Hey there everyone! Here is my top ten for 2014, from all the games that came out and that I've played! It was a really cool year for games and while I continuously give 2s and 3s to the games I review, there also were plenty of fun experiences that I would recommend to people with tastes more or less aligned with mine! Here's the list!
10- Diablo 3: Reaper of Souls
While D3's endgame was a mess when the game came out and I had issues with plenty of its systems - most of my gear came from the auction house, there weren't any fun legendary items, the difficulty was all over the place - they fixed most of it with Reaper of Souls and then with the stuff they added later on. Rifts and the Adventure mode add exponentially more stuff to do, legendaries and set items included in this expansion are pretty awesome, you have gems that give you special abilities that you can level-up and the difficulty is much better tuned this time around. I hope they give us another expansion!
9- Earth Defense Force 2025
Who doesn't like murdering bugs with friends? EDF is a game I hold dearly in my heart and this installment is pretty good. I'm a bit bummed that they didn't make it four player local co-op, but the framerate would've probably tanked to the low 10s if they did so. The four classes are fun and the range of guns you can unlock is still staggering. I hope they next one they bring here is on a console with enough horsepower to do away with loading screens and other issues!
8- Dragon Age Inquisition
I'm not really into open world games and I feel like they're always overwhelming with plenty of dumb content to do, but I made an exception for DA:I since I enjoyed past Dragon Age games in some capacity. With a good cast of characters and decent gameplay systems, I've took the time it needed to beat this game at a steady pace. Some things aren't perfect - the interface, the crafting system, among others - but it would be crazy for me to not say that I've enjoyed this after spending 60 hours+ trying to finish all the quests and talk to everyone while singlehandedly solving all of the world's problems with the backing of my inquisition.
7- Super Smash Brothers for WiiU
The 3DS version of smash felt like it was a thing I played while waiting for the WiiU game and boy is the console version better. There is so much to do in smash brothers, so many things to unlock, so many challenges to complete, and the core gameplay is pretty solid. I'm not really good at smash and I don't have friends to play locally with often so I probably didn't put as much time in this title as I could have, but the fun I had with it the first few days I played was unmistakable. Also not a perfect game - just the fact that you can't restart events and the button combination to quit most things is something ungodly - but it's pretty much the smash game I was waiting for.
6- Professor Layton vs Phoenix Wright
This game is what happens when you combine two of my favorite handheld franchises. Both the puzzles from Layton and the awesome courtoom drama from Phoenix Wright are combined in this charming little title where the plot twists hit hard and fast at the end. I found it a bit easier than the other PW games - since you can use Hint Coins during court segments to help - but I just burned through that game non-stop since it was so good. The Layton puzzles are also enjoyable. It's fanservice at its best when both characters interact, amazing fanservice.
5- Tales of Xilia 2
Another game that I've burned through, playing all the times I could in local co-op. I love Tales games, I love playing them because the core battle gameplay is so good. The story of this one is original, I think - the concept that you have this huge debt to pay off by doing side-quests and things like that was interesting to me - and the cast of characters, combined with the amount of secrets and things to discover and make made this an RPG I really enjoyed.
4- Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel
I'm a huge Borderlands guy, there's not another game quite like it that combines shooting and RPG mechanics. The Pre-Sequel might take many things from Borderlands 2, it still manages to create new interesting characters, tell an okay story and bring plenty of special abilities and mechanics to the table. If not for a game-stopping bug - a quest that won't progress - I still would be playing it right now, trying to get through the third difficulty, probably.
3- Persona Q
Combining the fun parts of Etrian Odyssey and the amazing cast, humor and mechanics of Persona comes this game that I'm still playing right now. I can think of very little flaws in Persona Q but plenty to love. The cast of characters you have to pick from to make your party, the sheer volume of skills, enemies and items to go through, the fun to navigate a dungeon while mapping it yourself, fighting tough bosses, figuring out puzzles and reading hilarious dialogues about steak and bear puns, Persona Q is an RPG delight that is simply amazing.
2- Mario Kart 8
This might be my favorite Mario Kart ever. It's so well done, the courses are all pretty great and there is so much personality in it. I've played countless hours of it in local co-op and we've never got bored. The DLC is also pretty amazing - adding characters such as Link and whole new courses to the game - and while I never enjoyed messing around with the car parts and the battle mode - everything else is so polished that I'm actually looking forward the next DLC to play more hours of this gem with my friends
1- Hyrule Warriors
Just by time played, this takes the cake. I haven't played a Warriors game since the time of the original XBOX and I bought it mostly to support the WiiU. It was an amazing experience that I've spent countless hours unlocking every single bit I could out of. With a wide range of characters that play differently, tons of challenges in the form of retro 8-bit maps, weapons to collect and upgrades to your characters to buy, I just couldn't stop playing until I had all the weapons and unlocked all the secret outfits and cleared the adventure maps. There's still DLC coming for it, and if you're into Zelda stuff, you'll be pleased by the wide array of characters and familiar items this game offers you. Dropping the Majora's Mask moon on my enemies was a high point, as it always is when you complete difficult challenges while finding the hidden golden skultullas.