Earlier in the year, I was already pretty sure about which releases I’d be eagerly anticipating. Here as 2019 comes to a close, I’m glad to say none of the games I was excited for disappointed me — and these three in particular, delivered even beyond that.
FINAL FANTASY XIV: SHADOWBRINGERS
This is XIV cementing it’s place in the Final Fantasy pantheon, no longer just “the MMO one” in the series, but a fully-fledged Final Fantasy game with a story that can go toe-to-toe with the rest of the series. It’s wonderful, thought-provoking, beautiful to look at and listen to, fun to play, and most of all, has the best online community I’ve ever been a part of. Shadowbringers tells a story thoroughly enhanced by the fact that it’s an MMO — a shared experience with other people, inhabiting its world and going through all the trials and tribulations together. It’s about not losing yourself while finding your purpose, about never giving up despite the hardship, and about never being alone as you face it all. It’s so easy to fall in love with this game, and it’s been amazing to be able to make friends across countries. It’s also the first game since FFXV in 2016 to actually make me cry. Thank you, Yoshi P. and the rest of the dev team, FFXIV has been life-changing (and to be honest, got me through my last semester of college safe and sane — with a slew of new friends along the way).
TOTAL WAR: THREE KINGDOMS
My brother used to look at me in disdain as I played through Medieval: Total War, and Total War: Shogun 2 without ever manually commanding troops in the tactical battles (I’ve always been about the grand-strategy, empire-building aspect). And I love Three Kingdoms for making the campaign so much more dynamic — character-centric gameplay, revamped diplomacy and espionage, light RPG mechanics, a beautiful new art style (and my new favorite thematic UI) — while simultaneously de-cluttering the tactical combat (yes, I actually played almost all the battles this time!). This is my new favorite Total War (dethroning Shogun 2), and that’s not just because the historical time period and setting this game is in is one of my personal favorites.
PLANET ZOO
This year has been amazing for strategy/simulator/management and Planet Zoo is another highlight in the genre — allowing so much freedom for creativity (seeing other people’s builds has been kind of mind-blowing) while doubling down on management (animal welfare, economy, staff management). Playing this game has been a joy, despite a few bugs and an Indian Peafowl overpopulation problem. This is the perfect game if you’re looking for something that will let you flex those creative muscles, build something highly detailed and extravagant, walk through it, and just watch it grow. I’m really hoping for aquatic animals DLCs!
CIVILIZATION VI: GATHERING STORM
My main problem with long Civ campaigns has always been the slog of the late-game feeling like I’m just going through the motions pressing “next turn” while waiting for the eventual victory. Gathering Storm helps alleviate that with more systems to supplement a more active late-game: through changes to diplomacy, environmental events, and better enemy leader AI.
GREEDFALL
A promising new IP with great quest and level design, interesting lore, and a pretty good story (though it does stumble in the closing acts). The combat system is a little too simplistic for my tastes, and I definitely wish there were more different kinds of enemies to fight, but this is a good first step into character-driven RPGs for Spiders, and I’m definitely watching out for where they go from here.
GAMES FROM THIS YEAR STILL ON MY RADAR:
-Disco Elysium
-Control
-Death Stranding
MOST ANTICIPATED GAMES FOR 2020:
-Final Fantasy VII Remake
-Crusader Kings III
-Mount & Blade 2: Bannerlord
Final Fantasy XIV has thoroughly taken most of my free time this year, an eight-month long epic binge as I played through Heavensward and lived in Stormblood for a while as the Shadowbringers hype was reaching it’s fever-pitch. This was my first big-MMO expansion drop, my first attendance to an in-game wedding, my first group of friends completely forged through online interactions, and I think my life has been thoroughly enriched by it.
It seems kind of sappy to say that about a game, but I don’t know how else to say it.
I also went on a huge strategy/simulator/management game binge for two months in between FFXIV’s patch 5.0 and 5.1 — special mentions to Anno 1800, Tropico 6, They Are Billions and Foundation. It’s been a great year for the genre, and I’m glad there’s no longer a shortage of games to play when I just want to sit back, build and optimize.
But just on the horizon is 2020, bringing new iterations of three of my favorite games of all time — and I am more than ready for them. What a time to be alive!
