Topic: What was your favourite games you played this year (any year or platform)?

We've had a great survey on best 2017 Sony games this year and it was a cracker. On top of that though, I wondered what were peoples favourite games they played in 2017 regardless of release year or platform?

What games did people like the most overall? Was it your first time playing or a revisit?

My favourite gaming experience, by far, has been Hyper Light Drifter on PS4. A year old game but I just loved it, am thinking about a replay and have listened to the soundtrack loads.

I also had a blast revisiting Super Metroid on the 2DS, it's been at least five years since I did it all end to end.

Some of the best “Older” games that I finally got around to playing this year included Ratchet & Clank, Rise of the Tomb Raider, Until Dawn, The Order 1886, and Danganronpa 2 on Vita. I played many others but excluding the 2017 releases that we have already mentioned in our GOTY voting, these 5 games were some of my highlights, among others.
I was most surprised that I liked Until Dawn because I dislike horror games usually, but the narrative was good and I became engrossed in it and the length was just right, not too long.
I had forgotten how much fun R&C could be, the weapons are some of the best in all of gaming. (The Sheepinator, The Pixelator ... 😂, where to they come up with this stuff?)
Rise of the TR gets a lot of criticism around the community, but I found it really, really enjoyable. The story was meh, but Lara is one of the best protagonists and the open world gameplay and combat was well done. I can’t wait for the Shadow of the Tomb Raider, or whatever it’s going to be called.
The Order also is one of those games people love to hate, but you can buy the game for a song nowadays and it is very polished in presentation. Beautiful game for early gen title. The story is pretty good and Galahad is one of the more under appreciated heros in gaming. Too bad we’ll never see a sequel.
And Danganronpa 2 ... well, it’s just fantastic is you like Japanese flavored games and visual novel type format. My only surprise was how much it surpassed the already excellent first game. Hopefully I crack into Danganronpa V3 soon.

Stardew Valley for me has been a very pleasant surprise. I also finally played Wolfenstein: The New Order and had a really good time with that, too.

But there have been so many great games this year that it's been difficult to look back!

My top game of 2017 was H:ZD without any doubt. Assassin's Creed: Origins was second.

Of the games I bought/played in 2017, Witcher 3: GotY edition is still the best game I have played this generation. I know its a 2015 game but I bought the GotY version on PS4 as I hadn't yet played the DLC - and this was a few months before CDPR announced they were patching the game for Pro support. I have bought the DLC now on Xbox too (Season Pass was on sale for £10) but waiting for the patch to play that. I did play some of Forza Horizon 3 and that is a great game - at least what I did play. I didn't want to delve too deep as I wanted to play it on my X when it gets patched to 4k. It would be up there as one of the best - whether it would be top 5 or not, I don't think so because 'Racing' games in general are not really that high on my priority - It wouldn't beat Wolfenstein 2, Lost Legacy, Destiny 2 etc let alone the 3 I have already mentioned - but its still a great game.

Generally I played 'recent' games - like Rise of Iron in Destiny, Infinite Warfare's MP/Zombies and whatever else launched from Sept 2016 onwards. The only other 'old' game I played was Infamous: First Light as I bought that in 2017 in a sale - looked fantastic in HDR on the Pro. I admit I haven't bought many games in 2017 - I think its around 10-14 with a lot of those being 'Limited Editions'. Even still, I have not had any issues with finding games to play as most offered hundreds of hours worth. I haven't even had to rely on IGC/GwG games to fill in. I can't recall if any though really grabbed my attention enough to be considered my 'favourite' games I played in 2017.

I do tend to look forward rather than 'back' when I decide which games I want to play. I would rather jump in to something I haven't experienced rather than play something I have beaten. Its also why my Backlog grows rather than shrinks as I tend to go for something new current rather than finish a game. There obviously was a reason I moved on because if a game really grabs me, I tend to finish it rather than put it on the shelf with the thought of returning if/when there is a 'dry spell' of games I want.

It's gotta be Persona 5 for me.
It's unquestionably my favourite console JRPG of all time. I replayed the game 3 times in my quest for the platinum & each time I kept seeing new things I missed in previous playthroughs (social links mostly).

NiOh is the game that 'kept me' the longest. I played the game for 6months straight- got the platinum within 3 weeks.
Destiny 2 could really learn from NiOh's end game. It's so rewarding. I had to actually force myself to delete the game, as it was keeping me from newer releases.

Yakuza 0 was my gateway into the Yakuza series & now I'm all in. Same goes for Ys Memories of Celcetta which I enjoyed so much on vita that I ended up buying Ys VIII on PS4 for full price months after launch- something I never do.

There's a ton of PS games that I have greatly enjoyed this year- too many to list.

On the Nintendo side, I'm still playing Zelda. It's very good, but I don't think I'd put it in my top 10.

I loved Nier Automata but I think Xenoblade Chronicles 2 might be the best game I played this year. I'm 70 hours in and it's just so awesome. Mario Odyssey comes in a third.

@Th3solution I completely agree with the Order. The gameplay was flawed and quite limited but I liked the story and characters. Really do want a sequel.

@Quintumply I am scared of Stardew Valley. It doesn't seem like my type of game but it seems to ensnare everyone who touches it for hundreds of hours. Black magic I say...

@BAMozzy I've got TW3 GOTY edition on my Christmas wishlist as I've never played it. At the rate I play, I may finish sometime in Dec 2018!

@Fight_Teza_Fight I would put Zelda in my top five for the year as it takes a lot to keep me playing for hundred hours + but I also wonder how much of that time was because it on the Switch and therefore portable. I am not sure I would have stuck with it purely docked.

@Rudy_Manchego Haha, it does have a LOT of content. I’ve only really scratched the surface so far. Luckily it hasn’t drawn me in completely as you described, but it is addictive, and each time I play, it’s for much longer than I plan to!

I’ll also say that it isn’t usually my type of game either, but it’s very well designed, and I’ve really enjoyed what I’ve played of it.

@Rudy_Manchego I'm only about 20hours into Zelda, so I do think it'll move up the ranks. Definitely top 10 as far as 2017 releases go, but I've played a lot of older games this year, like the Kingdom Hearts and Bioshock collections.

@KratosMD Gravity Rush...
Wahey!!!

Ive been lucky enough to play some of my favourite games ever this year in Persona 4 Golden and Yakuza zero. Both are easily inside my top ten.

The witness creeps into my top 20, such a great game everyone has to play it. I just wish the speed run section trophy wasnt so frustrating. Ive ran out of time at the last pillar 7/8 times arrrrghhh.

Horizon, whilst pretty amazing, isnt as memorable as either Yakuza or P4g when I look back. Persona 5 was patchy, again absolutely brilliant at times but such a boring grind for hours.

Darius Burst Chronicle Saviours, Dont Die Mr Robot and nex machina have been mainstays in my gaming rotation. Dariusburst is my number 1 recommendation to everyone with hardly any money but loads of time.

On PC Ive played some amazing old games. Patrician, Inside (that may have been last year) and Anno 1404. But I wouldnt put any of them in my top 20 best ever games.

Games I still want to buy/play from 2017;

Project cars2
GT sport
Nier Automata
Rigs Mechanised combat
Zelda BOTW
Arms (played briefly)
Accounting plus

@themcnoisy I had to look up ‘Accounting Plus’ as I thought that might be a joke. What an unfortunately named game. It sounds like a math course. Or like a game where you do accounting math problems on your PlayStation, which would be an awful idea for a game. Unless each time you balanced the ledger the calculator transformed into a murderous robot and then you had to try and kill it with your pencil ... 🤔

Horizon: Zero Dawn and Uncharted: The Lost Legacy are probably duking it out for top spot on my list, as is obviously the case for many others, but I've also got a few random, personal answers.

Star Trek Online is something I've been messing about with since launch, but as a die-hard Trekkie this year gave me my favourite moments thusfar because they released the Universe-Class starship and the Son'a vessels, which are some of my all-time franchise favourites. I also figured out how to take halfway-decent screencaps and spent many an hour nerding out and being all artsy with my starships, so... yay, go me.

Life is Strange needs a mention, not because of the game itself, but because I played it late after a friend recommended it and the joy of discussing the game with her after I completed every episode and sharing the experience with "OMG!!" text messages and jokes about squirrels elevated what was otherwise a game I'd likely never have played. We're both currently on the edges of our seats for next week's Before the Storm finale.

@RogerRoger I forgot that Life is Strange is another one I played this year too. I was also late to the party, so to speak, on this game and ended up enjoying it too. It was a pleasant surprise. I haven’t played any Before the Storm yet but plan to eventually.

got to be FFXV, i just keep coming back to it even over newer games and even though i have done EVERYTHING i still really like playing it, just driving around and fighting monsters

it has it haters but for me a fan of FF since FFVII (the first the UK got) it's brilliant and one of the best in the franchise and definitely one of my top 3 FF games

@Th3solution I didn't expect to like Before the Storm as much as the original (different developers, voice actors shuffled around, limitations of being a prequel) but, even before playing the third and final part, I think it might actually be an improvement.

I highly recommend it.

@RogerRoger Cool. I have been waiting until all the episodes are released so I can just buy them all, hopefully on a physical disc release. The season pass was on sale recently on the PSN though and I came close to succumbing but decided to wait. I’ll defini give it a go eventually.
Yeah, I can’t imagine Chloe with a different voice, but I guess it works out.
When I started playing Horizon Zero Dawn for the first time and heard Aloy talk, I was like, “It’s Chloe!” Ashly Burch is awesome.

I've played some good games this year. The Last Guardian (got it for Christmas last year), The Witcher 3, Lovers In A Dangerous Spacetime, Far Harbour, Dark Souls II, Dirt 4, Life Is Strange and loads more.

I'd be here all day trying to pick a favourite...

@Th3solution She is, I'm really pleased to see she got loads of awards nods for both roles.

That being said, the new actress in Before the Storm (can't recall her name, apologies) is really good. She's the mo-cap actress from the first game anyway, and Ashley Burch consulted with her on dialogue and performance, so it works.

Most importantly, I've never thought "This isn't Chloe!" whilst playing, and that's the trick they had to pull off, I guess.

Geez, where do I start? This year was great for me just because I finally got a PS4 this year.

Every year I replay the PS1 Crash games, which are my favorite games ever (Well, aside from the first one, but just doing 2 & 3 would feel weird). And I essentially replayed them again thanks to the N. Sane Trilogy. I also usually replay the Metal Gear Solid games, but I only replayed MGS1 for some reason.

As for games I've never played before-

This year was the first time I played Final Fantasy VII. It was a game I held off for a long time, primarily because I didn't want the massive amounts of praise for it to affect my playthrough. I only really got it done because the remake was happening and I'd rather not get left behind. But now that I've played it, I have the opposite attitude about it. While it's dated in a few areas, I thought it was a great game that was a blast to play in 2017.

I jumped into the Yakuza series this year too with Yakuza Kiwami. I know everyone is saying 0 is a good jump on point, but all the "best in series" comments made me go for Kiwami instead. It is technically the first in the series, after all. While I was admittedly tired of all the things to do by the end point, I actually did enjoy it a ton. It feels like a 2005 game yeah, but it's story and side activities made it worth playing. I can't wait for Kiwami 2!

I played both Uncharted 4 and Lost Legacy, both of which are great. However, I'll admit Thief's End left me somewhat disappointed with the story. The villains didn't blow me away (Nadine especially just felt like she was there, but Lost Legacy made her better), and much about Sam just made little sense. I'm currently replaying it to see if my opinion changes though. Lost Legacy I enjoyed much more despite being a smaller game. It improved on what was there in Thief's End, and it's length made it easier to digest.

This year for me was also a good one for fighting games. I got Tekken 7 alongside my PS4, I picked up King of Fighters XIV, Garou Mark of the Wolves, and Injustice 2 later on, and on PS3 I got Mortal Kombat 9 and Guilty Gear XX Accent Core Plus. Out of those, Injustice 2 and Guilty Gear are probably my favorites.

Last but not least is Persona 5. My personal GOTY. I wanted it as soon as it was announced and waiting was painful, but worth it. The story was a slight letdown (Primarily at the endgame), but man, everything else I loved. A refined battle system, fun Persona fusion, actual dungeon design, it was everything I wanted out of a JRPG.

Persona 5 is my favourite game I played this year. It's brilliant on almost every level. The only criticism I have is a certain mog preventing you from going out at night a lot of the time! Second up it's still the same as my forum GOTY list and that's Danganronpa V3.

Metroid Samus Returns came out of nowhere. A year ago I would have laughed if someone said there would be a new 2D Metroid. Metroid is one of my favourite franchises and this didn't disappoint. Mercury Steam did an outstanding job.

I finally got round to playing Doom a few months ago and thoroughly enjoyed it. Pretty old school in its design in an age where many games are going open world. The large labyrinthine levels were fun to explore and the very fast paced, over-the-top action speaks for itself. The 60fps gameplay really made a difference to the fluidity.

Another 2016 game I got round to playing was Dishonored 2, which felt like the first on steroids and improved upon it in almost every regard. The level design is brilliant. The story is pants though, which is a shame. After trying to play the game stealthily without killing anyone, but failing by the third level I decided to just go all out. It's more fun that way anyhow!

Last by not least Zelda: Breath of the Wild deserves a mention. I am an enormous Zelda fan and initially felt disappointed by how different this is to the others - it does away with many of the established conventions that I feel are an essential part of the Zelda DNA. However, once I began to view the game on its own terms I started really enjoying it. The world is brilliantly crafted and unlike a lot of open world games where your feel like you're just ticking off a to-do list, Hyrule is fun to explore for the sake of it, just to see what's round the corner. I do wish there were proper dungeons, but many of the shrines are excellent. Some of my favourite ones are those that reward you for doing something in the overworld, such as Eventide Isle. The weapon system is a big nuisance though and seems to actively discourage combat. I'm not breaking an awesome weapon just to get an opal! Now that Nintendo have the basics in place I feel they can make an even better sequel.