Griffin McElroy
TowerFall Ascension is never not fun.
Pound for pound, Super Smash Bros. for Wii U has been the most fun I've had playing video games in 2014, and a well-polished crown jewel in the Wii U's library. I've spent dozens of hours Smashing roomfuls of friends into oblivion, grinding through events and hunting down unlockables — and, happily, I feel like I'm just getting started.
Where other publishers might release a making-of documentary of their golden era, Super Mario Maker does the unthinkable: It lets you do the making of. I have had a tremendous amount of fun playing Super Mario Maker, but the way it developed that newfound appreciation for something I've known my whole life was the game's biggest accomplishment. Sure, there's touches of fan service here and there, like a startling number of references to Mario Paint, but that's not how it won me over. Super Mario Maker wooed me because it's a hands-on history lesson.
Pokemon X and Y is a completely interconnected experience, which is exactly how Pokemon is meant to be played — a fact I'd forgotten since my schoolyard days.
Tearaway is fresh, inviting and intricate
Shovel Knight is the kind of game people write love letters about
It has a feel that no other game really captures, and a flow that's hypnotic within mere seconds of starting up a new track.
Uncharted 4 delivers a thrilling, moving conclusion to the series
It's hard for me to mask my excitement about Guitar Hero Live, because in my opinion, there's nothing more exciting than a developer who's capable of outsmarting an entire genre's fanbase. Guitar Hero Live isn't just well-executed; it's clever and innovative in ways that no one other than FreeStyleGames ever imagined. My fears that Guitar Hero Live would be wringing blood out of the franchise's stone were unfounded; at some point, FreeStyleGames found itself a newer, better stone altogether.
Salt and Sanctuary lovingly adapts the Souls games into 2D
The occasional technical hiccup aside, Galak-Z is a brilliant take on so many different genres, but it's the game's roguelike innovations that make it soar. Some lesser entries in the genre use permadeath as a blunt tool, wielded to tack some artificial length onto a repetitive slog. Galak-Z is going to kill you back to a season premiere constantly, but not for lack of content — it's part of a laser-focused intent to make Galak-Z as tense and thrilling a game as can possibly be.
Majora's Mask 3D sands the rough edges off of a brilliant core concept
Smash Bros hasn't been compressed for 3DS — it's been tailored to it
Hotline Miami 2: Wrong Number is unapologetic, and unforgettable
IDARB throws a lot of goof spaghetti at the wall, and a shocking amount of it sticks. But its absurdity can, when cranked up to 11, distract from the real joy of the game — its satisfying mechanics and miles-deep strategy.
The Taken King is the make-good effort Destiny players have been waiting for
Hyper Light Drifter deftly mixes contemplative moments with breakneck action
Fire Emblem Fates is an emotional war game
Fire Emblem Fates is an emotional war game
Dancing All Night succeeds at more than just Persona charm