Game of the Year 2020

[Mister Jack]

All the major releases for 2020 are out now and while it has been a total shitshow of a year in pretty much every facet of life at least we got some pretty good games out of it so here's the annual thread to pick your personal best along with a runner-up. I haven't played Cyberpunk 2077 yet but given the state it's currently in I feel pretty confident that my picks won't change even after I have. I pretty much knew since the beginning of the year what my GOTY was going to be:

 

 

I really didn't expect that an FPS would become my favorite game of the year because lately I've become less and less interested in the genre. I think the last Call of Duty game I played was Black Ops III and I didn't even finish it. I expected to like Doom Eternal since I liked Doom 2016 but good lord they really brought their A-game for Doom Eternal. I have never played an FPS that was so punishing, yet so thrilling at the same time. Everything gets thrown at you so fast and so aggressively that you rarely have a moment to breathe during battles, but with so many tools at your disposal to even the odds this ends up being more fun than frustrating. Once you get into the groove and learn to use everything in your arsenal you'll be splattering so much blood and guts all around you that you can practically hear the 90s parents clutching their pearls in the distance. I feel like this is the game all those fearmongering news reporters were imagining in their heads back in the day because killing in a video game is rarely this exciting or this much fun. It's almost impossible to play on higher difficulties without feeling the pump of violence fueled adrenaline and I fucking love it. Rip and tear! RIP AND TEAR!

 

Runner-Up

 

 

I was really torn between this and Nioh 2. They're both great games and I was tempted to just put both of them here but that just felt cheap. Nioh 2 is an excellent game that improves on its predecessor in pretty much every way and I would recommend it to anyone who likes challenging combat but the thing that gives Yakuza just a slight edge for me is that it had bigger, bolder ambitions. While Nioh 2 refined and polished its existing formula to a shine, Yakuza: Like a Dragon completely reinvented the franchise and took a huge risk that I think paid off wonderfully. That's not to say that everything is different. You still have your cities full of activities, your wacky side stories, and your yakuza-style storyline full of twists and turns, but changing the game from a brawler to a turn-based RPG was an enormous gamble and I gotta respect them for actually making it work because that sort of thing is really easy to screw up. Even when you put that aside, there's just so much to like about this game. The characters are incredibly well-written. The minigames are addictive as hell. The story sucked me in and repeatedly turned two hour sessions into six hour sessions. The ending is unforgettable. As far as I'm concerned, anyone who snidely dismisses this game just because it's an RPG cannot call themselves a true Yakuza fan. 

[Hot Heart]

I think I've only played three 2020 releases, so this is pretty simple.

 

At number one, we have *dramatic musical build-up*

 

 

I'd never really gone in for rogue-likes or rogue-lites before but this one grabbed me. The art design is sublime, the combat is slick and rewarding and the way that even failure feels like progress both mechanically and narratively seals it.

 

Runner-Up

 

 

While I had some initial reservations about this, and still have some issues with it, I really loved my time with this game. The character design is ace, the music is superb and I think they did a good job modernising the combat. I also think that most of the "extra" stuff was actually really well done and added a lot more to the characters and their relationships. I'm excited to see where it goes.

 

Honorable mention

 

A turn-based superhero strategy game using the Sentinels of the Multiverse setting sounds great. You even get to create your own superhero! However, it's not as slick as it sounds and is incredibly mechanically complex with something like 6 different types of damage (with unhelpful names like Thwok, Krak, Floomp etc.) as well as a very steep difficulty curve... so kinda like the card game, I guess.

[Mister Jack]

I really gotta play Hades at some point. Maybe in the next Steam sale.

[MetalCaveman]

Game of the Year

 

 

What is there to say? DOOM 2016 was awesome, one of my favourites, and then ETERNAL took everything from it and cranked it to 11, more brutal, more demons, more moves with which to brutally kill said demons, MORE, it's unrelenting in ways few games can pull off without being frustrating. It's adrenaline-pumping, metal as hell, and everything that's badass contained in one single package. It's DOOM and it's ETERNAL.

 

Runner-up

 

 

Going back to Boletaria was awesome, the graphics look way better than I could have expected and it runs pretty damn well, specially areas that were hell back in the PS3 days. While I'm not too big a fan of some design decisions, everything else is Demon's Souls, and that's all I need.

 

Most Potential

 

 

Yes it has some issues, mostly in terms of difficulty, and feels lacking in content, but the core gameplay is still pretty fun, and I would really like to see where they take this series, should they decide to continue with it.

[Mal]

I actually returned Doom Eternal. It just wasn't clicking especially how hard the first game clicked. I'll probably try it again in the future but I'll keep my money for now. Anyhow, I played/finished like two 2020 games. Of the two, it has to be

 

I really cannot talk much about this game other than: Do not sleep on this! 

[TheMightyEthan]

Game of the Year

 

 

Ghost of Tsushima - This game took what is essentially the Assassin's Creed formula and did it better than Ubisoft ever has. Combat feels flowing and wonderful (the stances were genius), the world has a lot to do without feeling crowded, exploration is fun, the stealth is satisfying. Every part just comes perfectly together. The change to an Eastern setting was welcome as well. No game this year came close to sucking me in the way Ghost did.

 

Runner-Up

 

 

Spider-Man: Miles Morales - This was an excellent follow-up to Spider-Man 2018, and I think it actually benefited from its smaller scope. Spider-Man 2018 was great, but it kind of over-stayed its welcome a little bit, especially with the side content. MM, on the other hand, was just right. I was ready for it to end when it did, it wasn't too short but it also didn't drag. There are other ways it benefits from its smaller scope: the reduction in gadgets means you use the ones you do have more, fewer side activities means it's not overwhelming (similar to Ghost in this regard). Basically it just was a more focused experience than 2018, and was better for it.

 

Honorable Mentions

 

 

Ghostrunner - This game kind of came out of left field for me, but it was great. It's basically Mirror's Edge and Super Meat Boy had a baby that grew up to be super into cyberpunk. It's glorious.

 

 

Astro's Playroom - This is another that kind of came out of nowhere. I'd heard about it, and that it was a cool showcase of the DualSense (which it is), but where I was expecting a tech demo I actually got a pretty great platformer. It was too short, because at its heart it is really a tech demo, but I hope the positive reception leads to them making a bigger, fuller game.

[deanb]

Of the games I've played from this year Ghost of Tsushima definitely ranks up there. Wasn't really huge on my radar until like a few weeks before release. I remember there was a particular gameplay trailer/walkthrough they put out that just totally sold me on it.

 

Honourable mention

It came out this year.

 

 

I'm surprised none of you have put Animal Crossing - that was major big at the start of the year.

[Mister Jack]

If I was naming the Quarantine Game of the Year I would definitely pick Animal Crossing for that. 

[TheMightyEthan]

If I was naming the game that most exemplified gaming this year I would pick Animal Crossing, but as far as how good a game it was I would just rank it as okay.

 

@Mal I don't really understand what 13 Sentinels is, but the art caught my eye. What is it and why is it great?

[Baconrath]

I haven't got too far into Yakuza but on account of this being so fucking relaxing:

 

 

cool bird facts/10

[Mal]

4 hours ago, TheMightyEthan said:

 

@Mal I don't really understand what 13 Sentinels is, but the art caught my eye. What is it and why is it great?

It's a visual novel with a somewhat turn-based RTS gameplay element. The story sucks/string you in with a cast of great characters. There's lot to take in but the game has a very nice reference section and the ability to replay elements of the story if you so desire. While the RTS portions are not that hard, it works with the story so well, especially towards the end when the story and characters' motivations becomes crystal clear. Just plain satisfying final bit.

 

Anyhow, now that I think about it...

Very honorable mention

Fantastic combat, exploration, art direction and music. The unknown BotW clone did its down thing and did it well. Only things are that this game will never be complete plus balancing is chained down by gacha. If the devs at MHY ever go on to do their own things, they are capable to make amazing games.

Edited December 17, 2020 by Mal

[deanb]

Oh poop. I forgot about Genshin. Yeah that game is pretty great for being free.