My favourite games of 2021 as well as my game of the year!
Before diving in, a few disclaimers. The
traditional definition of 'Game of the Year' is that you bestow the 2021
release with this honour. However: I only finished 3, 'new', 2021 games. I
don't think it fair that simply because I'm a patient gamer my Game of the Year
would have to be one of these three. Any game that I finished for the first
time this year is eligible for MY Game of The Year. The 2021 release highest on
the list is what you can consider my 'traditional' Game of the Year should you
so choose.
All right then. Now it's time to dive
in! Oh and if you want to read my review on all of these games, just click each
entries purple header to be taken to their review.
5. The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening
The number 5 on this list was a bit difficult
to pick. The other 4 came to mind almost immediately. After looking back at all
the games I played, Link's Awakening stood out. A wonderful remake of the GB
that came off the heels of Breath of the Wild to confirm that, yes, 2D Zelda's
are still relevant. They have their own kind of appeal and this game is a very
good showcase for it. Link's Awakening is a very pleasant game. Links journey
to leave Koholint is marked by, interesting characters, a wonderful world and
its twist ending that put the entire journey into perspective.
It's not perfect, of course, but perfection is
no guarantee of enjoyment and Link's Awakening proves that top-down Zelda isn't
going anywhere. Perhaps we'll even see another 2D Zelda remake on the Switch.
The two Oracle games were made using the engine and assets of the OG Link's
Awakening so it isn't outside the realm of possibility that Nintendo &
Grezzo would do the same again.
4. Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales
From the 3 PS4/5 games I finished this year,
Spider-Man: Miles Morales is my favourite. I very much enjoyed Tomb Raider:
Definitive Edition but I didn't end my playthrough of that game pumped up
proclaiming 'that was epic!'. Because it was. Spider-Man: Miles Morales was one
of the two titles bundled with my PS5 which I had no objections to. I wanted to
buy it anyway and didn't mind playing it before the other Spider-Man game. I
like Miles Morales more than Peter Parker after all.
A short but sweet experience, Spider-Man: Miles
Morales was an excellent way to start my PS5 journey. It was a good showcase of
what the PS5 can do, the graphical fidelity, the loading times etc. while
providing me with a very good Miles Morales story. The gameplay was awesome and
fluid, swinging across a snowy New York feels really good and yes, the amazing
action and the emotional ending got me all riled up.
Yeah, definitely the best PS4/5 game I finished
this year. Can't wait to crack up the PS4 Spider-Man game sometime in 2022!
3. Xenoblade Chronicles: Definitive Edition
No Switch game has taken up more of my time in
2021 than this game. I can't exactly recall what led up to my decision to put
Xenoblade Chronicles 2 on my 2018 Christmas list but I'm so happy I did. The
Monolift Soft created JRPG's have been one of my favourite games I played in
recent years. They are not for everyone, they are long and the gameplay can be
very complex, but the world(s) is so unique and fleshed out while the story and
its characters are amazing.
And it all started with the Wii original now remastered
and improved on the Switch using XC2's engine. It was a no-brainer for me to
buy and after a bit of a false start, I started the game up proper. It was
great. The world of The Bionis and The Mechonis is breath-taking The characters
are multi-layered and endearing. The story is well-written and
thought-provoking. The gameplay can be confusing but still enjoyable once you
understand it.
Plus: Future
Connected is a part
of this package. I got the improved original plus the brand-new epilogue (and
potential XC3 prologue) with the massive base game. A much shorter experience
in basically everything, it's a wonderful little experience to end it all on.
2. Metroid: Dread
Metroid: Dread. My 'traditional' game of the
year. I only played 2 Metroid games before its release, Samus Returns & Other M, but that didn't stop me from
getting hyped for this game. It felt like the only really 'big' game Nintendo
had for the year. It looked great and that it unexpectedly and
uncharacteristically became a high-profile and awaited release from the big N.
Metroid has always been a niche series so seeing it hit big like that was
something to behold.
I started to dread (ha!) that the game might
not be able to deliver on the hype that had built up. That the 'second-coming
of Metroid' I became so invested in would end on a big dud. Thankfully, the
game delivered. The game perfects the MetroidVania formula the original
while, smartly, making the game accessible to
newcomers while not compromising on Metroid's identity. It addressed problems I
had with the previous Metroid games, like the improvements to how it tells its
story and has high production values and an almost frightening amount of
details. Players are still finding new details in this game to this day!
Above all else: I had a lot of fun with it.
Dread ate up all my attention for two whole glorious weeks in October. I truly
had that 'I wish I was playing ... game' right now. It was engaging, exciting
and pushed me as no game has done in a while. Truly an outstanding game.
1. The Witcher 3: WildHunt Complete Edition
Yet, there was one game that I enjoyed even
more than Metroid Dread. The massive undertaking was The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
Complete Edition for the Nintendo Switch.
I knew how lauded this game was so when a
Switch port was announced, I kept it in the back of my mind. After seeing
season 1 of the Netflix Witcher I decided to actually buy the game. That was in
early 2020, not 2021. However, due to a variety of reasons, I didn't have the
time to commit to it until 2021. And commit to The Witcher I did. I finished
the base game, The Wild Hunt, as well as both its expansions, Hearts of
Stone & Blood and Wine. I watched both seasons of the
show, read all but one of the books and checked out some of the comics as well.
You see, that's why this game is nr. 1. Aside
from just being an excellently crafted game in a living, breathing world with
amazingly written stories and characters, The Witcher 3 is an experience unlike
any other. It is the fantasy epic in video game form I never thought possible.
One that felt like I wasn't just playing a game, but playing through an epic. I
never got into Harry Potter or Lord of the Rings but with The Witcher 3, I
think I finally think I know how they feel about those IP's.
The Witcher 3 isn't just an experience I'll never forget, but one that lead to many more experiences this year. For that, and the quality of the game itself, of course, it's my Game of the Year!
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