Game of the Year
1) Assassin's Creed Origins
2) Zelda Breath of the Wild
3) Destiny 2
4) Mario Odyssey
5) Sonic Mania
6 Mario + Rabbids
7) Injustice 2
8) Steamworld Dig 2
9) Fire Emblem: Shadows of Valentia
10) Halo Wars 2
Biggest disappointment if the year: Mass Effect Andromeda
Note: I don't have a Playstation, which makes this list somewhat easier. I'm 100% sure Horizon Zero Dawn would be on this list if I did.
This was a spectacular year for gaming. Everyone loves Zelda, myself included, but it's not my game of the year. If this game were another franchise, would it be game of the year? I think not. First, the Pros: It pushed the open world genre into a bold new direction. In the future I want to see more open world games inspired by BotW's design decisions. Those include gliding, climbing, having an empty map where you must fill out points of interest, and a sense of isolation. The cons include the cooking system, frustrating climbing (especially when it rains), lack of epic dungeons, enemy diversity, a so-so story, and finally lack luster DLC. The high point of BotW is that it went to the series roots by having the entire game be open and explorable from the beginning. That, however, wasn't enough to snag it the coveted Ben's Game of the Year.
I've never been a Assassin's Creed guy. I played 3 back in the day and it was just average. Origin's Egyptian setting and reworked systems is what drew me to this game, and I became completely immersed. Put simply, it filled the Witcher sized hole in my heart. Origin's iterates on nearly all of The Witcher 3's systems, which is why snagged it my Game of the Year. Instead of just incorporating The Witchers automatic path following mechanic, ACO also lets you automatically follow path to next quest. While doing that, you can switch to bird mode and really take in the scenery. Combat is Dark Souls-esk, and the progression system both makes you feel powerful without becoming overpowered. Horse mounted combat is far less frustrating than in The Witcher, and you can pick up ground items without dismounting your horse (!).As someone who played it on the Xbox One X, this game is absolutely stunning, perhaps overshadowed only by Destiny 2. The world map is amazingly huge. I do wish the game was a "naked" map, like Breath of the Wild, to let me discover things on my own. I love the Egyptian setting the Greek influence in everything. It takes place during one of my favorite time periods, in 54 BCE or right around the rise of Caesar. As a history nerd this really appeals to me in a way that no other game has. I hope the next Creed takes place in Ancient Greece. I also hope Origin's has some DLC that takes place in Ancient Egypt, or 3100 BCE.
After Assassin's Creed and Breath of the Wild comes Destiny 2. I'm aware of the controversy around it, especially the endgame, but I had a blast in my 80+ hours with this game. 4 things are exceptional in this game: the graphics/world design, the music, gun combat, and the sci-fi story. The graphics are some of the best I've ever seen, especially in 4K on the Xbox One X. The scale of the game is literally breathtaking. There were moments when I couldn't move; all I could do was stare at the gigantic environment. The music was also phenomenal, and I'd put it alongside any Star Wars movie. Gun combat, which is at the core of gameplay, feels spot on. The story, while not always easily accessible, is very compelling if you take the time to learn about it. The Curse of Osiris story in particular was awesome sci-fi. The game has an excellent base to build on, but I have a few concerns. First, PVP is less than average. This is the same company that made Halo 3, and the PVP here is several miles behind a 10 year old game. Also, there should never be a AAA game without dedicated servers, which is the case here. Finally, I have a concern about the pay structure of DLC, as I think paid DLC fragments the player base. I rather have a balanced microtransaction system (see Overwatch or Halo 5) that keeps all players on the same DLC page.
Next is Mario Odyssey, which I liked but didn't love. I thought Mario 3D World is a better game, but Odyssey still has some amazing aspects. First, the soundtrack is amazing. Second, I love the 2D segments. 2017 Nintendo really loves changing costumes, and once I could be Mario 64 that's all I wanted to be. This game oozes creativity. I hope for a remaster of Mario 64 in the same graphics style.Sonic Mania saw the best sonic game since Sonic 3, and I believe it's the best game in the series ever. Injustice 2 was a surprise hit, and takes me back to the glory days of Mortal Kombat as a fun pick up and play fighter. Steamworld Dig 2 was an excellent metroidvania sidescroller with a fantastic progression system. Fire Emblem: Shadows of Valentia was a fun history lesson for the FE series, and a pleasure to play. Halo Wars 2 had a great campaign and the CGI movies were the best I've ever seen in a video game. I hope the designers from HW2 stick around for Halo 6. Doki Doki Literature Club came out of nowhere and was a novel experience, and one that will stick with me.
Haven't Played;
Wolfenstein 2
Thumper
Cuphead
Xenoblade Chronicles 2
Tacoma
Metroid Return of Samus
Movie of the Year
1) Blade Runner 2049
2) Star Wars The Last Jedi
3) Logan
4) Spider-Man Homecoming
5) Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2
6) Coco
7) Baby Driver
8) Wonder Woman
9) Get Out
10) Lego Batman
11) John Wick Part 2
Fantastic year for movies. The superhero genre was subverted with Logan, as was Star Wars with the Last Jedi. Marvel had a very strong line up with Spider-Man Homecoming and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2, which I liked more than the original. Thor Ragnarok was also good, but also undercut by being too comically focused. Coco was spectacular in classic Pixar fashion. Baby Driver was quite the surprise pleaser, and I love when great movies come out with little hype.
Blade Runner 2049 takes the top prize. The cinematography, direction, story structure and tone are all out of this world. In a year of genre subversions, I find it somewhat ironic that my top movie didn't subvert the original but continued the story in such a respectful way. That's not to say 2049 doesn't chart its own course. Artificial Intelligence is examined in this film, much like robots were more than 30 years ago. It's a shame this movie didn't get the boxoffice love it deserved, but hopefully it will becoming a classic on DVD. This movie deserves to be seen on the big screen though.
Haven't seen, but make make it on the list later:
War of the Planet of the Apes
Kingsman 2
Dunkirk
The Shape of Water
TV Show of the Year
1) The Orville
2) Game of Thrones
3) The Crown
4) The Punisher
5) Stranger Things
6) Star Trek Discovery
7) Agents of Shield
8) Peaky Blinders
9) Dark Matter
10) Voltron
11) Castlevania
Biggest disappointment if the year: The Defenders
There are basically infinite TV shows these days, and the chances of me watching them all to offer a complete opinion are substantially less than infinite. The biggest TV surprise is The Orville, which continues to blow me away. It's not simply a cheeky take of Star Trek: The Next Generation, in many ways it improves on the formula. In TNG, the characters were almost too flawless; making them hard to relate to. In The Orville, because of the humor, the characters are more relatable. The contrast between the futuristic setting and the characters casual speech and attitude create many comic moments, which create something TNG never could: relatability.
GoT was mostly phenomenal but also had some questionable plot decisions. Dark Matter provided for some excellent twists and turns, and it's very unfortunate it was canceled. I was skeptical about The Punisher (especially after the horrendous Defenders) but it won me over with its daring plot decisions and the wonderful Jon Bernthal. Stranger Things Season 2 was better than the first, and the pace kept the show from ever feeling dull. Star Trek Discovery is a great renewal of my favorite franchise, and another example of Trek characters feeling more relatable than ever. Agents of Shield had its best season yet, with storylines straight out of Terminator and the Matrix. I just discovered Peaky Blinders, but it's quickly becoming my favorite show. Voltron had 2 seasons this year (a decision which I question), but remains an absolute exceptional anime. Same with Castlevania which had only 4 episodes to win people over, but with Warren Ellis at the helm this was little doubt this show would be compelling and brutal.
Music
Cold War Kids- LA divine
!!! - Shake the Shudder
Joywave - Content
Phoenix - Tremendous Sea of Love
Foster the People - Sacred Hearts Club
Alt-J - Relaxer
Comics
1) Kill or Be Killed
2) Paper Girls
3) TMNT Vol 5
4) Thor
5) Captain America: Steve Rogers
6) Captain America: Sam Wilson
