On the Second Day of Blogmas…

It’s the second day of Blogmas and the gamers asked of me eleven games that I love! I’m still trying to keep up with Athena and everyone else involved in this collaboration, but I’ve managed so far! Narrowing down to eleven games is probably going to be tricky, but I’ll try all the same!

1. Baldur’s Gate 2: Shadows of Amn

Otherwise known as the greatest game of all time, Baldur’s Gate 2 is essentially the perfect D&D experience on PC. Great quests, fantastic characters, and a world worth exploring. It’s a little clunky today, but that doesn’t stop it from being incredible.

2. Alan Wake

Ok, so I know it’s flawed, but the atmosphere is fantastic. I found it quite unsettling early on, and some of the environment design is top notch. I just wish Remedy would stop teasing us and create a proper sequel.

3. Skies of Arcadia

Just wonderful, and my favourite JRPG. Be a pirate and sail through the skies, making discoveries, fighting off rivals, and saving the world! It’s aged a fair bit, but I’ve still got a soft spot for this.

4. Sonic the Hedgehog 2

Second game, second stage. To be fair though, almost every stage in this game was excellent.

There’s little I don’t love about this game. It’s simpler than Sonic 3 but tighter for it (which is why I chose this over its better sequel). I don’t this there’s a weak stage anywhere in this, and the music is as brilliant as it ever was for the series.

5. Super Mario Bros. 3

Can’t ignore the plumber! I’m one of those odd people that loves Super Mario Bros. 2, but there’s little that can compete with the follow-up to it. So much variety and the non-linearity really works well as there are so many secrets to find. This is a platformer I can easily play over and over.

6. WWF No Mercy

It plays like garbage these days, but back when I was a youngster, the slow-burning simulation style of this wrestling game worked really well. There was a branching storyline, lots of wrestlers to choose from, and you had to be careful when making your move as the tables could be turned in an instant. The Smackdown games came along and increased the pace significantly, but I still like this N64 classic.

7. Vanquish

 

Just try to keep up with what’s going on.

 

A third person shooter in which you fight robots firing literally hundreds of rockets at you whilst you slide around the ground in a suit with rocket-powered knees. It’s bonkers, but it’s incredible fun! Imagine if Gears of War was a bullet hell shooter and five times faster and your nearly there. It’s only around 5 hours long, but that’s perfect for me these days.

8. XCOM

Whether I’m talking about the classics, the recent reboots, or even Interceptor, I love the XCOM games. Build your base, hold off the aliens as the underdog, research their technology and take the fight back to them! Incredibly solid turn-based tactical action in which each move matters,l that’s even more fun when you name your soldiers after your friends and desperately try not to get them killed!

9. Devil May Cry

Honestly, I could pick any (other than the forgettable second game) from this series, and I include dMc in that. Fast past, gorgeous looking action with a great level of challenge. I’m very excited for the newest release next year.

10. Dark Souls 3

 

JESUS CHRIST WHAT IS IT?!

 

Can’t beat Dark Souls! Well, you can but it’s hard work too! The third game took everything that had been done so far and brought it all together in a complete package. A fitting send off to an incredible series.

11. Bloodborne

Aha! It’s the same but different! I consider Souls and Bloodborne to be different enough to each other in spite of sharing core mechanics. I can’t choose between them, so they both get included. I love Bloodborne’s horror theme with its utterly grotesque monsters that just get more horrifying as you go. I’d love to see more from this.

I surprised myself writing this, as most of these are pretty major releases without much in the way of indie games. But what would you include in a list like this?