By Adlai Rosh

2017 was an amazing year for games. Though, every year is an amazing year for games in my opinion. Through the ups and downs, the successes and controversies, you can’t deny that many amazing games came out this year. I’m going to be listing my personal favorites of the year. Keep in mind that this is purely my opinion, and I’m not going to mention games that I haven’t personally played.  It’s also numbered, but not in any particular order, because numbered lists are aesthetically pleasing and mentally stimulating.

 Night In The Woods

Of all the games on this list, the one I felt the most emotionally attached to is the one where every character is a talking cartoon animal. Make no mistake – despite the storybook-like visuals and aforementioned talking cartoon animals, Night in the Woodsis a gripping story-driven game. I’m not usually one to meticulously pursue side content but I fell in love with the dying town of Possum Springs and the colorful characters therein, and I spent quite a while meandering about the town talking to everyone and advancing their little storylines in between each plot hook. Night in the Woodsmay be about animals, but it felt more human than most games released this year.

Nier: Automata

Remember Nier, the strange RPG on the PS3? Nobody really did until its spinoff made waves earlier this year with its masterful storytelling so intimately entwined with the gameplay, and not to mention the sexy robot women. Set in a future where machines have taken over the earth, you play as 2B on a mission to liberate the planet for the remaining humans who fled to the moon. Tight combat and charming characters make Nier: Automata an experience that is as awesome as it is gut-wrenchingly emotional.

Persona 5

Full disclosure: I am an SMT fanboy. After YEARS worth of delays (“Coming Winter 2014 for PS3”, anyone?) it seemed difficult for the game to live up to the hype that it was building for itself. When release day rolled around, Persona 5 did not disappoint. From the battles, to the shops, to even the freakin’ pause menu, Persona 5 oozes style and class. Despite some rough patches when it comes to storytelling, the tale of a rag-tag bunch of misfits looking to become modern-day Robin Hoods delivered a 60+ hour epic experience that had me nodding along to the beat of every encounter.

Destiny 2

Despite issues plaguing its launch, and the controversy surrounding many of its design choices and divergence from the first game, I genuinely enjoyed Destiny 2. Though I won’t lie – some parts of it truly did suck, at launch. With the release of Curse of Osiris, a lot of the game’s opened up somewhat, but as it stands it’s a rather incomplete experience… But an incomplete experience that I enjoyed playing with friends. I had second thoughts about putting this on the list, but when I realized just how much time I spent on the game… Well, it would be a shame not to mention it here at least.

Honorable Mention: A Game Not Released In 2017 But I Want To Give A Shout-Out To Anyway

The final entry in Arc System Works’ BlazBlue series of 2D fighters, Central Fiction ties up every spinoff into the main storyline – literally. With characters from side-materials showing up, it’s incredible to me that they managed to fit and weld so much spinoff material into the main plot just in time for it to end. With a robust roster of characters, each playing differently, Central Fiction delivered a fun, stylish 2D fighting game that made me feel like a badass for executing even the simplest of combos.