1. Nier: Automata
Nier will always hold a special place in my heart, like Shining Force before it. Explaining why only comes up short. I love this game.
2. Super Mario Odyssey
An absolute classic, starring the icon of gaming. A great moment for the medium.
3. HQ
The most amazing thing in gaming -- non-existent in most other mediums except maybe music -- is that we discover entire new genres previously never explored. HQ, in creating a live game show on a phone, was a true joy to dive into.
4. Wolfenstein II
Punch Nazis
5. PUBG
Similar to HQ – PUBG popularized a previously never explored “genre” (game-mode?), all the same, with the FURTHER success of Fortnite, we’re seeing another incredible example of the way games re-invent and further the medium on a rapid pace. Oh, and the game is incredibly exciting.
6. Star Wars Force Arena
Though this game didn’t take off as it should have – too complicated for the mobile touch screen – I found this to be a deeply engaging combination of MOBA and card battling, expertly utilizing the Star Wars IP.
7. Breath of the Wild
I know – so low for the greatest game of all time! But while BotW didn’t take me over, it’s clearly an incredible game.
8. Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle
Who would have thought?
9. Crazy Taxi Gazillionaire
This Tapper (now known as Crazy Taxi Tycoon, I’m sure changed for ASO purposes) has the best writing of any mobile game I have ever played. Seriously – the send up of Uber (and tech companies, and the last 20 years in general) is witty beyond its due.
10. Matchington Mansion
Though clearly inspired by Gardenscapes, Matchington Mansion is a much better version of the improved match-3 genre, in my opinion. In a year of reinventions and new genres, Matchington Mansion created an absolutely crisp match-3.
2017 Games of the Year
