POLL is YOU: Thirteenth Coint and Plick results (best games of 2019)

Also later this month Super Mega Baseball 3 comes out, and as I understand the demo will let you play unlimited Pennant Race games, so if anybody's curious, that'll be a great way to check it out.

I was tempted to vote for Obra Dinn but I played it in '18 so I refrained. Absolutely love that game, though. Speaking of temptations, I was also tempted to throw in a vote for Frog Fractions on the non-2019 GOTY side poll just to wind up the haters, heh.

Gave Sayonara Wild Hearts most of those points that it got. I just absolutely fell in love with it. The gameplay is simple but fun, but most of all it nails the vibe of big queer heartbreak so well.

Cook Serve Delicious 2 is lovely for coop, gets impossible for single player, and criminal for asking you to fill orders for tacos with rice as a filling. My vote.

(I think this year is the first time I’ve ever failed to vote in a c&p but if I had done, Sayonara Wild Hearts would’ve had an extra 30 points from me. It was my favourite game of last year).

To nick a line from RPS, What's amazing about Supraland is not that it has the confidence to claim that it's "a mix between Portal, Zelda and Metroid", but that it actually gets pretty close. There's a demo on Steam - the game is high on my list.

(of games to play this year, not my ballot, since I didn't play enough current games to etc etc)

i was the other vote for Supraland, its combination of metroidvania-style exploration and engaging puzzles in 3D is superb. it has its problems (combat is pretty forgettable, odd sense of humour) but what it does well it does so well that it makes up for that.

also voted for Disco Elysium which is a one-of-a-kind combat-less RPG/point & click adventure game hybrid of sorts. it's very driven by text and luckily for it, the writing is on a level far beyond most games

i did play Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom but got bored towards the end and never finished it. it simply didn't live up to what i was hoping for from a metroidvania and one boss was too frustrating to bother with. the combat was not particularly fun. it was linear to the point of not being particularly interesting exploration-wise, had too much of a focus on precision platforming challenges that were more frustrating than engaging. a lot of puzzles that were confusing in a bad way (and i love la-mulana so i'm happy enough with complex puzzles)

combat was not particularly fun, some bosses were especially

oh whoops meant to delete that last paragraph

*rubs hands together*

HERE WE GO

https://i.imgur.com/m6iCFVN.png
14 - Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night - 35 points / 2 Votes
Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Microsoft Windows

monster boy is one of those games i would never dream of actually playing, but which reminds me of the games of my youth and which is fun to watch someone else play.

https://i.imgur.com/4IqIXoD.png
14 - Wingspan - 35 points / 2 Votes
Board game (out on Steam in 2020)

who here remembers playing board games with friends

(that's our last tie! doesn't mean it isn't close though...........)

this is the second time i've thought about paul mccartney this morning

wingspan is such a precious + sweet game. low intensity so great for non-gamers, the birds are gorgeous, the gameplay is soothing and chill. the balance is mostly good (tho there are a few cards that if you get them early you can steamroll with)

every bird card is unique and painted

are there bird facts? recent games have gotten me used to learning animal trivia as i play

indeed! you will learn about many different birds as you play. their habitats, nest building, fecundity, wingspan, consumption habits etc

wingspan is a decent entry-level eurogame but if you're not in it for the bird theme there's a lot of better ones

(most people are in it for the bird theme)

https://i.imgur.com/dSP9I0t.png
13 - A Short Hike - 35 points / 3 Votes
Microsoft Windows, Linux, Macintosh operating systems

kind of a perfect game for the hour or 2 it takes to complete it

sounds pretty short for a game but actually pretty decently long for a hike

a good day hike is several hours longer than this game imo

a short hike is good imo

feels great to fly

https://i.imgur.com/WWVMWE9.png
11 - The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening - 39 points / 3 Votes
Nintndo Switch

fuck, i missed one. double post i guess!

https://i.imgur.com/xV8ijU3.png
12 - Hypnospace Outlaw - 35 points / 1.33 First-place votes / 2 Votes
Microsoft Windows, Linux, macOS, Macintosh operating systems

the only one where i had to nestle the title in sideways to make it work with the screenshot

rly wanna check this one out (hypnospace outlaw)

link's awakening is a great game but i played it in 93 so couldn't qualify for my ballot

hypnospace outlaw i haven't played yet but is on my computer now i guess i should prioritize it

Ah shit, I really wanted to play Hypnospace Outlaw!

with this dn i shd be ashamed of myself for almost forgetting to post that one (and ashamed for not playing it yet)

https://i.imgur.com/msSNuE5.png
10 - Slay the Spire - 39 points / 5 Votes
Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Microsoft Windows, Macintosh operating systems, Linux (iOS and Android in 2020)

hypnospace outlaw was my goty, really fun throwback to an intensely specific time and place (the place is online)

https://i.imgur.com/kCiXRT4.png
9 - Super Mario Maker 2 - 46 points / 5 Votes
Nintendo Switch

that's the last one before number REALLY go up

re: slay the spire, i can't actually remember if it made my ballot but i did spend a LOT of time with it last year. an excellent little... whatever it is. i don't really play roguelikes, or deckbuilders, but I think it's both of those? it's very satisfying to get far in (I have even "beaten" it 2 or 3 times). when you uncover cool card combos you feel like a genius.

it is indeed a roguelike deckbuilder

I voted for SMM2 despite not playing it myself. The variety of user levels that you can see on youtube is amazing.

I did play smm2 but also voted for it on the strength of its YouTube videos

https://i.imgur.com/9AWQPvA.png
8 - Dragon Quest 11 Definitive Edition - 70 points / 0.83 First-place votes / 3 Votes
Nintendo Switch (Playstation 4, Nintendo 3DS, Microsoft Windows (non-"definitive" editions) 2017)

i've come around on this game being good but it still feels like a greatest hits album of jrpg bits to me without a strong throughline. also the third act kinda ruins the whole story in the service of one or two Whoa Cool moments

maybe the version i played wasn't Definitive enough

https://i.imgur.com/XQ4KAcc.png
7 - Death Stranding - 81 points / 1 First-place vote / 6 Votes
Playstation 4 (Windows in 2020)

i really need to finish that game. i've gotten the internet all the way across the rocky mountains, but then started to get a little bored

My co-first place! it was so refreshing to haave a kojima weirdo game with a glimmer of hope in it?

my other co-first is coming up next...

https://i.imgur.com/pm0nJNx.png
6 - Fire Emblem: Three Houses - 82 points / 1.5 First-place votes / 6 Votes
Nintendo Switch