- A lot of my gaming time in 2019 was spent still playing a lot of 2018's best games. God of War, Spider-Man, and others consumed a lot of my time - and distracted me from a lot of this year's new releases. Which is a good reminder: games are way too long now. I am all for giving the consumer value for their purchase, but too many games feel padded in a way that isn't really necessary. This is where the Nintendo Switch has been great - as it's been home to a lot of great games that are substantial, but not necessarily 50+ hour epics with endless sidequests and crafting systems and all the things that define today's AAA games. In fact, I'd say a lot of my favorite games of 2019 - coincidental or not - tended to be back-to-basics sorts of games, that emphasized one or two key gameplay elements and didn't try to be everything to everyone.
I was once again lucky enough to go to E3 this past summer, and it was definitely a strange year at the show. No Sony, for one thing. And just and overall lack of majorly-hyped games. It feels like we're in a bit of a purgatory right now as we wait for the new consoles to launch next holiday. But of course, it's always about the games - and 2020 will bring some titans, from The Last of Us 2 to Cyberpunk to The Avengers. We'll see what lives up to the hype and what doesn't. And hey, new console launches are always exciting - in particular, it's a great time for big new IP to be introduced. We know next to nothing right now about what, games-wise, Sony or Microsoft have in store in terms of next-gen launch games ... so the next several months are going to be really, really interesting.
But let's not get too ahead of ourselves. Here are my favorite games of 2019.
DANNY'S BEST GAMES OF THE YEAR:
1.) CONTROL
- From its opening moments, Control radiates ominous atmosphere and gets your pulse pounding. This is the kind of game I allude to above, when I talk about games that focus on doing a couple of things really well. The first thing that Control does well is story and atmosphere. The game's immersive plot - about a secret government agency called The Department of Control, and its fight against an otherdimensional enemy - is insanely cool, unsettling, and addictive. It's The X-Files by way of David Lynch - and the game tells its story through a great mix of cut scenes, gameplay sequences, and supplemental lore doled out via found objects and documents. The game oozes style - filled with moody lighting, disturbing sound f/x, and tons of cool little details in the game environment that add to the narrative. The second thing the game does really well is shoot-'em-up gameplay, with tried-and-true mechanics mixed with some very cool and unique psychic-weapon abilities. Control is one of the best "playing through an awesome, cinematic story" games in quite some time.
2.) LUIGI'S MANSION 3
- I bought the new Luigi's Mansion game on a whim - I hadn't played the previous entries in the series, but was hoping for a fun new Switch game to play over my Thanksgiving travels. I should have known how fun this one would turn out to be - it's vintage Nintendo: filled to the brim with brilliant gameplay flourishes, expertly-designed puzzles, an eye-popping art style, and simple yet challenging design.
3.) STAR WARS: JEDI FALLEN ORDER
- This game is interesting, in that, on one hand, it's so very clearly directly ripping key game elements from some of today's biggest franchises: Uncharted's traversal, Dark Souls lite combat, and God of War-esque narrative elements. And yet ... on the other hand, all of that, when wrapped in the comforting blanket of the Star Wars universe, makes for a pretty awesome game. I mean, this is what we all wanted, right? You get to play as a Jedi, engage in super-sweet lightsaber combat, and partake in a pretty damn good Star Wars story that takes place after the events of Episode III and Order 666. While rough around the edges, this one is a lot of fun. Sequel, please.
4.) BLOODSTAINED: RITUAL OF THE NIGHT
- This crowd-funded game allowed Castlevania legend Koji "IGA" Igarashi to do what he does best: make awesome 2-D Metroidvania games with incredible art and music. I get that for some, this one had a "been there, done that" feel - especially given the recent glut of these types of games in the indie space. But as someone who counts Castlevania: Symphony of the Night as maybe the greatest game of all time, I was more than happy to take another journey into an IGA-created gothic adventure. And sure, this largely plays like a slightly modernized update of SOTN - but I'll take it! I mean - the art! The music! Nobody does these kinds of games better.
5.) ASTRAL CHAIN
- The latest from Platinum Games (makers of such hack-and-slash adventures as Bayonetta and Nier Automata) is as stylish and action-packed as you'd expect. In fact, it might be the best-looking game I've yet seen on the Switch. The anime-style sci-fi graphics are insanely great, but the game's also got some truly breathtaking, screen-filling action that's just flat-out fun. Add in some interesting combat mechanics and a hokey-but-fun futuristic narrative - and you've got yourself one hell of an action game. Right up there with Platinum's best, and a must-own for anyone with a Switch.
6.) DEATH STRANDING
- This one is hard to quantify, exactly. Hideo Kojima is the kind of singular visionary that the games industry needs more of. But Death Stranding is him going full Kojima, perhaps getting a little too indulgent with his vision. I mean, Death Stranding needs to be played - it's got some of the most striking visuals and unique aesthetics I've ever seen in a game. It's weird af, but in that uniquely Kojima way that is also highly endearing. And the gameplay ... I mean, whereas previous Kojima games like Metal Gear were more traditional and combat-focused, Death Stranding is, at its core, a souped-up walking/hiking simulator. But you're walking through a post-apocalyptic America that's haunted by undead ghosts, and you're Norman Reedus, and you're carrying/protecting a messianic baby that cries through the speaker on your controller. So yeah ... Death Stranding is a videogame and it's weird and hard to describe and I'm not even quite sure what I think of it, but ... I'm glad I played it!
7.) DEVIL MAY CRY 5
- The original Devil May Cry was a foundational game for me. I remember getting it for the PS2, and just being blown away by the graphics, the gameplay, and the over-the-top aesthetics. Cut to almost twenty years later (!), and the franchise is still going strong - with a super good new game that delivers all the crazy action and absurd storylines that you could possibly want from a new DMC. This one doesn't re-invent the wheel - but honestly, it feels like the best Devil May Cry game since the original.
8.) THE OUTER WILDS
- I know this one is at the top of many critics' best-of-2019 lists, and I can see why. This is one of those hyper-innovative indie games that just exudes creativity and imagination. You are a space explorer in a surreal, colorfully-rendered universe - tasked with solving the mysteries of the new planets you land in, while caught in a Groundhog Day-like time loop that throws a major wrench in your efforts. I'll be honest - I've so far found this game to be oddly mesmerizing but also extremely obtuse and frustrating. But I know I need to give it more time and more patience, and I really look forward to diving back in in the near future.
9.) KINGDOM HEARTS 3
- I'll admit I had somewhat mixed feelings about KH3. I loved the first game when it came out years ago, but even then, I liked it more for its geeky pairing of Disney and Final Fantasy characters than I did for its button-mashing action. KH3, well, it hasn't changed that much from KH1. The graphics are a bit slicker and the gameplay slightly updated ... but this is, unmistakably, Kingdom Hearts. And the story even doubles down on the convoluted craziness that characterized later entries in the series. And yet ... the game is still sort of awesome. I mean, in that uniquely Kingdom Hearts way. It has those magical moments you want and expect from this series. And honestly, there's a joy to this game that not many others can replicate. It's kind of amazing it even exists, after the long wait - decades! - since Part 2. But in 2019, we finally got the trilogy capper and, you know what? It turned out to be as fun and as cool and as awesomely ridiculous as anyone could have hoped.
10.) JUDGEMENT
- So for a while now, I've been wanting to get into the Yakuza series - the cult-fave franchise from SEGA that has been a critical darling for years now. And Judgement - which is a spinoff from the makers of Yakuza - seemed like a good place to start. It was! Judgement is a really cool game that blends action and detective work. You play as a crime-busting lawyer, and the game is refreshingly straightforward while also bristling with cool neo-noir style.
Other New Games I Enjoyed in 2019:
- Untitled Goose Game
- Samurai Shodown
- Dragon's Dogma: Dark Arisen
- Erica
- Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3
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