Best / worst of 2011

Recycling images is cool.

This should really have been my first post for 2012 for obvious reasons but in truth I've had a bit of trouble in actually solidifying my choices. If you look at my Golden Joystick Awards post here you'll see a small selection of the games that I deemed best in their respective category, except for Game Of The Year. The choices available at the time featured a selection of games that I just didn't deem fit to receive such an award, but that has since changed. Though not featured on the Golden Joysticks GOTY due to their relatively late release date in 2011, I've managed to narrow my choices down to 2 games: Batman Arkham City and Deus Ex: Human Revolution

Deus Ex: Human Revolution

Ok, this is going to be difficult to do without getting into a full scale review which, at the moment, i don't want to do, as I want to give the game a post of its own to ensure I dont miss a single thing about it because I loved it that much. I'd never played any of the Deus Ex games before, only vaguely heard about it. I didn't know what type of game it was, any of the background story, I literally went in blind but something about it just drew me in so I asked for it as a present off one of my family for my birthday. What a choice it was. There is almost nothing I can fault about this absolute gem. The characters act and interact as if they are genuinely interested in each other and each one is in his / her own way likable / dislikable making them all well rounded. The graphics, though nothing cutting edge, are certainly impressive. Gameplay brings nothing unheard of to the table but uses a tried and tested formula and allows players either to sneak or run in all guns blazing and the story is relatively easy to follow yet provides entertainment enough to make the player want to carry on. The only downside is that towards the end, the game feels slightly rushed - end game enemies (notably the final boss) feel lack luster and almost out of place. Regardless, a brilliant game I would fully recommend.

Batman: Arkham City

Sequel to the 2008 blockbuster, Batman Arkham Asylum, I expected great things from Arkham City and boy did it deliver. Arkham City transcends the infamous Arkham mental institute and takes Batman into a large o open city where he can be free to grapple and swing from rooftop to rooftop seamlessly in a Spiderman 2-esque style. Traversing the back alleys of Arkham City presents Batman with various side missions ranging from solving the mysterious murders of several inmates of the mega prison to stopping random acts of violence against political prisoners. The fantastic combat from the first game is still present and has been relatively unchanged, with the exception of the player now being able to take on more enemies than before at any one time, showcased impressively several times in the game; notably The Penguins Arena. Combat itself is intensely satisfying, flipping back and forth between enemies and almost being able to feel the angry, helpless inmates bones crunch as Batman brings down an elbow onto one of their knees. The game showcases a host of Batman's fan favourite enemies, from The Penguin to Mr Freeze and of course; The Joker. Mark Hamill once again plays Joker fantastically in a performance fans will never forget. Couple all this goodness with more Riddler trophies to get and a new playable character: Catwoman, its an all around incredibly enjoyable game with enough features to keep people coming back for more.



Dead Island

I'm sure you all remember the cinematic trailer of Dead Island that spread through the Internet like wildfire. It was a beautiful, emotion invoking masterpiece that catapulted this game from obscurity right into the public eye, making people like me extremely anxious for its release. Well, if we hadn't learnt before we have now - NEVER base your aspirations and expectations for a game on its trailer. The trailer did not reflect the game in any way, because the game for the most part was just plain bad. An FPS zombie game featuring 4 characters each with their own specialisation in either melee, thrown, firearms or melee weapons, Dead Island was host to repetitive and often boring gameplay while being incredibly buggy (picture enemies floating through the air, getting stuck on items that weren't there, that sort of thing), dire voice acting and bad graphics. It was also accused of being racist, which, it is. This game was a massive disappointment for me, and for that would earn my worst of 2011 if it weren't for...

Thor.
This game is that bad, that insufferably terrible that it gets a class of it's own. It doesn't just win my worst game of the year, it wins my worst game I've played in memorable history. Diabolical gameplay mechanics, graphics, combat system, voice acting.. The lot. Avoid, at all costs, this blight on gaming.