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Greenman's Top 13 of 2013


On 12/30/2013 at 04:10 PM by Casey Curran

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2013 was fucking awesome. Here's why

Honorable Mentions:

Stealth Inc: A Clone in the Dark

Call of Duty: Ghosts

Fire Emblem: Awakening

13. Bioshock Infinite

When I first beat this game I thought it would be in my top three this year for sure. Now it's not even in my top 10. Part of this is because of how incredible of a year 2013 was and partly because, well, Infinite is the kind of game that gets worse with time. It's still 100% worth playing, as the shooting is fun (but not as good as Halo or Far Cry 3), the world is incredible, and you won't be able to think about anything other than that twist for a week. But once I got over the twist I remembered a lot of stuff that either was tedious or good, but not quite great. I'd still say Infinite is a great game, just not one of the best games ever made like it was hyped up to be.

12. Tearaway

I'm still getting through this one, but Tearaway is an absolute delight to play. Featuring a charmingly fun, but simple story in a delightful world, Tearaway oozes with charm. The gameplay is simple, but so unique and indescribably that it deserves a play from any Vita owner. This is the best Vita exclusive yet. Which unfortunately probably means the best Vita exclusive ever.

11. DOTA 2

Easily my favorite multiplayer game this year. DOTA 2 initially did not seem like something I would enjoy, but in the end it completely won me over. A large variety of different heroes kept things interesting while there were a lot of fun strategies we would come up with on the fly when trying out new heroes. Those few times I got in a five player party with my friends were some of the best highlights of 2013.

10. Grand Theft Auto 5

This game was pretty much what I wanted out of Grand Theft Auto 4. The controls finally reached a point where running, shooting, and driving in GTA never felt like a chore inside the best GTA map to date. I'm still playing through this, but think this is as high as the game will get. Because while GTA V exceeded all of my expectations…

9. Saints Row 4

….it just cannot compare to Saints Row 4. When I reviewed it I gave it a 4 (out of five for those unfamiliar with Rotorob's scoring) and still stand by that score for the amount of bugs, glitches, and freezes I encountered, there’s no denying just how much fun I had running up walls and leaping over buildings in virtual Steelport. GTA has the polish, story and budget, but Saints Row 4 wins in the fun department. I’m still humming half this game’s soundtrack months after playing it.

8. Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney: Dual Destinies

I am a huge fan of the Phoenix Wright series, so I enjoyed the lawyer’s triumphant return to court. Dual Destinies streamlined many of the annoying parts which plagued previous AA games and delivered many more thrilling and bizarre courtroom sequences (including defending and questioning an orca) with great new characters like Prosecutor Blackquill and Detective Fulbright.

7. Sly Cooper: Thieves in Time

That this game is only number seven just proves to me how good 2013 was. Any other year it would probably be in my top 3 and top 5 for sure. I loved being back with the gang, playing as Sly’s ancestors, and the series’ excellent mix of platforming and stealth.

6. Metal Gear Rising: Revengence

Bringing Platinum Games and Metal Gear together may seem like a weird combination, but the developer captured the series’ absurd nature pretty well. The action, meanwhile, was as good as action games get with some fun new ideas sprinkled in. It makes me wish more action games had a parry system similar to it.

5. The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds

After Skyward Sword disappointed me, my faith in the Zelda series was shaken. Fortunately, A Link Between Worlds offered just enough new elements to stand out from other Zelda games while still offering fun puzzles, complex dungeons, and epic boss battles.

4. Super Mario 3D World

 

3D World takes the formula established in 3D Land, then improves on it in nearly every way. 4 player co-op and multiple characters were both welcome changes, but what really put it a step up was the brilliant level design and wealth of fun power ups. 3D World is as fun as games get.

3. Pokemon X and Y

As a huge Pokemon fan, the introduction of 3D graphics was enough to get me excited. The new Pokemon introduced were the best since the original 150 while delivering a bunch of little touches making the game more fun to play than ever. Also it let me put a Bulbasaur on my team again. Awesome.

2. Rayman Legends 

Old Rayman was good. Rayman Origins was great. Rayman Legends was perfect. I’m still coming back to this game all the time and even when I get around to unlocking everything, I’ll still look for an excuse to keep playing. The music levels alone warrant a spot on this list.

And my number 1....well that deserves its own blog.


 

Comments

transmet2033

12/30/2013 at 04:31 PM

I am glad to see that the games that stood out for me are on your list.  I think that Tearaway ends up being my favourite game this year, probably because it took me by surprise.  I did enjoy A Link Between Worlds, Bioshock Infinite, Stealth Bastard and Fire Emblem Awakening.

I hope to play Rayman and Super Mario 3D World and possibly Sly Cooper. 

Casey Curran Staff Writer

01/01/2014 at 02:06 PM

I wasn't expecting to like Tearaway this much either.

F1r3inth3H0L3

12/30/2013 at 04:33 PM

Alot of good games there. The only one I played out of that 13 is Bioshock Infinite that if it were my list, would be in the top five, lol.

Casey Curran Staff Writer

01/01/2014 at 02:06 PM

Well looks like you have some catching up to do then.

asrealasitgets

12/30/2013 at 05:07 PM

Pixlbit has so many different tastes in games. I played Fire Emblem and DOTA2 from your list. Cool

Casey Curran Staff Writer

01/01/2014 at 02:07 PM

Yeah, the taste is pretty diverse here.

Homelessrook

12/30/2013 at 06:48 PM

I'm not trying to be funny but I am surprised X&Y was not number one. I am posting my top ten tomorrow.

mothman

12/30/2013 at 09:13 PM

LOL, yeah I was thinking the same thing about Pokemon. This is Greenie after all. 

Super Step Contributing Writer

12/30/2013 at 10:40 PM

Third that surprise, now I'm curious what number one was. lol 

I wish Steam had Sly Cooper, I'd definitely jump on any of those games.They do have Rayman Legends, but I'm not really looking at anything too far above $10 right now. Which sucks, because I didn't even think about missing out on the SRIV sale yesterday. Oh well. Might buy the GTA bundle still. 

I really wish I could play Infinite, GTAV, Revengeance, and a Link Between Worlds as well. Those are games that really made me wish I had a new console/handheld or higher-end gaming PC this year, and of course I still need to play a Phoenix Wright game. SMW 3D and X&Y look good as well, though I'm not sure what Tearaway is about exactly. I know Chris just got it and mentioned its awesomeness on his blog. 

Casey Curran Staff Writer

01/01/2014 at 02:08 PM

X and Y was great, but after all the cool things Black and White 2 offered, it was disappointing to have them taken away. If a Pokemon Z comes out with all that cool stuff back, there's a chance it could have won. But I still love my number one a little too much for another Pokemon to beat it.

Cary Woodham

12/30/2013 at 07:14 PM

I didn't like Detective Fullbright as much as Gumshoe.

I hope you get a chance to read my Game of the Year blog.  Can't wait to see what your number one is.  Maybe it's DuckTales!  Or Animal Crossing! :)

Casey Curran Staff Writer

01/01/2014 at 02:09 PM

Yeah, I definitely like Gumshoe more too. But Fulbright was a fun replacement and he has a great payoff at the end.

mothman

12/30/2013 at 09:16 PM

Hmmm, I have a  few of those. Maybe I'll play one next. :)

Casey Curran Staff Writer

01/01/2014 at 02:09 PM

I recommend Rayman.

mothman

01/01/2014 at 02:15 PM

I've started that game. It's a pretty amazing platformer. 

Casey Curran Staff Writer

01/01/2014 at 02:19 PM

It's in my top 3 2D platformers. And number one and two are Super Mario World and Sonic 2, which will never ever change, so it's pretty fucking good.

Alex-C25

12/30/2013 at 11:29 PM

Once I get a Wii U, i'll definitly get Super Mario 3D World and Rayman Legends. Then again, if I get impatient, I can buy the Steam version of Legends instead.

I'll also cross my fingers if a PC version of GTA V gets released. I played the first minutes of the game on my cousin's PS3 and I was very impressed.

Casey Curran Staff Writer

01/01/2014 at 02:10 PM

It's only a matter of time before GTA V comes to PC. If you have a nice rig, it'll probably be better anyways with all the mods every GTA gets.

TripOpt55

12/30/2013 at 11:55 PM

Glad you are enjoying Tearaway. Wasn't sure if you would.

Casey Curran Staff Writer

01/01/2014 at 02:10 PM

Yeah, it's a pretty charming and fun little game.

KnightDriver

12/31/2013 at 12:07 AM

You really covered a lot of ground with that list and I can't disagree with any of it.

Casey Curran Staff Writer

01/01/2014 at 02:10 PM

Good to hear.

Matt Snee Staff Writer

12/31/2013 at 03:01 AM

damn u were a lot more productive than me this year with games.  I need to seriously catch up on a lot of these titles. 

Casey Curran Staff Writer

01/01/2014 at 02:11 PM

Yeah, you really should. Rayman and Pokemon aren't going anywhere either.

Matt Snee Staff Writer

01/01/2014 at 03:02 PM

I'm definitely going to get Rayman Legends for my new Wii U, probably for my birthday on the 21st....

catgirl147

12/31/2013 at 08:38 AM

Thought Pokemon would be your #1, but you totally proved me wrong :P ha. Anyhoo, happy new year!

Casey Curran Staff Writer

01/01/2014 at 02:12 PM

Nah, every Pokemon's a guaranteed top 3, but most rarely make it to my GOTY. Mostly because it is just more Pokemon (even though I fucking love the series)

Blake Turner Staff Writer

12/31/2013 at 10:44 PM

Personally, I find GTA 5 is SOOOO much better than Saints Row 4. Sure it's whackier and more humourous, but the map is shit with no variety to it, and there's fuck all that's fun to do outside of the missions. GTA 5 has so many little systems in it that make it a joy to explore and make your own fun outside of the confines of missions. 

Casey Curran Staff Writer

01/01/2014 at 02:14 PM

See, I think Saints Row 4 has better missions and side objectives. GTA at its best is a little better, but at its worst it's pretty boring. Towing cars and yoga is not my idea of a good time. Plus, Saints Row 4 is more fun to dick around in the sandbox to me. There's less to do sure, but thanks to the powers the stuff you can do is so much damn fun.

Blake Turner Staff Writer

01/02/2014 at 01:28 AM

At least that's variety though. I got INCREDIBLY sick of killing waves of enemies, especially when the weapons feel pretty meh.

Casey Curran Staff Writer

01/02/2014 at 01:46 AM

Yeah, but what's the point of variety when a good chunk of it's shit? Not trying to talk down on it or anything, but what really brings GTA down is when you get into a pointless or boring mission that really has no reason to exist. Without that it would be much higher on my list, but a lot of the game is really not fun.

And it's not like SR4 was all taking out baddies. You had the races, you had taking out the mothership, you had flying missions. I liked SR4's weapons a lot too, GTA's felt better, but not enough to be more fun than say, the 'Merica weapon.

Blake Turner Staff Writer

01/02/2014 at 02:44 AM

I'd argue that I was more bored in Saints Row than GTA tbh. I found the most boring GTA missions better than the most boring of Saints Row missions. And there were other kinds of missions, but I just didn't enjoy them that much. Each to their own I guess.

BrokenH

12/31/2013 at 11:00 PM

I'll still get Revengence at some point. I'm honor bound to because I love ninjas!

Casey Curran Staff Writer

01/01/2014 at 02:14 PM

It's Platinum at their best. Also the best Metal Gear game this gen (shots fired).

jgusw

01/01/2014 at 09:15 AM

I beat a couple of these in the last few months (Fire Emblem, Bioshock Infinite, and A Link Between Worlds).  Hopefully I can get GTA 5 this year. 

Casey Curran Staff Writer

01/01/2014 at 02:15 PM

GTA is a pretty great game.

Halochief90

01/04/2014 at 06:47 PM

The only ones I've played of these are Bioshock Infinite, Thieves in Time, and Last of Us from your next blog. I enjoyed Infinite, but it did not come close to my expectations. Thieves in Time was a big surprise in that I enjoyed it almost as much as I enjoyed Sly 2 and 3. I did not expect a new developer to handle to the franchise so well.

Last of Us as well was my GoTY. Though I'm not sure I liked it as much as you, it had amazingly strong characters, story, and gameplay. I even went back and finished it on the highest difficulty,

I also plan on getting Rayman Legends eventually based on how much I enjoyed Origins. I have A Link Between Worlds on my 3DS and I'm really hoping it lives up to my expectations from a Zelda game.

Casey Curran Staff Writer

01/04/2014 at 08:20 PM

It's pretty hard to like The Last of Us as much as I did. Legends is so fucking great. I thought Origins was really good, but certainly not the best 2D platformer this gen. Legends is the best 2D platformer since Sonic was on the Genesis.

NSonic79

01/10/2014 at 01:27 PM

It's sad that I'm so far behind I've yet to touch ANY of those games. I'll need to see about that in 2014.

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