2014 has been a surprising year for me when it comes to games, both good and bad. There were some titles I had been looking forward to all year, one's I thought I was going to love but ultimately ended up not leaving much of an impression. Other games though. one's I hadn't been looking forward to (or had even heard of) ended up winning me over completely! Here's a list of those games, my unexpected favorites from 2014 and moments from each. Be sure to list your favorites too!
Wolfenstein: The New Order - A bloody burst of nostalgia
When it comes to FPS games 'Wolfenstein: The New Order' is easily my favorite bullets-into-bodies simulator of 2014. From it's slick, cut-to-the-bone FPS mechanics to it's surprisingly deep and thoughtful story this game just kept surprising me at every turn. I witnessed some pretty intense moments controlling B.J. Blazkowicz through a Nazi-controlled world, but my favorite comes at the end with one more element of BJ's past becoming twisted by the villainous Deathshead. After taking out the Nazi Scientist's twisted experiment, Deathshead lets out a "Die, Allied schweinehund" (a line from the original Wolfenstein 3D) and I felt a burst of nostalgic glee as I prepared to take that f*cker down, face-to-face (or face to robotic-mech or whatever).
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PT- An extrovert's nightmare
You'd think walking down the same hallway over and over again would be disturbing (and claustrophobic) enough without the disembodied voice on the radio and bloody fetus in the bathroom sink. Still, after several laps through the 'P.T.' (or "Playable Teaser's") little pathway I was practically skipping through the game, touching the random objects just so I could make it to the Norman Reedus ending. Then I looked up in the hall's little entry way....and saw the thing of nightmares staring down at me. I then walked to the nearest corner and resigned myself to staring at the floor through the rest of the game.
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Alien Isolation- Slowest. Elevator. Ever.
Gotta hand it to the 'Alien Isolation' developers: they know how to milk tension. I knew from the moment I stepped onto Sevastopol Station as Amanda Ripley I was eventually going to have to come face to face with the super-fast, killer alien from the movies. But rather than throw you into a cat-and mouse scenario, Alien Isolation took it's time as I became familiar with the conflicts on Sevastopol (things were going to hell long before the monster arrived) and I was lulled into a sense of growing unease. When the Alien finally did appear in a shuttle port, there was no cutscene. No scripted moment or dramatic music; just the Alien's silhouette moving towards me in the fog as I stood by the baydoors, rapidly pushing the "call-shuttle" button to no effect.
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Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor-No one kills my roommate/casual friend/random internet acquaintance and gets away with it!
If at all possible, I think Ubisoft should give the reins of Assassin's Creed to Monolith Productions. Controlling the hero Talion as he takes down a group of Orcs, either by sneaking through bushes, or leaping onto them from a ledge required a minimal of button pushes and switching from stealth to head-on combat reminded me of the Batman Arkham games at their best. Complimenting the super-smooth controls was Mordor's Nemesis system, which not only exposed the Orc hierarchy (allowing me to brand my own sleeper agents, and promote them into the mix) but allowed me gain revenge on enemies who had taken me down and avenge other people who're playing the game. Hunting down an Orc who had scored a cheap kill on me during a fight was satisfying indeed.
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Other games/moments I liked, but didn't quite make the list:
South Park: The Stick of Truth-The Rectum of Magical Creatures
Dragon Age: Inquisition- great game, but is a Spanish Inquisition joke too much to ask?
The Vanishing of Ethan Carter- Ethan Carter=found. Mind=blown
Bravely Default- I get my airship right away? You spoil me, Square Enix!