Posting mine in rough order of games played, because ordering them in terms of quality would drive me...I'd say insane but I'm already there but you get the idea!
Sonic Adventure 2: Battle: I finished 2011 playing Sonic Adventure 1, 4 days until I left for Israel, I played this one quickly! I found it aged notably better than it's predecessor, because ripping out the time wasting Hub World and Sonic/Shadow Stages were nothing short of great. Eggman/Tails stages felt like improvements of E-102's stages in SA1's, and Knuckle/Rouge...um, ok, those kind of sucked, but at least Knuckles had cheesy rap to bring a smile to my face.
Best part of the game of course is this:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u9zZus_1_agMetal Gear Solid: Wait, Metal Gear Rising is being made by Platinum games and looks like a DMC game? CRAP! I have to care about the series now! Oh look, the game is $10 on PSn and can be played on my PSP, lets get started!
This is a very "For it's time" game. The stealth works, just anything outside of Stealth is...kind of bad. Avoiding combat is of course promoted, but then you go into a forced combat area like, say, a boss fight and the game sort of becomes unfun. The plot is interesting enough, I suppose. Still, the gameplay just isn't there for a modern game.
I will say this now: DLChat recently had a discussion that that PS1 games that generally aged best are the ones that were 2D. MGS just helps further prove this, as it's a 3D game and didn't do particularly well. Could be linked entirely to the 3D Graphics thing and not knowing how to utilize them to fullest, and yeah, you get the idea. Granted, sounds like MGS1 got a MGS2/3 Style remake on the Gamecube, so at least there's that.
That said, game isn't awful, just...didn't live up to the expectations really at all.
Sonic Heroes: I didn't want to play this, but Xer insisted just so I could see how things went downhill so fast after Sonic Adventure 2. He wasn't kidding; the concepts are all there, but there's a clear lack of any sort of quality assurance. Stages take 10 minutes on average, which is unheard of in a Sonic game, platforming is slippery and enemies sometimes take forever to kill. And to think the game basically asks you to play through it 4 separate times, and only one of them (Team Chaotix) actually shows a semblance of originality in it's level format (and really, it's "Same stage, but now you have a condition to fulfill!")...there's a reason I only played this game on the Hero side.
One of the worst games of the year I played, no questions asked...but not the flat out worst game.
Sonic the Hedgehog CD: Finally had a chance to play this in a legitimate fashion, it's...about what you'd expect from a genesis Sonic game. The gimmicks are neat, but not really game-breaking one way or another, and the added ability to play as Tails in the XBL version was a cute gimmick. Just nice to play something retro that I always kind of wanted to play, but nothing special beyond that.
And while I can understand the S3&K being "BEST SONIC GAME EVER!" hype, I will not get those that hype this one as the best. Comes off as total Sega CD Hipster Elitism.
Final Fantasy: 4 Heroes if Light: This is a game where they couldn't have gotten things more wrong. No, this is not what most Final Fantasy fans want...or more accurately, it isn't anything like a Final Fantasy. Oh sure, has some spell and item names, and I think White Mages look like their classic selves (Not Black Mages though), but everything else that defines a Final fantasy isn't there. Heck, the game even goes out of it's way to avoid like all the standard Job names. Instead of Thief, it's Bandit, instead of using the term Knight, it's Fencer. But that's minor...
Game is unpolished, has clunky interface, and doesn't even let you target enemies on battle; yes, you rely entirely on Auto Battle. The Job System wastes everything a Job system should have, and the game even has some really dumb mechanic ideas and a lot of hidden undocumented facts (like, say, Weapon and Magic Proficiency for jobs...yes, we're back to Suikoden 2/4 standards guys!)
And it doesn't even have legitimate plot. It's just run around the world doing odd jobs. To add to this, it keeps the team split for half the game; would be fine if it consistently handed you temps (like the game seems like it'll do) but they don't. So you consistently have 2 PC parties...sometimes solo arcs half way through the game. THIS IS NOT FUN!!!
In the end, when you look at the game, it's not a Final Fantasy at all. It's a Dragon Quest with a Final Fantasy paint job. Heck, the most basic of enemies are even SLIMES in this game, only they are modeled to look like Flans because Final Fantasy. Speaking of which, Flans are the only FF mainstays to appear; no Cactuars, Tonberries, Behemoths, Marlboros, etc. It really strikes me that they were making a Dragon Quest, then realized "wait, this will sell much better in the west with Final Fantasy in the name!" then shifted to that, because just about everything this game does is stuff that screams "Anti-Final Fantasy" yet is par for the course in a "Classic" Dragon Quest.
Another one of the worst games I played this year. To think that some people hyped this as "Great game to go back to the routes of jRPGs!" No, if anything, this is a game that illustrates just why these conventions are dropped, and why the "Good Old Days" are just a nostalgic rose colored glasses moment.
Shadow the Hedgehog: If there's one way to sum up this game, it's "Guilty Pleasure." The game isn't good, it's mediocre at best, yet...somehow I managed to get all 10 endings (this was tedious and annoying), and see the FRUE ENDING. It doesn't futz up details the way Sonic Heroes does, but it doesn't really do anything right. Again, I cannot really defend this game; it's playable sure, and while people slammed the game for "OMG GUNZ NO
", that's actually one of it's charms, because it's *Gasp* ANOTHER FACET OF GAMEPLAY, and you can often ignore it since Shadow still has all of what he did in SA2.
Again, it's not a good game, but I still enjoyed it, so yeah, "Guilty Pleasure."
Ninja Gaiden 2: Technically started in 2011, but when I realized I wasn't going to finish it when I thought, I put it on hiatus. Got serious in 2012. Ninja Gaiden 2 is a fine case of 1 step forward, 2 steps back. It does a bunch of neat and cool ideas relative to the first (slicing off enemy limbs without killing them and it having an impact on gameplay, the Red Health idea was neat as well), while hurting in a bunch of other ways (Camera Angles, not showing restraint on balance in some areas, and stages are way too long for their own good, with too many poorly designed bosses and poorly handled checkpoints.) It's not awful, but it is disappointing. The game does still have a lot of what made the first game good, but still feels like a downgrade overall, and is more frustrating at times than fun.
Final Fantasy 13-2: I liked FF13 a fair amount, and FF13-2 based on what little I knew was keeping itself more in-tune with FF13 than FF10-2 did for FF10...and it did! It held FF13's battle system, Serah is a genuine extension of her character in FF13, and an actually likable protagonist, and it doesn't seem to actually spit on FF13 the way FF10-2 did for FF10. It also kept itself it's own unique game by implementing time travel mechanics, a totally different plot (thus not being a rehash), and the Pokemon element to make gameplay not just a carbon copy. Also fixed 2 issues with FF13's battle system (Leader DIes = Game Over is gone, and you can swap leaders Mid-battle, letting you handle more advance strategies.) Music is also good, as it feels like songs that could fit into FF13, while still having a slightly different feel to them to illustrate the game's changed tone.
...however, the game is not without problems. First off, battles are lazily handled relative to FF13. FF13 clearly put effort into every fight, and charging in with all Commandos and Ravagers doesn't work always, and often gets you killed...FF13-2? There's little reason not to open fights with this, and swapping only occurs if things go down hill or you're fighting a boss. Role balance is worse too; removing Slow and Haste really hurts Synergists and Saboteurs, only further encouraging just slugging things out. The plot is also just...kind of bland. Once you remove the time travel, it's really just fetch quests after fetch quests...and this is something FF13 basically avoided entirely. Also Caius is a case of huge wasted potential, as he could have worked, but the game took a completely bad angle with him.
I still 100% this game (got all Fragments, basically), and did most of the DLC, and enjoyed this game, but it's a clear downgrade from the original. The game shows more effort than FF10-2, at least, but there's definitely a smaller budget and less resources to work with, and it shows. I feel it could have been a great game with maybe a longer development time, but alas, so it goes.
Kid Icarus Uprising: Best game of 2012. This is a game I impulsively bought because it was a Buy 2, get 1 Free, and Mandy was only getting 2 so I bought this for myself, because why not? I do not regret this at all, as game more than exceeded expectations. It's writing is absolutely hilarious, completely blowing Star Fox 64 out of the water for quotability, gameplay is new and original and fun. The game seems flawed at first with it's controls, but once you get over that hurdle, there's really little to complain about. There's also a lot in the game for you to do once you finish the Main Campaign, between Intensity levels, the Achievements system, Multiplayer, what have you.
I was expecting a decent game, but this game was so much better than I could have thought. Easily the best game of the year, in any event.
Kid Icarus (3D): After KIU, I decided to finally play the original game to see some of the ground work it was referencing, and bought the HD KID ICARUS FOR THE 3DS!! ...which is the same game only now with pre-rendered backgrounds instead of black ones, just to make it prettier. Anyway, not much to say; it's an old NES game and it shows, but it's not awful or anything.
Sonic Generations: This...is probably the #2 game of the year. Sonic Fanbase can bite me; this is the best Sonic Game ever. The Classic Stages are the best designed the series has to offer, with the best handled physics, and all that, and some great nods and moments scattered about (the Crisis City stunt is nothing short of amazing.) Modern Stages are a blast too, really illustrating how the series has evolved. It's a game that isn't afraid to acknowledge the bad of the series as well as the good, and generally covers it's bases extremely well. It's one flaw is that it's a little too short, and some of the boss fights (Like the final) are kind of dull, though there's a lot of little extra content to do, and all 3 Rival Fights are just great, and fun to replay over and over again.
Not much to say really, just a damn good Sonic game, and if this doesn't prove "Sonic is fun again guys, no seriously", then...well...screw you!
NieR: I think people overlove this game a tad too much. Maybe it's because I played a lot of action games and found the combat dull in comparison to the likes of Devil May Cry or Bayonetta, but the gameplay just didn't really click. Felt too spam happy. Especially in the first half, as at least the second half has multiple weapon styles that offers some variety. I only played one ending and intend on getting B Ending eventually (already saw D Ending, I can deduce what happens in C Ending), and the story was decent, but not the WOMG MOST AMAZING THING that some people hype.
No, game isn't bad, but I didn't fall in love with it the way some people do. It's merely a decent game, not an amazing one.
Asura's Wrath: I'm...not sure how to respond to this. THis is more an interactive Shonen Anime DBZ Homage thing than an actual game, given a large part of the gameplay is QTEs. I mean, it's fun and all in that 'Turn your brain off and enjoy the explosions" kind of way, but I really don't know how to assess it. It's not really comparable to any other game I've played, is what I'm getting at. I enjoyed it, but I still question if it qualifies as a game.
Oh well, as least the game lets you PUNCH GOD IN THE FACE or something, and really, is that ever a bad thing?
...don't answer that.
Pokemon Conquest: Nice little filler game but nothing else. The game has a lot of campaigns and what not but the problem is that it's just too simplistic to care beyond the first one. The premise of "Famous Japanese Samurai using Pokemon to WAGE WAR" is hilarious, of course, and game is nice enough to downplay the plot for the most part. Just...yeah, with a series with as much depth as Pokemon, the fact that Conquest is so simplified does kind of feel irksome.
Still fun, but not something I ever feel like going back too; obviously a game targeting a younger demographic I feel, as opposed to Mainstream titles which aim more for "general audience."
Sonic 4 Episode 2: This took all the qualities of episode 1 and basically fixed up it's issues, resulting in a rather fine classic 2D Sonic game. The Tails Buddy gimmick was of course neat for expanding some gameplay ideas, Boss Design was a notable step up compared to Sonic 4, and the bonus stages being a far better handled version of Sonic 2's never hurts. Good game, if you like Sonic and aren't an old school elitist, I highly recommend getting this because it's a DLC game, it's not too expensive, and it's fun.
I got all Chaos Emeralds and Red Rings in this for the record, so yeah, 100% run and all that.
Metal Gear Solid 2: See the MGS1 reason for why I played this? replace the PSN thing with "Hey, $40 HD Collection with 3 games I haven't played!" Ok, that's out of the way...since I didn't play MGS in it's hayday, the "Play as Raiden" thing didn't bother me at all, so let's get that out of the way! That said...I feel this game aged better than MGS1, simply because the gameplay is a dramatic step up. Actual aiming, more interesting gimmick sections, what have you, the game just has so much more in this regard.
What are it's problems? The plot. Starts off fine, but then becomes a convoluted mess that doesn't know when to stop, when you already know the plot twist is "The Not!Illuminati is behind everything!" as soon as they are mentioned. It even has philosophical nonsense and at times feels confused what it wants you to think, what it wants to display, and...yeah. Feels like the game was trying to one up MGS1 in this regard, and instead just sort of collapsed on itself.
Theatrhythm: Final Fantasy: I don't give a shit about Rhythm games...at all. Yet somehow, I found this game quite enjoyable. Chibis + Final Fantasy Music + lots of little nostalgic nods is just great, and the game has a way to make you care about replaying things over and over again. Just a simple little concept that was pulled off really well.
Metal Gear Solid 3: After the disappointment of MGS1 and the headache inducing plot of MGS2, I didn't know what to expect in MGS3, outside of "This is claimed to be the best game in the series, hands down." I ended up thinking "wow, the game was as good as hyped for the most part!" Were it not for KIU being so damned good, this would be a contender with 2 other games for "best Game I played in 2012." Just seems to have nailed what the series was actually trying for. The plot was basic but well executed (outside of me not liking how they tried to make The Boss the ultimate Mary Sue; really wish they just kept the whole "She defected DEAL WITH IT" plot, also makes Snake's beating her in a duel come off as a more genuine "Student surpasses the master" moment to boot), game takes everything MGS2 did for gameplay and improves upon those, and adds even more. The things I was worried about like lack of a radar or the food system both ended up being well handled, what have you.
Game isn't perfect as there are little gripes I have (mainly the entire end game stuff between Shagohad Fight and the Duel needs to be cut out entirely, worthless gameplay padding on an already long end game arc), but as I said, it's a game that actually lived up to the hype for the most part, and the one game in the series I'm likely to go back and actually replay.
FOR THE RECORD, I don't have a PS3, so I can't play MGS4. I did however watch all the cutscenes from the game and apparently, that's pretty much equivalent to playing the game from my understanding!
Tactics Ogre PSP: The original Tactics Ogre was a bad game. Yes, it was proto-FFT and first of it's kind, yada yada, but it's still a bad game and it's only saving grace was it's plot. This remake addresses a lot of the original's problems and is a huge step up as a result...I can actually say I had fun playing it!
The game still has one big problem and that is it seems they didn't do any polishing at all. A bunch of little design decisions really hurt like "All new jobs start at level 1", and some really wonky mechanics. It's a decent game that could have been a great game if they just spent a little more time banging out the kinks, I feel.
Kirby's Epic Yarn: I like Kirby games a decent amount. I find them fun, simple platformers with a sense of charm. Kirby's Epic Yarn...is easily the worst Kirby game I played. The game feels like it was made for a very young demographic, as opposed to "Fun for all ages, if aimed at younger players!" like other games, to the point where dying is close to impossible. I get they were trying for a cute, happy game but...it's just so dull and boring. Also forced Wii Motion controls at some really dumb moments (THE TRAIN CAN DO DIE.) One of the bigger disappointments. I'll play Return To Dreamland at some point, and I can already tell that's a better game.
Resident Evil 5: I went into this game with low expectations, mostly getting it because of a good RE6 related deal. The demo of it is what turned me off. I ended up thinking the game was actually kind of alright. A notable step down from RE4, make no mistake, for a bunch of reasons I won't get into, but it's not as bad as the demo made it seem. The main things that saved it were:
A. Having a control scheme reminiscent of RE4's (which is...control scheme #1. Control scheme #4 is the default one for some reason, and that's what the demo forces, and it's AWKWARD)
B. The demo showed off literally the worst part of the game (the beginning) and the game picks up significantly once you get past that early portion failure.
As I said, though, it's not RE4's level...not even close, but sure as hell is a step up compared to the earlier RE games I found borderline unplayable in my limited experience. Game is even self aware with one of it's DLCs how silly some of those games were (noting, for example, the obsession with cranks)
Pokemon Black 2: Mainstream Pokemon regularly delivers a strong, fun experience and this game is no exception...heck, I'm often considering calling it the best game the series has to date. It takes all the good stuff the predecessor had, combines in a few more extra little polish things, some you wouldn't even think of (Free Space idea is an absolutely brilliant idea once I discovered what it was), and then expands the Pokemon Options to incorporate a lot of older generation Pokemon, to yield probably the single best main game selection ever. Also legitimately new Gyms, bosses, etc., so it's not just a "Pokemon Grey, but two versions to account for two versions of Kyurem!" but a legitimate sequel and new game, just uses an expanded version of the Unova Region.
If there's a flaw the game has, it's that I find it easy by Pokemon standards (the E4 has only 4 Pokemon each the fuck? Champion at least has the usual 6), but Challenge Mode that Black 2 has on replays helps offset this...and heck, sounds like you can start the game on Challenge Mode if you find someone with a completed version of the game!
In short, this is the 3rd game that "would be in running for best game I played of 2012 if not for KIU", alongside MGS3 and Sonic Generations.
Resident Evil 6: This game had high expectations for itself, and was extremely ambitious. It's problem is that it was announced and released too quickly. You can tell because the announcement of the game came out of nowhere and it was released in the same year, with the release date pushed UP a month (from November to October), you get a strong sense of "Capcom really wanted a strong AAA title out in 2012 after SFxT had disappointing sales!"
I keep wanting to like this game...I really do...but it keeps doing little things that piss me off. It shows all signs of being rushed, like lack of playtesting, some really poor design quirks, what have you...basically everything but glitches that make the game unplayable. The plot...well...it's typical RE fare and sort of embraces the over the topness, so I'm fine with that, and Ada Wong is pretty fun in her whole BEING A COMPETENT RE FEMALE PROTAGONIST WITH NO STRINGS ATTACHED.
But really, this is a game that needed like an extra 6 months before it was released. By Comparison, DmC was announced like 2 years earlier, and has still yet to come out, and has shown a lot of it's development along the way, combined with multiple chances for people to play the demo at cons, for them to show off the game, etc. and get feedback from fans, it really contrasts how quickly RE6 came out, where it was announced, then announced with an earlier release date, and very little chance for fans and critics alike to play the demo and comment on thoughts.
Sonic the Hedgehog (2006): Worst Game of the Year? Worst game of the year. I only played Shadow's section which is the only one that's actually tolerable (no physics puzzles OR Mach Speed sections! And the 3 best PCs in the game hands down) and yeah, it's as bad as advertised...well, no, I played the 360 version so it's like 10% better but...come on, IT'S SONIC 2k6! That's like saying "Hoshi is 10% better than advertised!"
For why I played it...there's a bit of a complicated reason that I won't get into; in short, I was roped into it for charity.
Final Fantasy 4:Interlude: Don't think this counts as a game, but whatever, mentioning it anyway. It's basically "FF4 if you wanted like 3 hours more story and nothing else." The story has nothing really happen and is meant to tie-in with FF4TAY, but doesn't really do anything for the game...really comes off as an advertisement ploy for "hey, reason to buy FF4PSP if you played FF4 and FF4TAY!" Basically, more like a DLC Campaign akin to stuff found in FF13-2 than a game.
Street Fighter x Megaman: Am 8 Bit Megaman game out of nowhere with a lot of Street Fighter fanservice, what's not to love? Well, there's some obvious little things that could have been improved upon but then, THE GAME IS FREE so there's really little to complain about. Interesting weapons, fun boss and stage design, and great nods to Street Fighter across the board, while still feeling like a Megaman game. If you haven't played this yet and like Megaman...WHY AREN'T YOU PLAYING THIS GAME IT'S FREE!?
Final Fantasy 4:The After Years: Very bipolar experience. First half of the game is attrocious. Rehash of FF4's plot in bad ways with a god awful villain and KAIN FANSERVICE, there's very little good to come out of it, but you need to grit your teeth and bare with it. Then you get to Golbez's story and the game actually starts going "right, there's gameplay, maybe we should emphasize on that and cut down on the plot a lot" and well, things pick up. It's a better game than the original overall, partially because there's actual reasons to care about replays...at least in the 2nd half where you can actually customize your team, and get interesting equips and what not.
X-Com: Enemy Unknown: So here I am going "Alright, you western strategy game that everyone is hyping, COME ON! IMPRESS ME! I DARE YOU!"
...and then it did, and I felt like an idiot. You know how I said TO PSP was a decent game with a lot of issues that prevented it from being great? X-com is very similar, except the issues aren't nearly as dramatic and offputting, and there's less of them, so it's a lot closer to greatness than TO PSP. I'd say this game is in running for #5 this year, Theatrhythm being it's main contention for that spot and given how many games I played this year, that's not a bad thing at all. Well played, X-com, well played.
Medievil: Impulsively got this game because Playstation All-Stars made me realize this guy has an awesome design and the game is cheap on PSN, so why not? Plus gave me something else to play on my Vita. That said...another example of how the 3D games of the PS1 era haven't really aged that well. I can see why it was somewhat of a sleeper hit but by today's standards, it's got a lot of unforgivable issues, most notably the camera is like the worst thing I've ever seen. Not a good game, sad to say, and certainly doesn't make me want to consider playing it's sequel.
And...that's it for 2012!
