I figured I'd go with twelve since that's how many good games I played that came out this year, and I was going to briefly mention the two as honorary mentions anyway, so may as well do all of them. While I wish I played more games this year, the ones I did play were largely really good. Based just on this I'd have to say this was an excellent year in gaming for me. Intro out of the way, on to the list.
12.) Act-raiser: Renaissance
This game was borderline, not good. There is a lot of sitting around and waiting for things to happen, some mindless mini-dungeons in the form of the generators, and hit or miss story arcs in each area. But it's one of those games that has an interesting enough idea, even after all these years, it still manages to engage you. Plus, the side-scrolling levels are are largely solid, so you have that on top of the interesting town-building premise of the over-world.
11.) Final Fantasy I Pixel Remastered
It's the only one of the Pixel Remasters I played, and it was my first time completing Final Fantasy I. I did play the first one for NES but never had a chance to play much of it, only enough to have beaten Lich. I do remember it being a lot harder early game, so I suspect this was based more on the later, easier ports of the game. Still, though, it was fun to play through a classic for the first time. It's clear that things started to get better later, but it was still a solid experience. If you are at all interested in seeing how the series started, it's a good enough way to do it if you don't have access to the NES original.
10.) Bravely Default 2
This game would have been higher were it not for the final acts of the game. It has a lot of fun individual story arcs going on and an engaging battle system, but once chapter five hits the difficulty plummets drastically so the gameplay feels like a slog, and once the focus is back on the main story and not the individual narratives any semblance of interest I had faded.
Despite being badly let down in the final stretches, it doesn't stop the rest of the game from being fun and worth the play.
9.) Ocean's Heart
Even though I recommended it, I was largely critical of this title in my review. Difficulty disappearing due to easy access to an excess of healing, a bit of a bland story, and the occasional issue with not knowing if you can move through certain spots in the game, but the game still managed to overcome the flaws and be a really fun experience.
While easy, the combat is mostly fun. More than that, it was an indie game with heavy inspiration from early Zelda titles, and it knows what a big part of those games people loved the exploration. There are a lot of things to find and discover, and if that's your cup of tea this game is one of the better indie titles out there I've played to fill that gap.
8.) Story of Seasons: Pioneers of Olive Town
It's another solid farming simulator part of one of my inexplicably favorite franchises (Note: This includes Story of Seasons and all Harvest Moon games before Natsume claimed the rights). It's certainly not the best of them, Magical Melody and Trio of Towns holding claim to that title, but in my life, I just need a good farming simulator or things don't feel right.
7.) Eastern Exorcist
It's only been fairly recently I've started to enjoy Metroidvania-style games, ever since Hollow Knight. While this game kind of lacks on the exploration aspect of it, it has a great art style and really fun combat. And considering its price point, it offers a great deal of customization to keep it fun with multiple playthroughs.
Like Ocean's Heart, it's the small studio project I like to see. You get a solid experience beginning to end, and even if it doesn't do anything all that original, it has just enough of a spin and is handled well enough it still feels like its own thing entirely.
6.) Metroid Dread
This is the first Metroid game I've played and liked. Something about the older ones just never felt right in how they controlled, and I could never really understand why that was. It's largely just me I feel. That being said I had no such problem with Dread. A pretty 'meh' story doesn't matter much since the game doesn't dwell on it too much. This is all about great combat, atmosphere, and discovery.
The game's visuals do wonders to set up the Dread promised in the title, there are a ton of fun and interesting enemies to face off against, a good challenge is offered up, and you have plenty of things to discover. Exploration is a key element here, so it is done so well makes the game a treat.
5.) Ender Lillies
I am unsure of how hot a take this is, but I feel Hollow Knight nailed the premise of the Metroidvania more than any other title before it, at least for me. Ender Lillies, in a lot of ways, really is cribbing a lot from Hollow Knight, enough that I understand if people look at it as a knock-off. While I see where that idea comes from if you give it a chance it does give you plenty of ways it differs.
It comes down to having some great combat, a lot of customization available, and plenty of unique and interesting fights paired with a lot of great exploration, the same things that make any Metroidvania great for me. Pair all that with an interesting story, and you have one of my favorite games of the genre.
4.) Shin Megami Tensei V
While I won't deny I was disappointed with how easy this game was compared to previous entries of the series, it's still a solid SMT Title. It's harder than most other RPGs out there, it's got a dark atmosphere to it, and it's still great and handling more philosophical themes. It's kind of what you would expect out of any SMT title in terms of strengths and weaknesses.
The thing is though, even a sup-par SMT title is a fantastic game. It clicks are the right boxes for me in terms of things I love in my RPGs, and it's still enough of a challenge to keep you on your toes even if you are coming off games like SMT IV or Devil Survivor. It also incorporates enough unique aspects to its combat and customization to feel distinct from the others, so it's still a must-play in my book.
3.) Voice of Cards: The Isle of Dragon Song
Sometimes a game is going to win me over just because it hits a chord with me that no other game has. Yeah, there are quite a few problems I could point out about this game, but it's a unique experience. It's not like you are playing a Dungeons and Dragons campaign in video game format, it's like you are playing a character at the table playing a tabletop RPG. The entire story feels like something out of a campaign your friend would run, and the whole game is being narrated by a DM who sounds like he's passive-aggressively sick of your players shit, but still pushes on with a fun game.
The whole world is built out of cards that get flipped as you move and select your attacks from, and it's all taking place on the same table dressed with little accessories to make it clear this is a game you and your friends are playing.
There is just nothing else that captures the vibe like this game, so it's really easy for me to forgive a lot of flaws for a game experience I have just never had before.
Honestly, I think you could switch my number one and two games and I'd be just as happy with that outcome. But this is what I went with.
2.) Shin Megami Tensei III: Nocturne Remastered
You can pretty much guess what I would say about this one based on my comments of SMT V. Nocturne is just a fantastic RPG. I may feel the difficulty of Matador is hyped up a bit much (Than again I went into this game knowing how SMT worked based on IV, Persona games, and Devil Survivor games), but it's got that challenge going throughout that makes it stand out from any other RPG we have. SMT is just a franchise that isn't like any other franchise, and if you want to get into it and see what it's about, so long as you are prepared for an ass-kicking from time to time this is a great one to grab.
1.) No More Heroes 3
I saw someone on Twitter a while back say 'No More Heroes III features a bunch of people in their early to late thirties sitting around drinking beer while talking about Miike movies for a podcast. Suda51 knows his audience.' That audience is me. I don't remember who I ripped that quote off of, but it's kind of perfect.
This may honestly be the most flawed game on the list, and I can say that about any of Suda's games I love. The guy does not release a polished product, he releases whatever bizarre nonsense comes to mind he finds funny or thrilling, and whether or not you go along for the ride is entirely up to you. The humor is so bizarre in this game, and it both cares and abandons any sense of continuity with previous games. At times it's almost like the fourth wall is fundamental to the story.
It's not all that different from Voice of Cards for me in that I give credit to an experience whole unlike anything else out there, and that's Suda51's catalog in a nutshell. I don't' expect most people to even like this game, but if you're the kind of person who can get wrapped up in Suda's insanity, it's an absolute blast.
And there you have it, my twelve favorite games of 2021. This was a great year overall with great returning franchises like No More Heroes and Shin Megami Tensei, some wonderful original titles like Voice of Cards, and the shocking return of Actraiser. Plenty of games I know I missed, but what I did manage to play this year was wonderful. I can only hope next year will be as good.