#38: VVVVVV – Flash/PC – 27 pts – 3 votesOfficial Game Site
http://www.merseyremakes.co.uk/gibber/wp-content/uploads/2009/11/vvv2.png
a passing spacecadet: I have never had so much fun being so bad at a game. Thank you death counter for racking up just how bad I was. Thank you that one trinket with the 3-room-high jump which I spent over an hour swearing at. It was like being 8 and hunched over Jet Set Willy every evening for months all over again. Such beautiful wrist pain.
http://www.creativeapplications.net/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/vvvvvv05.png
GM: No games hooked me as hard this year as genius throwbacks like ... VVVVVV.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=56c9NJO3ASM
Eurogamer revvvvvvview
http://www2.ambientdesign.com/gallery/files/9/8/0/0/vvvvvv_gleeee_original.jpg
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E99qxCMb05g
http://distractionware.com/blog/img/2010/nov/vvvvvv.jpg
― polyphonic, Wednesday, 1 June 2011 23:31 (twelve years ago) link
i very nearly voted for that
― nuclear power, jet propulsion, radar, laser beams, cordless phone (abanana), Wednesday, 1 June 2011 23:41 (twelve years ago) link
#37: Final Fantasy XIV – PS3 – 30 pts – 1 vote - 0.5 top game votesOfficial Game Site
http://au.playstation.com/media/DiKtuPTc/FinalFantasyXIV_Hero.JPG
Princess TamTam: a daring reimagining of what constitutes "good" and "fun" gaming... boldly elects to regress in quality from Final Fantasy XI... fearless in the way that all great art is, will one day be seen as a Duchampian lightning bolt that forced a reassessment of the status quo
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uwk3Ps3Jayw
Kotaku review
http://files.g4tv.com/ImageDb3/242367_S/Final-Fantasy-14.jpg
Wikipedia:
Square Enix has sent at least two apologies to its customers, recognizing the poor quality of the game, asking for patience, and announcing free trial extensions and reshuffles in the development team.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hdZ7B2XkzQc
― polyphonic, Wednesday, 1 June 2011 23:48 (twelve years ago) link
just tried out trainyard recently - good stuff!
― Nhex, Wednesday, 1 June 2011 23:49 (twelve years ago) link
i originally tried to give Final Fantasy XIV 100 points, but forks wasnt having it.
― ( . __ . ) . o O ( cum ) (Princess TamTam), Wednesday, 1 June 2011 23:52 (twelve years ago) link
haha! when is it coming out on PS3, do they have a date yet?
― zappi, Thursday, 2 June 2011 00:14 (twelve years ago) link
Be careful what you wish for.― polyphonic, Wednesday, June 1, 2011
― When Zeester Met Koffie (forksclovetofu), Thursday, 2 June 2011 01:01 (twelve years ago) link
The gametrailers video for FFMMO is DAMNING
― When Zeester Met Koffie (forksclovetofu), Thursday, 2 June 2011 01:02 (twelve years ago) link
i'm serious, i'll do it if needed! i can take one for the ilg team
― Z S, Thursday, 2 June 2011 02:01 (twelve years ago) link
ffxiv was my most disappointing title of the year iirc
― Lamp, Thursday, 2 June 2011 04:09 (twelve years ago) link
Z S, I'll let you know but I think I'm fine for now.
― polyphonic, Thursday, 2 June 2011 06:22 (twelve years ago) link
#36: Kill God – PC – 30 pts – 1 vote - 1 top game voteOfficial Game Site?
http://www.ludumdare.com/compo/wp-content/uploads/2009/09/killgod.png
Bamcquern: kotm entry that may be my favorite bullet hell shmup because I don?t really play bullet hell shmups but also because I like the bullet patterns, the copy-paste aesthetic and that I can tell how good I'm doing based on how far through I've gotten through the Japanese song made up of three or four apparently not disparate musics
http://www.dumb.com/god/images/god.jpg
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ZGIMNplzAQ
http://neterubookstore.com/images/canmankillgod.jpg
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w3eTsNEgmL8
http://www.shelleytherepublican.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/11/target.jpg
― polyphonic, Thursday, 2 June 2011 22:15 (twelve years ago) link
If you can find a still from the game be my guest.
― polyphonic, Thursday, 2 June 2011 22:18 (twelve years ago) link
haha, damn.
― Princess TamTam, Thursday, 2 June 2011 22:21 (twelve years ago) link
Two way tie for 34
― polyphonic, Thursday, 2 June 2011 22:29 (twelve years ago) link
#34: Sonic Colors – Wii – 30 pts – 2 votes - 1 top game voteOfficial Game Site
http://cdn.gamerant.com/wp-content/uploads/Sonic-Colors-New-Trailer-Old-School.jpg
Autumn Almanac: Finally a good Sonic without filler. 3D Sonics always had tremendous potential; this is the closest the franchise has come.
http://cache.gawkerassets.com/assets/images/9/2010/11/sonic_colors_review.jpg
silby: Tolerable while muted.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sa6-fzXlf8c
Wired review
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GAadsAR8rH4
Destructoid review
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VonhgARLb5U
― polyphonic, Thursday, 2 June 2011 22:30 (twelve years ago) link
is this "kill god"?http://www.glorioustrainwrecks.com/files/WAHT.png
― When Zeester Met Koffie (forksclovetofu), Thursday, 2 June 2011 22:30 (twelve years ago) link
#34: Pro Evolution Soccer 2011 – PS3 – 30 pts – 2 votesOfficial Game Site
http://www.latinogamers.net/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/image_pes_2011-12749-2028_0001.jpg
EZ Snappin: Huge step forward from 2010 that still has some issues but I'm playing at least one game a day.
http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-MIlG9bZpU0U/TVocfsT5ELI/AAAAAAAAAQo/mZTq4vg2RfY/s1600/PES_2011_12.jpg
Daily Mail review
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m8FNkit3wBc
PESFan review
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u-hVGx29IkI
Eurogamer again
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NT2qctMWl40
― polyphonic, Thursday, 2 June 2011 22:42 (twelve years ago) link
just finished playing 2 games. Still fun.
― EZ Snappin, Thursday, 2 June 2011 22:45 (twelve years ago) link
#33: Rock Band 3 – 360/PS3/Wii – 30 pts – 3 votes - 1 top game votesOfficial Game Site
http://multiplayerblog.mtv.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/rock-band-3-keyboard.jpg
JimD: I was out of practice by about five years until I got this and the pro keyboard. Now I can play again. So that's a pretty huge gift to get from a game.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0AAy-NGf2VQ
Joystiq review
http://cdn.gamerant.com/wp-content/uploads/Drum-Rocker-Pro-for-Rock-Band-3.jpg
Mitch Krpata: The best music game of all time just got better. But did we see its death throes?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kAaRPYKdkTM
Game Informer
http://bulk2.destructoid.com/ul/166366-134551-RockBand.jpg
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z_Qxuw8C16s
― polyphonic, Thursday, 2 June 2011 22:54 (twelve years ago) link
#32: Costume Quest – PS3/360 – 32 pts – 3 votesOfficial Game Site
http://multiplayerblog.mtv.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/costumequest_preview.jpg
Mordy: I really only played this for one night - the evening of Halloween - but what a night it was. Costume Quest is colorful and cute and just long enough for a single extended evening of play. Though it's hampered by a rushed third act and gameplay that is about as challenging as you'd expect (not very) it's really fun and irrepressible.
http://www.thatgamerpodcast.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/10/costume-quest-2010-08-11-01_173jv-1024x614.jpg
litel: Costume Quest is really, really fantastic.
forksclovetofu: Okay, I just beat Costume Quest and knocked out 100% of the trophies; it's actually three worlds, not four. It's a very likely one-sitting game, so be aware that you're plunking down 15 bucks for a short, sweet adventure that's wonderfully done but is NOT going to keep you busy even through halloween.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Npbz3ZER0UU
polyphonic: Much more fun than Brutal Legend.
stevie: just hit the french fry costume bug in costume quest. and so now... the game is broken? don't think i'll be buying any further doublefine games, tbh. this is bullshit.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9M49wErmsdQ
http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_Ae0Pt6UDPgw/TLybnJZhXHI/AAAAAAAAB5c/53yPw85GIo4/s1600/costume+quest+double+fine+contest.jpg
― polyphonic, Thursday, 2 June 2011 23:06 (twelve years ago) link
Yeah, 20 of those 30 rock band 3 points were from me, it was by far my GOTY. Game really deserved a lot better, both in this poll and at retail. Though I guess for anyone who wasn't interested in the pro instruments, it was effectively just shovelware.
― JimD, Thursday, 2 June 2011 23:07 (twelve years ago) link
#31: Cave Story – Wii/DS – 33 pts – 3 votesOfficial Game Site
http://fc03.deviantart.net/fs70/f/2010/216/3/8/Fanart__Cave_Story_by_Risachantag.jpg
if: Playing this at a few years remove meant playing an old classic pretending to be a far older classic, but the gameplay stands the test of time. The controls are fantastically tight and the 2D exploring and light platforming/shooting captures almost everything that made Super Metroid great without resorting to plagiarism. The choice of which weapons to upgrade and the way that they detiorate again as you lose health adds an enjoyable extra element of its own. It also helps that the whole thing is ridiculously charming, from the music to the setting to the pixel drawings of each character when they speak.
http://wiimedia.ign.com/wii/image/article/916/916811/cave-story-20081007070409391_640w.jpg
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cr0CCkH49g0
Game Tunnel review
http://www.destructoid.com/elephant/ul/76991-468x-Top%205%20Wii%20-%20Cave%20Story.jpg
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rqqo73tvtVw
Z S: played this on PC a couple of years ago, assuming it's just as good on DS
Eurogamer
http://www.deviantart.com/download/25366059/Cave_Story_by_eloretardo.jpg
Tiny Cartridge
http://www.spritestitch.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/12/cavestoryquilt.jpg
― polyphonic, Thursday, 2 June 2011 23:21 (twelve years ago) link
I think Costume Quest was my first game to appear? Certainly one of the first (this poll has been going on so long I can't remember -- was Digital from this year or last?)
― Mordy, Friday, 3 June 2011 01:12 (twelve years ago) link
Stevie: just hit the french fry costume bug in costume quest. and so now... the game is broken? don't think i'll be buying any further doublefine games, tbh. this is bullshit.
― You made the right choice, Deanne... (stevie), Friday, 3 June 2011 07:27 (twelve years ago) link
wondering whether to lay my money on the line and say that whatever the top 5 games are, i will buy them (obv not if i already have them that would be really silly)
― remove this man from the internet (Ste), Friday, 3 June 2011 10:42 (twelve years ago) link
well #2 is naughty bear so
― When Zeester Met Koffie (forksclovetofu), Friday, 3 June 2011 14:27 (twelve years ago) link
Rock Band 3 is really great; only got it this year so no vote for it from me, but keys are super fun, & the track list is great too; also love the new way of handing career progression; before I rarely went back & played the same songs again & again when doing career, unless they were ones with which I was already super familiar & loved; but RB3 kinda forces you to play songs again & again & that's a really good thing! use what you have instead of just rushing through once & then wanting more more more new.
― Euler, Friday, 3 June 2011 15:11 (twelve years ago) link
I refused to get RB3 because every RB guitar I have purchased (3) has died due to... being leaned against a wall
― low-rent black gangster nicknamed Bootsy (DJP), Friday, 3 June 2011 15:15 (twelve years ago) link
I loved Guitar Hero 3 for the 5 hours that the guitar worked. Then a friend of mine came over and she got REALLY into billie jean, and that was it.
― Z S, Friday, 3 June 2011 15:22 (twelve years ago) link
the neck buttons can be popped off and cleaned if that's the problem
― nuclear power, jet propulsion, radar, laser beams, cordless phone (abanana), Friday, 3 June 2011 15:29 (twelve years ago) link
#30: Minecraft – PC – 33 pts – 3 votes - 1 top game votesOfficial Game Site
http://admintell.napco.com/ee/images/uploads/gamertell/minecraft_scenery_picture.jpg
itt we minecraft
MattD: Like a box of cubic Lego. Minecraft's emergent gameplay is incredibly refreshing compared to most recent titles, which are full of pop-ups that prompt you when to press X to jump or B to trigger one of a barrage of quick-time events in which your character leaps, climbs and opines without any direct control or input. In Minecraft, you start with your bare hands. What happens when you punch that tree? What happens when you combine those blocks? What happen when you dig (too deep, too greedily). You will die to natural and man-made disasters, zombies, crumbling experiments, and exploding block monsters. You will probably set your house on fire. I enjoyed this game so much I set up a server for a few months so my friends and I could run rampant and explore each others creations.
http://static.gamesradar.com/images/mb/GamesRadar/us/Daily/2010/09-Sept/30/minecraft%20puter/minecraft_pig--article_image.jpg
CNET review
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FaMTedT6P0I
Jeff Vogel review
jamescobo: In all honesty my vote is more a recognition of Minecraft as a seismic event than it is of Minecraft as A Game Which Is Fun To Play; I'm not really one for building all kinds of crazy shit so I mostly just ran around getting killed over and over and over again. That being said, it's the biggest leap forward in terms of the sheer scale of the world games can present since GTA:SA, maybe even since Ocarina of Time.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ooTS9Z6PFh0
Will M: I haven't played it since they put monsters into the multiplayer game, but when it was a collaborative LEGO game without punishment, it was brilliant.
Zero Punctuation
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8uyxVmdaJ-w
http://technabob.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2010/10/papercraft-minecraft.jpg
http://static.gamesradar.com/images/mb/GamesRadar/us/Features/2011/04/Week%20of%20Hate%202011/5%20reasons%20to%20hate/Minecraft/minecraft--article_image.jpg
― polyphonic, Friday, 3 June 2011 17:08 (twelve years ago) link
i would have voted for minecraft, but i hadn't played it at the time.
there's a "peaceful" setting you can turn on in the options that turns monsters off. The very first time my meticulously crafted house was destroyed in the middle of the night by a gang of tnt dudes, i turned it on.
― Z S, Friday, 3 June 2011 17:22 (twelve years ago) link
#29: Dead Rising 2 / Dead Rising: Case Zero – 360/PS3/PC – 33 pts – 4 votesOfficial Game Site
http://cache.gawker.com/assets/images/kotaku/2009/03/dr2smash2.jpg
Mordy: Remarkable and awesome. The psychopaths are scarier, the zombies are more plentiful, the cell phone doesn't cripple you when you pick it up and -- probably the biggest and most significant change -- the survivor AI is great! You can run all over the place with a train of survivors following you who will protect themselves and, if you equip them with weapons, even help you! It's startling how a few mechanics changes can take a fun but flawed game and make it great! It has basically taken the DR1 mechanics, tweaked them to basically get rid of everything annoying (no more stupid paralysis-inducing cell phone calls!) to just leave the kernel of sweet arcade goodness. It feels like a classic Capcom game.
http://image.gamespotcdn.net/gamespot/images/2006/201/928326_20060721_640screen002.jpg
Gamepro review
CraigG: I don't have a lot to say about this, as I haven't played it loads, but it's impossible to not have fun when scooping zombies up in wheelchairs and beating them with whatever is lying around. Even the most basic of weapons, like a baseball bat with nails through it, is so satisfying to dish out some pain with. I really wish there was a free mode, as I don't like the time constraint, but the game is a lot more forgiving than the original, and infinitely more fun as a result.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uUdA2VVNY3w
1up review
Will M.: Case Zero was a spectacular bit of DLC/Arcade game and got me completely stoked on this title, which lived up to the hype I built in my head. Hilarious game and fun and removed a lot of the excruciating shit from the first one. Except for the kill 3195810980 zombies in one playthrough thing. I guess SOMETHING about it needed to be awful. The Case West DLC left me sour but DR2 and Case Zero? Amazing.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hMx48GXwEAc
Kotaku Case Zero review
http://www.acparadise.com/cosplayers/100/100-13147-3.jpg
― polyphonic, Friday, 3 June 2011 17:40 (twelve years ago) link
#28: Vanquish – 360/PS3 – 35 pts – 2 votes - 0.5 top game votesOfficial Game Site
http://cache.gawkerassets.com/assets/images/9/2010/10/vanquish_review.jpg
VANQUISH
cozen: P.N.03 and contra and viewtiful joe in HD. vanquish is genuinely brilliant but I will say I'm glad I waited for it to drop in price: I know much is made of the game's vaunted replayability but I was surprised the main campaign only clocked in at 4 and a half hours. no unlockables either, which this game is crying out for even just some cheats, badass guns and suit upgrades (even if just cosmetic). online co-op would be awesome too
http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_c8NhpyO413Y/TL3YN2NevuI/AAAAAAAAAII/8AkAXBzIUik/s1600/vanquish-sega-new-screens-11.jpg
Gamesradar review
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wT5wg51JB8w
Guardian review
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kpYWRIFmRcU
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4055/4704796454_a482798e75.jpg
― polyphonic, Friday, 3 June 2011 18:31 (twelve years ago) link
No, the problem is that the strum piece just stopped registering. On all 3 of them. For no fucking reason. Yes I changed the batteries.
― low-rent black gangster nicknamed Bootsy (DJP), Friday, 3 June 2011 18:33 (twelve years ago) link
I loved watching my friend play Vanquish. I didn't enjoy playing it (not my thing) but it was gorgeous in the hands of someone who was good at it.
― EZ Snappin, Friday, 3 June 2011 18:34 (twelve years ago) link
two way tie for 26
― polyphonic, Friday, 3 June 2011 18:48 (twelve years ago) link
#26: Nier – PS3/360 – 35 pts – 3 votesOfficial Game Site
http://www.gameranx.com/images/updates/1296462823_nier.jpg
so NIER and yet so far: itt "a game from square enix"
zappi: biggest surprise was Nier, has huge flaws but i loved the world & the way it kept switching up the gameplay - at one point it even becomes a text adventure!
http://www.wired.com/images_blogs/gamelife/2010/02/nier-0203_1-660x371.jpg
abanana: decent plot, decent fighting, fast walking speed. that's good enough for me.
http://fourplayercoop.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/nier-1024x575.jpg
polyphonic: Nier is reminding me more of Deadly Premonition than I would've guessed.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CsWZ27odqRQ
lol ny times
"Nier does many different things at such a high level of sophistication and accessibility that I cannot think of another single game of recent years that more faithfully represents the sheer intellectual breadth of modern video games."
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dYHEBUTNviM
http://img23.imageshack.us/img23/750/91057882.jpg
― polyphonic, Friday, 3 June 2011 18:49 (twelve years ago) link
^^ replayed it over xmas and it was still as good as the first time. plus i knew to skip all the dumb sidequests :pthis guy recently discovered some interesting details in the game, huge plot spoilers of course http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php?p=28132837&postcount=7755
― zappi, Friday, 3 June 2011 19:00 (twelve years ago) link
is Nier the one that made one reviewer go insane because of a quest that had him fishing for like 3 hours because he was standing in the wrong spot
― low-rent black gangster nicknamed Bootsy (DJP), Friday, 3 June 2011 19:01 (twelve years ago) link
ya, he didn't look at the big red X on the map.
― zappi, Friday, 3 June 2011 19:03 (twelve years ago) link
tbh I almost bought the game solely because of that review
much lolling
― low-rent black gangster nicknamed Bootsy (DJP), Friday, 3 June 2011 19:03 (twelve years ago) link
#26: StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty – PC/Mac – 35 pts – 3 votesOfficial Game Site
http://www.geek.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/07/sc2.jpg
Starcraft 2: Mothership Connection
MattD: I can't speak for the single player campaign, as I generally only play RTS titles for the competitive multiplayer. It's the same game it was a decade ago, and it isn't - there are more options, tricks, tactics and polish, but the gameplay is still fast, tense, rewards intensive macro and micro level decision making / planning, and causes severe levels of stress and cardiac palpitations when played at the peak of my skill level. Which is why I stopped, because progressing beyond that point would take an inordinate amount of devotion and probably give me a heart attack. But there's no RTS out there that has such broad appeal or is so accessible yet rewarding. It is possibly the best way to earn the grudging respect of the teenagers your friend teaches; by 2v2 tandem 4-gating them into the dirt over and over and over again.
http://www.thewebtechreviews.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/03/starcraft2_1.jpg
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rgyL08nhtkw
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kcxg4ylQJ6o
http://icanhascheezburger.files.wordpress.com/2010/08/51168115-7e31-49f7-955e-0b3686f250b7.jpg
PC Gamer
http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b380/TheHan/StarcraftLove.png
― polyphonic, Friday, 3 June 2011 19:41 (twelve years ago) link
yeah this is ace. but i didn't pick it up till 2011 so no vote from me.
― Roberto Spiralli, Friday, 3 June 2011 19:45 (twelve years ago) link
cozwn's description of Vanquish intrigues me....
― Nhex, Saturday, 4 June 2011 02:23 (twelve years ago) link
surprised that some of the big guns placed this early too
― Nhex, Saturday, 4 June 2011 02:24 (twelve years ago) link
#25: Darksiders – 360/PS3 – 35 pts – 4 votesOfficial Game Site
http://ve3dmedia.ign.com/images/06/19/61974_Darksiders-14_normal.jpg
Lamp: a derivative game made by people who take manga too seriously darkstalkers is also p fukken rad, you get to be a horsemen of the apocalypse preventing a premature armageddon and there some shit with sexy angels and forces of evil and who cares. there's puzzles! and gory-ass swordplay! its zelda with blood!
http://static2.videogamer.com/videogamer/images/xbox360/darksiders/screens/darksiders_80.jpg
Giant Bomb review
jjjusten: Bash dudes, find treasure, bash dudes, retrace steps, boss battle, more treasure, cutscene, rinse repeat. It's better than it sounds, but no point in lying about it. Main character design makes me wish they would take everyone who has ever been artistically influenced by Gears of War and drown them in a well.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ArHzEGeiMbg
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m6Cch1QE--w
http://www.freshcharacters.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/darksiders_by_derrickSong.jpg
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lORCuR84-_8
― polyphonic, Saturday, 4 June 2011 18:06 (twelve years ago) link
woo!
― Muttley vs. Mumbly (CaptainLorax), Saturday, 4 June 2011 19:36 (twelve years ago) link
#24: Persona 3 – PSP – 39 pts – 3 votes - 1 top game votes - TOP PSPOfficial Game Site
http://gamesareevil.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/07/shin-megami-tensei-persona-3-1541.jpg
Kids, shoot yourself in the head and gain super powers! The SMT / Megaten / Persona thread
Will M.: I feel weird voting for an old game first overall (one I may have voted for in the past) but this is finally the first version I've completed, and apparently, the best version (discluding its discluding of the epilogue) and goddamn if it didn't actually rekindle my love for jRPGs. Not that any others will make me want to play like this did, but damn. 70 hours and I'm on my SECOND playthrough now.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JB4WyHe-HRM
if: Playing this for the first time after P4, there were a couple of spots where I could see how things were later improved on and there wasn't the same novelty value to its social mechanics or its particular line in lightly gothic weirdness. Despite that, the actually interesting and likeable story and characters (ok, likeable apart from Junpei, but I guess that's deliberate), the perfectly streamlined old school combat, and the endless options to spend your days as you choose and advance both stories and abilities as a result still make it stand out as a class apart from other JRPGs. There's also still the fun of having one bizarro alternate world of Shadows and Personas ('The Midnight Hour') built on top of another bizarro alternate world where you get a day off school to respect your elders and getting high exam marks makes you more popular ('Japan').
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tz0R88xG-pc
Lamp: atlus's persona 3 FES is a gothic-tinged rpg that came out in the waning days of the PS2. the player takes on the role of a silent, mysterious transfer student to a japanese high school. on your 1st night in your new dorm you and your housemates are attacked by a slinking inky mass of arms and faces called 'shadows'. after shooting yourself in the head you summon an otherworldy spirit guide - classically allusioned and perfectly art-designed - to defeat the shadows & save yourself and your housemate. all of this takes place after about 35 minutes of introductory cut-scenes, expository dialogue and cryptic visitations.
so persona 3 divides its time btw the world of shadows & the day-to-day life of a japanese high school student. & as you make way through both of these worlds, studying for exams, building friendships, occasionally venturing into the shadowlands to defeat monsters and gain strength the two worlds begin to build inwards upon each other, permeating their counterparts in strange & unexpected ways. like twin peaks P3FES does an incredible job of portraying a mundane world that is constantly under threat from the unknowable & mysterious horrors that underlie our everyday world. but unlike twin peaks the 'regular' existence never feels like an afterthought, the pleasures of simply being in this world & the social link mechanic are equal to the pleasure of dungeon crawling & the story-driven mystery elements of the game that mostly take place in the hidden shadow world.
it seems kinda crazy that a part dungeon-crawler rpg part japanese dating sim game can be summed up using em forster's famous maxim 'only connect' but persona 3 FES is above all about the longing for contact & the terror of isolation. its most meaningful moments take place in the spaces btw how we see ourselves & how the other characters see us. i think its a mistake to want the game's dialogue trees and social interactions to function in the same way as they do in d&d-influenced western rpgs. in a western rpg the focus is on developing a character & so the best games give a sense of true possibility and naturalism. whereas with persona there is always a right answer, a correct path. the point isn't to give the player a blank slate to write his intentions on, to chose a 'good' or 'evil' path & then make descions based upon your character's intentions. in P3FES your character is a mirror held up to the npcs. you reflect their vanities & insecurities, their hopes & fears. and so the player is forced to consider them, who they are & at best you can understand and help that person. your goal, your job is to build relationships, not a character.
finally - finally! - the combat in P3FES is one of the most tactically interesting mechanic of any turn-based rpg. every npc is self-directed and their actions will often - frustratingly - shadow their reallife personalities. as battle leader you can give them directives but you cant control their actions perfectly. so combat begins to double the social link aspect of the game, you're forced to predict the actions of your comrades to know their strengths & weaknesses & so to understand them as people. the difficulty of this makes what is a very grind-heavy game both more fraught and more engaging. never a game to miss an opportunity death literally haunts the game's dungeon & his shadow is always present in P3FES. even regular combats are perilous & you will die. a lot.
the best that i can say for P3FES is that unlike almost any other game the memory of its events stayed with me. although its mechanically frustrating, overlong & exacting it manages to create a plausible, engrossing world like no game before or since.
http://gamrfeed.vgchartz.com/galleries/2010-06-20/persona-3-portable/persona-3-portable_1277089256.jpg
http://visublog.mechafetus.com/system/images//persona3c.gif
― polyphonic, Saturday, 4 June 2011 19:40 (twelve years ago) link
civ 5's ok but its no epic mickey or final fantasy xiv
― Princess TamTam, Monday, 6 June 2011 00:01 (twelve years ago) link
lol i wonder if i can find my 'most disappointing' writeup for final fantz
also iir my ballot c u shld be pretty pleased by whats still 2 cum
― SEX-MEN: Worst Ass (Lamp), Monday, 6 June 2011 00:07 (twelve years ago) link
when are we doing most disappointing?
― Mordy, Monday, 6 June 2011 00:18 (twelve years ago) link
nobody voted for carcasonne btw
― When Zeester Met Koffie (forksclovetofu), Monday, 6 June 2011 01:09 (twelve years ago) link