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This is totally not influenced by my writing of a similar topic for an upcoming article...
If you're a member here on GTPlanet, it's a pretty safe assumption that you have (or had) an interest in sim racing. That's cool — it was a fantastic year for it, possibly one of the best in a long time — but the fun thing about this genre we love so much is that it's just one serviced by those little boxes we plug into our TVs. Or monitors, for you PC folks.
Gaming is so big now that it's hard to keep track of everything. I know; even keeping an eye on racing games is a lot of work. With 2017 done and dusted, I wanted to hear from everyone else what were the highlights (and lowlights) of their year in gaming? What games surprised you? What games do you see yourself cherishing and sharing with others a decade on? Maybe there was a standout feature in a game that really impressed you, too.
There's no specific structure I'm looking for, so get creative. Though, if @glassjaw wants to make an impassioned post about Zelda being his GOTY, I'm all for it (not least because I still need some convincing to pick up a Switch
).
...
I haven't played a lot of the games that are dominating general-gaming site GOTY lists, but the one that's stuck with me all year is Cuphead. I'll readily admit it isn't an overall contender, as it's just too small and isn't very innovative. But what it does, it does insanely well. As someone who grew up with animation dreams, it's mind-blowing to see something this beautiful also be interactive, and to think of the amount of work involved is just a little scary. It's also a very polished game. It reminds me so much of the old 8- and 16-bit days, when a dev had no choice but to release a fully finished product or risk ruin.
It got a ton of hate this year — justifiably, in terms of those lootboxes — but I'd be remiss if I didn't mention Star Wars Battlefront II. Buried under all the controversy is a good game. It feels so authentic in terms of visuals and sounds that it's hard not to get sucked in if you're even a mild Star Wars fan. At first, I didn't like the four-class system, missing the freedom to craft your own bizarre hybrid in the first, but it's actually made me experiment with them, instead of grabbing a handful of upgrades I assumed were the OP ones. The major issue I have with the game is one that's at least addressed in the next title...
Ah, Gran Turismo Sport. I couldn't not mention it, really. It isn't what I first liked about the franchise — the esport thing, while enjoyable, just isn't my bag as much as the original concept — but I find myself playing it more than I expected, which says something. It and SWB2 feel similar in that way: I like just hopping in and not really worrying about winning, so long as I have a close match/race. The difference here is the DR/SR system actually makes that possible in GT. Every once in a while, I load up SWB2 only to see an absolute blowout. Every game should have more detailed matchmaking algorithms.
That includes Forza Motorsport 7. So much of this game is what I wished GT4 would be in 2017; it has an unmatched car roster, and offers you the ability to do so much with them. It's fun, and it doesn't take itself too seriously, but is still realistic enough for most people (arguably too much so, scarily enough). But racing online is such a crap shoot. I'm not a huge fan of the game being built around the new homologation system either; I don't mind it for the offline championships, but to essentially kill off class-based Rivals was a wrong move, IMO. It's a solid game — a great game — but in terms of its impact, I'm not convinced its a better title than what FM6 was in 2015.
The same goes for Project CARS 2. It does so many things right, that it's frustrating there's no (better) matchmaking system. It'd also help if the game didn't launch with a laundry list of glitches, minor and major. The latest update has fixed a fair amount, and that's great. I don't even care if the graphics aren't as good as either of the other racing games — the living circuits are what the big draw is here. Plus, the CSL Elite support seems to have been fixed too!
There are other games I played this year, but as I looked through my library, it turns out most I enjoyed aren't actually from this year. Whoops.
If you're a member here on GTPlanet, it's a pretty safe assumption that you have (or had) an interest in sim racing. That's cool — it was a fantastic year for it, possibly one of the best in a long time — but the fun thing about this genre we love so much is that it's just one serviced by those little boxes we plug into our TVs. Or monitors, for you PC folks.
Gaming is so big now that it's hard to keep track of everything. I know; even keeping an eye on racing games is a lot of work. With 2017 done and dusted, I wanted to hear from everyone else what were the highlights (and lowlights) of their year in gaming? What games surprised you? What games do you see yourself cherishing and sharing with others a decade on? Maybe there was a standout feature in a game that really impressed you, too.
There's no specific structure I'm looking for, so get creative. Though, if @glassjaw wants to make an impassioned post about Zelda being his GOTY, I'm all for it (not least because I still need some convincing to pick up a Switch
)....
I haven't played a lot of the games that are dominating general-gaming site GOTY lists, but the one that's stuck with me all year is Cuphead. I'll readily admit it isn't an overall contender, as it's just too small and isn't very innovative. But what it does, it does insanely well. As someone who grew up with animation dreams, it's mind-blowing to see something this beautiful also be interactive, and to think of the amount of work involved is just a little scary. It's also a very polished game. It reminds me so much of the old 8- and 16-bit days, when a dev had no choice but to release a fully finished product or risk ruin.
It got a ton of hate this year — justifiably, in terms of those lootboxes — but I'd be remiss if I didn't mention Star Wars Battlefront II. Buried under all the controversy is a good game. It feels so authentic in terms of visuals and sounds that it's hard not to get sucked in if you're even a mild Star Wars fan. At first, I didn't like the four-class system, missing the freedom to craft your own bizarre hybrid in the first, but it's actually made me experiment with them, instead of grabbing a handful of upgrades I assumed were the OP ones. The major issue I have with the game is one that's at least addressed in the next title...
Ah, Gran Turismo Sport. I couldn't not mention it, really. It isn't what I first liked about the franchise — the esport thing, while enjoyable, just isn't my bag as much as the original concept — but I find myself playing it more than I expected, which says something. It and SWB2 feel similar in that way: I like just hopping in and not really worrying about winning, so long as I have a close match/race. The difference here is the DR/SR system actually makes that possible in GT. Every once in a while, I load up SWB2 only to see an absolute blowout. Every game should have more detailed matchmaking algorithms.
That includes Forza Motorsport 7. So much of this game is what I wished GT4 would be in 2017; it has an unmatched car roster, and offers you the ability to do so much with them. It's fun, and it doesn't take itself too seriously, but is still realistic enough for most people (arguably too much so, scarily enough). But racing online is such a crap shoot. I'm not a huge fan of the game being built around the new homologation system either; I don't mind it for the offline championships, but to essentially kill off class-based Rivals was a wrong move, IMO. It's a solid game — a great game — but in terms of its impact, I'm not convinced its a better title than what FM6 was in 2015.
The same goes for Project CARS 2. It does so many things right, that it's frustrating there's no (better) matchmaking system. It'd also help if the game didn't launch with a laundry list of glitches, minor and major. The latest update has fixed a fair amount, and that's great. I don't even care if the graphics aren't as good as either of the other racing games — the living circuits are what the big draw is here. Plus, the CSL Elite support seems to have been fixed too!
There are other games I played this year, but as I looked through my library, it turns out most I enjoyed aren't actually from this year. Whoops.
Odd times if you asked me 
