The gaming hangover from the end of 2011 is finally over! So I felt like taking some time to let you folks on the Internet know how I felt about 2011 in terms of video gaming. Firstly, 2011 was a fantastic year for video games. Any gamer could tell you that we got bombarded with one of the best gaming years in recent history. That doesn’t mean that everything was all marshmallows and roses, however. There were some MAJOR disappointments, but we also had some great new announcements, and some strange occurrences, in 2011.
Biggest Disappointment
I know that this decision may fair unpopular, but I have to say that L.A. Noire was my biggest letdown in 2012. When I nominate a game as a let down, it’s not just about lacking quality, but quality vs. expectations. L.A. Noire was in no way a bad game; repetitive, thin, and lacking, yes, but was it a game of low quality, no. I’m not entirely sure what I was expecting out of Bondi’s first (and last) game. From the first trailers of L.A. Noire, I was instantly excited about a game that combined the playstyle and grime of Grand Theft Auto with the glam and majesty of the 1940s. Noire had superb presentation and beautiful graphics, but fell short in the gameplay department. The game started off so quickly but soon faded into a string of repetitive missions that all began to feel exactly the same. Puzzles were mere carbon copies of themselves, and conversations grew increasingly awkward. Even Cole, the game’s main character, starts out being incredibly likable, and ends the game in a fairly unsympathetic light (even after his death). I feel as though this character perk was designed to display that even a golden boy cop can be subject to the grimey underbelly of 40s LA.
LA Noire could have done much more, but ultimately felt like an empty game. Few games over the past decade have started out so well, to end up so bland. I never felt any need or desire to attack side missions, nor did I feel incredibly motivated to help folks on the street. For most of the second half of the game, I wanted to play the game just to finish it. After finishing LA Noire I felt empty and felt as though I should have used my time playing something else.
Sleeper Title of 2011
Let me get this out of the way, I don’t care too much for Rayman. I think he looks like some failed combination of a Saturday morning cartoon and a fast food mascot. I could see Rayman selling me extra cheeseburgers on a commercial for Burger King. So when I saw the first videos of Rayman Origins I wrote the game off. I then stumbled upon the demo one evening on the PSN. After playing 2 levels on the demo, I was hooked! I love 2D platformers, and have always felt as though they still have quite a bit of potential that has yet to be untapped. Rayman Origins is a strange and slightly overwhelming 2D platformer, but it’s the best platforming game to hit my television since last year’s Donkey Kong Country: Returns. I know that the game has probably sold well, and has scored some great review scores across the Internet, but it has most likely been lost to the giant wave of other AAA titles that came out in the fall of 2011. I’d go pick it up if I were you!
Biggest Win of 2011
The Protester was Time Magazine’s “Person of the Year” in 2011, and with good reason. People all over the world took their complaints to the streets, and protested governments and institutions all over the world. The Occupy Wall Street movement took over the media and parts of the US like downtown New York City. Gamers also protested this year, with great results. The most notable protest was brought to my attention by a small group that called themselves “Operation Rainfall”. OR is comprised of a group of highly dedicated Nintendo fans. Their main goal was to get three JRPGs to be released in the United States. These three games were: Xenoblade Chronicles, Pandora’s Tower, and The Last Story. Each of these games has been slated to be released in Europe, but not make their way over seas. OR banded together via Facebook and commanded a large following of RPG and Nintendo gamers to peacefully petition Nintendo to have these games released in the US. It turns out that it worked! In 2012, Xenoblade Chronicles will be released in the United States! So Operation Rainfall won a huge victory for fans of JRPGs. Now if that could only work for the PS3 version of Tales of Vesperia.
I could get into the best games of 2011, etc, but I figured I’d leave it at this. I hope you all enjoy 2012 as much as I loved the gaming in 2011! Look for some new videos in the coming months!
