My Top 5 Games Of 2014

Merry Christmahanakwanzaa fellow Otaku & metal heads!

With the year fast approaching it’s end, geeks like me often look back on the games that were released in recent times, and reflect on what they offered to the gaming community. Sometimes it was their quality, other times is was the fun factor, and on a few occasions the reactions they induced in people. 2014 was certainly an interesting year: Old classics came back, surprises were rampant, and powerhouse franchises continued dominance in the mark. I play some fun games this go around, a few of which I didn’t expect to pop up. With that said, here are my top 5 games of 2014. Hope you like it!

5) Call of Duty: Ghosts

Right now, most of you that are looking at this spot, are probably lighting some torches and sharpening a pitchfork or two. Truth be told, I understand your anger. Ghosts is by far a dark stain on the Call of Duty series, and everything that Black Ops 2 did right, this game did the exact opposite. Boring story, uninteresting characters, a multiplayer that was filled with hackers, and so forth (I didn’t even finish the singleplayer, cause I hated this game so much). So, with all of the problems that the game has, why would I put it on a “top 5 games of the year” list? Well....

Because there are at least pieces of the game I enjoy! Despite the story’s blandness, I definitely find the setting interesting (Dystopian America is always something that catches my fancy). I’m always interested in the weapons that a Call of Duty will use, and this was definitely one of the more unique weapon selections. The new Extinction mode is an interesting alternative to the Zombies mode that Treyarch provides, as the alien menace can be quite threatening. Even the DLC isn’t bad, as it provides some much needed lifeblood for the game, and the added multiplayer/Extinction levels have some personality to them. Yeah, Ghosts is not that good of a Call of Duty entry, but there’s definitely parts of it that aren’t horrendous.

4) Wolf Pack/Doom 3: BFG Edition/Blood: One Unit Whole Blood

I got the both of these during the Steam Sale this summer for a pretty penny. Now I hadn’t played any of the games within the Wolf Pack for quite a while. I certainly played Spear of Destiny many times on my Laptop (Thanks to a Dos emulator), but I hadn’t touched Wolfenstein 3d in years! Wolf3d is definitely a breath of fresh air, as the twitch-style of gameplay is a rarity in the modern age of first-person-shooters. 4 weapons are all you need to mow down an army of Nazis, not to mention vicious guard dogs, and horrifying mutants. Return to Castle Wolfenstein was a nice treat, as I hadn’t played that game in almost 3 years! I can’t say much about the game, other than it definitely needs to go into a first-person-shooter vault, and dug up when future generations find it.

Now, onto the BFG Edition of Doom 3. I’ve played Doom 3 plus the expansion plenty of times, and I’ve never ever gotten sick of playing it. With this edition on sale. I just had to jump on the chance to buy grab it. Not only did it include Doom 3 & it’s expansion, but there was also the original Doom and Doom 2 included. Now Doom 2 I had played over & over due to one of the independent Doom platforms, but the original game I hadn’t touched in eons, so that was really something.

Perhaps the most surprising game I found this year was Blood on steam. It was on sale this past Halloween for just $2.49, but what I didn’t realize was that it had been on the service platform since July, when it was available for the still inexpensive $4.99 dollars. If you were a fan of Duke Nukem 3d and it’s contemporaries (Shadow Warrior & Redneck Rampage), you’ll find that Blood shares a lot of things in common with then. Basic story, quirky character, interesting setting, and a overall good time. Instead of parodying alien & action movies, Blood relies on gothic horror & horror movies for it’s inspiration & comedy. The main character still likes to be crude from time to time, but his humor is more sophisticated when compared to characters like Duke Nukem or Lo Wang. If you want a 90s shooter with a darker edge, then Blood is perfect for your needs.

3) Putt Putt: Goes to the Moon/Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel

When I first saw that the Putt Putt franchise was coming to Steam, I was downright baffled. Being over a decade old (The first game came out back in 1992), it’s strange that the series would make a return in this modern age. Getting some childhood nostalgia running through me, I figured “What the Hell”, and decided to buy it.......I don’t regret every single cent that went into the purchase!

Sometimes you don’t need something educational for a children’s video game. Sometimes, all you need for a kids game is a goofy premise & wacky characters, point & click mechanics, and cute visuals to keep them glued to the screen. It’s not the deepest kids game, nor is it one of the more complex games for kids, but honestly you can’t ask for much sometimes. Sometimes, fun is all you need.

As for Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel, I didn’t want to put it here. I really didn’t! I found that it was just as much fun as Borderlands 2, sometimes more so. It has the great “Shoot N’ Loot” mentality of the previous game, not to mention a flavorful world filled with quirky characters. What bothered me, however, was the overalls state of The Pre-Sequel. It felt shorter, moved along faster, and wasn’t quite as polished as B2 was. Coupled with possibly a weaker season pass (Especially when compared to Borderlands 2's season pass), and you have a product that might not have as much oomph. Despite the problems, Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel continues one of the more bizarre yet recognizable game franchises available.

2) Skyrim

Of all the games on this list, Skyrim is the one that was the most surprising to me. My only experiences with anything in the Elder Scrolls universe were Daggerfall, which I barely remember, and Morrowind I thought was slow & dull (Not to mention buggy). For the longest time, I wasn’t interested in the game, simply because of the above reasons. In wasn’t until this past June when I saw that Skyrim was on sale. The deal included the main game, along will all of it’s dlc, for a summer sale price of just 14 dollars. I finally said “Screw It”, and decided to buy the game...man I can’t believe it took me so long to hop on the bandwagon!!!

If there was one thing I could complain about the game, it would be that sometimes, there’s too much to do. I’ve had a horde of quests (Primary/Secondary) in my journal, and it’s taken me forever to trim it down. With that said, Skyrim has been nothing short of pure, unadulterated fun. There is a horde of things to do: work for the Thieves Guild, joining a royal vampire house, becoming a archmage of a wizard college, and so much more. Not only that, but there is a bevy of Elder Scrolls lore, weapons, and spells spread out over a variety of schools. With the threat of dragons coming back, you will have a lot on your hands.

Before I show my number 1 game of the year, I wanted to show you some honorable mentions. Games that are certainly fantastic, but they didn’t quite make the cut for some reason. Maybe it was because it wasn’t quite as fulfilling, maybe because I didn’t play the whole thing, or whatever other reason I can’t think of. Anyways, take a look!

HM1) Five Nights At Freddy’s
- Words can’t describe how utterly frightening this game is! Despite being made by just one person (Scott Cawthon), the sheer quality puts this game up in the higher tier of horror titles. Taking an incredibly minimalistic approach, Five Nights At Freddy’s puts you in a small security office, and has you watch the cameras for signs of the “Child-Friendly” animatronics. You can’t move, but you’ve got lights & doors as your only defense. You must use them wisely, as they drain what little power you have. Once it’s gone, then you’re at the mercy of the murderous robots. Trust me, the outcome isn’t pretty if they catch you.

HM2) The Evil Within (Demo) 
- If I didn’t have to spend money on Christmas gifts (Or at the very least spend less), chances are I would have picked up The Evil Within in a heartbeat. Getting back to survival horror’s roots, the atmosphere with just the demo is impressive. Running around like Rambo will get you killed half of the time: instead, your best bet is to sneak around & scavenge supplies, picking off targets one by one in the process. Three levels was all it took to get me hooked to this well-crafted horror game. Whether it’s console or PC, you would be doing a disservice to the horror genre if you didn’t pick up The Evil Within!

HM3) Tomb Raider 2013
- This is the most recently purchased game on the list, having come off of the cyber sale that was going on Steam a few days ago. It only cost $3.99, so immediately I decided to buy it. I had grown up with the franchise when the original came out in 1996, so I had some pre-conceived notions of what was going to happen. I played the first few minutes, and those notions were immediately tossed out the window. Throwing out the sex object for a more “Human” kind of girl, the whole experience felt far more believable than any of the other games in the franchise, good or bad. If this game was on sale earlier in the year (Halfway through 2014), then it’s entirely possible that Tomb Raider 2013 would have made this list. It wouldn’t have been placed past 5, but it would have made it.

1) Diablo 3: Reaper of Souls

It’s a safe bet to say that when Diablo 3 launched, it didn’t live up to the expectations of hardcore Diablo fans. In particular was the Auction House, which many players (Rightly so in most cases) believe that it made the game easier because you can buy items instead of farming for them the old-fashioned way. Coupled with a required internet connection to play the game, and you have a game that while fun, didn’t have as much oomph as what we were hoping for. When Reaper of Souls was first announced, and the subsequent information that came out afterwards, it looks like we got the game we wanted.

Even before Reaper of Souls was released, Blizzard put out a host of changes, most of which brought in massive changes for Diablo 3. Most of the Skill Runes received a overhall, Legendary and Set Items were built once again from the ground up, and the revised difficulty system are the most notable of the changes. Then when Reaper of Souls finally came out back in March, things came full circle, and the game finally felt like the Diablo of old. There were still some small issues (Notably the internet connection issue), but now Diablo 3 has risen above it’s early fumbles. This “Rise Like A Phoenix” mentality, coupled with the incredible changes that were brought to the table, and you have a game that is more than worthy to take the number one spot!

Well, these were my top 5 games of 2014. I hoped you enjoyed this, and check back early next week, when I’ll post up my top 10 Christmas specials. See you soon!




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Sorry about the delay. I was busy Friday, so I didn’t have the time to get this up. Hope you don’t mind.