First Post! My Game of the Year!

This is my first post for this blog and I'd like to share a few things about myself. I've been playing games since I was 5-years-old with my NES that I got for Christmas. Through the years I haven't really missed much of a beat, owning an NES, Super Nintendo, Playstation, Playstation 2, a plethora of Nintendo Gameboys, a Nintendo DS, briefly a Nintendo Wii, an XBOX 360 and a Playstation 3. I've also recently discovered how good games can be on my iPhone. This blog is where two of my passions -- writing and gaming -- will intersect. As far as the writing side is concerned, I graduated from the University of Iowa two years ago with a Journalism/Health and Sport Studies double-major. It will be my goal to sit down at least once every other day to write an entry in this blog. So with that said, here we go.

Kick-starting this blog at the end of the year has its perks. For example, we've seen all the games we're going to in 2012, so in my first post, I'm going to give you my game of the year nominees and winner. Now these are only games that I've played, so some will be left out; if I haven't played them, I can't have an opinion on them. So without further adieu, here are my nominees:

Assassins Creed 3

Photo Credit: IGN.com

In my opinion, AC3 is the best of the series, beating out the other four. When I think about this game, the first thing that comes to my mind is the addition of the naval combat. Not only does this seem quite innovative, but it's probably the most fun I had with the game. When they ended, I found myself wanting more and at some point I hope that is expanded on, whether it be a new game or downloadable content of some kind for AC3. I think this had the best story thus far as well, even though I've heard the opposite from a few people. In a bold move, you start the game as the eventual "bad guys" which is a neat little twist. My only problem with the story is there is hardly a sense of belonging. The main character, Conner, is more of a loaner than any of the other two characters. Another cool aspect of this game was the ability to finally play as Desmond to the extent of his abilities. Another thing worth mentioning is the amount of characters that can fit on the screen. Massive battles going on in the background made for some amazing missions. I've always been a fan of the series and this game didn't disappoint for me.

Mass Effect 3

 

Photo Credit: IGN.com

Mass Effect 3 was one of my most anticipated games that I can remember. The first two games were things of beauty. Mass Effect had great characters and a great interactive story. Even though the controls were a bit wonky, I still considered it a great game. Then came Mass Effect 2, same great interactive gameplay and an awesome story. On top of that, they fixed the control scheme. So now, you have these two great interactive RPGs with better controls and an awesome story ready to continue on into the third game. Mass Effect 3 had it all. The characters that you are responsible for them being alive, stellar story and reliable controls. Then came the games ending. Most Mass Effect fans HATED the ending. I'll say right here that I didn't have that much of a problem with it. With that said, there were a few possible endings, none of which were interactive by way of the choices made throughout the story that arcs through all three games. That was what everyone had a problem with I think. Not that the endings were bad, but they wanted more personalized endings, which they didn't really get. To me, this game lived up to all the hype.

Hitman Absolution

Photo Credit: IGN.com

Absolution was a long time coming for Hitman fans, as 2006 was the last time they were able to enjoy a new version of the game. Absolution was a very good game, worth the wait in my opinion. The initial concern for me was that this game wouldn't feature as much stealthy gameplay as Blood Money. The first trailer for the game was responsible for that. Much to my delight, there is plenty of stealth action in this game, however it is a tad harder than in games past. At times I have found myself wandering around confused about what to do or how to pull off a contract, only to improvise just to get out of the level. It probably didn't help that I played on one of the hardest difficulties, but the game can be tough, which I am a fan of. What it does do well, is what it should do well: gives you a target and lets you eliminate him or her by any means necessary. There are a handful of ways to take most any target out, which adds to the replay value of the game. After you beat the story, there are a ton of user-made and developer-made contracts for you to choose from and complete.    

Call of Duty: Black Ops 2

Photo Credit: IGN.com

This probably isn't that popular of a choice, considering the critics of Call of Duty games assume these games are just recycled money-makers for Activision. That just isn't true, I've owned every Call of Duty title since the beginning and they're all very different in their own way. Sure the core gameplay is the same, but all first-person shooters are. It's the innovation and the execution that these games bring to the table every year, and Black Ops 2 does this just as well as the next guy. Not only did they bring the fan favorite zombie mode back, they came up with yet another entertaining campaign. But let's face it, the reason people buy these games is the multiplayer. Treyarch did away with telling you that you have to have certain things in certain slots and that's how it is. They introduced a point system that works better than anything previously. Now there is so much variation to what you can do and how you play. There are still minor problems with the game but overall, it's quite the enjoyable game.



Honorable Mentions:
With the four nominees listed, I feel like I have to give honorable mentions of some sort. There are games that have gotten amazing reviews and have been called "Game of the Year" material that I unfortunately haven't played. Those games include Borderlands 2,  XCOM, Far Cry 3 and so on. 




Winner:

Mass Effect 3

Photo Credit: Gameinformer.com

Despite the shaky ending for some people, I feel like there is no better way to close out a trilogy of games than how ME3 did it. It had the perfect balance of everything that I like in a game and the execution of everything together was flawless. This game had a Hollywood-worthy story, where characters became more than just a person holding a gun and carrying out your orders. The reason being, is that through the course of the three games, your choices directly affect the characters. Some choices (in the third game especially) are some of the hardest choices you'll ever have to make in a video game. Between settling arguments that could lead to extermination, missions that could result in some crew members deaths and so on, your decisions impact so much more than what Commander Shepard does, it's a really beautiful aspect of this game. You take on a certain responsibility for your crew aboard the Normandy so they become so much more than just a secondary character. On top of that, cut scenes showcase some of the more emotional parts of the story, showing how war impacts people close to you. The graphics are beautiful and controls are done masterfully. It's nothing short of an epic game, and was well worth the wait. The sheer scale of the game is magnificent, from running straight down a hill face-to-face with a massive Reaper or when you finally see the entire galaxy fleet come head-to-head with the reapers outside of Earth, it's truly an amazing sight. Mass Effect 3 was by far my favorite game of 2012, I'm actually excited to eventually go back and play through all three of them again, to see how different the experience will be.