I Am Setsuna (PS4):
Though I love a good open-world RPG, I had been itching to play something
decidedly more old school. Instead of just replaying Chrono Trigger for the
thousandth time, I gave Square Enix’s I
Am Setsuna a try. It’s definitely a love letter to 16-bit SNES JRPGs with
its super deformed character designs and active-time battle system. Although
the story was a little bland, it did have touching moments from time-to-time
and the all-piano soundtrack was beautiful and melancholy. The entire game
takes place in a snow-covered country and the blizzardy locales imparted a
sadness and desolation not seen in other RPGs. For fans of retro gaming, it’s
worth picking up.
Rez Infinite (PSVR): Sony
released their PlayStation Virtual Reality peripheral this year to mostly
positive reviews. I know, I know—Rez
isn’t a “new” game, but I’ll be damned if VR isn’t the perfect way to
experience it. New to this edition is Area X, which is an area that has been
completely retooled for VR and has a different control scheme. You can move
your character any direction and explore the environment from any angle. Words
cannot describe how absolutely breathtaking and gorgeous this level is as it
uses particle effects to the fullest extent possible. I am not kidding when I
say I was moved to tears by the experience and it stands as one of the most
memorable gaming moments of my life. Area X is the future of VR gaming and its
capabilities.
Doom (Various
Consoles): The most surprising game experience of the year for me was Doom.
While I had played the earlier iterations that have come out, I was not
prepared for how kick ass and polished this newest “reboot” ended up being. The
gameplay is lightning fast and visceral with each fire fight being a straight
up adrenaline rush. The graphics were breathtaking with the Hell levels
depicted in all their horrifying glory. The sound design and music were amazing
too thanks to Mick Gordon’s stellar compositions. Doom proves that
single-player story-driven first person shooters are not dead.
Metal Gear Solid V:
The Phantom Pain (Various Consoles): Unfortunately, the newest Metal Gear Solid game was overshadowed
by Kojima’s very public falling out with Konami. That’s too bad, because The
Phantom Pain is one of the most compelling and realized games in the franchise.
We get to see how Big Boss became the man that he was which fills in quite a
bit of backstory in the Metal Gear lore. The stealth gameplay is silky smooth
and the new open-world element is a blast to explore. I do wish they hadn’t
went with the decision to cut the missions into so many smaller chunks, but
that’s a small quibble in the scheme of things. This is most likely the swan
song of the franchise so respect Kojima’s years of blood, sweat and tears and
give it a go.
Final Fantasy XV
(Various Consoles): I am a huge fan of the Final Fantasy franchise, but
after FFX I found myself becoming disinterested in the path that the games were
taking. FFXV was in development hell for a long time and my hopes weren’t high.
However, the reviews started pouring in after release and it turns out that
Square Enix listened to some of the criticism they have been getting over the
years. This time we have four male protagonists: Noctus, Gladios, Prompto and
Ignis. My fears were assuaged after playing the opening ten minutes of this
game, watching those four young men push their broken down car to the tune of
“Stand By Me” tugged at my heartstrings. It’s refreshing to see some levity and
happiness in a JRPG, and the bond these guys share is palpable and endearing.
Though there are still some technical and story pacing issues with this game,
it’s a promising step in the right direction for Square Enix.
-Michelle Kisner