Games

1. The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim (15)
2. Catherine (15)
3. Superbrothers: Sword & Sworcery EP (15)
4. Saints Row: The Third (13)
5. The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword (10)
6. Deus Ex: Human Revolution (10)
7. Rayman Origins (8)
8. Portal 2 (8)
9. Shadows of the Damned (5)
10. You Don’t Know Jack (1)

Comments

If you didn’t play anything inspiring this year, maybe you weren’t looking hard enough. Or, in the case of Superbrothers: Sword & Sworcery EP, a game that inspires hope for a gaming platform that’s been struggling for a definition outside of pure economics, you might not own the hardware it’s available on. I considered pushing Catherine to the very top of my list purely out of spite, knowing Skyrim would easily get its due everywhere else on the Internet. That one doesn’t need any help. I didn’t think, ponder or stress over a game more than Catherine this year, and as someone heading towards marriage next year, being confronted with the (virtual) consequences of infidelity prompted an emotionally invaluable introspective analysis. As someone who constantly hears from colleagues that Japanese game developers are creatively on the slide, that three different games from Japan ended up on my year-end list, two of them addressing issues and taboos Western developers wouldn’t even consider, perhaps that sentiment says more about them than the actual state of Japanese game creation. The next time a game seems like it may start pushing you outside of your comfort zone, you should consider that a good thing.

Back to High Scores 2011