By Sam Coles:
Another decade has gone straight into the void of existence
known as time, so it’s time to do an obligatory list of my favourite games of
the decade. What a decade it has been for games, with the old guard of the Xbox
360 and PS3 standing down to let a new generation take the reins in the form of
the Xbox One and PS4, with a wealth of titles. Now remember these are my person
picks, so don’t get your knickers in a twist if a game you like doesn’t show
up.
2010: Red Dead
Redemption
2010 saw the excellent western open world game with Red Dead
Redemption, a game I remember being
2011: The Elder
Scrolls V: Skyrim
Now these days Skyrim is generally used as a punchline at
the expense of Bethesda, mostly stemming from the countless re-releases.
However there is a reason why it has been ported hundreds of times from
consoles to Amazon’s Alexa (yes really), because it is an amazing experience.
This game truly embodies exploration; as soon as you finish the first storyline
quest you can do a complete 180 and go in the other direction. Skyrim is the
true definition of freedom when it comes to exploration in the open world
genre, I often boot the game to just explore with particular goal in mind and
to this day I always find something new.
2012: Max Payne 3
Should have prefaced this but this list may have a few
Rockstar produced titles and for good reason, Max Payne 3 shows that Rockstar
can go toe to toe with the likes of Naughty Dog with an excellent linear action
adventure. This game had a troubled development cycle where every Rockstar
studio around the world ended up working on the game, and the game we got is
amazing. This game tells a story of Max at his lowest, his alcohol and drug
addled mind makes him reckless where he ends up working private security in
South America. The story takes some dark twists with a high level of emotional
impact, not only that the gameplay is incredible with slow motion gunfights
looking their best with Rockstar’s RAGE engine. If you haven’t played this game
it is insanely cheap these days on 360 and PS3.
2013: Grand Theft
Auto V
Oh look Rockstar Games are back again, probably one of the
most anticipated games outside of Skyrim Grand Theft Auto V rewrote the play
book of open world design. Instead of doing the standard island by island
structure, they instead let you explore the entirety of world from the word go.
They shook things up by letting you play as three protagonists which you could
switch on the fly; this could lead to some comedic timing I’m looking at you
Trevor. The world of Los Santos and the outskirts of San Andreas were truly
beautiful to explore, with the crimson skies of sunsets and just the vibrant
colours in general. This was truly a beautiful send off for the Xbox 360 and
PS3, which it still astounds me that this game was running on the outdated
hardware.
2014: Wolfenstein:
The New Order
Wolfenstein: The New Order was a game that surprised a lot
of people myself included, at first it looked like a generic first person
shooter. However when the game came out my god it was a masterpiece of
storytelling and first person action! The game takes place in an alternate
reality in the 1960s where the Nazis win World War II, where we see the square
jawed hero B.J Blazkowicz taking them down. What won the hearts of gamers was
the story, Machine Games somehow made what was a gurning face at the bottom of
the screen into a sympathetic and tired person. B.J constantly questions his
actions throughout and wonders if it is worth fighting, but he carries on
despite his trepidation. The gameplay was no slouch either, it never gets old
running down a corridor with duel automatic shotguns as you see arms fly off
and heads pop like watermelons. If you haven’t give this game a go!
2015: The Witcher 3
Okay you saw this one coming didn’t you, if you know me
personally or on Twitter you will know that I’m a huge fan of The Witcher, I
love the books and the games. Back in 2012 I played The Witcher 2 and read The
Last Wish where I instantly fell in love with this world, when The Witcher 3
was announced in 2013 that was the main reason I wanted a PS4 or Xbox One. When
it finally came out in 2015 it did not disappoint, the transition to a full
open world was beautiful the locations from the books were fully realised. The
writing was sharp and there were moments that got me emotionally, the
characters are well written where you will grow to hate and love them. The post-game
support was also great they provided free updates, not only that they gave us
the best expansions I have seen in years with Hearts of Stone and Blood and
Wine. The Witcher 3 is a triumph for role playing games, with great characters,
combat and a story that will have you hooked from start to finish.
2016: Doom
Oh my lord what can I say about Doon that hasn’t been said,
but I will as it is a fantastic resurgence of the old school shooter. This game
was stuck in development hell since 2008 and played more like a Call of Duty
game initially, however id Software scrapped it and went back to what made Doom….
Well Doom. What we got in 2016 was intense action filled with blood, gore and
guns that make you hip thrust with every pull of the trigger. Not only that a
soundtrack composed by the godly hands of Mick Gordon, a mix of electronica and
heavy metal. The gameplay was fast and frantic, where Doom takes a look at
cover and laughs and then proceeds to run at 60 miles per hour. I played it on
Ultra Violence (hard), which is the gentlemen’s way of playing Doom as it
offered the right amount of fun and challenge.
2017: Yakuza 0
Talk about falling in love with a new series, the Yakuza
series was always something that I tried to play but never got into when I
foolishly bought Yakuza 4 back in 2015. However when Sega approached me in
early 2017 and said to me “Sam this game is not out for a month, do you want to
play Yakuza 0 early and review it”? I graciously accepted and fell in love with
it! The stories are what forms the series with dark crime drama’s set within
Japan, but it also doesn’t take itself too seriously. The gameplay makes you
smile with glee as you split someone’s nose open with the heel of your shoe,
where you can use anything as a weapon as long as it is not nailed to the
floor. It’s a great a way to start the series if you want to get into it.
2018: Red Dead
Redemption II
Talk about waiting forever for a sequel to one of my most
beloved games, when I first finished Red Dead Redemption back in 2010 I thought
can’t
wait to play the sequel. I wasn’t expecting to wait 8 years for it and
to go from being 17 years old to my mid-20s, don’t worry about me Rockstar I’m
just here aging, but I digress. Red Dead Redemption II is a master class of
storytelling, and Rockstar once again rewriting the playbook of how open world
games are made. The characters are all fleshed out where I grew to love Arthur
Morgan, which his struggles become heart breaking by the end of the game. The
open world is a joy to explore; it doesn’t feel like a video game as it organically
opens up to you as your curiosity gets the better of you. Gameplay is rather contentious
with most people, but honestly I feel that the combat is meaty where you see
arms fly off, eyes pop out and heads explode. Truly a masterpiece of
storytelling and one of Rockstar’s best.
2019: Devil May Cry 5
A genre that one would think that wouldn’t work in today’s triple
A space, but Capcom said “Hold my beer” and retuned the demon slayer Dante back
to his routes. Utilising the RE Engine which was first used in Resident Evil 7,
DMC V is a technical marvel with realistic facial animations and blood effects
that shower the characters in meaty giblets. The gameplay is fast and skilful requiring
timing and finesse from players, coupled with an entertaining story that does
not take itself seriously at all where I found myself laughing at it. Capcom
this generation have slowly climbed back into the good books of players, they
are the Capcom I fell in love with from the late 90s to the mid-2000s.
Those were my favourite games from the decade, what are your
favourite games from the 2010s?
No comments:
Post a Comment