Jimmer-jammer

Amazing year! No year has had quite the same impact for me personally as 2004 but this is an undeniably exciting time for gamers.

Though it certainly can, reaching for the stars and attempting to innovate doesn’t automatically equal a great end product. Spider-Man 2 is a great game because it works as intended, contains hours of well executed fun, looks gorgeous and tells a rock solid story. It’s quality entertainment. Number 1 in this particular year? A bit of a stretch but not like it’s completely undeserving.

Happy New Year! Think it’s gonna be another good one on the gaming front.

I’m so tempted to bite the bullet on Fate/Samurai Remnant. Not my usual fare but it sure sounds interesting.

By all accounts this looks incredible. Hope I can give it the time that it deserves one day.

@Deoxyr1bose ‘Hymn of the Penitent’ has to be one of the most hauntingly epic final boss tunes I’ve heard. It so effectively captures the thematic weight of a climactic final confrontation. Just awesome

Can’t say I agree with Final Fantasy XVI not even breaking the top 10 but then I haven’t played everything on the list. I do believe Soken achieved some stunningly rich, beautifully emotive and elaborate compositions with his score though and was a huge part of the game’s identity.

The original music in Alan Wake II is phenomenal.

I recently nabbed Separate Ways so I’m looking forward to that. Phantom Liberty is a knockout and, along with 2.0, elevates Cyberpunk to greatness.

Resident Evil 4 Remakes pacing, polish and overall balance are what make it next level for me. Add to that its pitch perfect tone, incredible setting and gunplay that just feels great in every situation and you’ve got a towering achievement within the genre. If only a certain boss fight could be slightly reworked, this would be a perfect game in my mind.

Just wrapped my play through and, yeah, it’s an audio/visual triumph. I just wish actually playing it was a smoother experience. Glad to see something that swings for the fences actually resonate with people though! Im really curious to see what Remedy does next.

This is a solid list and one of the few areas that Alan Wake II absolutely knocked out of the park.

An absolute spectacle in all the right ways, I really didn’t expect this to have the impact on me that it did. An unforgettably epic fantasy journey.

@CJD87 It’s not a game that ever stumped me but make no mistake, it’ll have you thinking, particularly as it crescendos in its final stretch. The mileage gotten out of a control scheme basically consisting of one button is amazing.

An engineering marvel. An astounding work of art. A technical showcase. A standout example of the medium.

Hope Insomniac can pour their collective hearts into their upcoming projects and deliver something truly special. Don’t let these selfish idiots have the last laugh.

I’ll have to look into Chants of Sennaar. I’m thrilled to see The Talos Principle 2 make a list! In my top 5 as well and is such a brilliant sequel.

Interesting list! Think I’ve been convinced to give Avatar a shot. Still making my way through Alan Wake II. It’s grown on me quite a bit and I’m curious to see how it all comes together.

Broadly speaking, I’m not in support of this at all. I felt Final Fantasy XVI did some interesting things to manage difficulty, with in-game items available to specifically tailor the combat to the players liking.

Sounds like it’s shaping up nicely. I see so much potential here. Team Ninja have crafted some of the greatest combat systems I’ve had the pleasure of playing. If they can manage to reign in the open world and rpg aspects with rewarding exploration and some meaningful choices, we could have a real gem here. So excited.

Resident Evil 4 Remake is a masterpiece. There’s really no aspect of this game that isn’t knocked out of the park.

So that’s what went wrong. They tried to make it ‘fun’ instead of ‘engaging.’

Sorting out a top 10 has been a challenge for me let alone a top 5. At the end of it all, Final Fantasy XVI made the biggest impression on me. What a great year for gaming. Great video!

I really need to get to Venba. Great list!

@naruball Good catch! Yeah, I’m certain we’ll see the fruits of ND’s labours in some form or another.

Yeah, this is supremely disappointing. Surely more so for those involved in its development. The reality is, regardless of talent or intentions, sometimes a project just doesn’t come together. No one is immune, not even a studio of this pedigree. Take the lessons and move on.

Well that’s disappointing. Not going to pretend like I know how to run a successful development studio or a multibillion dollar corporation so I can only assume this was the best decision going forward. Really looking forward to whatever Naughty Dog does next.

I actually eschewed my physical only principle in order to support this release, even if taking only half a step outside of the triple A space yields no end of brilliant creative weirdness at a generally more reasonable price. I’m not sorry I did, though my opinion on the game itself continues to swing wildly all over the place. Not yet sure where it will rest.

In my mind, the entire ethos of Death Stranding only works within an interactive medium. I’m curious to see what kind of out of the box thinking could be brought to this.

@Northern_munkey Absolutely worth picking up, if you like this sort of game. It’s got some fresh ideas of its own and some incredibly intense boss fights. Almost feels like a spinoff of Nioh the way Sekiro feels like a spinoff of Dark Souls.

This is a smart decision. FF XVI is incredible but also complete. I’d ultimately rather see a new world, new characters and new systems. As XVI proved, this well is far from plundered.

Voted good. Room for improvement but glad I watched it.

I literally just lent this out 😂

I will gladly play this!

One of my most anticipated games. Can not wait!

I really like the movies. Unless PS’s review convinces me otherwise, this has sale written all over it for me. When the price is right, I’ll happily dive in.

Yeah, this looks pretty amazing! No one pulls off an open world quite like Rockstar.

1.)Final Fantasy XVI
2.)Spider-Man 2
3.)The Talos Principle 2
4.)Cocoon
5.)Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty

Ridiculously tough year to rank! Wish I was able to play through more games to give a more informed vote but it is what it is.

Some poor programmer really got the shaft.

Wow, this looks fantastic!

This is a great trailer.

@DrVenture69 Croteam have really outdone themselves with this sequel. Guess I wasn’t sure exactly what to expect but I’ve been pretty blown away with how they’ve built off of the first game. Just made it inside of the mega structure.

This is the harsh reality of digital media as much as damage, loss and theft are the harsh realities of physical media. Surely we can all worry less about who’s ‘right’ and just buy on your own principles and convictions. That said, I do have a hard time wrapping my head around the principles of those dogmatically defending an all digital future. Perhaps someone can enlighten me?

Thanks for the comprehensive video! I’m pretty curious about this but have been unsure of what exactly it is.

Grand Theft Auto is hit or miss for me but it’s undeniably a franchise that consistently pushes the medium forward and so I’m actually pretty excited for this.

Three hundred tree planters will easily plant this many trees in one day. Don’t get me wrong, it’s something. I just wish there was less marketing trickery into convincing the customer base that they’re doing something for the environment by doing nothing (earning a trophy) than actually motivating them to get out and do something. Regardless, I appreciate the update on this.

Wow, I directly relate with a good chunk of this, from devouring gaming magazines to Final Fantasy 8 (along with MGS and Silent Hill) being the game(s) to alter my perception of what games could really achieve. Looking back, PS1 truly did move the needle both personally and across the industry. Great read, thanks!

@Mephisto2869 Starfield looks right up my alley. I’d love to play it but unfortunately it’s not quite worth the price of admission on its own. Hope to get to it someday. Too bad Hi-Fi Rush didn’t do it for you but it sounds like it at least created an entertaining point of discussion for you and your partner!

I can only speak for myself but to put it simply, PlayStation has given me many reasons to buy their console (DualSense, high quality first party output…), Xbox has given few (Starfield, Hi-Fi Rush… … … both of which were clawed away from a likely PS launch). When I feel there’s good reason to buy an Xbox, I just might. Point is, it doesn’t really matter how well or how poorly you play the game if you’re not scoring goals.

@pushL7 Though I did enjoy Innocence overall, it very much felt to me like a first try, chock full of great ideas executed half measure. Despite the incredible atmosphere and intriguing narrative, its gameplay systems never fully gelled cohesively, save for a couple of scenarios near the end of the game.

Comparatively, Requiem was a real maturation of everything the first game attempted, much larger in scope and much more confident in its approach. I’d say if you could see the potential of the first game but were disappointed that it didn’t fully coalesce, Requiem will likely be much more to your liking. If you didn’t like the vibe, structure, or gameplay on a fundamental level, I don’t think Requiem would change your mind.

Excellent news. As a game, I felt Requiem was a marked improvement over the first and ultimately an extremely well executed tragedy. Asobo have a unique vision and voice and I’m excited to see what they do next.