JobyDrone's Ten Best Games of 2010

[Jobydrone]

For any and all who are interested, here's my top ten games of 2010.  The only criteria I used for considering these games were that they had to have been released between 1/1/10 and 12/31/2010, and I had to have played the game a significant enough amount to have formed a coherent opinion about it.  If the game was released on multiple consoles, I'll list all of them but specify the version I played in bold text.  Remember I am far from a professional games reporter, so there are quite a few games that are on other people's top ten lists that I simply haven't played.  I'll mention some of them at the end of the list.  That being said, I think you will get a more legitimate opinion from me about the games I have played because, unlike those in the games press, I actually paid full retail price for every one of them.  I think people's opinions are more likely be biased when they are given to them for free, especially when you need to be positive about what you are given in order to keep on getting free stuff.  Hence the major problem with games journalism these days.  Anyway, on to my favorite video games of 2010!

10.  Need For Speed: Hot Pursuit (iPad version) 

Here's a game that truly shows off the very best the iPad has to offer.  A super fun arcade style racer from Criterion, the makers of the truly excellent Burnout console racing series, this game breathes new life into the formerly tired Need for Speed franchise.  There are multiple race types to choose from, where you play as a cop, trying to take down a syndicate of bad guy car racers wreaking havoc on the roadways, or you can play as one of the syndicate trying to outrun the cops.  At your disposal are a host of fun weapons and gadgets to assist you, including EMP burst, roadblocks, oil slicks, spike strips, etc.  The visuals are top notch, and the game controls very nicely using the tilt functionality of the device.  There are two full campaigns, cop or criminal, to keep you playing for some time.  I've read that the various console versions of this game are superior as well, but I picked up the iPad release for only .99 cents on sale, so this just might be the best gaming value for the money all year for me.

9.  Darksiders (Playstation 3/Xbox 360)

This is a game for anyone that's ever wished that Nintendo's Legend of Zelda series of games was actually made for adults and not little kids.  Darksiders has all the great mechanics and elements of a Zelda game, like incremental powers and weapons gained over the course of the game, dungeons to explore, brain bending puzzles, and huge epic boss battles, wrapped in a much more mature and adult themed package than Nintendo would ever dream of offering.  You play as War, one of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, as you explore the post-apocalyptic ruins of Earth to try to determine what exactly is going on.  This game is a great example of a fresh take breathing new life into old gameplay mechanics.


8.  God of War: Ghost of Sparta (Playstation Portable)

This is the second handheld God of War game released on the PSP, a follow up to the great PSP game God of War: Chains of Olympus from early last year.  For those that don't know, the God of War series was a huge success on last generation's Playstation 2, and features brutal, bloody, hack and slash game play as you control Kratos as he terrorizes and murders his way through the Greek Pantheon.  The games are known for their over the top violence and visceral gore, and Ghost of Sparta is no different.  This game could very well be the last great game release for the dying Playstation Portable, and it's truly a shame because it shows better than almost anything that the little PSP is capable of offering some truly fantastic gaming experiences.

7.  Heavy Rain (Playstation 3)

Heavy Rain takes the prize for the most original and innovative idea in gaming in 2010, maybe in the past ten years of gaming.  You play as four major characters all involved in some way with the investigation of the kidnapping of a child, who may or may not be the latest victim of a serial killer known as the Origami Killer.  What's so different about this game is the way you control your character:  as you move your way through the gorgeously detailed environments, you interact with objects and events through timed button presses and manipulation of the thumbsticks on the controller.  It's very difficult to describe accurately, suffice to say you have never played a game that controls quite like this.  The coolest thing about this game is that it plays a lot like one of those old "Choose Your Own Adventure" books, and there are supposedly over 30 different ways the story can play out.  You can even have major playable characters die along the way, and the story continues on and adjusts to compensate for losing that character.  There are some flaws here, the story gets a little bit ridiculous, and as fresh as the control scheme is, it can get a Little boring after a while as you don't ever really feel completely in control of your actions.  This game is definitely not for kids, with a very mature storyline and perhaps the first truly interactive sex scene ever released in a mainstream console video game.  Even with it's flaws this is a "must play" as the most original and unique leap forward in interactive storytelling.


6.  Back To the Future: The Game (PC/Mac)

Telltale Games is a studio that does one thing, and the one thing they do is great.  They are single-handedly keeping the point and click adventure genre alive and relevant in today's increasingly crowded gaming world.  Anyone that played video games through the 90's remembers the fantastic adventure games like Grim Fandango, Tales From Monkey Island, Myst, and countless others.  As gaming evolved in the 21st century, the humor and story focus of these types of games gave way to more visceral experiences intent more on delivering graphical fidelity and pulse pounding excitement.  Telltale's Back To the Future: the Game picks up about six months after the end of BTTF 3.  When out of nowhere, the time travelling Delorean returns with an ominous message from Doc Brown, Marty McFly is thrust into yet another adventure through time as he travels to prohibition era 1930's Hill Valley.  All our beloved characters are here, including George McFly, the evil Biff Tannen, good old Doc Brown (voiced again by Christopher Lloyd who seems to be having the time of his life with this role) and of course Marty, whose voice actor sounds so much like the Michael J Fox from '85 that you would swear the developers had a time machine of their own.  The game is being released in five chapters, one a month, so you pay full price now for the first part and get the rest as they are released incrementally.  Bob Gale, one of the writers of the original trilogy, was heavily consulted in creating the story for this game which seems as authentic and interesting as Back to the Future 4 might have been if they ever made it.  Super fun fan service.

5.  Super Mario Galaxy 2 (Wii)

Nintendo hit another home run with Mario Galaxy 2.  3D platforming gameplay just doesn't get any better than this.  Just like the first game, every level of Mario Galaxy 2 brings something new and unique to the table.  Cute fun characters, hilarious boss battles, and seriously challenging gameplay that never gets frustratingly hard, makes this one of the best experiences of 2010.  They can sure make great Mario games there at Nintendo, I just wish they would do something else that would justify my $250 purchase of a Wii that largely does nothing but gather dust in my living room.

4.  Fallout:  New Vegas (Xbox 360/Playstation 3)

You can read my full review of this great game elsewhere in the Games section of the Treks in Sci Fi Forums.  You play as a double crossed "courier" in the post apocalyptic wastelands of Nevada, where you quest to find the reasons for your betrayal and to take your revenge on the men responsible. It's an extremely deep hybrid of a character based role playing game and action shooter.  The world is huge, and you can explore for hours and hours on end without advancing any of the main storyline or quests if you so choose, and more likely than not you'll never get bored doing so.  There's always something weird, funny, scary, or exciting around each corner.  There's lots of really cool, creative quests to undertake, a variety of mutants and irradiated monsters to fight, and tons off cool treasure and new weapons to find. You can customize your character to play multiple ways, from a stealth based melee weapon specialist, or a smooth talking scientist that loves laser weapons, to a brutish, hulking lout that specializes in unarmed combat, or really any combination you can think of.   I've spent about 40 hours in this game now and still am only about halfway done with the main story, so there's a lot of fun to be had here.

3.  World of Warcraft: Cataclysm (PC/Mac)

What more can I say about WoW than has already been said by me, Rico, and several others already here on these forums.  WoW is an amazing animal in gaming, in that a game originally released in 2004 is still wildly popular and making hundreds of millions of dollars a year six years later.  It's through patches and expansions like Cataclysm that keep this game fresh and interesting for so many players.  With Cataclysm, Blizzard has totally remade this game from level 1 all the way up to level 85, reworking old zones and redoing old quests to give people wanting to start all over again with a new Goblin or Worgen character, races new to this expansion, have more reason to do so.  The new zones geared for characters lvl 80-85 are gorgeous and brilliantly designed.  That being said, some of you may be surprised to hear I've cancelled my WoW account.  I've finished the new areas now, and although fun and interesting, the newly remade zones aren't different enough to keep me playing for months on end this time.  After all, there was tons of content in "Vanilla" WoW I never saw, not having built every conceivable race/class combination or done all the end game raids through the first three expansions.  Realistically, I do not have the time or desire to expend the effort that it would take to learn and succeed at the the content designed for end game players of this game.  I'll keep playing through till my subscription expires at the end of this month, but I think I'll be okay putting this one behind me again after it lapses.  Still, the new zones and fun time I had levelling to 85 makes this one of the best gaming experiences of 2010 for me.

2.  Red Dead Redemption (Xbox 360/Playstation 3)

Rockstar Games, the makers of the infamous Grand Theft Auto series, have created one of the most amazing game worlds I've ever seen in Red Dead Redemption.  They've taken the basic mechanics of the open world gameplay they perfected in the GTA series, and translated it to a character and world I find much more compelling and interesting, that of the Wild West.  In it you play as John Marston, a former gunslinger and criminal who wants nothing more than to reform his old ways and retire to his ranch with his wife and son.  When corrupt government officials kidnap your wife and son, you are forced to do their bidding and hunt down the members of your old gang.  Your adventures take you all across the wild west and Mexico. The environments are breathtakingly gorgeous and the Rockstar signature sense of humor and charm is full force all through this game.  There's so much to do, from treasure hunting, tracking and skinning animals in the wild, bounty missions, gambling mini games, and much morethat you can play for hours without advancing the main quest or story if you choose.  By the end of the game, you feel truly attached to this character, and the story is so meticulously crafted that you feel genuinely for the plight of John Marston.  The ending is probably the very best ending of any game I've ever experienced.  I can't recommend this game more highly.

1.  Mass Effect 2 (Xbox 360)

Bioware Studios is responsible for some of the greatest role playing games ever made, including the much beloved Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic for the original Xbox and PC.  They have topped that game however with what in my opinion is their crowning achievement and the best game of 2010, Mass Effect 2.  Many games have tried to combine role playing elements with action based shooting, but so far none have succeeded like Mass Effect 2.  You create your character from the ground up, and the story is so brilliantly conceived that you truly feel like you have made that character your own by the end of the game.  There are multiple character classes you can play, using pure biotic (magic) abilities, or more weapons combat focused, or a hybrid of the two.  Bioware is known for it's deep conversation system, and characters you meet along the way in this game quite often have very interesting things to tell you.  There's a rich and fully fleshed out universe available to learn about through the conversations you have with characters you meet as well as the incredibly detailed codex you can access at anytime through the game menu.  Based on different choices you make through the game with your actions and conversations, you gain Paragon or Renegade points, which over time add up to open even more options which help you complete quests or finish conversations in unique and interesting ways.  Nothing though is more satisfying than the combat in this game though.  I played as a pure biotic user, and it is so much fun using my force pull to send an enemy helplessly floating into the air towards me as I pop them off with my handgun...or slam them into the ground, or toss them off a cliff, or suck them into a black hole...there's just so many options!  Bioware Studios is currently working on a new massively multiplayer RPG based on their Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic universe, and as much as I am looking forward to checking that game out, I truly hope it doesn't come at the expense of the end of the Mass Effect trilogy.  I just can't wait to see how they top this game with Mass Effect 3.

So there you have it, JobyDrone's top ten games of 2010.  Like I said at the top of the post, this list can only be based on games I have actually played.  I'm sure games like Assassin's Creed Brotherhood, Halo Reach, Kirby's Epic Yarn, Call Of Duty Black Ops, and God of War 3 might all have found places on this list had I had the time or money to play them.  I know very few of you made it down to this part of the post, I am certain the majority said TLDR and moved on.  But for those of you that do read this far, I would love to hear from you to see what you think of my choices and what some of your favorite games of the past year have been.  Thanks for reading and here's to an epic 2011 for all of us!

[Rico]

What a great post Joby.  I'm very intrigued to play a couple of those games - especially Mass Effect 2 (should I play number 1 first?) and Heavy Rain.  If you feel like summarizing it into a 3-5 minute audio comment, send it in for the upcoming podcast.

[Jobydrone]

Maybe I will Rico!  It's been a while since I've contributed to the podcast.  It's intimidating because the production value of some of your other frequent contributors is so high but I'll see what I can do.

I'd say skip Mass Effect 1.  Mass Effect 2 is such a significant improvement in every way to the first game, and the original Mass Effect is a very long game, and there's a real danger that you could get bogged down in the first game and never see how much has improved in the second.  Do a Wiki searrch of the story though, and that's not to say the original Mass Effect is bad.  It's just that 2 is so much better in every way.

[Rico]

Cool.  Is Mass Effect 2 as good (or the same - or better in any way) on the PS3?  That's the system I have here in Rockford.

[KingIsaacLinksr]

Cool.  Is Mass Effect 2 as good (or the same - or better in any way) on the PS3?  That's the system I have here in Rockford.

Mass Effect 2 is awesome on the PS3, way better than on Xbox 360 and looks about the same on the PC.  (Except that the PC one is designed for PC, obviously).  

If your playing the PS3 version, you don't actually need to read the wiki on ME1 because ME2 on the PS3 gives you the story from ME1 in comic book form.  Awesome stuff.  :)  I play it on the PC and its easily my favorite game of 2010. 

@Joby, thank you for not quoting any games from Ubisoft.  I haven't played many of those games so I can't agree or disagree with the list other than ME2.  :)

King

[Jobydrone]

Is it out yet on PS3?  I thought it wasn't coming until later this year?

Ha ha King, I just finished assassin's Creed 2 from Ubi, and loved it!  I plan to play Brotherhood soon.  What do you have against them?

[Rico]

Mass Effect 2 comes out for the PS3 on Jan. 18th.  Some info on the digital comic Tim mentions here:

http://www.joystiq.com/2010/12/17/mass-effect-2s-ps3-exclusive-comic-how-it-works/

[KingIsaacLinksr]

Is it out yet on PS3?  I thought it wasn't coming until later this year?

Ha ha King, I just finished assassin's Creed 2 from Ubi, and loved it!  I plan to play Brotherhood soon.  What do you have against them?

ME2 is coming to PS3 later this month if its not already out.  (Unsure, I don't pay attention to PS3 much).  

I have big issues with Ubisoft's invasive and unnecessary DRM policies they have on their games.  Its supposed to be anti-pirate measures, except that pirates have already found a way around their DRM so guess who it hurts?  Their legitimate customers.  If I cannot play Assassin's Creed 2 whenever I want without internet, then I will pirate it.  I would have paid $60 for it, but since Ubisoft declared that we will play it whenever they decide we can (IE: Whenever their server is online), I blacklisted the company.  Their games are good, I'll give them that, but they are not nearly as good as some of the big companies like Blizzard, Bioware and others.  Even those companies don't use this DRM.  So why does Ubisoft think that its software deserves the DRM?  

Its the same as Microsoft's  "Genuine-checker".  Pirates have already gotten around it so who does it hurt?  The legitimate customer.  I have had my legit, bought from Newegg, Windows 7 OS give me the message: "This is not a legit copy of Windows 7".  Thankfully restarting the computer fixes that, but I worry one day it'll quit working and then my copy will no longer be legit.  And all Microsoft will say is: "PAY UP!".  

MMORPG Online games are one thing since they have to be server-based to play and I fully understand that reasoning.  But DRM that hurts the customer is wrong.  Plain and simple.  "The more systems you try to control, the more that slip through your fingers". -Lea.  Words to live by, but companies try to control regardless.  Ubisoft and Gameloft lost my respect and $$ when they said this DRM was the greatest thing they invented to counter pirates.  I don't actively pirate much of anything.  So Ubisoft's new policy only hurt me.  I would have paid for the game.  But I didn't.  And I won't pick up AC: Brotherhood either.  Or anything else they develop.  Which is a pity because I probably would have bought about 6 games by now from them, but they chose this path...that I cannot excuse.  And what happens when Ubisoft's Servers come down permanently?  I have useless games that I cannot play because the server is no longer online.  Fail.  

Sorry for the rant, but companies trying to control this stuff and hurt customers is something I'm passionate about stopping.  

Case-in-point: Microsoft removed the Genuine Checker from Microsoft Office products because they found it hurt more legitimate customers than helped stopped piracy.  Even MS admitted this invasive DRM is not working. 

King

[KingIsaacLinksr]

I should probably also mention that this only affects PC gamers.  From what I've heard, PS3 and Xbox360 don't have this DRM on their version of the game. 

King

[Jobydrone]

I thought as much, I have heard about the problems PC gamers have been having with Ubisoft games, particularly those consumers with spotty internet conncections.  Originally I believe that if someone's internet went out while they were playing the game, it crashed immediately without saving.  Quite a huge deficiency.  I believe they patched that particular problem quickly though. 

I do the majority of my gaming on console unless something is simply not available there, so DRM is not an issue for me.

[KingIsaacLinksr]

I thought as much, I have heard about the problems PC gamers have been having with Ubisoft games, particularly those consumers with spotty internet conncections.  Originally I believe that if someone's internet went out while they were playing the game, it crashed immediately without saving.  Quite a huge deficiency.  I believe they patched that particular problem quickly though. 

I do the majority of my gaming on console unless something is simply not available there, so DRM is not an issue for me.

Ahh I see.  And yes, if you spotty connections, the game tends to disconnect a lot.  I can't trust my internet atm so games like these also present a problem.  But its still the spirit of the DRM that I argue with.  I don't care if internet is up 24/7, it fails time to time and Ubisoft is under no compulsion to keep their servers up.  A worrying combo.

King

[Jobydrone]

I would have to imagine that were Ubisoft to knowingly bring down their DRM servers that they would force a patch to their games so that people who purchased them could still play.  No company would knowingly piss off their entire base of PC customers like that!  I think the spirit of DRM is in general sound...publishers and creators want to get paid for the work they do, and piracy is rampant these days, worse than ever before.  It's unfortunate that whatever steps companies take to protect their products, there are unscrupulous people out there that immediately undermine their efforts and continue to steal and to make it easy for other people to do the same.  Then there's people like you, that claim to be honest, legitimate customers that are truly hampered by draconian DRM measures that prevent them from playing a game the right way.  I don't know what the answer is, do you have a solution that's better?

[X]

Mass Effect 2 is awesome on the PS3, way better than on Xbox 360 and looks about the same on the PC.  (Except that the PC one is designed for PC, obviously).  
King

How the hell is Mass Effect 2 better on PS3 when you have never played it and it's never been released? Would you like to explain that one? Other than fanboy rhetoric about PS3 being better, you pretty much decided to say something is way better than something else with nothing to support it.

As to your other points, it seems more like you are looking for a reason to pirate stuff more than anything. DRM has ALWAYS existed in computer stuff. If they don't have DMR, you can pass copies around the neighborhood and only need to buy one copy. I think that online DMR is a LOT better for people with computers that don't have internal Disc drives, which was the old standard of DRM in checking the disc.

PS3 and XBOX 360 both have DMR. You need to have the disc in the drive to play the game even if it's been copied to your system.

I don't see how them finding a way to protect their product from over distribution is a bad thing at all. Too many people complained about the disc verification and they changed it. Blizzard does the same thing. I'm pretty sure I need my internet to play Starcraft. Hasn't been a problem. I play when I want to play and when my internet connect fails ... I do the odd adult thing of getting off my games and trying to figure out the problem. I don't cry about my game not saving .... which, from what I've heard AC BH does have an autosave feature. Which, while something might be lost, the problem isn't the game, it's your internet connect.

I don't see how a crappy internet equates to hurting a game company when you should be going after the ISP.

[X]

Last point. If someone want to steal things, just be honest with yourself about it. I can't even see a hint of logic in stealing from one company because you aren't happy with the service provided by a company that has nothing to do with them. Yet you still pay the company that you have the problem with.

That's like deciding to steal cars and your justification is that you don't like airline delays.

[KingIsaacLinksr]

Last point. If someone want to steal things, just be honest with yourself about it. I can't even see a hint of logic in stealing from one company because you aren't happy with the service provided by a company that has nothing to do with them. Yet you still pay the company that you have the problem with.

That's like deciding to steal cars and your justification is that you don't like airline delays.

Actually, before you go bite my head off (sheesh), there is a video floating around that shows a comparison of Xbox 360's graphic engine VS PS3's Graphic Engine with Mass Effect 2.  PS3 is visibly better.  PS3 version also gives you the comic-book intro that has the ME1 storyline in it.  I believe that video was produced by Bioware themselves.  So I'm speaking entirely from their perspective.  Now admittedly, I have no idea if Xbox 360 will get that comic book, but since it has ME1 in game form already on the XBOX, I'm assuming not.  I am not a fanboy of either system and have gone on record stating both systems are flawed and a waste of $$.  Seeing as I have neither system I don't know how you can even Begin to accuse me of being a "Fanboy".  Both companies are equal in my mind atm as both have their ups and downs.  

Discs doesn't compare to the internet/servers, because a disc doesn't just suddenly quit working or go offline.  (Ignoring hardware issues).  Ubisoft's servers aren't guaranteed.  What would you do if Ubisoft's servers quit working forever next week?  You would have wasted all that $$ on games because they no longer will turn on.  I have PC games from 10 years ago that still work, but their companies no longer exist.  If they did the same thing that Ubisoft had done, they would no longer run and I wouldn't be able to enjoy them ever again.  What say you to that?  Ubisoft's games are now put on a time limit of when we must play them, since their servers may quit working in the future.  We all know how gaming companies come and go and there are very few that have survived the harsh landscape that is video games.  

The internet comment is due to the fact that Centurylink has a monopoly in our area and they could care less about providing a decent service.  As internet is required period for my school work, our hands are forced to have it available.  I would love to change companies believe me.  Every time I call their "Tech support", they just blame us and don't even try to send a tech out to help.  Laughing all the way to the bank.  My AT&T 3G speed is faster sometimes than our WiFi, that's how sad it is right now.  I have tried many times now to fix it.  But I've given up, since all evidence points to Centurylink and they won't do anything about it.  

I don't pirate jack squat, and actually regret "obtaining" AC2 the way I did.  I have removed it and I also mentioned I won't even touch the rest of Ubisoft's production.  Legally or otherwise.  So don't think I am trying to justify pirating when I really am not.  I strongly disagree with piracy as a whole.  Developers deserve their payment as it is their job.  Ubisoft went a step too far in their greed.  Many other companies have realized that DRM is not the answer as it gives them a bad customer reputation.  The only reason Ubisoft has survived with this DRM so far is that their games are popular on Xbox and PS3.  If they were PC-only, they would have been chewed up and destroyed by  now.  

And last I checked I could play Starcraft 2 without an internet signal.  I can always check though.  Starcraft Original is playable without internet.

King