Your 10 GOTY?

[SmallHatLogan]

Favourite games of the year:

Oxenfree
The Witness
Firewatch
Superhot
VA-11 HALL-A
And I guess I'll chuck Pokemon Moon on here too.I wouldn't say I love it but It's eaten up a lot of my time so it probably deserves a mention.

Games I plan on playing before the year is out that may or may not make the list:

ICEY
Furi
Starbound
Darkest Dungeon

Dishonourable mentions:

Salt and Sanctuary
Hyper Light Drifter
Odin Sphere Leifthrasir

These are games that I thought I would absolutely love but ended up not really hooking me. I do plan on giving them all another go at some stage though.

 

[McElroy]

Games of the Year 2016: I Guess

- Overwatch (only 2016 game I've bought)
- Overwatch for the Poor (no interest in playing it now)
- Tekken 7: Fated Retribution (played it for a dozen matches at an Expo, home release is in "Early 2017")

Honorable Mention: Slither.io
2nd Honorable Mention: N++ which I haven't played, but the original N is one of my fondest memories from the Golden Era of Flash Games, and so N++ absolutely must get a decent discount once the next Steam sale hits (yep, I'm cheap, sue me will ya).

 

[Hawki]

- Overwatch for the Poor (no interest in playing it now)

Paladins?

 

[stroopwafel]

1. Dark Souls 3
This game really played like a 'Super Mario World' of the Dark Souls franchise for me, capturing all the best moments in a kind of 'best of' collection. Smoother, faster, prettier and with much higher production values than the previous games(Bloodborne excluded). The non-descript style of storytelling started to suffer from diminishing returns and the separate zones(while being much more dense and complex in themselves) weren't connected to one another in the same inventive ways as Dark Souls 1 but otherwise this game was really just a perfection of the formula.

2. Dishonored 2
This sequel improved upon the original in every way. Varied gameplay with lots of skills and upgrade abilities that give you more than ample opportunity to defend yourself when stealth doesn't work out. The art direction is genuinely amazing and enhances the already amazing sense of place. Dunwall felt incredibly authentic and oppressive and the more mediterranean Karnaca recreates that same feel but with some of the most impressive level design I've seen. So much care and attention has been put into every detail.

3. Final Fantasy 15
I'm one of the three people who enjoyed FF13 so I guess I was never really that disappointed by the franchise but FF15 really might be my favorite FF next to FF7. Great characters, gameplay, setting and even what is considered the weakest part by many, the story, I really enjoyed. The gameplay is neither turn-based nor action but finds that sweet spot somewhere in the middle. The setting is open-world but still guided along linear progression becoming more focused as you progress into the later game. You might not think on the outset as they look like a band of trendy pretty boys on a road trip but they are some of the most likeable characters I've seen with some genuinely funny and endearing banter as you travel. Both in character and spirit these characters represent an evolution of standard JRPG archetypes. And that is basically the game in a nutshell: an evolution of the genre that welcomes the new while still embracing the old.

4. Salt & Sanctuary
One of the most fun 2D action-RPGs I've played that took more than a little inspiration from Dark Souls. Really impressed how only a few people were able to translate this entire concept into a 2D game that somehow not only pays homage to Dark Souls but actually plays like a 2D version of this game. The backgrounds are incredibly pretty while character art is more quirky making the game more light-hearted than it's source of inspiration but also giving it it's own identity. This is probably my most favorite indie game to date.

5. Hitman
This game is really a return to form. Hitman Absolution was a more streamlined stealth-shooter but Hitman 2016 is classic Hitman with some of the best setpieces and missions in the franchise and with obviously much higher production values. People lamented the episodic approach but I think it actually stimulated the replayability of the missions which can be completed in a multitude of ways.

6. Titanfall 2
Buttery smooth gameplay with probably the most responsive controls I've ever experienced in an FPS. The mech battles add a nice layer of variety and the mech in the campaign even have a nice little personality to boot. Speaking of which the campaign in Titanfall 2 is great. Titanfall is amazingly fun to play even if visual fidelity is sacrificed a bit in favor of raw performance(which I can understand considering this is also largely a competitive game).

7. The Last Guardian
Endearing tale of a boy and his Trico in typical Ueda fashion. Sure the camera and controls weren't that great but there is no denying the AI of Trico is impressive making it feel like you're genuinely guiding the beast along the game's challenges.

8. Deus Ex Mankind Divided
Gameplay and story were fun but it stayed too close to Human Revolution right down to the yanky animations in cutscenes. The story in MD was fun and even interesting at times but became too monotonous and lacked the diversity of themes in HR. The fallout of the 'aug incident' was definitely an interesting theme to explore but it didn't really have the same level of creative ideas as the previous game and didn't stimulate my imagination as such making it all a bit bland. Even the levels outside the main hub area(which was very good meshing 'old' and 'new' Prague in interesting ways) weren't that great. Mankind Divided just felt too much like a step back from a game that is already 5 years old. And then with a complete non-ending as well. Still good but not as good as I'd hoped.

 

[McElroy]

- Overwatch for the Poor (no interest in playing it now)

Paladins?

Oh dear, he's on to me!

 

[distortedreality]

I've bought quite a few games this year, but haven't really had the time to play many, so I'll just put down what I've played in no real order.

Dishonored 2 - a great game. Have only done a single play though so far (as Emily), yet I pretty much agree with others above who said that it improves on the original in pretty much every way. The only caveat is that the story felt less immediate and important to me - I enjoyed traipsing around disposing of targets, but it somehow felt less tied together to me than the first game.

Deus Ex : Mankind Divided - another enjoyable game that seemed to fall a little flat in the story department compared to its predecessor. I thoroughly enjoyed HR, but MD felt somewhat lacking to me somehow. It could be because I took ages to play my way through it due to meatspace commitments, but overall I still enjoyed it.

This Is The Police - my current favourite game to play in short bursts when I have some spare time. Very simple gameplay, satisfying story, cool soundtrack. Well worth checks Ng out if you liked Papers, Please.

Tharsis - incredibly addictive & incredibly frustrating at the same time.

I can't think of any other games that I spend any significant time in this year - my backlog is getting a little ridiculous at this point!

 

[Chimpzy_v1legacy]

1 - SUPERHOT
2 - Metroid 2 AM2R
3 - DEEEEEEEEWWWWWWMMMMM
4-10 - Pending...

Haven't bought any other 2016 games this year beside those two, except Mankind Divided, but I haven't gotten around to playing that yet.

 

[Bilious Green_v1legacy]

I started playing WoW again this year, so I don't think I actually played 10 games over the course of the year. What did I play? Umm...

Uncharted 4 - It was alright. Looked great, but the gameplay is painfully simplistic, and the story was just okay. It's no TLoU, that's for sure.

Street Fighter 5 - I have played Street Fighter since 1991, but this was the year that I realised I'm just too old for this sort of thing.

Overwatch - Ditto, I shouldn't have allowed my WoW friends to convince to get this. It's a good game, but competitive multiplayer is just not my thing. I still play casual with them sometimes, but I just play Junkrat and spam grenades all over the place.

WoW Legion - What I have spent most of my gaming time on. It's grindier than ever, the class design sucks, but the dungeons and raids are pretty good, and all my gaming friends play it, so I persist. I can't honestly say I'm having that much fun however.

Honestly, I can't think of anything that I really liked this year. There may have been one or two others, but I can't recall.

 

[Xprimentyl]

1. INSIDE
2-10. n/a

 

[Potjeslatinist]

I'm a bit of a late adopter. 2016 must be a record year for me, never have I played so many games in the year they were released. Ten though, that's a bit much. Anyway, here they are, and I liked most of 'em.

Uncharted 4. I've never played the other 3. My roommate bought a PS4, and got, among a bunch of other games that don't interest me, this one. Tried it out, couldn't put it down. A rousing adventure. Great voice acting, great action, great set pieces, all just great. Not the most replayable of games, but while it lasts, it's a blast.

Dark Souls 3. What can I say about this one that hasn't yet been said? Highly addictive. Love the action. A bit more linear than DS1, but this honestly hasn't bothered me. The main thing for me is the atmosphere though. There is just something very immersive about these games. The world, the music,...

Darkest Dungeon. I'm actually playing it now, and it's kicking my ass, but that's okay. My God, that narrator, I will never tire of him. Apparantly it also gets incredibly grindy towards the end, but I've never really minded grinding, as long as the action is good, and up until now, it really is. Loving it.

Can I count The Witcher 3: Blood & Wine? It's not a full game, but it sure as hell is as big as one. TW3 is my absolute favourite game of last year, hell, it's my favourite game of several last years, and the sheer content this expansion has brought is mindboggling. New gigantic area full of new quests, new enemies, new Gwent deck (fuck yeah!), new gear, great branching storyline, and an end fight that's probably the hardest fight in the whole series, as well as epic, multi-stage badassery (God I'm starting to sound like B-Cell). CDPR has not disappointed me in the slightest. They're the best. Them and Zubrovka and the girls is why I love the Polish.

And then I've played but enjoyed rather less:

Tharsis. It's just too random and too hellbent on hating me. I know it's kind of the point of this game but I just can't get a single teenie weenie break in it. I get the premise, hell it's why I bought it, but after ten hours of play I'm just not having any fun. Some reviewer called it "the first draft for a board game", and I'm inclined to agree. It feels like it should've spent more time on the designing table. Should a Tharsis 2 ever be announced, I'll be sure to check it out though.

Stellaris. I'm only mentioning it cause it's been released in 2016 and I bought it and played some of it. But I can't award it any prizes because I haven't played nearly enough of it. I'm kinda holding out, I guess, because apparently it still needs a lot of updates.

 

[LetalisK]

1- WoW: Legion

2- NBA 2k17 (Fuck this game from a technical and moral standpoint, gameplay is otherwise fine).

3- Another attempt at playing Witcher

4- Attempt at playing This War of Mine

5- Uh...can't think of anything else. I'm sure there is something else I attempted. I ain't got time for games anymore, okay? And even when I do, the days I can play are so spread out that I have no clue what's going on when I play the game again. Isn't conducive for anything with a story heavier than a newborn.

 

[LookingGlass]

I haven't played a ton of games from 2016, but let's see...

1. Dark Souls 3
2. Nioh alpha/beta. Yes this isn't a full, released game. Even so, I spent more time with it than most games and I would have gladly paid full price for it. It's that good.
3. Salt and Sanctuary
4. Hyper Light Drifter
5. Deus Ex: Mankind Divided
6. Rise of the Tomb Raider (came out on PC this year)
7. Firewatch
8. The Banner Saga 2
9. Oxenfree
10. Uncharted 4


Haven't yet played but has a good chance of making the list: Dishonored 2, Tyranny, Shadow Tactics: Blades of the Shogun (loved the demo), Total War: Warhammer, The Last Guardian, Stardew Valley, Titanfall 2.

 

[Zykon TheLich_v1legacy]

I've played 3 games released in 2016

1. Battlefleet Gothic. My personal GOTY. It might not have made it as an online multiplayer game, but I find the base gameplay really satisfying. And it's Battlefleet Gothic.

2. Armageddon the Orks. More of an expansion than a new game, but it's a standalone, so I suppose it counts. It's ok. Not really digging the way you're held to a number of units rather than an overall points value, so doing the ork horde Waaagh thing doesn't work too well. That was a complaint with the first as well, but seeing as I mostly went for IG tanks and artillery it wasn't as glaring a problem. At least it was only half the price of the first.

3.Total Warhammer. I am unbelievably terrible at the realtime battles in Total War games and tend to win on the strategy side of things and use autoresolve with crushing weight of superior troops and numbers. Unfortunately for me, this iteration has stripped back the strategy and relies much more on the battlefield victory. You can autoresolve to victory but the strategic element feels too light to make it worth the full price. Refunded just before the 2 hour mark. Might buy it again when it drops below ?20.

 

[pookie101]

my favourite games ive played this year would be:
life is strange
fallout 4
hearts of iron 4
farm simulator 17

 

[theevilgenius60]

No real order here, but my favorites for this year were:
Shin Megami Tensei 4 Final. Great megaten game. Persona feel in mainline(unless you went Anarchy route, you beautiful edgelord, you)? Ok, I guess so.
Doom. Great game, super fast, beautiful. Plus, hearing e1m1 any time I found an action figure was a blast from the past
Tokyo Mirage Sessions #FE. Persona clone from Atlus, seems all their ip's are turning into Persona. No Shoji Meguro, but a great ost to a fun rpg anyway.
Uncharted 4. Not my genre, but a damn fun platformer/shooter. Also(obviously) beautiful
Bravely Second. More Bravely Default. No Revo this time, but a damn good game. No more looping nonsense from the first
Dishonored 2. Good lord, it's hard to go back to playing as Corvo after having Domino at my disposal. Nothing Corvo has matches up
Final Fantasy XV. Beautiful game of a bachelor party road trip. Until it wasn't that anymore. Ardyn's appearance couldn't scream out his role any harder if he had a blinking neon sign
Deus Ex: Mankind Divided. Not the best Deus Ex game, but maybe the most fun
Ace Attourney: Spirit of Justice. Just plain fun, like all AA games. Plus seeing what Apollo got roped into at the end has me curious about the next one
Zero Time Dilemma: a list without this one would be simply... unfair
Steins;Gate 0. I love Steins;Gate, fight me

 

[stroopwafel]

Hmmm..got short on time last time but these are the last of my top 10:

9. Doom
The demo didn't grab me as much and only recently played through the game and..wow it's really awesome. The combat is super satisfying, fast and explosive and the game builds momentum in a way that(atleast for me) never felt repetitive. Like it throws baddies your way and when you master those it throws new baddies your way and the action kind of escalates from that. There is a visceral 'oomph' to the mechanics that, combined with the self-aware story and setting, really makes you feel like this larger than life badass marine that is tearing Hell itself a new asshole. This game is a genuine delight to play it's so much fun. If I played it a few days earlier it would have definitely been in in my top 3 it's so good.

10. Mafia 3
Really great characters that reminded me of the better crime fiction in movies and a good story that tied these characters together. Driving in this open world was superb and the shooting and general fluidity of the animations was also really good. However enemies also had really dumb AI, the game suffered from repetition and had a completely broken lighting system(like day turning into night like a blanket is drawn in the sky). Some of the setpiece missions were still awesome and among the best in open world games and the setting was also truly awesome; set in the deep south '60's and being as authentic as possible from the way the environment is depicted to the commentaries on the radio to the insidious forms of subtle(and not so subtle) racism and the kick-ass soundtrack.

All in all 2016 has been a pretty good year for games in my opinion. And 2017 is also off to a good start with Resident Evil 7 next month and Horizon Zero Dawn, Nioh and Sniper Elite 4 following shortly after. Though after Dark Souls 2, Bloodborne and Dark Souls 3 I have gotten used to playing a new From Software game each spring but this year that doesn't seem to be the case. Though there is still the second DLC for DkS3 which hopefully will be good.

 

[JUMBO PALACE]

In no particular order

Doom
Titanfall 2
Gears 4
Dishonored 2 (thought I haven't finished. Waiting for my step-up 1080 to arrive)
Blood and Wine
Total War Warhammer
Forza Horizon 3

Not a bad year all in all. At least for games...

 

[notyouraveragejoe]

So I'm not going to abide by the rules that well because I haven't played that many games actually released in 2016. Instead I'm going to list my top ten GOTY that I've played this year (MWAHAHAHAHA, LOOP HOLES! Which I hope no one calls me out on, be cool guys, be cool). Also these are in no particular order.

Also, I played Heroes of the Storm first last year but its my GOTY 2015, 16 and probably 17 too.

1. Oxenfree - I've just finished it and if I'm honest I'm still speechless. Amazing story. Sure there's not much gameplay to this game but its an experience I'm not going to easily forget.

2. Sunless Sea - I'll be honest I got bored of it eventually but the 30 or so hours I spent with it I was fully immersed in the dark and despairing world. I couldn't wait to see how far I could push one more trading run or what else there was to explore in the darkness.

3. Banner Saga - Okay, I'll admit it I played this 2 days before 2016 but only finished it into 2016 so I'm including it. Great story, great art (which is helped by awesome animation) and turn-based gameplay I adore. I can't wait to be able to afford the sequel (hopefully it'll be on sale this winter)

4. Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess HD - I'm not going into much detail here, I just love LoZ and this game was great. I had it on the Wii but a friend borrowed it then promptly moved away (I have never forgiven him) so it was great to finally be able to complete it. However, I will say that there was one particularly unlikeable dungeon in it which was set in the sky and was just all around frustrating.

5. Hand of Fate - Jeez some of the RNG during the runs can be evil but overall the game is fun enough and immersive enough to overcome any frustrations. Really enjoyed it, went off the boil a bit and then got back into it for a final push. Same feelings about the sequel as Banner Saga (see 3).

6. Chroma Squad - I love me some Power Rangers inspired turn based RPGs. Lots of fun to play through with only minor frustrations (mostly about bugs and the inability to skip cut scenes). Very colourful and let me build my own power rangers team (GO RAINBOW WARRIORS X).

7. Never Alone - A great co-operative game which I had so much fun playing through with my partner. Great art style, easy to pick up and play and doesn't over extend its welcome. Easy to recommend

8. Trine 3 - See above but add in a vibrant and colourful world, interesting characters and a light-hearted fun romp.

9. Titan Souls - A good game which was equal parts frustrating and thrilling. A lot of fun, great looking and a perfect atmosphere to have played during Extra Life at 4 in the morning.

10. Mark of the Ninja - A bloody good stealth game which really made you feel like a ninja. Lots of fun and really challenging which made acing the levels a really satisfying experience.

 

[BrawlMan]

I don't have a top 10, but Doom (2016) is my Game of the Year.

 

[Windcaler]

I didnt buy a lot of games this year but this is my list. Keep in mind that Im primarily a PC gamer but the 3ds also had a pretty good year for me

1. Fire emblem fates: Fates got here by not not just being good but outright amazing when compared to its predecessor which was also on my list last year. It had 3 very well written stories instead of just 1 that had 3 different starts. Most of the characters are well written and depending on what story you go with may have multiple archs, strategy battles are meaningful and require precision and thought, and when you screw up (if you choose) a character can and probably will die permanently adding to the weight of your decisions. The online features were awesome and lastly they made good use of most of the fire emblem amiibos. If you like strategy games at all but also want to see character developement then give this game a try

2. Warframe - The war within update: Even though warframe was released 3 years ago I dont have a ninth game and I cant honestly put it any lower on the list. The war within had a wait that was almost a year long, the wait was not worth it. However what we got was a deeply compelling quest that made me ask as many questions as it answered. By themselves the cinematic quests that Digital extremes have released could be a game in and of themselves but when combined with the fast paced gameplay about cybernetic space ninja's it becomes something close to a masterpiece. If you havnt played warframe in awhile this is the update to come back for

3. Oxenfree: This was a surprise. When I first heard the name my immediate thought was "that game is probably stupid" but as I happened to come across a lets play of Jessie Cox playing the game and much like he did on firewatch Cox drew me into this game. I had only watched an episode or two before I bought the game myself and have played through it 3 or 4 times now and Im still discovering things or putting clues together. Oxenfree is the surprise hit of the year for me

4. Monster Hunter Generations: Take the age old monster hunter formula and add in new mechanics to further vary playstyles, new awesome monsters, balance weapons, and pretty much improve the experience in every way except out of combat UI which still feels like it was made in the 90s and you get this newest incarnation of monster hunter. Its not just another monster hunter game like 4 was, its an evolution of the monster hunter series but as much as I love this game at this point if you want to get it just wait for double cross or whatever theyre calling it

5. Darkest Dungeon: It officially came out of early access way back in January and its just a really good dungeon crawling game but it also explores the idea of what mentally happens to these characters as they traverse a death trap

6. Stardew Valley: A spiritual successor to harvest moon and you can feel the love put into this game. Its clearly made by someone who loves what the original harvest moon games where and they've improved on the formula to make a fantastic game.

7. Banner saga 2: Take a widely loved game and improve the formula in every way while writing another excellent chapter in the worlds story and you deserve to be on everyones list. Banner saga 2 was everything I wanted out of a sequel and a little more and its one I recommend everyone play.

8. Firewatch: I dont know how to talk about firewatch except to call it a story driven walking simulator. Originally I thought the game wasnt for me but after watching a lets play of it done by Jessie Cox I got sucked into the story. Its really just a story about people running away from their problems but its compelling and thought provoking. Firewatch IMO is an unquestionable work of art and deserves a look by everyone

9. Disgaea (PC): This was rereleased waaaaaay back in Feburary iirc but this was one of my favorite games when it first came out. Having it rereleased just made my year and its a game I play off and on quite a bit.

10. Pokemon Moon: So I havnt played a pokemon game since Red and Blue but friends convinced me to give this one a go shortly after it was released and its pretty good. I had heard previous games had just gone with the same fight the gym lords, the elite 4, and be the pokemon champion but I like how this one changed up the formula while keeping true to Hawaian and philipeno themes throughout the game. It really does feel like a different region from the Kanto one I remember and I was rather happy with the story, characters, and region.