2010, like almost every year this generation was truly a great year to be a gamer. With Sequels to beloved franchises like Halo Reach, Mass Effect 2 and Super Mario Galaxy 2, to new faces in the gaming scene that have truly left there mark, such as Heavy Rain and Super Meat Boy. Yet it is with my great pleasure that I present to you what were in my eyes the top 10 greatest games of 2010.
10. DJ Hero 2
Dj Hero 2 showed that despite popular belief, the music genre is far from dying quality wise, featuring many great mixes of popular songs both old and new the setlist itself provided hours of entertainment.
Add in the highly entertaining campaign (known in game as Empire Mode) and the ability to plug in a microphone to sing the mixes and you have a great game to play alone, or at parties! Thus making it my 10th best game of 2010.
9. Pacman Championship Edition DX
The fact that pacman himself has managed to once again make himself relevant in the gaming world is a large enough achievement in itself, but if you had told me at the beginning of the year that one of my favorite games would be a reboot of pacman on the Xbox Live Arcade, I would have laughed in your face. Pacman Championship Edition DX is the greatest thing done for the pacman franchise since the original was released in arcades so many years ago. With many different art styles to choose from, my personal favorite being design H(see below) a design closest to the look of the original pacman however with touched up textures and a gorgeous glow on the ghosts.
Other then being visually appealing Pacman CE DX is also one of the most addictive games I have played this year. The game features 3 different “main” modes, Score Attack-where you attempt to eat the highest amount of dots in a set time, Time Attack-the goal is to eat the set amount of dots on the screen before time runs out and go for the high score, and Ghost Combo-where you chain up as many ghosts as possible and eat them within the time limit of a single power pellet. There are many different courses to go through, with different variations of the 3 challenges to complete. Add in a great soundtrack that didn’t feel too far removed from something you would here at a Rave yet with pacman esque sound effects mixed in and you’ve got yourself a nice cheap bundle of fun for the holidays!
8. Red Dead Redemption
Red Dead Redemption is Rockstar Games latest voyage into the open world genre. With there last major success Grand Theft Auto 4, they had very big shoes to fill. I am quite happy to say that, not only did they match Grand Theft Auto 4 in quality, in my eyes they surpassed it. Red Dead Redemption puts you in the role of John Marston, a bandit turned family man who is being used by the government to help eliminate his former gang allies. I will not give any spoilers, however I will say that the story has many unexpected twists that left me at times with my jaw sitting open. The story was further carried on by the games gorgeous visuals. Running on an upgraded version of the GTA 4 engine, Red Dead is one of the most visually appealing games this year.
With many hours of enjoyable gameplay, and a sizeable add-on DLC pack already released it would be very hard to not recommend this to any gamer looking for a great game that are fans of the west, Rockstar’s work or just good games in general!
7. Heavy Rain
Heavy Rain is the latest story based adventure from popular developer of Indigo Prophecy Quantic Dream. Many have argued that Heavy Rain is almost more an interactive movie then a game, and quite frankly I am inclined to agree with them. The game places you in dynamic areas to tell a great narrative about a mysterious killer known as the Origami Killer. The vast majority of the game is played through Quick Time events which determine the outcome of the story. One of, the strongest points of the game’s narrative is that once a character dies there is no going back, that character is dead for the rest of the game. This has huge impacts upon the story and adds a certain sense of urgency to the game that I personally find is lacking in many games of this generation.
Graphically, Heavy Rain is one of the more attractive games this year, sporting amazing character models and highly detailed environments it is truly some very nice eye candy.
6. Mass Effect 2
Another game released this year that is prided for its great story telling is Mass Effect 2. Mass Effect 2 is the sequel to the popular 2008 action RPG Mass Effect. Many of the RPG aspects of the original Mass Effect were simplified in this sequel and in a way Mass Effect 2 is much more of a third person shooter then an RPG, however the main core of a traditional RPG still stands firm in Mass Effect 2, and that is the story. Mass Effect 2 allows decisions made in Mass Effect to spill over and effect the world of 2 in very creative and sometimes large ways.
Similarly to Heavy Rain, Mass Effect 2 sports great character models and environments but added in with the fact that it is completely open world just makes the feat that much more impressive.
5. Kirby’s Epic Yarn
Only one word can be used to describe this delightfully charming platformer. That word is cute. Kirby’s epic yarn took a popular franchise that was desperately calling for a reboot, and made one of the best family friendly games this generation.
Epic Yarn has a simple story involving Kirby getting sucked up into a magical sock and helping a prince save the new sock realm from an evil villain, however the story is not the focus of the game. What is important is the gameplay and art style. As can be noted from the above picture the game features a unique art style that proves to any haters out there that the wii is just as viable of a platform as the HD Twins graphically. However, the art style is not in the game for visual appeal alone. Changing the world by using zippers, ribbons, loose seams, etc are all the main form of platforming in Kirby. This helps to give the game an even more unique feel then its graphics already achieve.
4. Super Meat Boy
It is to my great surprise that for my Game of the Year awards I have not one, but 2 arcade games. For Starters, Ill open this up with one statement. Super meat boy is the most frustrating game I’ve played this generation. Now, that said it is also the most enjoyable arcade game I’ve played...ever. With super tight controls, great humor, enjoyable level design and being able to play as many famous indie game characters, I think it is safe to say that Super Meat Boy will be one of my most played games for months and possibly years to come.
3. Halo Reach
Halo Reach is the end of Bungie’s involvement in the Halo franchise, so in essence it is the last “real” halo game we are going to be seeing, and all I can say is they really sent the series off with a bang. Halo Reach has the best campaign mode I’ve played in a Halo since the original. It has great characters, amazing dialogue, gorgeous environments and a very strong narrative. At times I even found myself getting teary eyed at some of the moments in game, and well I am not a very emotional guy. Outside of the story the game has a very great multiplayer. Normally I feel that multiplayer is very tacked on to boost a game’s sales and I tend to ignore it altogether. However, this stereotype does not apply with reach. On this very day I currently have over 85 hours logged into Halo Reach’s online, and I am showing almost no signs of stopping anytime soon. This also does not include the countless hours I have spent in the forge world which is just pure fun to get together and mess around in with a few buddies. It is simply the pure fun of Reach that in my eyes makes it worthy of being number 3 on this list.
2. Starcraft 2
This is possibly going to be the most controversial game on my list, simply because of what I am about to say. I am not a fan of Starcraft 2. There now that that is out of the way allow me to explain why I feel it is the 2nd best game of this year. It makes #2 on my list simply because of the huge impact the game has had on this earth. The entire entertainment industry in South Korea is almost entirely reliant on this game. There are professional leagues, tournaments and even TV networks devoted to the play of Starcraft. It is many people’s professional jobs to play this game day in and day out to win these tournaments.
Now, the reason I am not a fan of Starcraft is simply because I am not, and probably never will be a fan of RTS games. I have always been a more turn based kind of guy,for example I am a big fan of franchises such as Civilization and Fire Emblem. However I do have to see the pure facts of it and I understand that Starcraft and Starcraft 2 are possibly, no, probably the 2 best RTS games out there. The latter features an amazing story, great online, a very deep gameplay system and just the pure addictiveness that keeps RTS fans coming back to it day after day.
1. Super Mario Galaxy 2
This game is the best. In all ways possible, it is the best 3D platformer of this generation, it is the best wii game of this generation, it is the best Mario game…dare I say ever?, and if it were not my raging fanboyism towards Banjo Tooie I may say that it is the best platformer in general to ever be created
The game follows the classic Mario formula of Peach gets kidnapped, Mario must go save her, collect the stars, defeat Bowser, the end. However both graphically, and with its gameplay this game excels past every other Mario game currently made. This game would make my jaw drop if it were on the PS3, 360 or PC, so you can imagine my reaction at seeing the attention to details and amazing graphics of it on the Wii. Mario Galaxy 2 also features witty level design and very entertaining yet challenging puzzles and bosses. Add into the fact that it features even more variety then its predecessors and perfects the planet hopping gravity platforming pioneered by the original Galaxy and I honestly have nothing else to say but buy this game ASAP and join all the other lucky owners of this great classic.
Only one word can be used to describe this delightfully charming platformer. That word is cute
I would argue that there are two words to describe that game. Epic and Perfect.
Nice list. :P
super meat boy is my second place TBH. and as a platformer, it beats galaxy 2. just not as a game. because SMG2 manages to be oh so much more than "just" a platformer.
I like your listing mate. Wasn't expecting you to put SCII in no2 spot. Didn't know you play strategy games too.
@Sleven Ive only played a small bit of Starcraft, but yeah I do play the occasional strategy. I've personally always been a huge fan of the Civ and AoE games.
OMG! Another person who understands that Kirby is a top 10 contender! Woo high five! :)
Overall, great list! I'm quite excited I'll get to play Mass Effect 2 soon, and I'm sad I don't get to play Super Meat Boy. Thanks, Sony. It's all your fault. :(
Civ V is a good game. Add that to your list if you plan to play any strategy games. But SCII is just awesome.
Its games like Kirby that make me wish I had a wii again, but still wii just isnt my console of choice.
Hey I like the new banner. Just need time to get used to. Hope that you all are doing well. Blessings of March on the way!
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Nice selection of games, but i believe DJ Hero 2 could take a #5 place ( in mine top ten he is #3 ), and RDR is waay down, but it's cool . And you take games for all fronts, a little more to Wii side, but Super Mario Galaxy 2 deserves to be in any top ten!