Welcome to Craig’s top 10 games of 2021. This is my fourth annual top 10 list. I didn’t think for a minute launching this website in early 2018 that it would take on a life of its own and grow into the small brand we have today. Massive thanks to everyone who has read any of our reviews and articles, listened to our podcast or watched our YouTube videos. This is all created by passionate people who do it for the love of gaming.
Before we usher in what is likely to be an incredible 2022 (Starfield, Horizon Forbidden West and surely Breath of the Wild 2), let’s look back at some of the highlights of the year past.
On another day, each one of these honourable mentions could have been slotted in anywhere from 6-10 on the list below. So make sure to consider checking them out.
The Forgotten City
Golfclub Wasteland
Life is Strange: True Colors
A Short Hike
Procession to Calvary
Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart
Art of Rally
Last Stop
Resident Evil Village
Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy
I even include Ghost of Tsushima in here because of the Director’s Cut. The Ikishima island expansion would merit a top 10 spot had it released as a standalone title, but given it is essentially DLC I decided to leave it out.
A Juggler’s Tale came out of nowhere for me and turned into one of the real gems of 2021. Gameplay-wise, the title has a lot in common with Little Nightmares, adopting similar side-scrolling puzzle elements. The short runtime of two hours is also perfect, ensuring that it never outstays its welcome.
One of the most beloved games in an iconic franchise, ported to VR? It’s no surprise that Resident Evil 4 VR has found a place on this list. While at times the graphics can look a little dated, the switch to VR feels great and the Oculus Quest 2 was the ideal platform for it. Do yourself a favour and re-play this classic in an all-new way!
I was torn between choosing the first or second game in the Darkside Detective series. In the end, I settled on the second, a Fumble in the Dark, because of the incredible case based on wrestling. Beautiful pixel art, constantly funny writing and interesting cases all come together to make this one of my favourite point-and-click games in years.
When the original Little Nightmares launched in 2017 I was completely smitten with it. The art style, the enemy design, the intuitive puzzles and more all came together to make a memorable experience. Little Nightmares II captures that same lightning in a bottle and even manages to improve on its predecessor. The removal of the overly hard trophy/achievement and the introduction of a platinum trophy was the icing on the cake.
I often get asked: Is Far Cry 6 just more Far Cry? The answer is yes. But in all the best ways. This latest instalment takes the formula that people love and improves on it across the board. 60fps, no hallucination sequences, the best supporting cast in the series, some actual built-up areas to explore and more. It takes a couple of hours to really get going, but when it clicks you’ll struggle to put it down.
This is the one game on the list that I actually haven’t completed. I have however been chipping away at it since launch and as you may have guessed by its recent awards, it’s superb. The studio struck gold with 2018’s A Way Out, which finished 8th in our awards that year. It Takes Two switches out a prison escape for Honey I Shrunk the Ki… eh Parents. It is brimming with humour, heart, brilliant level design and challenging, but fun, boss fights. Probably the best co-op game to date.
Forza Horizon 5 is the ultimate racing game. The game world they have created is so diverse, allowing for all kinds of racing. Each one of the 500+ cars is meticulously designed and handles in its own unique way. There is also an endless amount of content, with more races than you could ever need. And if that’s not enough, the online mode is there to provide the maximum challenge. This is a game you pick up with the intention of playing for 10 minutes and end up losing hours to.
Death’s Door is not only one of the best games of 2021 but one of the best Indie games ever. You will die – a lot. But each time you do, you’ll know the exact reason why and be itching to come back stronger and more prepared. With a beautiful art style, haunting music, excellent level design, varied and challenging bosses, Death’s Door is just an absolute joy.
Hitman 3 may not be for everyone, but if you are a fan of stealth games you can’t go wrong with IO Interactive’s latest title. I would go as far as to say this is the ultimate stealth sandbox. Especially given the fact that you can not only import all maps and contracts from the previous two games but enjoy all the upgrades that have been added in the latest game. Hitman 3 also adds PSVR support for every map in all three games, and while this is limited by the PS Move Controllers, it is scheduled to come to PC VR in January 2022.
Deathloop is a game that I expected to feature on this list at the beginning of the year. I love Arkane’s Dishonored series and Deathloop is essentially the same gameplay, with a different spin on the story and a splash of colour. Even some of the powers are identical, with altered names. It has an intriguing story that unfolds gradually throughout the roughly 15 hour run time, but the sheer fun and variation in how you play is what makes Deathloop a worthy game of the year.
