It’s difficult for me to pick games for Game of the Year, not because I have too many, but because I don’t have enough. I’m a budget gamer and I’ve always been a budget gamer, so I usually only play games when I can get good deals on them. Sometimes that’s older games, sometimes it’s indie games, and sometimes games that I just had to play. So, these are my picks for 2017 games that you should have played:
#5: Destiny 2
Destiny 2 was one of those games that I just had to purchase. I had my faithful squad of friends to play with, a new story to discover, and that same style of combat that was pretty much the only thing I liked about the first Destiny. Destiny 2 proved to exceed my expectations, but only because my expectations were fairly low. All in all, I think it’s a fine game as long as you have a group of friends to play with.
#4: Blood Bowl 2: Legendary Edition
Even though Blood Bowl 2 is not a new game this year, the legendary edition with brand new playable teams and added content released this year. This game is awesome, and the more I play it, the more enjoyment I’ve gotten out of it. Who would’ve thought that a turn-based fantasy sports game could be so entertaining? The unique gameplay and new challenges contained within Blood Bowl 2: Legendary Edition make it a game worth playing, not only for fans of the game, but also for those who are completely unfamiliar with it.
#3: Hitman: The Complete First Season
Hitman has been one of my favorite series since I played Hitman 2: Silent Assassin when I was a kid. When the steam summer sale rolled around, I was able to get this game for a very low price, and I’m now extremely glad that I made the investment. The new Hitman game contains all the stealth aspects that we came to love from this series, as well as even more ways to assassinate your targets. No longer is hitman a “loud” option or a “quiet” option, but every mission has many ways to get to and kill your targets. Hitman is definitely worth buying. If you find it on sale, don’t hesitate to buy it.
#2: Assassin’s Creed Origins
I honestly would not have purchased this game no matter how many people told me that it was good. However, when I upgraded some hardware on my computer I got a free copy. So, I decided that I’d go ahead and play it to see if it was anything different from the other Assassin’s Creed games I had played. To my delight, Assassin’s Creed Origins felt almost like a brand new series. The combat is more fun, the progression system is totally fresh, and the storyline is dark and engaging to anyone who enjoys stories of pain, revenge, and redemption.
#1: The Long Dark
At first glance, The Long Dark seems to be just another survival/crafting game. So why in the world would I play this game over something like Ark: Survival Evolved? There is one crucial element that this game has that others in the genre do not; The Long Dark has a story. The Long Dark follows Mackenzie, a harsh-conditions pilot, who’s hired to deliver a passenger and her cargo to a seemingly uninhabited town called The Great Bear. After some mysterious flashes in the sky, Mackenzie loses control of the plane and crashes on the mountain side. And this is where your adventure begins! Brave the conditions, forge for food and water, and find a way to defend yourself from the aggressive wild life, all along the way beating interesting characters and unraveling the mystery of the “sky flashes.”
New Year Resolution
Even though 2017 brought us a ton of games that we all knew were going to be good, it also brought us some that we didn’t. I found myself being surprised by the games that I played this year over and over. We’ve all learned not to assume that a game will be good because of the advertisements (Destiny anyone?), but I’m challenging all of us not to assume that certain titles aren’t worth our time and money. Give some new genres or developers a try, you might find yourself pleasantly satisfied.
