Stardew Valley is the rare kind of imitation that breaks free of the boundaries of its inspiration, becoming more than just a clone but an experience that thrives independent of its origins.
What makes Darkest Dungeon a fascinating experience isn't the rich character progression and overarching strategy, but the way it manages to make each character feel like a living, breathing human before asking you how much you'll ruin them to increase your bottom line. There's pockets of subtext that I continually filled with my own moral struggle. Spaces left ingeniously blank where, when I allow myself to reflect on my actions, I realize that the greatest evil isn't waiting at the end of a dimly lit crypt. It is sitting right in this chair, typing these words.
Blade and Soul's excellent PvP is buried beneath a mountain of tired MMO tropes that are sometimes frustrating and rarely innovative.
I cannot help but smile every time I think about Dragon's Dogma.
Helldivers is hands down one of my favorite multiplayer experiences of this year.
Star Wars Battlefront fails to match the ambitions of its visuals with equally as impressive gunplay, leaving it in the awkward position of looking amazing while also being rather boring.
With boring combat and a limited custom campaign toolset, Sword Coast Legends fails to capture the spirit of a true pen and paper role-playing experience.
Light on content but heavy on freedom, Rebel Galaxy is a charming romp through a frontier brimming with choices to make.
Though A Fistful of Gun has potential, the empty multiplayer servers and repetitive campaign puts a bullet in any momentum it has going.
While the sweetest fruits will be saved for those with an appreciation of philosophy and history, the elation of solving a puzzle that you spent an evening trying to crack is a reward that anyone can enjoy.
It captures the spirit of Warhammer's lighter side and translates it beautifully onto the screen.
The Taken King might not make up for that first year and all of its shambling about, but it puts Destiny on a path that, as someone who spent all of last year whining endlessly to anyone who would listen, I can finally shut my mouth and just enjoy the game. If that isn't an incredible feat, I don't know what is.
Legions of Steel has a solid foundation that is spoiled by a lack of ambition and poor design.
OlliOlli2 has extracted the very essence of skateboarding and poured it into two-dimensional bliss.
Technical faults aside, Planetside 2 remains a wonderful online experience capable of absorbing dozens upon dozens of hours. That endless tugofwar might seem exhausting from the outside, but once you're in the thick of battle it is as thrilling and engaging as few games ever manage to be.