2018 has come and gone and it was a rollercoaster of a year for sure. Some really amazing movies came out that are due to get snubbed at the Oscars, I ate a lot of good new food, politics all over the world were cray, I started a great new D&D campaign that might actually finish for once, visited Vegas for the first time, and I got to act in a stupidly fun video. But at the end of the day, what matters most is that this was a great year for games, with some of gaming’s biggest surprises dropping in 2018. Who’d have thought God of War would ever have a plot? Also, I finally got my Devil May Cry 5 reveal and that’s honestly the most important thing of the year; nothing else really comes close.
Guacamelee 2
Okay so this is just the first game but more and honestly I don’t really have much else to say except who cares cause it’s good. Guacamelee easily has one of the most satisfying fighting systems for a 2D game I’ve ever played and suplexing skeletons never gets old. And of course Rom Di Prisco and Peter Chapman return to deliver another satisfying soundtrack that’s just a blast to jam out to in the car.
Best Moment: Sublexing skeletons like what else did you think it’d be?
Wandersong
Wandersong’s a special sort of game that you don’t really play for some sort of stellar game mechanic, but more to solicit a particular feeling; in this case it being pure unbridled wholesome optimism and hope. Distilled to its simplest form the game is pretty basic in its platforming and puzzle elements, but the game is just so damn charming that it circumvents any faults it may have. Throughout its surprisingly decent length you’ll go on a vibrant adventure that has some genuinely moving moments.
Best Moment: Any of the song moments
Dead Cells
I’m a huge sucker for run-based rogue-like games, but I’m an even bigger sucker for Early Access games that are done well and release as not broken final products. Dead Cells doesn’t exactly reinvent the genre or anything, but what it does is give you some extremely tight, polished controls and throw you in a world that’s fun to play in. The enemy variety is great, the bosses are exhilarating challenges, and coming across one of your favorite items during a run is always a tasty little treat.
Best Moment: Accepting that I’m probably never going to beat the final boss cause this game is hard yo
Hitman 2
IO released Hitman back in 2016 that not only saw a proper return to form for the series, but also refined every aspect of the series to a killer edge. They also managed to prove that an episodic format for this sort of game could not only work, but be the preferred way of playing. Thankfully IO was able to keep the Hitman IP after being let go by Square-Enix and proceeded to drop Hitman 2 that’s honestly just more of the same, but when that meal is delicious there’s not much to complain about when you’re given seconds. Hitman 2 just doubles down on everything that makes the series great and features the glorious return of 47’s briefcase, now with hilarious homing capabilities. Listen, if you somehow need convincing for how stupid and great this game is just watch Spencer and I bumble our way through their game’s first elusive target.
Best Moment: Throwing a muffin at Sean Bean, seeing it go right through him and realizing he is the great muffin demon
Marvel’s Spider-Man
We’ve been so overdue for a good Spider-Man game that even the news that Insomniac Games, one of my favorite developers, was tackling the IP left me with more skepticism than excitement. Every piece of footage they’d put out left me unconvinced, as we’ve been fooled many times before, but when I finally got my hands on the game years of pain and frustration were erased. They not only absolutely nailed the web-swinging, but also made a combat system that worked for Spider-Man and delivered one of the best Peter Parker storylines in a very long time. Yuri Lowenthal also totally owned that role; it’s always great to see someone who not only gets Spider-Man, but Peter Parker as well.
Best Moment: Using my impact webs to shoot goons off skyscrapers and watching as they most definitely did not die
God of War
I’ve always been a pretty big fan of the God of War series; it satisfied the semi-mindless mashing I’d crave when I didn’t want something more intensive like Devil May Cry and as a big fan of Greek mythology it was of course right up my alley. What probably surprised me the most with this game was the utmost secrecy it managed to hold. All the way up to its release, we still didn’t know what it was about or exactly how it played and that was both incredibly refreshing and worrisome. So getting a game that actually had some emotional heft to its plot, and a rewarding combat system that encouraged you to learn its move list was pretty damn satisfying. Also, hot damn is that axe satisfying to use. They really nailed that from the sound effect to the controller vibration it gives off when you recall it.
Best Moment: Finally killing that last Valkyrie after so many frustratingly failed attempts
Red Dead Redemption 2
Red Dead Redemption 2 is not a fun game, sometimes it doesn’t even feel like a game. What it does do is thrust you into this world with this cast of characters and unapologetically says “you can either fully immerse yourself into this or you can get out”. It’s not a game for impatient people, as it’s one of the slowest games I’ve ever played, but if you’re willing to just dive into it you’ll come out with a phenomenal piece of storytelling and one of the most mind bogglingly detailed worlds you’ll ever see in a game.
Best Moment: Getting into hijinks with my friends in Red Dead Online
Monster Hunter World
Capcom have been on a hell of a comeback lately and no title is more surprising of its success than Monster Hunter World. Capcom managed to take one of their oldest franchises, with its stubbornly passionate fanbase, and completely retool the way it works and not only manage to keep the old fans but earn a huge number of newcomers as well. The seamless map proves it was a good idea, the quality of life changes like your pickaxe never breaking is a massive improvement, the weapons have never felt better, the game features probably the strongest cast of monsters to date, and it’s all absolutely gorgeous to look at. It’s all really just amazing that they managed to pull off what should have been an impossible task.
Best Moment: Seeing a Rathalos show up and fucking DECK an Anjanath
DUSK
Ever since its initial reveal back in 2016 I’ve been on official “DUSK Watch” mode, and when I got access to its first alpha batch I was completely sold on the game and have been preaching the good word of DUSK ever since. The game tapped into the darkest of magics to bring back the feeling of those classic 90s shooters while adding just enough modernization to not make it feel dated. DUSK is just such a fuckin’ trip man, from the absolutely killer soundtrack by Andrew Hulshult that you should all listen to right now to the bonkers final act, this game is a good time from start to finish.
Best Moment: E3M7 and the final boss
