2024 GOTY Write Up
In 2024 I got a full time job for the first time in four years, and you know what? It turns out you don't get to play as many video games when that happens.
And yet, I persisted. I think there was a common theme among my favorite games this year, and it's that I had to meet many of them on their terms. Yes, some whisked me away from the moment I hit start, but overwhelmingly I found myself really clicking with these titles when I paused, reconsidered how I felt the game wanted me to play, and adjusted my pace to meet their intentions.
This year's write up is a bit rushed, but I got it in just before the buzzer! I hope you'll enjoy. If any of you ever want to talk about these games, you know where to find me.
Before we get started, here are my Honorable Mentions:
Crow Country - If a survivor horror game was also a cozy game that ALSO made you laugh.
Batman: Arkham Origins - A gritty origin story where Batman has an ARC?! And he’s kind of a DICK?! Let’s GOOOO!!!
Sonic x Shadow Generations - It's the best Sonic game ever made. Full stop.
Shenmue - A time capsule of a game with disastrous ambition. Both ahead of its time and utterly wrong in what it assumes everyone wants from an open world experience. I love it. Sea of Theives - The perfect game to enjoy with your morning coffee or evening edible. Relaxing if you want it to be, harrowing if you want it to be.
Now…
My Top 5 Games from 2024
#5 - Astro Bot
The best Nintendo game of the year was made by Team Asobi for the PlayStation 5, and baby it’s Astro Bot. There is delightful imagination and a surprising level of polish covering every pixel of this adventure. In fact, I think it’s surprise that winds up being Astro Bot’s greatest strength. Each main stage introduces a novel mechanic that must be mastered, boss fights feature multiple phases that often turn the literal world on its head, and secret challenge stages leave players with nothing more than their basic move set while demanding a level of mechanical precision that would make Super Meat Boy blush. There is no filler in Astro Bot, only a tangible love for the art, science, history, and joy of video games.
#4 - Dragon's Dogma 2
Like Death Stranding, Dragon’s Dogma 2 is a game that thrives on friction. Traversing the world is genuinely treacherous and requires careful planning before leaving the (relative) safety of a city or village. Maybe you think you can save some time and resources by spending money on a fast-travel wagon, only for said wagon to be attacked by a gang of goblins… and for that fight with goblins to be interrupted by giant griffin that will pick you up and carry you across the kingdom before you’re able to wrestle out of its talons. When things go wrong on your adventure, and they WILL go wrong, the systems and possibilities spring to life. If you pay attention to your surroundings, though, and listen closely to the many hints the game drops for you, you’ll survive… if only just barely.
#3 - Balatro
I think Balatro is going to be my exercise bike companion for quite some time. This silly game of poker hands and multipliers makes time melt away, almost alarmingly so. I’m actually hesitant to call the game “fun”. “Hypnotic” feels more appropriate. The looping, otherworldly soundtrack, spiraling background, and floating UI elements all seem tailor-made to pull players into a dreamlike trance, and boy oh boy do they succeed.
#2 - UFO 50
Goddamn, what a triumph. UFO 50 contains 50 full-length games that would’ve shared shelves with Super Mario Bros or Dragon Warrior back in the 80s. Just about every prominent genre of that era is represented in this collection, from Shmups to JRPGs. I think my favorite aspect of this game is how it makes you more aware of your own gaming proclivities. Everyone I know who plays this game has a different list of favorites; a different game that “made everything click”. For me, that game was Bushido Ball - a surprisingly complex title where samurai play soccer. Every title only requires the use of 2 buttons, every title has its own “historical lore”, and every title - no matter how obtuse or challenging it seems - is excited for you to uncover its secrets and achieve victory.
#1 - Helldivers 2
Helldivers 2 had a well-deserved moment in the spotlight when it first launched. It was a perfect storm of fun that managed to convince players to fully buy into the world of the game and had them gleefully shouting “FOR DEMOCRACY” over and over again. That is an impressive thing to do. I’ll never forget the days when TikTok was filled with “wartime footage” backed by Creedence Clearwater Revival while players urged one another to “join the fight” as if freedom actually depended on it. Then that honeymoon phase passed. But you know what? Helldivers 2 is still my go-to game when I’m looking to have fun with friends within a matter of minutes after sending out the call on discord. The game manages to feed your explosion-fueled power fantasy and SECONDS LATER humiliate you by flinging your worthless corpse halfway across the planet. When I win in Helldivers, it often feels like I barely managed to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat. When I lose in Helldivers, I laugh. Every time.
And now…
My Top 5 Games NOT from 2024
#5 - Dragon Quest XI: Echoes of an Elusive Age - Definitive Edition S
I fear JRPGs. I know myself well enough to be wary of most games that consider 10 hours of playtime an introduction. However, I’m currently experiencing a very unique moment in my life wherein I’m leaving my beloved home and venturing out into the larger world for an adventure. Perhaps that’s why the Dragon Quest XI demo called to me in a way it never had before. I’ve enjoyed spending about an hour with it before bed every night, chipping away at it slowly and letting it charm me with its characters and story. Earlier this year I would read chapters of the Dragon Ball manga before bed, now I feel like I’m finally experiencing life inside of one of Akira Toriyama’s worlds. Since I started playing a few weeks ago I’ve put about 13 hours into Dragon Quest and have only just had the full world map revealed to me. Rather than feeling my usual level of intimidation and disinterest, I find myself excited to see where this adventure will take me next.
#4 - Resident Evil 2 (1998)
A few years ago I finally realized that Resident Evil is my favorite long-running video game series, with the RE2 Remake firmly positioned as one of my favorite games of all time. Replaying the original RE2 over a long weekend was a blast of an experience I won’t soon forget. This campy, pixelated puzzle box of a game managed to get a few genuine jump scares out of me and plenty more smiles. The famous ink ribbon save system was so effective at repeatedly forcing me to ask myself “Can I check just one more room? IS the risk worth the reward?!” As I slowly peeled away the mysteries of Raccoon City, I realized the game I held in my hands was a perfectly tuned, mechanical mouse trap (copyright Umbrella Corp).
#3 - Assassin's Creed: Ezio Trilogy
Outside of AC2, I never quite jived with this franchise, but this year I went through my typical phase of simply wanting to exist in a video game world… and Italy called to me. What happened next, I never could have expected. I devoured the Ezio Trilogy. I had forgotten about the days when “open world games” were significantly smaller and simpler, and by god did it make me realize how much I miss those days. Despite presenting a story with more than a few grating characters and a plot that loses the… plot, these three games made me fall in love with Ezio. It isn’t often you get to spend time with a character from the moment they are born to the moment they die. Ezio’s death and his reflections on his legacy brought actual tears to my eyes. The most interesting legacy of all, though, was the one being forged by Ubisoft at the time these titles were originally released. Seeing video game sensibilities evolve over the course of these three games, for better and for worse, was a fascinating experience.
#2 - Red Dead Redemption 2
You know how I said I like existing in video game worlds? This game world is the best. RDR2 was my hunting and fishing simulator for a few weeks, and then I figured I might as well finally try to finish it. I used to hate how slow this game felt, and then I realized the game was begging me, PLEADING me to slow down. Arthur Morgan and his friends are all running out of time, and there is a wonderful moment when the player and Arthur both realize that the time they have left is more valuable than anything else they have ever chased after in the shrinking West. There’s not much else I can think to say about RDR2 other than that it lived up to the hype. I look forward to returning to it as John Marston from time to time for years to come.
#1 - The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess HD Remake
I started the year rekindling my love for the WiiU. It’s one of my favorite consoles and there was no better game to bring me back to it than the Twilight Princess HD Remake. I feel like these days there are four types of Zelda games. There are the DS-style games (that nobody likes). There are 2D Zelda games, my favorite of which is Link Between Worlds. There are the two Immersive Sim Zelda games, Breath of the Wild being my favorite of the two. And finally, there are the Puzzle Box 3D Zelda games… and this year Twilight Princess officially dethroned Ocarina of Time as my favorite. Again, this is a game I enjoy simply existing in. It is bursting at the seams with interesting characters, both big and small. I adore the art style and music. I adore the melancholy tone. And (coldest take in the universe) Midna is THE best Zelda companion to ever grace us with her presence. According to my save data, I’d tried Twilight Princess twice in the past and both times I made it to the Water Temple and bailed. Back then, the game just felt like it was trying to be Ocarina. Little did I know that as soon as you emerge victorious from Lake Hylia, the game takes on an entire new personality of its own. And I fucking love it.
