|
Honorable Mention: 11th place on my list would have gone to Anbennar, the mod for Europa Universalis IV that is a bunch better than EU4 is now. It's a big fantasy world with all kinds of stuff going on and you can play as things ranging from elves who survived the catastrophic magical apocalypse of their homeland who are eager to go back and become a bunch of racial supremacists there, to the dwarven diaspora who were driven out of their ancestral homeland (The Dwarovar, an underground realm beneath the massive mountain range called the Serpentspine) and who have like 15 different possible nations to play as, a piratical gnoll thalassocracy, the Raj But Tigers, a survivor of an attempted genocide against some surviving elves in their homeland who becomes what can only be described as The Lich Queen, and much more besides. It's fun as hell and some of the best Grand Strategy going.
|
#
?
Jan 2, 2024 05:14
|
|
|
|
| # ? May 24, 2024 11:39 |
|
|
morallyobjected posted:The real hero of this thread (besides VG) is Beanpole for replying to as many people's lists as he does. I do read at least parts of every single person's list, but BP puts in the work of making sure many people's get acknowledged publicly, so props to him! Every day I go back and read two pages of lists, I so I should be done around the time VG posts the final list. It's like my advent calendar for the coming of GOTY
|
|
#
?
Jan 2, 2024 05:25
|
|
|
Oh yeah my specialist music list: Top 9 Rhythm Games I heard MEGALOVANIA in this year #9 Dance Dance Revolution A3 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v9rRPtd2lV8 #8 Groove Coaster https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mUgihoDa5bY #7 Taiko no Tatsujin https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f7Yimxud4UI #6 pop'n music https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ALvhaGRXVjY #5 CHUNITHM https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=emkMCAbFcy8 #4 Sound Voltex Exceed Gear https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q36Dzhqra0I #3 Synth Riders https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LG1Z3JlXHpY #2 GITADORA Drummania https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZHKI8q-EOKA #1 DANCERUSH STARDOM https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ns4k__rjydY
|
|
#
?
Jan 2, 2024 05:48
|
|
|
lmao that's great sans transcends
|
|
#
?
Jan 2, 2024 05:49
|
|
|
BeanpolePeckerwood posted:I noticed that, too, and apparently a lot of other people did. But this one I found back in April is still hiding in plain sight I'm likely never going to play Live a Live, but this song fucks and I may need to pick up the OST. HopperUK posted:I loved this song, from Bramble. And this is just beautiful! Bugblatter posted:Best Fan Sequel of the Year: Thief: The Black Parade. I think that's T2X: Shadows of the Metal Age (which was great), so this is the lost 4th game! And I am incredibly pumped to play it, it might be what I play next after Eiyuden Rising.
|
|
#
?
Jan 2, 2024 06:05
|
|
|
coiol posted:This is really cool! I was thinking about scenarios where a game would have a substantial rise in the next year, since I’m usually at least a year late on new releases (for example, I still haven’t played Disco Elysium, Elden Ring, or Baldur’s Gate 3). Slay the Spire and Hades were in Early Access in 2018 and 2019 respectively and released in 2019 and 2020. You also often see a game go down and then back up when it gets an expansion or definitive edition. There's also some goofy things like Disco Elysium going from 8th to 4th from 2020->2021 despite getting a lower percentage of the points due to an unusually non-competitive top 10
|
|
#
?
Jan 2, 2024 06:08
|
|
|
Hades was early access in 2019, final release for switch and PC in 2020, and all other consoles in 2021. Every year it got a big new audience
|
|
#
?
Jan 2, 2024 06:25
|
|
|
ToxicFrog posted:I'm likely never going to play Live a Live, but this song fucks and I may need to pick up the OST. T2X was great, but The Black Parade has another level of ambition and polish. I really don't think someone who was unfamiliar with the series would be at all suspicious if you had them play it immediately after the first two games and presented it as if it was an official LG entry. You'll love it! Try not to read up too much beforehand. It has some really clever (and much chatted about) moments that will hit better as surprises.
|
|
#
?
Jan 2, 2024 06:55
|
|
|
yeah i read everyone's list too even if i don't reply to everyone. i picked up elsinore (as a shakespeare dork, and a time loop game lover) and producer 2021 too. 2024 i vow to finally play the talky talky games like disco elysium, pentiment, elsinore, etc.
|
|
#
?
Jan 2, 2024 11:11
|
|
|
i am going to play baldurs gate on easy mode uin 2024 and finally marry laezel
|
|
#
?
Jan 2, 2024 11:28
|
|
|
I hope they still do the thing from last year where they post a list of people with "Gaming Soulmates" (who you shared the most things on your list with). That was fun. I actually tried some games on the other guy's list and enjoyed them.
|
|
#
?
Jan 2, 2024 12:08
|
|
|
Neon white top 20 last year? Hell yeah everyone play that. All red medals bitch me 
|
|
#
?
Jan 2, 2024 12:09
|
|
|
I read and enjoyed all the lists  I got Elsinore and wishlisted so many games omg. Also I got my partner Bomb Rush Cyberfunk and the new Robocop game partly based on these posts, he just finished bomb rush and loved it 
|
|
#
?
Jan 2, 2024 12:57
|
|
|
Jezza of OZPOS posted:i am going to play baldurs gate on easy mode uin 2024 and finally marry laezel If you want the maximum Lae'zel wife ending, make sure to roll a githyanki MC!
|
|
#
?
Jan 2, 2024 13:08
|
|
|
Yeah, not the biggest replier here, but I do make sure to go through all the lists. They even got me to add a few more games to the wishlist after that thing I posted (everybody keeps recommending Elsinore, for instance).
|
|
#
?
Jan 2, 2024 13:58
|
|
|
i'm playing astlibra revision thanks to its place on several lists this year, and i gotta say despite being super grindy, it's weirdly compelling. having a great time
|
|
#
?
Jan 2, 2024 14:30
|
|
|
Stuff I didn't get round to in my main list - here's an example of music from each of my GotY entries that stuck in my head. Warning: I know gently caress-all about music. Sonic Superstars - Pinball Carnival Act 2 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sRp8C3eP-Rc Sonic games have good music: it's pretty much accepted that even the blue blur's worst games are usually stacked with banger tracks. Unfortunately, Superstars struggles to have a cohesive sound, probably due to the eighteen credited composers working under sound director Jun Senoue. Sometimes you get celebrated Sonic Mania composer Tee Lopes with a fantastic Sonic CD-esque water theme, sometimes you get Senoue himself with a boss theme that honestly sounds like placeholder music and sometimes you get Yakuza composer Hidenori Shoji going hard as hell with a surprise DnB track. But my pick from this game is Rintaro Soma's track for Pinball Carnival Act 2. Pinball levels have appeared in various guises throughout the 2D Sonic games, but this one has a fun twist of a haunted amusement park, and this electro swing track sets the funky, spooky mood perfectly. I didn't even mind the number of times Mini Boat and I fell off the instakill rollercoasters throughout the stage, as it meant we got to spend more time bopping along to this track. Metal Gear Solid 4 - The Best is Yet to Come https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D4aUcOOaOFw Maybe it's a bit of a cheat using a MGS1 track for MGS4. But its implementation in the game, accompanying Snake's return to the decaying ruins of Shadow Moses Island, is simply breathtaking. I consider myself a Kojima fan, but there are plenty of aspects to his games that make me roll my eyes and call him a hack. Moments like this remind me that he is - or can be - so much more. Dark Souls II - King Vendrick https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a4tXzOSqLIc I'll admit it - a lot of Souls music kind of washes over me. There's absolutely tons of fantastic battle themes in there, but in the moment I'm always too concerned with desperately rolling away and cycling through my items to really listen to them. That's why this track - accompanying the hollowed KIng Vendrick mindlessly shuffling around his throne room - stuck with me. I came in geared up for an epic fight and found a sad, naked man, his mind too far gone to even perceive me as a threat. I stopped, and listened, and asked what I was even doing on my quest. Dark Souls II is a fantastic game. Vagrant Story - Staff Roll https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mOLwWSMenmY Much of Vagrant Story's soundtrack eschews the use of CD audio that had become increasingly commonplace in the PS1 era, and instead uses a series of synth loops that mean the soundtrack can cinematically shift as the player advances through dialogue prompts. The track for the game's prologue, Climax of the Greylands Incident, takes you from briefing, to infiltration, combat, a standoff, a boss battle and conclusion, all seamlessly shifting depending on how quickly the player advances through both gameplay and dialogue. It's an astonishing achievement - but for me it's surpassed by the end credits theme, marking Hitoshi Sakimoto's first use of live instruments in a game track in the form of Masatsugu Shinozaki and his string group. It's a phenomenal and powerful arrangement that moves from melancholic to triumphant and the strings imbue it with an amazing energy. Rollerdrome - Zabriskie Point https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aJqasW1n2K0 Ultraviolent 80s-themed murderfests is a surprisingly crowded lane for video games, so it's all the more impressive that Electric Dragon was able to produce a soundtrack that so clearly represents the specific style of Rollerdrome's intense score-chasing. Zabriskie Point showcases Carpenter-esque synths that soon get paired with a chaotic, driving beat that leaves no room for thinking about what you're doing or why. Act. React. Kill. Score. Win. Hi-Fi Rush - Wolfgang's 5th Symphony https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fK9Ny6wZi-E Smarter posters than me have waxed lyrical about the fantastic mix of licensed and original tracks in Hi-Fi Rush, but my personal highlight was the use of Wolfgang Gartner's 2009 track Wolfgang's 5th Symphony. As the name suggests it samples Beethoven's 5th Symphony, and it's a perfect match for the boss fight against robo-werewolf accountant Roquefort - a cultured veneer that can't hold back a monster of an EDM beat. There's various moments in the track that are smartly adapted for the boss, my favourite being Roquefort's gigantic wolf form swimming menacingly through a Scrooge McDuck money vault accompanied by bass strings that evoke Jaws. Hi-Fi Rush is a game that unites music and gameplay and this boss fight was where I felt that most keenly. Neon White - Thousand Pound Butterfly https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Z4B0v4qo5Q All of Machine Girl's stage themes for Neon White go hard as hell, but the track accompanying the game's final mission is a fitting audio representation for the impossibly fast, unstoppable force of destruction you've become. Maybe it's just the amount I listened to it trying to complete the absolute beast of a final stage but this song is burned into my brain. Dark Souls - Firelink Shrine https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M6GK8HhjQQE There's no such thing as "home" in Dark Souls. At best, you find a brief place of respite where you can gather yourself before the next challenge. But the promise of somewhere where you'll be safe, even if only briefly, provides an overwhelming sense of relief. That's why even though Firelink's theme is desperately melancholic, it's also strangely comforting to me. Riding the elevator down from the Undead Parish and being greeted by those strings was an unexpected moment of happiness in a game that's almost ceaselessly grim. Dark Souls III - Slave Knight Gael https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fqQ1Xum8uNI Dark Souls III's "real" final boss has a theme to match, escalating in bombast through the battle's three stages and working in the epic title theme. This fight was the culmination of a trilogy of incredible games, and the music did not let it down. I said earlier that a lot of Souls music washes over me, but this song was impossible to ignore. Sekiro - Guardian Ape https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YVa_4Cf-hp0 This was a tough choice, but in the end Ape's theme won it for me. The first phase leans heavily on brass and percussion, emphasising the sheer size and power of the beast, with strings backing and dropping in occasional panicky stings. These strings take over in the chaotic second phase, coalescing into an eerie violin motif. For me this is a perfect audio representation of the fight: first awe, then terror.
|
|
#
?
Jan 2, 2024 14:52
|
|
|
I know this thread is about positive vibes, but I got to call out Forza Motorsport as my biggest disappointment of the year. Every decision they made about the structure and gameplay serves to make that game duller and less fun to play. Races are so long and the tracks all look the same. I was hoping for a less silly Horizon with some more realism, but they made a simulator that's not simmy enough for simulator-weirdos. So I struggle to see who it's for . Gran Turismo is now the semi-realistic racing game with the most personality and fun and that's all kinds of weird.
|
|
#
?
Jan 2, 2024 15:48
|
|
|
bone emulator posted:I know this thread is about positive vibes, but I got to call out Forza Motorsport as my biggest disappointment of the year. Heard this a lot. I think the traditional realistic "driving simulator" of the console market is in a tough spot. The big simulator stuff is now enough of a thing that if you want that, it's there, and the arcade racing scene which established GT/Forza's middle ground now barely exists. The answer, as is the case with most questions about the current racing game scene, is that we need proper arcade racers back. I genuinely think that would help GT & Forza get back to being what they're supposed to be. The industry has whittled this genre down to so few options that they've been left in such a weird, everyman spot and they don't seem to make anyone happy anymore. Just to spin this back to a positive; although it didn't launch in 2023, I've proudly nominated an arcade racing game in my top 10 this year #doingmypart
|
|
#
?
Jan 2, 2024 16:40
|
|
|
exquisite tea posted:If you want the maximum Lae'zel wife ending, make sure to roll a githyanki MC! My astral wife and I have a perfectly fine interplanar relationship. 
|
|
#
?
Jan 2, 2024 17:00
|
|
|
That's projection.
|
|
#
?
Jan 2, 2024 17:03
|
|
|
bone emulator posted:I know this thread is about positive vibes, but I got to call out Forza Motorsport as my biggest disappointment of the year. Yeah the changes to Gran Turismo this year and seeing it on so many lists make me want to reinstall and really get into the game again. E: removed my b The REAL Goobusters fucked around with this message at 18:12 on Jan 2, 2024 |
|
#
?
Jan 2, 2024 17:46
|
|
|
Bumhead posted:Heard this a lot. I think the traditional realistic "driving simulator" of the console market is in a tough spot. The big simulator stuff is now enough of a thing that if you want that, it's there, and the arcade racing scene which established GT/Forza's middle ground now barely exists. I've been playing Burnout 3 here and there on my Deck and it really does bum me out there that this kind of game is mostly gone.
|
|
#
?
Jan 2, 2024 17:54
|
|
|
I understand the impulse, but I think it'd be cool if the thread stayed positive.
|
|
#
?
Jan 2, 2024 18:04
|
|
|
ColdPie posted:I understand the impulse, but I think it'd be cool if the thread stayed positive. Please everyone.
|
|
#
?
Jan 2, 2024 18:09
|
|
|
There are many negative things I could say about some of the games on my top 10 and I did not say any of them because that’s not the point of this thread, it’s to celebrate specifically what we loved about the games
|
|
#
?
Jan 2, 2024 18:13
|
|
|
According to the thread rules we are only allowed to be negative about hentai games and dota
|
|
#
?
Jan 2, 2024 18:17
|
|
|
Yeah, I only ranked games that I had good things to say about. Thankfully there weren't many that this disqualified. I would suggest just playing good games instead of complaining about bad ones, saves times. exquisite tea posted:That's projection. 
SlothBear fucked around with this message at 18:35 on Jan 2, 2024 |
|
#
?
Jan 2, 2024 18:30
|
|
|
I have always included dishonorable mentions and intend to continue to do so, and I include my issues with even my favorite games. The idea of this thread being positive means to not directly poo poo on other people's lists, not to never criticize anything.
|
|
#
?
Jan 2, 2024 18:31
|
|
|
Regy Rusty posted:I have always included dishonorable mentions and intend to continue to do so, and I include my issues with even my favorite games. The idea of this thread being positive means to not directly poo poo on other people's lists, not to never criticize anything. yah this. i was critical of most games in my top 10.
|
|
#
?
Jan 2, 2024 18:38
|
|
|
haveblue posted:According to the thread rules we are only allowed to be negative about hentai games and dota https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l5ce1slHZ88&hd=1 Here's your gift, it contains a permaban and also a bunch of really cool emotes you will never be able to use! And the answer to "what if they didn't open the gift" is it automatically opens if they try to queue without opening it, there is no escape
|
|
#
?
Jan 2, 2024 18:47
|
|
|
There is only one game I will be negative about and that is your favourite game
|
|
#
?
Jan 2, 2024 19:08
|
|
|
Regy Rusty posted:I have always included dishonorable mentions and intend to continue to do so, and I include my issues with even my favorite games. The idea of this thread being positive means to not directly poo poo on other people's lists, not to never criticize anything. I stop short of including dishonorable mentions because I feel like this isn't the place for it, but I definitely comment on issues I have with games I include in my list.
|
|
#
?
Jan 2, 2024 19:11
|
|
|
i have today off from work for some reason so here is a list of the games that i played but didn't finish! Paleo Pines - this game is SO CUTE, but i fell off after clearing out all of the farm space and saw how much work it would take to get it all set up. i'm very lazy! i'm sorry adorable dinosaurs! Cyberpunk 2077 - i only got through the first act! i knew they were going to kill off Jackie and it pissed me off a lot! why do they have to do that! Sea of Stars - this game is very nice to look at but the characters and story did not grab me at all. only played an hour or two. Dave the Diver - cool concept, cool pixel art, love the ocean, but fell off after a while. maybe i'll go back to it? but probably not! Sun Haven - another Stardew-like where I unlocked a whole new giant plot of land to plant stuff on and my laziness said "no thanks" other games that i still play every (?) year! Final Fantasy 14 - duh! it will never go away! this year was pretty uneventful but my static is very close to finally killing the final raid boss! Path of Exile - this current league is actually the best one i've ever played! i've gotten the highest level i've ever achieved, and killed the maven which i never done before! it's great! i will be very sad when they take away all the cool new spectres when the league ends  Sea of Thieves - Safer Seas (solo pve mode) is finally out but i haven't got around to trying it yet! Smite - i played some Jormangandr earlier this year and now they've got a big whale! Monster Hunter World - i played through this again with my friend but he ruined it by having already watched someone play through it on youtube!! how am i suppose to relive the magic if you've already seen all the monsters???? Naraka: Bladepoint - this game has really fun gameplay actually, but it's got hella free-to-play-battle-pass-daily-logins-buy-cosmetics schlock! Tekken 7 - i did so atrociously bad at this at evo i swore i would never play another fighting game ever again! except i will probably pick up tekken 8! No Man's Sky - they added a cool robot race to unlock! and a laser staff! i did an expedition run for the first time, that was neat!
|
|
#
?
Jan 2, 2024 19:49
|
|
|
FireWorksWell posted:I've been playing Burnout 3 here and there on my Deck and it really does bum me out there that this kind of game is mostly gone. Burnout 3 is so, so good and I'm perma-bummed that it doesn't really have a good successor, yeah. Burnout Paradise was ok-ish but a step backwards in a lot of ways. Wreckfest and FlatOut: Ultimate Carnage are kind of in the same space but don't have the same vibes, and I especially miss the lack of crash junctions. On the plus side, BO3 runs great in emulation, so even though my PS2 is long dead I can still dust it off and play it some now and then.
|
|
#
?
Jan 2, 2024 20:06
|
|
|
I wonder if Disco Elysium and BG3 came out the same year which would win? BG3 probably would because it’s more popular, but wonder which would win among those who played both. I’d vote for Disco as my favorite.
|
|
#
?
Jan 2, 2024 21:17
|
|
|
I'd still vote alan wake 2
|
|
#
?
Jan 2, 2024 21:28
|
|
|
They aren't even remotely similar.
|
|
#
?
Jan 2, 2024 21:29
|
|
|
Yeah, "video games" encompasses so many different genres, playstyles, goals of the game, etc. these days that at a certain point you're not asking which is better you're just asking do you prefer this excellent apple or this excellent orange. By which I mean to say the answer is clearly oranges, i.e. Baldur's Gate 3.
|
|
#
?
Jan 2, 2024 21:37
|
|
|
|
| # ? May 24, 2024 11:39 |
|
|
It's not that they're that similar, it's that they're both laser-targeted at goons and are overwhelming favorites to win Personally, I think Disco had a stronger consensus in its (first) year to my recollection (which is hazy tbf), BG3 seems pretty split vs. TotK this time around, but without Zelda in the mix idk
|
|
#
?
Jan 2, 2024 21:37
|
|
