Time for 5 that didn't make it!
Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair
Speaking of VLR, this game is awesome. The first Danganronpa took me by surprise, and I really enjoyed it. The atmosphere was weird, but when I got on board with it I had a good time. But I always felt like the exploration was a bit tedious and the game never really reached its potential. But I like Phoenix Wright meets murder mystery, and the twists and turns were cool. Enter the sequel, where the setting is changed, the game is polished up to be way more fun, and the plot is ridiculous and mind-blowing (despite appearing otherwise initially)
I actually liked the additions to the trial system, and the trials in general were better written and more interesting. I cared a lot more about the characters in this one, and the setting was legitimately mysterious and unique. I think this game is better than its predecessor in basically every way. I enjoyed Ultra Despair Girls a lot too, but the conclusion in the anime was kind of disappointing. Would have preferred the series to conclude in a game, but I'm looking forward to the reboot in V3 for sure!
Team Fortress 2
Oh, Team Fortress 2. This game probably makes up for a majority of my online multiplayer time if you don't count WOW. I played this game SO MUCH. Especially during vanilla. Love the maps and characters, and playing Spy was genuinely really engaging and intriguing, both with friends and randoms. I had so much fun. Later on, with updates adding new stuff, at first I was pretty on board. 1-2 play style variations per class were great, but then the game became f2p and the quality of play on public servers dropped massively, and they added too many different weapons making the game feel random, eliminating the tight balance. I can't imagine playing the game today, but I had good times with it.
Beyond the regular game modes, I also enjoyed modded dumb bullshit. Prop hunt, where one team plays as pyros that lose health when they shoot, and other team controls objects like traffic cones and chairs, and they hide in the environment from the pyros, was pretty hilarious. It got old fast, but it was a good time. Then we had surf, as seen in the above image, which exploits the physics of Source to let you glide on angled surfaces. While racing surf maps were cool, PVP surf maps with actual fighting and objectives were even cooler. Had some pretty crazy times with them.
Check this out: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EZDhaf39R3I
The Talos Principle
I love puzzle games, I love games that explore philosophical themes, especially as they relate to computer science (my job), and I love Croteam. Hence, this game. First, I'd like to talk about the narrative. Delivered to you through an AI that talks to you and gives you moral and otherwise dilemmas to consider, the game has excellent writing that legitimately made me question my own beliefs. Few games can do a good job of that (and my GOAT sure does that too). The meta-narrative about sentience and reality was explored very well, and thematically integrated into the game itself as well.
Furthermore, the gameplay is brilliant. Remember what I said about puzzles that are hard to figure out and easy to execute? This game does that in spades. Later puzzles get legitimately confusing and require a lot of thinking and testing to solve. The mechanics are mildly reminiscent of Portal minus the portals, but they feel original. But the real meat of the game is in solving the secret puzzles. If solving the normal puzzles is mentally taxing, the secret puzzles are even more ridiculous. Not only are they challenging to find and intuit, but solving them requires juggling the main puzzle and the extra challenge, and some have solutions that require you to carry things over from multiple levels. It's really brilliant.
Quake III: Arena
And yet another multiplayer game that is among the best multiplayer games. Anyone who's played this knows that it's the purest form of competition in a shooter. Equal footing for each player, go. It's so fast-paced and requires both juggling of map information and denial, reading your opponent a la fighting games, and also pure aiming skill. High level competitive Quake is probably the form of competitive gaming that I respect the most. If you go and watch pros, it's inhuman.
That being said, I was never really super high level at the game, yet I was still able to enjoy it immensely. Playing with friends, bots and randoms all were fun in their own ways. The game is incredibly rewarding and when you get good, it's a blissful feeling. The fast pace makes it so that every moment is exhilarating, and you need to be constantly alert, on edge and at your best. Few games evoke this level of mental acuity. Q3A is probably the best competitive multiplayer shooter ever, and I don't see it being topped any time soon.
Overwatch
Aaand we have Overwatch. My GOTY from last year. Weirdly, games that are lower on my GOTY list from last year are on my main list while this isn't. That's partially due to me not having enough time to play OW these days, but also Gmod representing a bigger multiplayer passion of mine and taking OW's slot. I know it's weird and confusing, but whatever. I think in time with updates, it will craw back up. Regardless, I love Overwatch. Amazing designs and polish, awesome variety of play styles and characters, brilliant teamwork game.
I enjoy playing as pretty much every character, and can spin up a game and play any time without ever getting frustrated. The game just feels so good to play and I love everything about it. Actually, I'll just go play OW now. Good night!
Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair
Speaking of VLR, this game is awesome. The first Danganronpa took me by surprise, and I really enjoyed it. The atmosphere was weird, but when I got on board with it I had a good time. But I always felt like the exploration was a bit tedious and the game never really reached its potential. But I like Phoenix Wright meets murder mystery, and the twists and turns were cool. Enter the sequel, where the setting is changed, the game is polished up to be way more fun, and the plot is ridiculous and mind-blowing (despite appearing otherwise initially)
I actually liked the additions to the trial system, and the trials in general were better written and more interesting. I cared a lot more about the characters in this one, and the setting was legitimately mysterious and unique. I think this game is better than its predecessor in basically every way. I enjoyed Ultra Despair Girls a lot too, but the conclusion in the anime was kind of disappointing. Would have preferred the series to conclude in a game, but I'm looking forward to the reboot in V3 for sure!
Team Fortress 2
Oh, Team Fortress 2. This game probably makes up for a majority of my online multiplayer time if you don't count WOW. I played this game SO MUCH. Especially during vanilla. Love the maps and characters, and playing Spy was genuinely really engaging and intriguing, both with friends and randoms. I had so much fun. Later on, with updates adding new stuff, at first I was pretty on board. 1-2 play style variations per class were great, but then the game became f2p and the quality of play on public servers dropped massively, and they added too many different weapons making the game feel random, eliminating the tight balance. I can't imagine playing the game today, but I had good times with it.
Beyond the regular game modes, I also enjoyed modded dumb bullshit. Prop hunt, where one team plays as pyros that lose health when they shoot, and other team controls objects like traffic cones and chairs, and they hide in the environment from the pyros, was pretty hilarious. It got old fast, but it was a good time. Then we had surf, as seen in the above image, which exploits the physics of Source to let you glide on angled surfaces. While racing surf maps were cool, PVP surf maps with actual fighting and objectives were even cooler. Had some pretty crazy times with them.
Check this out: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EZDhaf39R3I
The Talos Principle
I love puzzle games, I love games that explore philosophical themes, especially as they relate to computer science (my job), and I love Croteam. Hence, this game. First, I'd like to talk about the narrative. Delivered to you through an AI that talks to you and gives you moral and otherwise dilemmas to consider, the game has excellent writing that legitimately made me question my own beliefs. Few games can do a good job of that (and my GOAT sure does that too). The meta-narrative about sentience and reality was explored very well, and thematically integrated into the game itself as well.
Furthermore, the gameplay is brilliant. Remember what I said about puzzles that are hard to figure out and easy to execute? This game does that in spades. Later puzzles get legitimately confusing and require a lot of thinking and testing to solve. The mechanics are mildly reminiscent of Portal minus the portals, but they feel original. But the real meat of the game is in solving the secret puzzles. If solving the normal puzzles is mentally taxing, the secret puzzles are even more ridiculous. Not only are they challenging to find and intuit, but solving them requires juggling the main puzzle and the extra challenge, and some have solutions that require you to carry things over from multiple levels. It's really brilliant.
Quake III: Arena
And yet another multiplayer game that is among the best multiplayer games. Anyone who's played this knows that it's the purest form of competition in a shooter. Equal footing for each player, go. It's so fast-paced and requires both juggling of map information and denial, reading your opponent a la fighting games, and also pure aiming skill. High level competitive Quake is probably the form of competitive gaming that I respect the most. If you go and watch pros, it's inhuman.
That being said, I was never really super high level at the game, yet I was still able to enjoy it immensely. Playing with friends, bots and randoms all were fun in their own ways. The game is incredibly rewarding and when you get good, it's a blissful feeling. The fast pace makes it so that every moment is exhilarating, and you need to be constantly alert, on edge and at your best. Few games evoke this level of mental acuity. Q3A is probably the best competitive multiplayer shooter ever, and I don't see it being topped any time soon.
Overwatch
Aaand we have Overwatch. My GOTY from last year. Weirdly, games that are lower on my GOTY list from last year are on my main list while this isn't. That's partially due to me not having enough time to play OW these days, but also Gmod representing a bigger multiplayer passion of mine and taking OW's slot. I know it's weird and confusing, but whatever. I think in time with updates, it will craw back up. Regardless, I love Overwatch. Amazing designs and polish, awesome variety of play styles and characters, brilliant teamwork game.
I enjoy playing as pretty much every character, and can spin up a game and play any time without ever getting frustrated. The game just feels so good to play and I love everything about it. Actually, I'll just go play OW now. Good night!