If there was ever a time to quit playing video games and grow up and do something with your life and I’m disappointed in you son, 2012 just couldn’t be it. It really couldn’t. The coming year’s release calendar reads like a VIF (very important franchises) list. Grand Theft Auto V, BioShock Infinite and Diablo III are just a few of the bombs set to drop in the next 365 days, all backed by teams undoubtedly at the top of their respective games and all fueled by years of anticipation. At the same time, I look back on 2011 with no small amount of awe. It was in many ways a monumental year for the medium, and in a rare flash of passion, I felt compelled to pay my respects to some of its finest titles. 10 to be exact.
10. Saints Row: The Third
Saints Row: The Third represents a series finding an identity for the first time. And that’s a big deal for Volition, a developer with some great ideas that almost always falls prey to also-ran execution. The pitch of the franchise evolved from high res Grand Theft Auto with an exaggerated art style for its original entry to over-the-top cartoon mayhem for its sequel. The Third manages to be something completely unique. It’s a literal gangster fantasy, free from the shackles of consequence and free from the laws of gravity. It’s concentrated chaos, but more than that, it’s completely mechanically sound while doing so. It’s funny, it’s visually stunning, and it’s my biggest surprise of the year.
9. Dark Souls
Dark Souls is the best game I’ve ever hated. It’s a vicious exercise in technical shortcomings and unforgiving design, and it demands that you not only subscribe to but submerge yourself completely in its mystery. Mystery of its world, its mechanics, and of the way it communicates information — or doesn’t. I love it and respect it for those reasons, and that’s also why I had to say goodbye after about 10 hours. It’s not for me. But if it’s for you, I totally understand. Truly revolutionary, and the very definition of a game built for the online generation.
8. Shadows of the Damned
Shadows of the Damned is without a doubt the most overlooked gem of the year. It’s a game that’s resolute in its vision, and it never lets you forget it. Its soundtrack is unnerving and dense, and shades of Resident Evil 4 in its design pull you through its insane narrative in ways you won’t expect. It’s oozing with the sort of style that’s not just window dressing, but integral to the experience. I loved Shadows of the Damned.
7. The Binding of Isaac
Tonally gruesome, musically inventive and deceptively simple. It’s Dark Souls level punishment meets Geometry Wars ‘one more time’ nicotine. One of the best indie efforts of the year.
6. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3
Say what you will about the mainstreaming and ludicrous success of the Call of Duty franchise, but if there’s one thing Infinity Ward or Treyarch haven’t done with one of its entries, it’s phone it in. Modern Warfare 3‘s campaign manages to be similarly bombastic, but in new and exciting ways. Witnessing crumbling vistas and navigating elaborate set pieces feels fresher than ever, and combat scenarios rarely feel stale. That’s a pretty huge feat for a now annualized series. The multiplayer is great if you hate yourself and want to engage with hating other people hating themselves.
5. Dead Space 2
Dead Space 2 has, I’m sure, at one point made James Cameron cry tears of proud. It’s the medium’s most sophisticated realization of science fiction horror to date. It’s excruciatingly tense. It’s a marvel of art and user interface design, and achieves a level of cinematic panache that raises the bar for survival horror going forward. It’s not perfect, but it’s so god damned impressive that I already forgot why.
4. Battlefield 3
Battlefield 3 is the game that fans of the series have been dreaming of since 2005′s Battlefield 2. Its announcement was a surprise in a lot of ways. A PC focused entry with an entirely new engine was far from a sure bet after half a decade of spin-offs and console efforts. And DICE delivered. It’s a true sequel, showcasing incredible technical ingenuity and the finest progression and map design the genre has to offer. One day I’ll find the time it deserves to really sink my teeth in.
3. The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings
As I was playing The Witcher 2, I kept thinking to myself that it might very well be the next big step for RPGs. It’s expansive, but focused. Gorgeous, but restrained. Punishing (at least in its original form), but fair — with a combat system that expects more from the player. Its presentation is best in class, and it draws from and expands upon a fiction that is unafraid to challenge the conventions of fantasy. It’s dark, it’s truly a mature experience, and it’s unlike any other role playing game.
2. Portal 2
The original Portal, for people who played it fresh and without any preconceived notions, was one of those once-in-a-generation experiences. Its combination of completely new game design and an out-of-left-field narrative was intoxicating. With Portal 2, Valve manages to extrapolate those ideas into a universe as big as it seemingly should have been all along. Darkly comic and kinetic in its movement and pacing, Portal 2 stands as an equally brilliant opposite of Half-Life 2. Its glitchy, synthy, multi-textured ambient soundtrack is a standout, as is Stephen Merchant’s performance as Wheatley. It’s also one of the funniest scripts of 2011, video game or otherwise. Literally everyone should play Portal 2.
1. The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
The big one. It’s a cliche at this point, I know. But there’s a reason for it. It’s the most immersive, technically stunning open world ever created. Its systems are the most streamlined and intelligently implemented. Its breadth of interesting, quality content is unprecedented. What this means is that nothing stands in the way of experiencing the most compelling role playing experience of the generation. I had this thought after about an hour of starting it up, and I’ll stand by it now: Skyrim is the pinnacle of an entire genre.
