2012 Video Game Reflections

I think I've put this off for long enough, and the results will be better because of it! At the end of the year, it is fun to look back on what made last year what it was, and look forward to what could make next year great. The latter part will come in my next posting (and it will come sooner rather than later). However, today is all about reflecting on 2012!

I took a different approach than last year. Using Raptr and a list of games released in 2012 on Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2012_in_video_gaming), I made a list of all the 2012 games that I played this year! At first, I was surprised how big the list was, but then I started to cut out demos and games I didn't play enough to really count, and the list got really small.... Oh well!

I also made up a list of the 2012 games that I really wanted to play, but never got a chance to. That is what you get first! Some of these are games that were cut from the first list, but I only played the demo or the first level or something like that. Those will be marked *.

• Far Cry 3
• Borderlands 2
• Assassin's Creed 3
• Dead or Alive 5
• Mark of the Ninja *
• The Last Story
• Xenoblade Chronicles
• Dishonored
• Final Fantasy XIII-2
• Sine Mora *
• Spelunky *
• Dyad *
• Dust: An Elysian Tail *
• FTL
• The Unfinished Swan
• Asura's Wrath*
• Spec Ops: The Line*

I've got some work to do next year...

Enough with the boring stuff, on to the games that I actually did play! First up: Mobile Games!

When I say Mobile Games, I mean handheld consoles (3DS, etc.) and phone/tablet games. This year, I have finally started to get into the iOS sphere, but only for about a week now. However, there are a few iOS games that made this list....

1. Adventure Time: Hey Ice King! Why'd You Steal Our Garbage?
2. Super Hexagon
3. Super Monsters Ate My Condo
4. Angry Birds: Star Wars
5. Sudoku Together
6. New Super Mario Bros. 2

Obviously, I don't play a whole lot of Mobile Games. While I'll be the first to admit that the Adventure Time game was not a marvel of game design, the writing matched the show perfectly, and I love the show, so it gets the top spot in my 2012 Mobile Games List. If New Super Mario Bros. 2 didn't feel like a game that I've played a few times already, it would be higher.

Now, you would expect that Retail Games (360, PS3, Wii, PC, etc.) would be my last list. You would be wrong if you expected that. Surprisingly, I only played 2 Retail Games enough to feel like they deserved to be here, so this list is really small!

1. XCOM: Enemy Unknown
2. Halo 4

Considering how much I have played both of these games in the short amount of time that I have owned them, this could have gone either way. However, XCOM is the game that got Halo 4 out of my Xbox 360, and XCOM has been in ever since, so it takes the cake.

That just leaves the biggie. Downloadable Games (XBLA, PSN, WiiWare, etc.). This is where most of my gaming money and time seems to go now. I don't feel like I should narrow this list down anymore than I already have, so you get my top 11!

1. Journey
2. Minecraft (The 360 version came out in 2012, and that's all I've played, so :P)
3. Virtua Fighter 5: Final Showdown
4. The Walking Dead
5. Fez
6. Alan Wake's American Nightmare
7. Rock Band Blitz
8. I Am Alive
9. Sonic 4 Episode 2
10. Warp
11. Quantum Conundrum

I would also like to point out that Journey is my favorite gaming experience of the year, and like El Shaddai in 2011, Journey is the game that defines 2012 for me.

Well, I know that you probably have your own feelings about 2012's games. But guess what. This is my blog. I would like to hear about your favorite games from 2012 though! Hit me up on Twitter. I love talking about video games. 

Also, look forward to seeing a 2013 resolution blog post really soon. I know I didn't do too well on my 2012 one (the Sonic challenge), but it was sacrificed for school and other games. Like the ones that I listed here today.