GOTY 2021

[Cuellar]

Haven't enjoyed anything for years

[Kelvin]

Reckon my vote's shifted over to Metroid Dread now that a month or so has passed. Obviously there's a recency bias with that over, say, Bowser's Fury, but I still can't stop thinking about Dread, how great the movement and combat felt, how perfectly paced it all was. I've already 100% it again on hard mode, and I reckon I'll have another run - maybe see if I can shave a few more hours off - before Xmas. If anything my second playthrough made me love it even more, as it's such a speedy, precise experience once you know the fundamentals. Speedrunning community seems to be loving it, too - not sure I've ever watched so many speedruns of a single game.

[ImmaculateClump]

1. Blue Wish Desire
2. Natsuki Chronicles
3. Star Hunter DX

Revised my list

1. Crimzon Clover World EXplosion
2. Blue Wish Desire
3. Natsuki Chronicles

Aw, man. It's a sickener to see "Star Hunter DX" and "Space Moth: Lunar Edition" drop out of the top 3.

Favourite game I played that wasn't released this year I think would be "Bike Banditz"

[brat-sampson]

I was fairly confident all year it was going to be FFXIV: Endwalker.

It's FFXIV: Endwalker.

[Mister Six]

Haven't played anything that came out this year, I think, so I'll say Yakuza 0, which was definitely my gaming highlight. Absolutely absorbing, and the climax to the story was proper punch-the-air, yeah-let's-fuck-'em-up stuff.

[Crenners]

1. Returnal - by a long way. Will be regarded as a classic when more people can actually play on PS5.

2. Monster Hunter Rise - probably the best ever MH game, traversal options elevated it enormously although endgame felt short, still waiting on the big DLC expansion.

3. Metroid Dread - I enjoyed it, in hindsight, movement and combat felt solid, and I can't think of much else new that I played this year.

I also really enjoyed a few re-releases like Death Stranding Director's Cut and Dodonpachi Daifukkatsu Black Label. I buzzed off Schildmaid DX for a while but I just don't hook up my PC often enough and I really don't like playing with the gross, sticky, slimy PS5 D-pad. I'll get into it properly when it comes to consoles.

[Consignia]

Like Time's person of the year, where it doesn't go to the best person merely the most iconic, I'm awarding my game of the year to GTA:Definitive Edition. So ridiculously awful on so many levels. A version made on the cheap so they could squeeze a few extra coins out of the corpse. The blatant capitalism that the games industry is, on show for all to see.

[ImmaculateClump]

I buzzed off Schildmaid DX for a while but I just don't hook up my PC often enough and I really don't like playing with the gross, sticky, slimy PS5 D-pad. I'll get into it properly when it comes to consoles.

Ew, that sounds naaaasty. Why you using a ps5 pad on pc? Plug in your sexy arcade stick! That better not be gathering dust in a cupboard.

The new "fuck you right up" sieger mode they added is definitely something the game was missing. A short, balls out, none stop mode that chucks you straight in to the action.

It's good, but the game just doesn't really seem to get it's claws in and drag me back to play more. I'll beat the modes and then just move on with other games.

I think the scoring is what puts me off. It's not very exciting to me, personally. It wants you to slow down, leave enemies alive, run into all the bullets. It's just not my style.
I just point blank speed kill everything to make it more fun for me to play.

I'm not happy with my sieger mode score, I'll have to go back and pump that up. I got through it only dying once, but it was right in the middle of the run. You really have to keep your multiplier going for as long as you can, so if you're gonna die, try and do it near the start or the end!

Been a vintage year for shmups. So much good stuff coming out.
I think that's the year down now, innit? It's safe to say nothing else will come out.

[Crenners]

Ew, that sounds naaaasty. Why you using a ps5 pad on pc? Plug in your sexy arcade stick! That better not be gathering dust in a cupboard.

...

I think the scoring is what puts me off. It's not very exciting to me, personally. It wants you to slow down, leave enemies alive, run into all the bullets. It's just not my style.
I just point blank speed kill everything to make it more fun for me to play.

I've never been able to get my stick to work properly with Schildmaid, felt very sticky and almost like I only had four directions available, although I haven't actually tried with the release build. MK suggested pad way back when and I stuck with that. I'm sure they've addressed it since then so when I go back, I'll try that again. It's just a faff and I'm pretty lazy these days when I have some downtime. The PS5 D-pad is truly abysmal, maybe the worst I've ever used besides the Joycons.

[ImmaculateClump]

Oh, right, that's weird. Yeah, they've sorted it now. I have the universal fighting board in my stick, same as you? It worked perfect straight off the bat since the first version of the beta I tried, so you should be OK if you ever go back before the switch release.

Yeah, that's fair enough. I can totally understand if you're busy and stressed, you just want to chill in front of a film or play something less demanding.

I've gone back to Blue Wish Desire. Playing that on normal with the main ship is the perfect comfort gaming for me at the minute. It's just the right side of not too easy and so relaxing and fun to score.
If you ever do get your pc going, you need to at least try the demo of that. It's bustin'! - https://xxgameroom.itch.io/blue-wish-desire-trial

[Ham Bap]

Didn't realise that Returnal is so well thought of. Looking for a new game to buy/play at the minute and the Sony January sale started yesterday.
Pity Returnal is £70 still.

Will wait for a price drop.

The only new game I've really played this year is Chivalry 2 which is still good to dip in and out of.

Otherwise I'm still playing older games.
Got Frostpunk complete collection and been playing it at length the past week.