Top 5 part 5. The Best and The Worst.
Worst Game of the Year Interestingly enough it wasn't Modern Warfare 3, not that MW3 wasn't every bit as awful as I was expecting. It's just that there was a game who's terribleness quite literally blew me away, and that game was... Gears of War 3 Gears of War and I have an interesting relationship. The first one was the game that made me realize that I couldn't trust review scores anymore. I bought it because it got a 10, but it was completely bland and disappointing on the gameplay front. And some of the worst writing and acting imaginable. Gears 2 was more of the same boring shooting and terrible everything else. But it started bothering me because Marcus Fenix was such an asshole I started feeling sorry for the aliens. Who ever writes for Epic made a protagonist so unlikeable I started sympathizing the random enemies because trying to make Marcus dead was the only relatable activity that went on in that game. By Gears 3 I was sure it couldn't get worse but it managed it. In a last ditch effort to make Marcus more likable than the enemies they say the world is going to blow up and it's all the aliens fault. I'm going to skip to the end to tell you why this game is truly disturbing so if you don't want Gears of War 3 spoiled for you, you have serious mental problems, but don't read this next part. At the end of the game it's revealed that the humans' trump card only exists as a result of testing it on their own people which is all kinds of wrong. The alien queen tries to point out that the humans brought most of this turmoil down on themselves as a result of trying to wipe out the aliens who were just looking out for themselves the whole time. Then instead of agreeing to the point that maybe the humans were the dicks the whole time Marcus just kills her. Then they push a button and everything is restored to status quo. What's the moral of this story? Kill everyone who shows you a viewpoint that you haven't previously considered? What is Marcus Fenix besides a big angry amorphous blob of muscle with a fetish for following orders? He's a child. The man has the emotional stability of a 5 year old. He doesn't realize he's a soldier in a war where both sides have lost thousands and he thinks his one friend is the only one who matters. And this is the character we're expected to follow? That goes beyond bad writing, it seems like they scientifically crafted the worst possible story to tell. It wasn't helped by the insufferable acting. Even skipping all the cutscenes and just playing the shooting parts you're in for dullness on the level of watching grass grow. That was a truly disgusting game and I seriously doubt we will ever see worse. Best Game of the Year Dark Souls I've always wanted to play Demon's Souls but never had the chance because I have no PS3. So I was anticipating Dark Souls from the instant I heard about it. Now anticipation is a bad thing because it raises expectations and if high expectations go unmet a little part of you dies. Thankfully for me Dark Souls delivered. Dark Souls isn't the kind of game I typically go for. I like storytelling and acting and character development and Dark Souls had very little of any of that. Just about the only reason you'll talk to any of the NPC's is if you want to buy something or they want you to pledge allegiance to their god. The over arching story is that you're a zombie and you want to do...something. I forgot. It's not important either way, the point of Dark Souls is that there are a bunch of monsters and you have to kill them. You go through the game honing your skill with weapons or magic or both, trying to balance your skills and equipment to overcome the next challenge, whether that's a super tough boss or a super fast boss or just a room full of zombies with sticks. All the enemies look awesome and animate really well. All the elements of the game are connected to each other, like how your souls (money) are used for leveling up and upgrading your gear so you have to choose between having good stats or good stuff. Another thing I wasn't expecting to like so much was the difficulty. Defeating any normal enemy is as satisfying as toppling a level boss in any other game (with level bosses, there aren't a lot of those around these days are there?) On top of all that the game world is the best I've ever seen, it has a wide range of environments and every area is interconnected in a way that makes exploring a joy. Now this game isn't for everyone, more to the point if you don't have a saintly level of patience you'll quickly get frustrated and give up, then maybe throw a controller at your TV. So attempt it at your own risk, but if you can handle it there's no experience like it. (Except Demon's Souls, but if you don't have a PS3, the statement stands.) The short version. Visuals 2 Rage 1 El Shaddai Sound 1 Bastian Level Design Dark Souls AI Enemy Dark Souls AI Friendly Dead Rising 2 Off the Record Mechanics Diversity Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim Mechanics Balance Dark Souls Writing Story 2 Bastian 1 LA Noire Writing Script Non-variable 4 LA Noire 3 Bastian 2 Dead Rising 2 Off the Record 1 Assassin's Creed Revelations Writing Script Variable Catherine Acting Male 5 Mark Hamill {The Joker} 4 Roger Craig Smith {Ezio Auditore} 3 Masayuki Katō {Eugene} 2 Troy Baker {Vincent Brooks} 1 J.K. Simmons {Cave Johnson} Acting Female 5 Erika Heynatz (Elsa Lichtmann) 4 Tara Strong (Harley Quinn) 3 Laura Bailey (Catherine) 2 Yūko Gotō (Routier) 1 Ami Koshimizu (Friedelinde) DLC 4 Cat Woman (Batman Arkham City) 3 Old World Blues (Fallout: New Vegas) 2 Mark of the Assassin (Dragon Age 2) 1 You Monster (Defense Grid) Multyplayer 3 Catherine 2 Portal 2 1 Assassin's Creed Brotherhood Worst game Gears of War 3 GOTY 5 Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim 4 Dead Rising 2 Off the Record 3 Catherine 2 Bastian 1 Dark Souls |
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