I didn’t finish Undertale, but I still feel its influence today. The massive reach Toby Fox’s quirky, unassuming indie mega-hit had on me, my own group of friends, and the internet at large is beyond measure. The game forced me to think about game design from a holistic perspective, how game mechanics can possess weight, and the value of empathy.
I still remember being brought to tears with the game’s opening act with Flowy. His menace and cruelty shocked me to tears, but thankfully Undertale refutes Flowy’s nihilism by diving into a whimsical story that treasures empathy and kindness. Maybe the story goes into some neat places though, it would help if I fucking finished it, right?
8) DOOM 2016 (played on Nintendo Switch)
I am not a good critic; I often fail to pick up subtlety, and if it had not been for intelligent essays, videos, and think pieces out there (shout outs to Errant Signal, Innuendo Studios, and Feminist Frequency), I think I would really struggle to even talk about how I value games. DOOM showed up to let me know something about myself: I like big, dumb, loud, snappy games action games. Maybe that lessens my critical assessments and observations, but I am who I am!
BUT LIKE, DOOM slaps. It’s fierce, indulgent, and drowning in comedic levels of bravado & viscera. The gunplay is snappy, fast, and mimics retro-shooter sensibilities without the game feel becoming weirdly detached and floaty, like your Quakes and such. DOOM is a joyous big-dumb time.
(also the Switch port is pretty solid, provided you can stomach the Switch’s limitations. Also that port by studio Panic Button was instrumental in getting 3rd party devs on Switch, which is something I think we’ll come to appreciate down the line).
7) Devil Daggers (played on PC)
Run-based games have exploded this decade, with dozens of rougelikes/rougelites/run-based titles having come along and sunk their hooks into my brainspace (Into the Breach, Dead Cells, Downwell, and Nuclear Throne are among my most memorable). Devil Daggers has next to nothing in common with these aforementioned games, mechanically-speaking, though I’d argue the flow is similar.. Lacking any kind of persistent progression, deriving joy from Devil Daggers required me to learn the ins and outs of the game’s quirky shooting, movement, and mob-management gameplay. Getting a run over 4 minutes felt like a monumental accomplishment. Darks Souls was supposed to be the game that taught me the importance of system mastery, but that it wasn’t until Devil Daggers that I came to appreciate that journey.
(Also the sound design and low-poly presentation is absolutely wonderful).
6) Fast Racing NEO & FAST RMX (played on Wii U and Nintendo Switch)
So imagine this: Wipeout, but actually fun. Enter: Fast Racing NEO and it’s expanded Switch port FAST RMX. FRN/FRMX’s blistering sense of speed and flashy visuals are attractive the second you see the game in motion. The racing is fierce and layers some extra mechanics via a boosty-pad system that rewards track mastery (your ship can change into two colors; hit the boost pad with the matching color and you get extra boost). Add in super tight controls and a thumpin’ OST and you have a real jaw-dropper of a game once you realize that 4 people made this thing. I loved this game so much I tried speedrunning it, and last I checked I placed 7th for the Wii U version of game.
Also the Switch port is by far superior, thanks to extra tracks, songs, future-cars, better visuals, and the fact that it isn’t on the Wii U.
5) Pocket Card Jockey (played on Nintendo 3DS)
In 2016, I got involved in a fun-yet-rapidly dissolving relationship. I had picked up a 3DS to play Monster Hunter with that person, but we wound up splitting. Inevitably, I wanted to justify the money I spent on this totally-not-an-impulse-buy of a console, and in my search for something to play, I stumbled across this wonderful little gem. Pocket Card Jockey bundles a casual Solitaire game into a wacky horse race-management thing governed by a preposterous amount of stats and sub-systems.
Essentially, you have to manage your horse’s stats/position on the field stats WHILE simultaneously trying to not fuck-up your Solitaire matches, ALONG WITH taking into careful consideration your horse’s stamina bar, power-ups on the track, & an ever-shifting hot-zone on that can make amplify your Solitaire match’s RNG and make your horse lose energy.If there is any real flaws with the game, it lies within the RNG, obfuscated stats, poor tutorialization, and depressing absence of any kind of community (as of 2020 the fandom-wiki is still woefully undocumented). It’s unfortunate, but when Pocket Card Jockey clicks, it transforms into this weirdly graceful & sublime experience that can get your mind off a breakup really quick. (Also I still play this in 2020 and it’s my feelings with the game have only grow stronger since 2016 lol)
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April Most played games... and most of them related with "cars". #nintendo #NintendoSwitch #rocketleague #ResidentEvilZero #FastRmx #asphalt9legends #GearClubUnlimited2 #GridAutoSport #instagamerchile #instagamerchile🇨🇱 #instagamerschile #instagamerlatam #instagamerslatam friends and partners: @ginger_mermaid3 @ichicagamer @switchleno @niki_mini_world @switch_dgchmn @hobbygamestrophy @cyrax5 @cambit_hylian @cawido27 @wuenaperrits @koke.barker @mr.buho21 @betosk @vaniagamer7 @gaminggirl286 @_miiminintendo https://www.instagram.com/p/B_pYc_inIV8/?igshid=zr7f7919sxob
This highlighter yellow color of the Joy-Con are neat. Oh, and buddy boy was jamming to his favorite soundtrack again. 🎮 . . . #nintendoswitch #fastrmx
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