, but alas)
Atari 50 is more of a living museum crossed with a documentary. Something I haven't really experienced in video games, ever.
Yes, there are hundreds of Atari games, from it's Pong all the way to Atari Jaguar and Lynx titles.
But it's not about the destination, but the journey that makes it worth it.
Packed in this game is tons of interviews, archival footage, scanned documents and manuals of games and arcade cabinets.
And a strong narrative about not necessary "what is this game" but the "why" this game matters, from it's dual joystick controls to it's 8 player arcade racing and more minor innovations we take for granted.
Unfortunately, IP can't give you the full story and you can't play e.t. but you can get a real emotional journey from the team on what that meant for the company.
It's a gaming museum, and I think if that's where Digital Eclipse is headed, I want to see them tackle forgotten studios, classic places like Sierra, all the way to minor throwback such as PlayStation or even something like Nintendo's history. They have a very interesting development team there, and I love games that are about the faces behind the games.
2. Vampire Survivors
This is the game of the year. If we're actually going to talk "games that had the most impact" absolutely vampire survivors, this rudamentary "rpg maker" looking game where you walk around trying to attack sprites with timed attacks while the roguelike weapon tree grows and grows and the survival rate goes down gives it a ton of replay ability but with the price of a basic phone app.
The genre people love to call it is "automatic shooting survival" or A.S.S. and having played both bad a.s.s. games and good a.s.s. games, this one gets me hooked.
I didn't really enjoy elden ring, I understand the appeal of difficulty and leaving notes for other players to find, but something simple (yet challenging) that just hawkens back to my days on Newgrounds is sometimes all I need.
It deserves more praise than what was given at the awards, one person creating what is more fun than Castlevania, but as scary as serious sam, makes it one of the better games out there and a real game of the year for everybody.
1 Kirby and the Forgotten Kingdom
However, if you argue "game of the year" as "my favorite game of this year", which I think SHOULD be the statistic (and not a popularity contest award)
It's Kirby. It had to be Kirby.
For it's 30th Anniversary, Kirby finally went into the 3D world, and while familiar Kirby standby like the cloud launch at the end of a level, is instead replaced with a goal like in Sonic Adventure. That doesn't mean you can't dance with Bandana Waddle Dee and make friends with the butterfly looking Elfelin.
If Super Mario Odyssey was a celebration of Mario, this did all they could with kirby, from Meta Knight to the inclusion of Kirby's pop star house. All the way to Kirby Cafe Easter Eggs with the kirby burger and waddle dee waiter.
The big "upgrade" this time was Mouthful Mode, where kirby turns into a car, a traffic cone, a light bulb, a hang glider, a hoop and my personal favorite - vending machine.
The collection of enough waddle dees (your cute friend!) Unlocks the boss battle in each level and while even on normal it could take a few tries, once you amp up the difficulty and include "can't get hit" objectives, it makes it much more challenging than yes, elden ring.
I have had so much fun with Kirby, and it reminded me how much I love video games and being that early adopter of my favorite pink puffball.
I can see this game getting replay value in speedrunning in the future with runners trying to collect all the waddle dees similar to the 120 stars in Mario 64.
And also, he's our friend that has love as big as his appetite, and we need all the good, positive, happy and cute things now, more than ever.
Thank you Kirby, poyo!
