The Best Games I Played in 2020

This year found many people turning to videogames for comfort during these stressful pandemic times. Yours truly was no exception.

The Last of Us Part II

If we're comparing videogames to movies, The Last of Us Part II may very well be this year's The Last Jedi. It's deconstruction of the revenge genre and borderline sadomachistic story doesn't always work, but it still contains the excellent writing, gameplay and motion-capture performances Naughty Dog is known for.

Ghost of Tshuhima

An ode to samurai films and Japan in general, this action-adventure game is a much more suitable game for those who may have been turned off by The Last of Us Part II, 

Paper Mario: The Origami King

Stop comparing this game to The Thousand Year Door and enjoy it for some of the funniest writing I've ever encountered in a game.

Control

Remedy Entertainment has always ben known for it's cinematic action-adventure game but Control may be it's apex in that regard. Issues on my base PS4 aside, the game features an excellent New Weird world with expert storytelling and gameplay that has more than a few nods to the studio's previous work.

Doom Eternal

Doom Eternal is to Doom what Fury Road was to Mad Max. Bigger, better and more exciting than ever.

Hades

Beloved for their games that combine unique storytelling with addictive gameplay, Supermassive Games have made their best game yet in Hades, a roguelike ARPG that incorporates Greek mythology into it's DNA as you attempt to escape the Underworld. While the gameplay is as fun as it's ever been, the true star of Hades is the cast of characters based on Greek gods that you converse and form bonds with everytime you return to the Underworld.

Final Fantasy VII Remake

Square Enix's multi-part reimagining of it's groundbreaking JRPG suffers from a lot of filler, but when it comes to recreating certain story moments, it absolutely shines.

Yakuza Kiwami 2

If Japanese games are one of my favorite genre in games, the Yakuza series is up there with the best for their  dense open worlds and storytelling that blends serious drama with humor.