Another year of COVID times, another list of games I played. I have no idea if the number of games is larger or smaller than previous years, but it felt smaller this year. I could go back and count them, but I won’t because I’m a bad boy like that. Tough guy characters like me refuse to count lists, that’s just a rule.

To be on this list the game needed to:

Be released in 2021
Be a game I remember playing

If I include a little *** at the end, this means that I beat the game and rolled credits or I completed its highest objective. At the end, keep an eye open for the honourable mentions, which are games that for some reason or another didn’t fit on this list, likely because they released before 2021.

The list:

Hitman 3 - The bald, kind of buff man with a barcode on his head returns to end the lives of some bad dudes. I’ve enjoyed this franchise from the beginning for its bizarre mix of humour and gameplay. ***

Cyber Shadow - This is kind of like Ninja Gaiden with more things and explosions going on. It was fun.

Control: Ultimate Edition (PS5) - This was one of the best games of 2019 and replaying it, even a little bit, was so good. You play as the “director” of the FBC, a fake organization that deals in spooky things. Also features the best janitor in gaming. ***

Yakuza: Like A Dragon - I’ve never really clicked with a Yakuza game before. It’s odd mix of comedy and super dramatic stories has always rung oddly for me. This one works a lot better and is a turn based RPG. The characters are fun, goofy and charming. The only problem is that this game is like 100 billion hours long. I have no idea if I’m near the end of the game. There is a mini-game where you build a financial empire and one of your best employees is a rooster.

Maquette - If you know anything about me you’ll know that an indie puzzle game that tells the story of love and loss is right up my alley. That is this game, but some of the puzzles are not very good at communicating what they want you to do. I want to go back and finish it, but I haven’t.

Loop Hero - A weird little PC game where you control a hero who is seemingly stuck in a time loop wandering around a torturous little world where everything has been destroyed. It is a lot of fun and pretty hard.

Disco Elysium: The Final Cut - This game is so insanely good. I haven’t given it nearly the time it warrants and demands. The dialogue and roleplaying systems are sublime. You wake up as a disgusting amnesiac cop who seems to be at war with his own brain. And that’s just how the game starts! Fun!

Rogue Company (PS5) - Kind of like 3rd person CSGO, but with “edgy” characters. A perfectly serviceable but kind of boring game.

Returnal - A really, really hard science fiction shooter. I am halfway through this game and it’s fun. It’s also torture.

Call of the Sea - A puzzle game that I kind of liked. It was like easy Myst, but with a story about water people or something. It was okay. The title would also be great for a jazz album. ***

Knockout City - It’s a dodgeball game. It’s a perfectly fine multiplayer game that I had no time or attention for. Fun idea, but its longevity wasn’t there for me.

Final Fantasy 14 (PS5) - I have never been able to get into an MMO before, but this seems like maybe a good one? It has the usual ridiculous things where everyone is super powerful but you go around doing menial chores for merchants. They say the story is amazing, but I don’t think I have the literal 100s of hours to pour into this. My character looks cool though.

Final Fantasy VII Remake Intergrade - A powerful entry in the category of ridiculous video game titles. This is DLC for FF7 Remake that lets you play as Yuffie. It was fun and Yuffie is a great character, but the story is weird and I don’t really care for it all that much. ***

Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order (PS5) - This game is the only souls style game I’ve ever finished. It was fun then and it was fun now. Make more of these. ***

Wildermyth - I have played about 20 minutes of this game. It’s sort of a generational RPG? I think? I honestly don’t know. Seems good.

Dungeons and Dragons: Dark Alliance - Do you like broken games? Bad and unfun games? This is the one for you. Would not recommend.

Mario Golf: Super Rush - I really like Mario Golf games. I wish this one was weirder. Mario playing a round of normal golf is not really the point of a cartoon fantasy golf game.

Scarlet Nexus - The sort of game I would’ve really sunk a lot of time into when I was 16. Stylish and hilariously melodramatic (The game, not me at 16). Sadly in this era of a million games, it didn’t grab me enough to finish it.

A Plague Tale: Innocence (XSX) - A surprisingly good game. A wonderfully gripping story with some impressive visuals. I’m looking forward to the sequel. Best use of “giant swarm of rats” technology of the year award. ***

Microsoft Flight Simulator (XSX) - The Series X release of this game was a revelatory experience. All the fun, with less hassle and way better performance. I sunk a hilariously tragic amount of time into this game, just mindlessly flying routes locally.

The Ascent (XSX) - Fine game, I guess. The neon drenched future punk aesthetic was cool, but I didn’t really gel with the game and stopped playing after a couple hours.

Hades (XSX) - Just an excuse to plug this game again. I didn’t finish it on the Series X, but I’ve beaten this game so many times already. It’s good, just play it already. You play as the son of Hades and you’re mad at your dad. What else do you need to know?

Humankind - This is sort of supposed to be Civilization, but it wasn’t. Maybe I should go back and give it another try, but for now, no thank you. Civ 4 was voiced by Spock; you’ll need to do a lot better.

Twelve Minutes (XSX) - A tense mini-timeloop adventure.You relive the same 12 minutes over and over as an intruder breaks into your house and tries to hurt you and your partner. It’s spooky, tense and a little upsetting. The story will be polarizing to say the least, but FWIW I enjoyed the game. ***

Deathloop (PS5) - Arcane is one of my favourite studios and this game is excellent. A man relives the same day, and has to learn how to break free from the loop. A thrilling and fun action game with a little bit of sleuthing too. Excellent performances too! ***

Metroid Dread - A nice return for the Metroid series. It’s not my favourite, not even close, but it is a very good Metroid game and I enjoyed it a lot. Pretty tough, but I kind of think most of the games in the series are a little on the challenging side. ***

Back 4 Blood (XSX) - I didn’t really give it a chance, it seemed fine. A very obvious pseudo-sequel to Left 4 Dead. You shoot zombies and make your way through a map with other players. Your mileage will vary, but it’s fun enough.

Unpacking - A game where you unpack a person’s belongings. You experience every move of their life. It’s a sweet game that is surprisingly zen and affecting.

The Riftbreaker (XSX) - A sort of tower defense game where you also build a base and drive a giant mech. It’s kind of janky but also a lot of fun. Probably better to play on PC, but I didn’t.

Nobody Saves the World - It’s a zelda-ish game where you walk around and fight monsters. You also can turn into a horse and a rat. Really weird and mostly fun.

Dodgeball Academia - I really wanted to like this lite-RPG where you attend a Dodgeball school. Ultimately I didn’t like it that much.

The Good Life - I know there are big fans of this studio’s work, but I am not one of them. This game has brutal graphics, presentation and gameplay. I’m sure there’s a clever story or something, but I don’t have the endurance with so many better games to play.

Inscryption - A freaky card game/adventure game. I’m not very far into this, but I really dig whatever is going on. A surprisingly freaky game when a horrifying man/thing reaches across a table to kill you.

Guardians of the Galaxy - This game was fun, but it wasn’t exactly amazing. A decent story and passable gameplay. The performances were great, but I can only shoot a gelatinous cube so many times before it gets old. ***

Age of Empires IV - The main problem with this game is that it isn’t AOE2. I liked the documentaries about medieval and ancient warfare because I’m 1000 years old.

Forza Horizon 5 (XSX) - This game is really a lot of fun. I’m not a big fan of cars or car racing, but this game opens with you landing a car out of plane onto the side of a volcano. That’s a good game.

Tiny Tina’s Assault on Dragon Keep: A Wonderlands One-Shot Adventure - Borderlands is tiring.

Battlefield 2042 (PS5) - Kind of broken at launch. I think this game is good, but it needs some help. The negative press makes it out to be a lot worse than it is.

Death’s Door (XSX) - You play a crow/raven that is kind of like a grim reaper for creatures. It’s a fun and challenging adventure game. Best crows of the year.

Halo Infinite (XSX) - I’ve been trying to make my way through this series this year starting from the first Halo. It’s a pretty boring series for the most part and the hero is a faceless but surprisingly violent guy in a helmet who has a crush on the future equivalent of Siri. This is the continuation of that man’s story, if that sort of thing interests you.

Vampire Survivors - Did this game come out in 2021? I don’t know and I don’t care. This game where you play as some sort of hero and you just endlessly shoot things and waves of enemies is honestly one of the best games in recent memory. It costs $3 on steam and you should play it.

Wordle - The world’s hottest simple word game. I like it, but I also find the need to play it everyday to be a slow but steady drag. Also, words with double letters are nasty.

- Honourable Mentions -

Ori and the Will of the Wisps - Another really great game in the series. I’ve been really impressed with the output from this team. It’s more metroidvania goodness mixed with a sincerely touching story. ***

Dyson Sphere Project - I think I’m bad at this game, but any game where you mindlessly harvest resources and build giant factories in space is a good game by me.

Rocket League - You are a car with giant rockets attached to it. You play soccer while you fly through the air. This is the greatest sports game in ages.