Topic: Your Favorite Games of 2022

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Ok, here's a summary of my year. It started off intending to be my biggest year in gaming time in recent memory, but due to work stress in the second half of the year I don't think that happened.

Save for maybe the odd, brief, session, it's been entirely Nintendo platforms, but my Wii U has hardly had a look-in. Barely 10 hours spent on anything other than party games with my kids, and most of those 10 hours were on a playthrough of Twilight Princess HD, where I find the opening hours of the game a bit too corridor-y for my Zelda tastes, the space to roam just isn't there. Nevertheless, it's still Zelda, and I like my Zelda, so no complaints. And speaking of Zelda, on my daughter's account I also helped her finish off her first Zelda experience in Wind Waker HD, which is always a treat, even though I'd forgotten a detail in the climactic battle and kept getting shot by Zelda to the point of death first time round.

My 2022 started off pretty solidly stuck to my N3DS, finishing off my first run through Metroid: Samus Returns that I'd started in 2021. Whilst I wouldn't say it was the most interesting Metroid title I've played (seemed a bit uniform and repetitive), it's still one of my favourite 3DS experiences because visually it's fantastic, and the free-aiming of Samus' arm cannon is never not satisfying to use. I'm currently rocking a Samus Returns screenshot as my avatar for a reason.

Next up was my first ever Phoenix Wright experience, playing the original, Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney. I would play this while walking to/from my kids' school, and due to the lack of screen contrast in daylight, sometimes found the investigative 'click around the scene to find clues' sections hard work, so much so that my play time just on that first title in the trilogy is about 62 hours. That can't be normal, but playing whilst walking isn't particularly normal either, so cut me some slack, m'kay? Anyway, most of the game is as good as everyone says AA is - really engaging writing and visuals, regularly chuckle worthy, and just good fun. There were just a few instances of mega frustrating progress blocks I found where I was just trudging back and forth from location to location (and the game doesn't let you go straight to certain locations, you have to go via other locations first) trawling the screens over and over to find some pretty random clue I'd missed, or to try presenting everything I had in my possession to everybody possible to find the elusive next step. It was properly frustration-inducing occasionally, which did mar the experience of the game a little. But still a great experience overall.

Clocked another 12 hours in Pokémon Art Academy too, which I always enjoy. Tend to just use it in short spurts cos I'm not a natural artist, so it does feel like work at times, but it's satisfying to complete each piece and it's definitely improved my artistic capability.

Everything else was Switch-based, pretty much. Played Pokémon Legends: Arceus when it released and really enjoyed it, but haven't finished it. Kinda reached a stage where the gameplay loop was wearing on me a bit, but I'd played it fairly solidly for something like 30-40 hours I'm guessing (thanks Nintendo for making me guess), so when I go back to it I'm sure I'll dig it again, it really was a delightful first 20 hours or so.

I'm now relying on the 'Most recently played' sort on my Switch to tell me what I've played since Arceus. Xenoblade Chronicles: Definitive Edition is there, which I know I've made good progress in on Switch so it was probably all this year. Enjoying my second attempt at XC much more than my previous on Wii U. I think starting again with a knowledge of how things work really helps, cos I've made sure to do pretty much all the sidequests as I go (they seem easier to track etc. in the Definitive Edition, but that could just be my ailing memory), regularly upgrade the gear and craft gems (one of the gayest sequences I've ever seen in a game, never fails to entertain), all of which means I'm much better equipped for the battles so exploring the world is much less hard work than it was on my original playthrough, and so I'm seeing the full breadth of the world Monolith Soft has created. On my first playthrough I skipped straight through Makna Forest, for example, barely seeing any of it, but this time I'm uncovering all the secret areas and getting to see the true majesty of the game. The one frustration that remains and will surely frustrate me eternally, is the Affinity system. Despite utilising much more of the games content and systems this time, I'm making no better progress with the Affinity system. That ****s me off.

What knocked me off my XC:DE progress was picking up Assassin's Creed: The Ezio Collection, because I've been half way through the collection for a couple of years (played 2 on Steam I think, then started Brotherhood on PS4 but stalled due to it not being on Switch) and want to play later games in the series, but won't let myself until I've finished with Ezio. But I'm still on Brotherhood to this day, despite making good progress on Switch now.

Ezio progress was then disrupted by getting an N64 controller, at which point I immediately dropped everything to start playing Ocarina of Time on NSO. Just seemed obligatory. Got as far as Jabu-Jabu's Belly before the next distraction.

I then played Little Bug, which is a short game, but a very enjoyable adventure-platformer.

Then started playing Super Magbot, which is a fun, cheap puzzle platformer that's definitely worth a look if you're into those.

After that I got back into Animal Crossing: New Horizons, which I hadn't played since 2020 when my daughter hijacked my game card, so I eventually bought a second copy and started devouring it some more, dreaming up elaborate island designs with bridges everywhere, only to come to a screeching halt with it when I discovered the limit on how many bridges you could have, shattering my dreams. That. Was. A. Bummer.

This post is getting disgustingly long so I should hurry it up. Because I can't see exact dates of when I first played things, only those most recently played, I've forgotten to mention Kirby and the Forgotten Land and Nintendo Switch Sports, both of which I've thoroughly enjoyed but not played nearly enough of yet (only really played the soccer and the tennis in NSS so far; done a bit of bowling too but it seems a bit easy compared to Wii Sports so doesn't seem as engaging).

Getting into the later stages of 2022, most of my time was spent with WorldEnd Syndrome, a very nice visual novel, really only spoiled by the fact it doesn't really explain itself and leaves the player to muddle through progressing through each route. I had a few runs that were disappointing because I kept just getting the same bad ending I'd had on my first run. You really need to play it by just save scumming and use process of elimination constantly to stick to the route you want. That was a sausage because the writing and interplay between the characters was really pleasant and enjoyable. That and Little Bug were probably the only Switch games I finished this year.

Finally, after scattering in a bit of Hyper Light Drifter because I'd decided to get the physical version, Dragon Quest Builders because I've still never finished the campaign, spending far too much time just making tunnels and general sandboxing with it, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe because it's my favourite game ever and Nintendo keeps throwing more tracks at us, it brings us to Christmas.

Christmas finally brought Cuphead into my life with the physical release, which is terrific, but the kinda game I'll just play in short phases because of the constant challenge it poses.

Lastly, right around new year, I started playing Pokémon Violet. I sat down with it one night, booted it up for the first time to see what all the hysteria of it being so terrible was about, and proceeded to play it for 5 hours straight, which I haven't done with any other game in 2022.

I've dipped my toe in several other games along the way, and spent many hours playing Fortnite and FIFA with my kids, but those were the highlights of my year.

I could probably legitimately argue any of the above as my favourite games of the year, but after the stress I've had from work in the second half of 2022, that last 5 hour-long non-stop session was a real treat and a definite highlight of my year, so I'd like to give the award to Pokémon Violet.

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This thread made me realize that, while I'm on top of tracking games I need to play, I'm not the best at tracking completions. I had to cheat using the What Game(s) are You Currently Playing? thread for some of my entries in the first half of 2022. XD I actually didn't play a lot of games released this year and in fact just obtained both Pokemon Legends: Arceus and Kirby and the Forgotten Land for Christmas.

10. Kirby: Triple Deluxe (3DS) - I've been gradually trying to play some of the "best" main series Kirby games before starting on Forgotten Land. Last year was in some ways my "Year of Kirby". This was my favorite of the bunch that I got to. Fairly safe all told, but this has some excellent platforming, uses the 3D effect beautifully, contains some fun mini-games (favs were Dedede's Drum Dash and Dedede Tour), and was enjoyable in general.

9. Xenoblade Chronicles 2: Torna - The Golden Country (Switch) - A prequel of XC2 that is more focused and refined than the bloated main game IMO. I preferred combat in this entry, the narrower focus on a select number of characters and Blades, getting to explore the Torna titan, and experiencing an emotional plot...even if, from XC2, you know how things will end. I might be in the minority that actually liked the Community system, and some great music is found here too. Auresco's main theme is one of my series favorites.

8. Ys I & II Chronicles+ (Steam) - My goal is to gradually play through all canon Ys entries per the story path on Digital Emelas. I quite enjoyed Adol's first adventures and actually liked the bump combat. Some excellent music and an intriguing plot can be found here, though I admit I used a guide for some sections I got stuck in since this pair is, at its core, from the 80s.

7. Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity (Switch) - This is hands down my favorite Musou crossover to date. Great combat mechanics, varied characters, and some genuinely amazing story moments. However, the game does get a bit grind-y at points, and the plot twist halfway through made me feel misled by earlier advertising.

6. Professor Layton and the Azran Legacy (3DS) - Arguably the best Layton game in the prequel trilogy in many ways, and possibly my second favorite after Unwound/Lost Future. Great puzzles, pretty decent plot that gets going fairly quickly, amazing visuals, some fun extras, and home to some stellar soundtracks. Level-5 really came into their own on the 3DS IMO.

(NOTE: The next four are on fairly equal footing)

5. Live A Live (Switch) - An amazing remake of the famous 1994 JRPG and perhaps SE's best use of the HD-2D effect to date. I enjoyed all the seven original vignettes for the most part, though there were a couple that I admittedly needed guides for at times (Prehistory and Twilight of Edo Japan). What ties everything together, plus the resulting endings, are what really made this one special IMO.

4. 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim (Switch) - Just finished this around Christmas. Decent yet completely bonkers plot, told out of order and quite complex; thankfully there's a place in the game to view everything in sequence. The strategy segments were decent, though I think I prefer Fire Emblem. The VN aspects are definitely this game's greatest strength.

3. Ys Origin (Switch) - I finished two out of three routes in 2022 and wrapped up the last one a couple nights ago, so this counts. XD A very good prequel to the series and the only one not to feature Adol. Fun, tight gameplay, great boss battles, amazing music, each character route is varied, and the canon story is the best. All routes are worth playing however. A bit rough visually, but not jarringly so.

2. Metroid Dread (Switch) - Perhaps my second favorite 2D Metroid title after Super Metroid, this one was certainly worth waiting for! This was an excellent conclusion to the "main" Metroid series, with challenging, intuitive gameplay, fun exploration, some decent boss fights (minus Experiment No. Z-57...ARGH), and some awesome tracks are found here as well. However, while I did like the E.M.M.I. concept on paper, I felt like they messed with the pacing in some cases. ESPECIALLY that trollish purple one.

1. Xenoblade Chronicles 3 (Switch) - Hands down my GotY. I'd gush endlessly about this one, but previous posts in this thread have already praised it well. IMO this stands toe-to-toe with XC:DE in many aspects - I consider them equals - and surpasses all other Xenoblade entries.

Honorable mentions go to Mario & Luigi: Partners In Time (DS), WarioWare: Smooth Moves (Wii U via Wii Mode), What Remains of Edith Finch (Switch), Stretchmo (3DS), and Gato Roboto (Switch).

Bonus section - Mild Disappointments that I finished:

• Pokemon Brilliant Diamond (Switch) - This is by no means terrible, and I had a fair amount of fun with it. But ILCA and TPC played things WAY too safe with this entry. Platinum is the superior game in almost every way, and I dislike how they neutered Secret Bases from the originals. That said, I still find myself diving into the Grand Underground on occasion just to burn a few minutes of time....
• Crimson Shroud (3DS) - This one was...different. I thought I'd like it more than I did since it uses tabletop RPG elements, but they're implemented in a clunky way. Which is a shame since the worldbuilding, for the size of the game, is excellent. There's also more grinding than I figured, and at one point it's easy to get stuck unless you know that you need to farm a certain enemy encounter for a rare drop that allows the player to proceed.
• Kirby's Return to Dream Land (Wii U via Wii Mode) - Ironically, I bought and played through this right before the Switch announcement. This is a good Kirby game, but to me it felt overhyped and didn't really do too much differently from previous Kirby titles I played this year (Nightmare In Dream Land, Kirby's Dream Land 1/2). Some of the side content felt like a rehash, and TBH there wasn't too much to this. I suppose its strengths are the multiplayer aspects, which I admittedly didn't use. At least Magolor's a fun villain.