2016 Games Review

2016 Games Review

1 Star Games

 

StarFox Zero. Not only are the controls so bad it makes the game almost unplayable, but it

claims to be a remake of the excellent Lylat Wars but it's a much lesser game.

 

2 Star Games

Codename Steam. A good idea executed horribly.

Unravel. Amazing graphics attempt to cover up for dull gameplay

 

Freezeme. Very reminiscent of 64 bit era platformer but too many bugs

 

3 Star Games

Grim Fandango. Still an excellent plot and entertaining characters but still annoying point and click gameplay

 

Forced. An enjoyable puzzle/combat game but clearly meant for online co-op play

 

Animal Crossing Happy Home Designer. A fun game with fun use of cards but gets boring

Quickly

 

Tearaway Unfolded. An updated version of the Vita game but missing many of the features that made it unique.

 

The Legend of Zelda Tri Force Heroes. Trying to manage three Links at once can be irritating.

 

Xenoblade Chronicles X. An impressive overworld which is amazing to explore but lifeless

characters with no atmosphere and a battle system I hate.

 

The Witcher 2. It's not The Witcher 3.

 

Skylanders Superchargers. Lacklustre use of vehicles and too long, too dull levels have killed my interest in Skylander games

 

7^th Dragon Code VFD

 

4 Star Games

Massive Chalice. A RTS game set over hundreds of years where units age and their ancestors take their place. And my name is in the credits!

 

Chibi Robo Zip Line. A fun and by the numbers 3DS platform game, crippled by forcing cheap replay of levels.

 

Kirby Block Ball. Short and fun Kirby/Breakout crossover

 

Minecraft Story Mode. The first four episodes make an excellent Telltale story but the second half just drag.

 

Adventure Time Finn and Jake Investigate. A basic point and click puzzle game which really

feels like an extended Graybles episode.

 

Disney Infinity 2.0 Everything about Disney Infinity is solid but falls just short of greatness.

 

Cubot. Short basic cube puzzle game

 

Kirby Triple Deluxe. A fun and by the numbers 3DS platform game, a pleasant surprise for me.

 

Hyrule Warriors. Didn't expect to like Hyrule Warriors as much as I did, but I also didn't get on as well with the maps as I'd hoped.

 

Quantum Break. Would have made a much better TV show. As it is the game and TV show are almost separate from each other. The gameplay itself is strong, but the game is too short.

 

Flower and fLOW. Relaxing games slightly wrecked by gimmicky motion controls.

 

Rhythm Tendoku and Rhythm Paradise Megamix: I love these games but their amazing music, but I am no good at playing them

 

5 Star Games

 

Swords and Soldiers II. Very strong 2D RTS game

 

Freedom Planet. The best Sonic The Hedgehog game that never was.

 

Everybody’s Gone To the Rapture. Very slow walking simulator that tells an excellent story. The abandoned village and countryside look amazing and create a wonderful atmosphere.

 

Super Mario Maker. I mainly enjoyed the full games made by people online. And Goomba

Parade.

 

Disgaea 5. You always know what to expect with Disgaea. Really good strategy battles and

excellent characters in a bizarre but compelling story.

 

Disgaea D2. A direct sequel to the original Disgaea. Excellent, as every Disgaea game, but

probably also the weakest Disgaea game in terms of story.

 

Danganronpa Ultra Despair Girls. A different type of Danganronpa game which is great fun in its own way, but does destroy the menace of Monokuma

 

Lego Stars Wars Complete Sage/Clone Wars/Force Awakens. What can I say, I love my Lego Star Wars?

 

Lego Marvel Avengers. Another strong Lego game with good links to all of the Marvel TV

shows.

 

Lego Dimensions. While it's expensive, the fun Lego gameplay added to the enjoyment of

making and remaking the Lego models and the huge range of content that comes with each

packs do mean it's good value.

 

Read Only Memories 2064. Interesting point and click adventure game with a strong story. Notable for having mostly LGBT characters

 

The Legend of Zelda Twilight Princess/ Wind Waker. Two of the best Zelda games.

 

Bravely Second. Despite using the same world map, character models and gameplay as the

first game. Bravely Second is so enjoyable. Battles are really fun and the characters and story are great.

 

Shantae and the Pirates Curse. As a free game for me, I had no expectations going into

Shantae but wow was I impressed. A platform/rpg hybrid, it has turned me into a big Shantae fan and I'm looking forward to trying the rest of the Shantae games.

 

Fire Emblem Fates. Telling three stories that split from a single point make this one of the

strongest Fire Emblem series.

 

Steamworld Heist. Heist is very different from Dig, and it works. You build up a Firefly-esque

crew and take part in 2D strategy battles where aiming is everything. This game is what

Codename Steam should have been.

 

Ace Attorney Spirit Of Justice. As usual, Phoenix Wright tell a brilliant, compelling, bonkers

story.

 

Uncharted 4. Does the amazing job of toppling Uncharted 3 as my favourite Nathan Drake

game. Probably because I had to do the combat parts 😀

 

Top 10 Games of 2016

The Witcher 3. My favourite part of The Witcher 3 was the overworld. The massive, detailed, varied landscapes were amazing and I enjoyed exploring every inch of them. I spent days just sailing around the seas of Skellige. The story was strong and interesting and the side quests were stronger. Gameplay was fine, battles were good, getting around on horse worked very well. The Blood and Wine DLC was also a highlight.

 

Fallout 4. Fallout 4 story starts out and grabs you straight away. You and your family rush to a fallout shelter, you're frozen, then defrosted long enough to see your spouse murdered and baby kidnapped. And only then are you released on the Wasteland. Fallout 4 allows you to build your own settlement which is great in some ways as it's a very personalized base, but also limited in who you can move and assign there and also very cumbersome. Fallout also gives a massive, detailed world to explore and four major factions whose stories intertwines. There is a great twist near the end of the game as you catch up to your kidnapped son. That is if you remember to find him with so much else to do.

 

The Talos Principle. You are an android who awakens in some ruins. Someone speaks to you through a computer screen, and all subsequent computers offer conversations and hints as to what happened to you and the world around you. The story is not the strongest part of The Talos Principle however, it's the gameplay. The game take a few simple ideas and make some very strong, clever puzzles. There is no set order to them so can be tackled in a nonlinear manner. Even better is when you start to realize there are secret puzzles inside the main puzzles, leading to deeper secrets and even Easter eggs.

 

Firewatch. You only played this a few days ago and we discussed it then so you know how good it is.

 

Pokémon Moon. Obviously was going to make my top ten but also for making the most radical changes to the Pokémon formula yet. Alolan variants are also nice and refreshing. Rowlet, Mudsdale, Cutiefly, Bewear are some of my new favourite Pokemon.

Life Is Strange. Life is Strange is a bit different from other episodic adventure games. The main mechanic allows you to rewind time, so you learn the answer to a question, then rewind time and give the answer before asked, or unlock something, then rewind time and leave it unlocked. Despite the science fiction premise, the story and characters are very grounded in reality, and this game is really about the friendship between Max and her best friend Chloe, and Maxs' school life. The choices and the consequences have much more weight as a result. The soundtrack is also amazing, some of my favourite music from the past year.

 

Inside. Another one you've played recently, and you know why I like it

 

Her Story. Everything about Her Story is so good, the story, the central performance, the idea of searching through video files to get to the truth. Using keywords to get to constant new video. It's a short game but it doesn't need to be any longer.

 

The Witness. In The Witness you solve line puzzles, each set has a different theme. Some involve symbols, some are mazes, some are reflections. Completing each set of puzzles activated a beam of light which hits the highest point on the mountain on the island. Seven lights and you get inside the mountain. This game is so high on my list because of some personal stuff that happened to me as I played it connected to the game’s deepest secrets.

 

Undertale. Towards the end of your first game of Undertale there is a twist this is not just amazing by itself, but a major shock for anyone familiar with RPG tropes. And that's just the beginning. Even though you save your game, the game is saving itself anyway. So, characters can remember if they died by accident, and you restarted so try and save them. The world changes based on how you play depending on how evil or kind you are. And there are three significant games based on how you play.