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Game of the Year: Titanfall
In a year that seemed chock full of misfiring new IPs, Titanfall was the one original franchise that truly stood out as being something special. Familiar yet unique, Respawn’s superb map design, exciting traversal mechanics and modern approach to mech-shooting made Titanfall far more than the Call of Duty-clone some may have expected it to be, and a terrific first attempt at injecting adrenaline back into the genre.
And that was the key to its success. While there were other great shooters, Titanfall was the first in a long time that really made shooting feel cool. Comboing a wall-run across the map, leapfrogging your way out of a confrontation with a titan, escaping in the dropship or hammering the eject button with just moments to spare, Titanfall was filled with instances that made each match far more memorable than your typical multiplayer shooter.
Respawn’s passion for the project became evident throughout the year, too, evolving the game via a series of free updates that bucked the trend of cash-grabby DLC. There were premium maps, of course, but the free game modes and new features helped Titanfall feel alive – even if the dwindling player numbers painted a troubling picture.
But whatever the reason may be for Titanfall’s tumbling player count, it would be a terrific shame to see its life cut unfairly short. As the most exciting multiplayer shooter of 2014 and the first in a series that seems certain to be a pillar of the new generation, don’t hesitate to give it a go if you see it cheap this Christmas.
Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare
It was a close call between this and Titanfall for the top spot, largely because – as my fellow VideoGamer bastards have pointed out – they’re much ‘the same game’. But while they both share a double jump, Sledgehammer’s shooter relied far more on the twitchy man-on-man shooting of old and, while a leap ahead of Ghosts, felt far closer to a refined version of games to have come before it than anything particularly new.
That isn’t a criticism, of course: when Call of Duty is good, it’s excellent, and Advanced Warfare is, to me, the best since Modern Warfare 2. Featuring a thrilling campaign and world class multiplayer, Sledgehammer succeeded in making Call of Duty a franchise worth getting excited for all over again.
South Park: The Stick of Truth
Because what other game has you bullet timing your dad’s testicles? Obsidian’s hilarious RPG may have lacked the depth typically found elsewhere in the genre, but more than made up for it with its outrageously funny script and controversial humour. The funniest game I’ve ever played and one of the finest games of the year – in my opinion, of course.
