Welcome back to this third and final part of my Games of the Year 2018 countdown. In this section we have my top four games. If you haven’t already please check out parts one and two where I cover games 5 – 10 and some honourbale mentions.
Again PSVR titles have been left off this list. The virtual reality headset had such a good year they will be getting their own Top 10 list starting right after this one concludes. I also didn’t want to alienate those two haven’t taken the plunge yet. Anyway, on with the games!
The Council is the debut episodic game from new studio Big Bad Wolf and follows Louis de Richet as he travels to a mysterious island in search of his missing mother. Lord Mortimer’s mansion, the location of this game, is incredible and my favourite setting in a game this year. The mechanics also push the narrative adventure genre forward introducing an RPG system where you can level up Louis in a number of different ways that have effects on how your game progresses.
Had the final episode been a bit more of a dramatic finale this game could have easily ended up higher on my list. It’s not a bad ending, just a bit anti-climatic. The art style is unique and really adds to the special vibe the game puts out. I recommend that any fan of strong stories and light puzzle solving picks this up. You can check out my full review on the website here.
In my opinion it has been 14 years since we had a decent Spider-Man game. 2004 was when Spider-Man 2 released on PS2. Insomniac Games has done an incredible job not only bringing back the PS2 magic, but surpassing it in every way. The combat and web swinging are just perfect in my opinion and in a great surprise the story was well laid out and not just an after thought.
So good is the game that it is instantly up there with the Batman Arkham series for me as best Superhero games of all time. Packed with so many collectibles and side missions the game manages to provide ample content without outstaying it’s welcome. For those craving more there is even now three pieces of story DLC. I feel sory Insomniac because there are plenty of years this would have taken top spot but to me this is the best ever year for gaming and so a third place finish is where it lands. You can check out my full review on the website here.
HITMAN 2 is pure stealth joy. It builds on the episodic release from 2016 and this time delivers six new maps day one. While I felt the episodic model worked perfectly for a game like this nothing could halt my excitement and as with many of the titles on this list it exceeded my lofty expectations.
All six maps are expertly crafted and come with a crazy amount of methods to complete your objective. Couple this together with community contracts and free DLC by way of Elusive Targets and you have an insane amount of replay value. Stealth games aren’t for everyone. They take patience and planning. If that sounds like your type of thing though, this is the game for you. You can check out my full review on the website here.
Despite the year we have had, there was only one option for top spot in my opinion. Red Dead Redemption 2 is an absolute masterpiece. Is it perfect? No. There are a few minor hitches that annoyed me from time to time but they just disappeared under the weight of the detail and polish on display. No world has ever felt more alive. The random events are frequent and varied.
The game has a very deliberate slow pace which I loved. You are forced to almost role play as Arthur Morgan and end up completely engaged while playing. This approach also gave the big set piece moments more impact. Unless you went out your way to only complete story related missions you would be hard pushed to complete the game in less than a hundred hours and if you spend enough time with the various stranger missions and side tasks like hunting, fishing and bounty hunting you could easily double your play time.
That’s all before you even venture online, which if GTA:V is anything to go by will be supported on a weekly basis for years to come. Red Dead Redemption 2 is not only the 2018 Game of the Year but it is one of the best games ever made and that is coming from someone who thought the first game while good was overrated. You can check out my full review on the website here.
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So there we have it. The Top 10 Games of 2018. Again feel free to leave a comment or get me on Twitter @PureDeadGaming with your comments, thoughts and more. Stay tuned for the Top 10 PSVR Games which will follow a similar three-part format. If 2019 can even come close to what we were treated to this year it will be another excellent year for gamers
-Craig ✌️
Review codes for some of the games listed were provided by the developer. This had no bearing on the placement of any game.
