It’s that time of year where we all think about our Game of the Year, but with more games being released every year it gets harder and harder. So lets start with the basics, what have we actually seen?
Sony released the PsVita; a handheld console which tried to bridge the gap between gaming at home and on the move. Launched with the latest Uncharted game in the series (my favourite) and a few augmented reality games where you could dive and shoot. It’s a solid handheld experience offering fantastic graphics and gameplay no matter there you are, but have there been enough great games?
Nintendo released their new home console only recently boasting a controller with a build in touch screen. Asynchronous gameplay is what Nintendo said the Wii U brings to our homes, and right so because it does; NintendoLand features a fantastic set of mini-games a whole family can enjoy. They’ve once again changed the way you play a game, they’ve developed a console which brings hardcore and family gamers together, but will they win their old fans back from the Xbox360 and PS3?
Gaming series have been continued with some including their final act; developers have even changed the last moments to please us gamers. If you don’t remember the game I’ll give you hint:
1st Word – Weight of something
2nd Word – The ****** of something when done
3rd Word – it’s a number I’ve just said
Telltale have to be mentioned for developing the fantastic The Walking Dead episodic adventure which has kept me hooked since the beginning. It had everything a good game should have; tension, action, sadness and a killer ending….. I still don’t even want to think about it to be honest…..
We’ve seen the future of MMORPGs subscription plans, monthly costs are going out with the Free-To-Play model being favourited by developers. Guild Wars 2 I’m sure has helped with this future, and with Star Wars Old Republic and The Secret World also removing monthly costs it’s a few more nails in that coffin pay monthly coffin.
But for me there’s been 1 surprise of this year…. Indie Games. It’s been the first year I’ve fully understood and got behind the indie gaming scene, but then that could be because its the first year it’s had the attention it deserves. Some of my favourite games of the year have cost me under £20 and been created by a small team which can be as little as 1 guy. Natural Selection 2 (Review), FTL: Faster Than Light (Review), Air Buccaneers (Review Inbound Soon), Fez (Review) and Minecraft are some of my favourite games of the year, all developed by an indie company. Now the term Indie can be confusing… I mean is Mojang an indie company??? They’ve sold over 8 million copies of Minecraft on the PC and over 4 million on Xbox360, it’s top-selling on both platforms. I don’t see them as an indie company anymore but a company who has indie roots.
For me it’s also been the year for the patient gamers, the gamers who can wait 2 months for a game to go on sale for 50% it’s release price. It seems to be a standard sales pattern for all games now, see my logic below.
Now it is just a few fancy graph that I made from Excel but just think about it, because I’m sure you’ve seen it just like me. Games are 50% cheaper only a few months after release…. I’m going to do a more serious post on this but for now just think about it.
And to finish I do need to say a word about PC gaming, because I’ve been converted. I built my desktop PC beginning of the year and I’d day it’s received the most amount of game time then all my consoles out together. And why you may ask… 2 words… “Steam”….”Sale”. They come around about 4 times a year; Christmas, Easter, Summer and Autumn. Each time offering games which have only been out for a few months for half the price, how do you say no? Steam has also been my platform for buying and playing indie games because of the library it has to offer, there’s a huge selection just waiting to be played.
So what’s been my highlight in gaming this year you may ask? Well it’s simple really… You guys, our readers. 16bits has grown so much this year and I want to thank everyone for reading what we have to say and getting involved.
To properly thank you I’ve got 2 Indie games to giveaway, the fantastic FTL:Faster Than Light and the gruesome but good fun Hotline Miami. I picked these because they really show what great content is out there as long as your willing to give them a try!
To win our copy of Hotline Miami for PC (via Steam) I want you to tell me your gaming highlight of 2012, it doesn’t have to be a game it could be going to an event, meeting someone famous in the gaming world or anything else gaming related. So leave your gaming highlight of 2012 in a comment below by 23/12/2012 9pm (GMT) to enter.
To win FTL:Faster than light follow us @16bitsgames where we’ll be running a RT and Follow competition this weekend closing on Christmas Eve.
We will do our games of the year article a little closer to next year… So next week, but until then from everyone here at the 16bits team:
MERRY CHRISTMAS and HAPPY NEW YEAR(incase we’re late)
