Favorite Games of 2017

For the first time in my life, I don't have a public presence to state my opinion.  SOUNDS NARCISSISTIC, yeah, it is but isn't that the kingpin of social media?  Blogging?  Tweeting?  Whatever.... anyway, I still have a need and desire to state my opinion and I enjoy making lists of things I like.  Don't we all?

I'm just going to throw games at the wall that come to mind as leaving a positive impression on me in 2017, then I'll whittle that list down.

• The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
• Super Mario Odyssey
• Yakuza 0
• Stardew Valley (Switch)
• Horizon: Zero Dawn
• Million Onion Hotel
• Miracle Merchant
• PinballFX3
• Splatoon 2
• Ironcast
• Golf Story
• The Binding of Isaac: Afterbirth +
• Steamworld Dig 2
• What Remains of Edith Finch
• Telltale Guardians of the Galaxy
• Dead Rising 4
• Superhot
• Pit People
• Titanfall 2
• Prey
• Resident Evil 7
• Steep
• Nex Machina
• Mass Effect: Andromeda
• Gravity Rush
• Nier:Automata
• Everybody's Golf
• Yakuza Kiwami
• Aaero
• GNOG
• Watchdogs 2
• HQ Trivia
• Death Road to Canada
• Game Dev Tycoon
• Reigns: Her Majesty
• Space Frontier

Good enough.  I played a lot more than that, but it's a good start.  Played a ton of Skyrim on Switch and SongPop on iOS AND Lego City Undercover on PS4, but also played a ton of those in previous years.

Alright, now I'll post the list and bold game that 'might' be Top Ten worthy.

• The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
• Super Mario Odyssey
• Yakuza 0
• Stardew Valley (Switch)
• Horizon: Zero Dawn
• Million Onion Hotel
• Miracle Merchant
• PinballFX3
• Splatoon 2
• Ironcast
• Golf Story
• The Binding of Isaac: Afterbirth +
• Steamworld Dig 2
• What Remains of Edith Finch
• Telltale Guardians of the Galaxy
• Dead Rising 4
• Superhot
• Pit People
• Titanfall 2
• Prey
• Resident Evil 7
• Steep
• Nex Machina
• Mass Effect: Andromeda
• Gravity Rush
• Nier:Automata
• Everybody's Golf
• Yakuza Kiwami
• Aaero
• GNOG
• Watchdogs 2
• HQ Trivia
• Death Road to Canada
• Game Dev Tycoon
• Reigns: Her Majesty
• Space Frontier

Ok...Now let's get a look at that list...

• The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
• Super Mario Odyssey
• Yakuza 0
• Stardew Valley (Switch)
• Horizon: Zero Dawn
• Miracle Merchant
• Ironcast (Switch)
• The Binding of Isaac: Afterbirth + (Switch)
• Steamworld Dig 2
• What Remains of Edith Finch
• Dead Rising 4
• Superhot
• Pit People
• Titanfall 2
• Prey
• Resident Evil 7
• Aaero
• HQ Trivia
• Game Dev Tycoon (iOS)

And let's get rid of games that didn't come out in 2017... Which leaves 16 games...

• The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
• Super Mario Odyssey
• Yakuza 0
• Stardew Valley (Switch)
• Horizon: Zero Dawn
• Miracle Merchant
• Ironcast (Switch)
• The Binding of Isaac: Afterbirth + (Switch)
• Steamworld Dig 2
• What Remains of Edith Finch
• Pit People
• Prey
• Resident Evil 7
• Aaero
• HQ Trivia
• Game Dev Tycoon (iOS)

Now, I'm going to cut stuff...

'Prey' can go because I got stuck!  It gets very difficult, even on Easy.  I just can't make it through a section, somewhat late in the game.  I really loved everything about the game once I finally got around to playing it in December 2017.  I played it in a beta form or rental or something around the time it came out and thought it was awful, but liked the story.  I gave it a shot later when it hit $12 and immediately got sucked in.  The developers added a lot of patches over the year, and it looked and played great by the time I got back to it.

'Aaero' is a great rhythm shooter, but it can go because I didn't bother sticking with it/finishing it.

'Pit People' can go for similar reasons.  It is constantly updated, but I haven't revisited it in months.  It's here because I generally hate strategy games, but really enjoyed its engaging gameplay, variety, and humor.

'The Binding of Isaac' is in a similar boat.  I do play it every month or so, and 2017 is the first time I finally 'got' what Isaac was all about.  It showed me that a game can be so much more than what you see at face value.  I thought it was a confusing, difficult, twin stick shooter.  It is all of those things, but the hook is in how vastly different each playthrough can be, and showed me a joy of discovery and experimentation/strategy in a 'plain Jane' wrapping.

'Ironcast' can possibly go for similar reasons.  It's not an attractive game, but it took the old 'match 3' genre and turned it into a roguelike!  Compelling, addictive gameplay, with a 'one more try' gameplay loop made me stick to it on PS4, and buy it again on Switch so I could have a portable version.  It hit PC in 2015 though.

'Resident Evil 7' came out of nowhere, in my case.  I haven't finished an RE game since RE2 in 1998.  I played the beta for RE7, and it felt like a totally different game than I expected from the RE franchise.  It was creepy and frightening, but also played really well, looked AMAZING and made me want to keep playing even beyond the beta or demo.  I've always shotgunned games, playing 10 minutes of this and 10 minutes of that, rarely diving deep into a game.  Resident Evil 7 Gold Edition was posted as a price mistake of $24, so I preordered it.  Late in the year, we were pinching pennies a bit and I cancelled all of my preorders except RE7 because it had been revealed to actually be a $50 game.  I also used a $10 reward card when I preordered it, so for $15 I figured I might as well stick with it and I could sell it for $20 of more if I didn't want it.  I popped it in and loved it.  Finished it and immediately started playing the DLC, which is also very rare for me to do.

So let's see what we can do with the list now...

1. The Legend Of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
2. Super Mario Odyssey
3. Horizon: Zero Dawn
4. Yakuza 0
5. Stardew Valley (Switch)
6. Miracle Merchant
7. HQ Trivia
8. Game Dev Tycoon
9. SteamWorld Dig 2
10. What Remains of Edith Finch

Yeah, yeah, everyone (that matters) loves Zelda.  It has it's faults, but the reason it's at number one is because it changed the way I play games, and what I expect from them.  I went from 'finishing' Zelda around 50 hours in, to immediately playing Horizon: Zero Dawn, a similar 'open world' adventure game.  Coming off BotW, I was used to jumping off the top of cliffs and gliding down.  I was used to climbing any surface I wanted, to reach any peak I could see.  I was used to physically moving my controller to fine tune aiming controls when using my bow.  Similar to cruise control in Saint's Row vs. open world driving games, after having those options in a game, it didn't make sense for other games to NOT include them. (PS. A decade later, games still don't have cruise control as a standard feature...)

The story in BotW is pretty standard fare.  The graphics and music are excellent, but not mind-blowing and not on the same level as Resident Evil 7 or Horizon: Zero Dawn, etc.  The inventory system is AWFUL; incredibly cumbersome to navigate, awkward and tedious.  But the sense of exploration the game provides is unmatched.  You're never walking long before stumbling across a pleasant surprise. Maybe a NPC engagement, maybe a strange sight in the distance, beckoning you to check it out, perhaps a hidden shrine, or doku nut, or half-buried treasure chest, enemy camp, or ruins to explore.  You can finish the whole game and not see giant areas of the map, filled with new adventures.  You might come across an island that strips you of your inventory and forces you to survive amidst a  new gameplay type.  Or maybe you'll find an entire forest, completely void of light causing you to mix up your routine to explore and make it out.  Or someone building a village from scratch in the middle of nowhere (and also in the middle of a crater).  Find a morbid, oddball body parts salesman in the bottom of a pit.  Find yourself at the entrance to an enormous labyrinth.  The game is constantly throwing surprises at you; something that led me to play the game another 50 hours after 'finishing' it.  And I've barely touched on the DLC which throws even more new content your way.

I could go on at length about each of the games on the list, but I feel like everyone else already has over the past month.  2017 was an amazing year for gaming, and it was a nice necessity to escape the awful reality of the year, for me and many others.  2018 is stacked with release dates already...we'll see if it matches last year in output or maybe gives us time to enjoy some of the 2017 games we didn't have time for.

Yooka Laylikwami

TRYING TO KEEP POSTING STUFF.

At first, 'Yakuza Kiwami' felt a lot like 'Yakuza 0', which I recently finished, but after a few minutes the story already had me sucked in and now I'm 6 hours into the game or so.  Looks to be a bit shorter than Zero too.

Kinda torn on Majima.  Loved him in Zero, and I like him well enough here, but with Zero had developed his mental break a bit more smoothly.  He's like night and day and its hard to even see him as the same character.  Long time fans of the series must have been super confused by his character in Zero.

Anyway, I'll keep chipping away at it.

Nobody's Golf

Wow, it's already been a week since I last updated.  I need to set a routine.  I've had some health stuff going on and it's been on my mind constantly.  ANYWAY.

Tuesday, I picked up 'Yakuza Kiwami' and 'Everybody's Golf' for the PS4.  I played a little bit of Yakuza, and it feels like straight up 'Yakuza 0'.  Like a very direct continuation of that game (although my favorite save point was missing in Kiwami).  Mostly though I've been digging 'Everybody's Golf'.  Known up until now as 'Hot Shots Golf' in the US, but always known as Everybody's Golf overseas.  The game is very easily accessible.  It's the same three tap system golf games have used for thirty years (or a two tap system for beginners), and getting to actual gameplay is fast and straightforward.  BUT the clubs level up alongside your player, and to greater effect.  For example, my driver might be leveling up quickly on power, but not as quickly on control, while my sand wedge might have great control, but is slower to level on power.  It's pretty engaging and fun to watch your clubs level up, but it kinda bones beginners.  I had played an hour or so alone, then played with a friend who was about eight hours into the game.  He had the ability to outdrive me by 80 yards because his power was leveled up way past mine.  My best score with my normal player was -4 on a 9 hole round.  I tried using a maxed out player in a multiplayer mode, and my first 9 hold round I was -12 just because I was maxed out!  My clubs were all the best they could be.  Even my wife, who hasn't played a golf game in 15 years, and even then only one or two rounds, got two birdies with her maxed out player.  So the game is a bit lopsided in that aspect, but still very charming and fun.  I gotta unlock a cart and fishing ASAP.

Quick Hits

Grabbed several digital games this week:

• The Sexy Brutale (XBO)
• Shadow Warrior/Shadow Warrior 2 (PS4)
• Slime-San (Switch)
• Mighty Gunvolt Burst (Switch)
• Sonic Mania (Switch)

Played a little 'Sexy Brutale' and I like it so far.  Groundhog Day mixed with CLUE.  Prevent murders, turn back the clock, prevent more murders.  Great art and music so far.

Also, played some 'Shadow Warrior 2' last night and really enjoyed it.  Even my wife was into watching it.  Your character is named Lo Wang and is constantly delivering bad one-liners, to decent comedic effect.  Tight controls, decent graphics, cool weapons... Big dumb fun.  Reminds me a bit of 'Shadow of the Damned' in tone.

'Sonic Mania' feels great.  Feels like how you remember 'good' Sonic feeling, but with some great polish tacked on too.  'Mighty Gunvolt' is a lot of fun so far too.  Mega Man-style gameplay and graphics with a lot of additional challenges and secrets to dig into.  'Slime-San' kinda feels like a mobile game, but with the benefit of physical controls.  It's like a more puzzle-y, easier Super Meat Boy I guess.  Good music too.

Played some 'Sine More EX (XBO)' yesterday too and loved it, but was sleepy and you cannot play a sidescrolling shooter while dozing off.

Just wanted to get SOME thoughts down to keep some momentum writing.  I need to go solder, and have to get x-rays of my guts later today.

Agents of Meh-ham

AS SOON AS I OPENED THIS BLANK PAGE TO WRITE, my wife walks in and starts talking to me.  Being married is constantly getting interrupted and trying to remember what you saying.  Having kids is like writing and someone bumps your elbow and fucks up whatever you were writing.  Over and over and over and over.

'Wonder Boy and the Dragon's Trap' physical copy came today.  'Sine Mora EX' came the other day.  'No Man's Sky' received a huge update yesterday and it's been kinda sounding good again lately.  I'm going to play a bit more 'Agents of Mayhem' though because it is not kid-safe and they are asleep.  AOM is already kinda getting stale.  There is a lot to do, but its all the same thing. Over and over and over and over. (*cough*)  The LEGION Lair's are almost all literally the same.  They look identical and half the rooms just say 'exit to next room' or whatever.  Boring grind.  Crackdown 3 was just pushed back six months and it feels like AOM has lots of room to rule that arena in the meantime.  How many people are going to sit through the grind though?  I have 9 of the 12 agents unlocked as playable characters.  So far, the only interesting stories are the agent stories, but even the missions are kinda dull.  How did they go from Saint's Row 2 that was BURSTING with so many different sidemissions and playstyles and distractions, to this?  I'm guessing building the new engine took more time than they expected and they weren't able to flesh out the missions/modes as much?  Each of the 12 agents (14 with DLC) has full dialogue in all the story missions.  That's a lot of time spent writing text and recording.  I guess that's where they focused their time.  Who wants to play through the game once though, nevertheless FOURTEEN TIMES doing the same boring missions over and over.

Maybe they'll do some 'quality of life'-type patches to make things a little smoother (you can't fast travel or even select a custom waypoint.  You also cannot shoot your weapon while driving, but other vehicles can only be hurt by ramming them so I guess it doesn't matter?), and it'll breathe a little life into it?  Will I have moved on by then though?

Agents of Mayhem Day One Post

I use Gamepedia to track my physical game purchases.  Today, I picked up 'Agents of Mayhem' for the PS4.  First time in a while that I've bought a game on release day.  I also packed up 'Ever Oasis' to mail to a friend because after a couple months, I just know I'll never touch it again, and I'm looking at only getting $14 or so for it...might as well have a friend play it if they're into it.  Anyway, the last game I added to Gamepedia was 'Ever Oasis'!  In May of this year, I only added three new games to my collection, but every other month for ages has been 10+.  That's two games a week on average.

Kinda proud of myself for slowing down, BUT I did actually buy another game today.  Gamefly posted their monthly clearance sale, so I grabbed 'Halo Wars 2' for $14.99.  I passed on Prey for $19.99, 'Mafia III' for $17.99 and 'Steep' for $14.99, though I do want to play all of those games eventually.  Should I grab them now, knowing I can't play FIVE games at once?  They'll either get lower, or get lower digitally, right?

I don't play on Steam, so let me stop you right there.  I just won't play them on Steam, even if they're free.  Nothing against Steam, I just know myself and I won't get around to doing it.

It's Oh So Quiet

Miracle Merchant - iOS

For the first time in a decade, I'm not involved in any podcasts.  I've done five (I think) in that time span.  One hit 100 episodes and 4,000 concurrent downloads (then I quit), another hit 50 episodes (then we both quit), another hit 30-some shows (then I quit) and the others were only a handful of episodes.  So now I'm TRAPPED with my own thoughts, and no one to vent to.  When my kids were born four years ago, I thought I could finally practice writing and make something out of myself.  I was wrong.  KIDS ARE A FUCKTON OF WORK.  Not ideal for practicing anything except operating motor vehicles on two hours of sleep for months at a time.

Been really down with what the 45 has done to the climate...not the atmospheric climate (yet), but the social climate?  Political climate?  MY EMOTIONAL CLIMATE?  Not trying to be a drama queen, but the dude is a major bummer and I've found myself reading more news in the past year than possibly in my entire lifetime combined, and also wanting to avoid the news at all costs.  It's seriously giving me anxiety.  I need to get some positive thoughts down, SO WHY NOT BLOG ABOUT IT?