It’s nearly Christmas and not long before the end of 2020 but before it ends I have assembled my Game of the Year list. 2020 was a pretty quiet year for games. There were some big-budget games like The Last of Us Part II, Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales, Animal Crossing: New Horizons, and Half-Life: Alyx. While Cyberpunk 2077 came and is a big disappointment. Crusader Kings III also came out but I purposely avoided playing it.
This year I played a mixture of new and old games, eleven of which were courtesy of Xbox Game Pass.
Like last year I posted my Game of the Month entries throughout the year on my Twitter page (@kingtoko), with a haiku describing my experience with it. My GOTY list below contains these same reviews with a few more words for the game featured at number one.
You can see the original tweet thread here: GOTM 2020.
Note: For a game to qualify I must have played the game in 2020, though they don’t have to be from 2020.
Special Mentions
Here are some games that I played that were enjoyable but didn’t make my top ten list:
(I) Wasteland 3 (Xbox One)
Back to the wastes,
Was good until the crashes,
Have not been back since.
Post: Wasteland 3 is Now Available.
(II) Minecraft Dungeons (Xbox One)
I beat it quickly,
But I’m still ready for more.
May it never end.
Posts: Minecraft Dungeons is Available, and Minecraft Dungeons 100% Item List.
(III) Necromunda: Underhive Wars (PC)
The most interesting,
40K Warhammer setting, but the,
Game isn’t the greatest.
Posts: Necromunda: Underhive Wars is Now Available, and Necromunda: UW Ops – Uprising Campaign.
(IV) Total War: Warhammer (PC)
The Empire of Man,
Fought among one another.
I coup de grâce.
Post: Good Game: Total War Warhammer.
(V) Minecraft (Xbox One)
Digging and mining,
Can be fun. If you have no,
Mission it isn’t.
Post: Building a Minecraft Kingdom.
(VI) Outward (Xbox One)
I carried a pack,
And refused all magic spells.
My longsword killed all.
Post: Entertainment Out This Week: Outward Edition.
(VII) The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (Nintendo Switch)
Back after three years,
To start again in Master,
Will I finish it?
Post: Entertainment Out This Week: The Legend of Zelda Breath of the Wild Edition.
(VIII) Cities: Skylines (PC)
I created many lives.
Comets didn’t stop me build,
Traffic nearly did.
Games of the Year
Without further ado these are my top games for AD 2020:
(10) Final Fantasy XV (PC)
I travelled the world,
Expecting new experiences,
But was disappointed.
Post: Entertainment Out This Week: Final Fantasy XV Edition.
(9) State of Decay 2: Juggernaut Edition (Xbox One)
I missed the virus,
By staying inside killing,
Legions of the dead.
Post: Entertainment Out This Week: Stuff Edition.
(8) Kingdom Come: Deliverance (Xbox One)
I am a pleb knight.
I stole my equipment,
And banged the locals.
Post: Entertainment Out This Week: Kingdom Come Deliverance Edition.
(7) Grim Fandango Remastered (Xbox One)
A fun tale of love,
Set in the Land of the Dead.
We need more of these.
Post: Super Smash Bros. Ultimate DLC Characters.
(6) Sniper Elite 4 (Xbox One)
I sniped heads and hearts,
Being stealthy didn’t matter.
There is legs in war.
(5) Sleeping Dogs (Xbox One)
Ended too soon but,
A True Crime even today.
Will we see some more?
Post: The Best Video Games for Release in Quarter 3 and 4 2012.
(4) Gears Tactics (Xbox One)
I moved and rampaged,
A satisfying rhythm.
Now need a clean shot.
Post: Gears Tactics is Available.
(3) Hyrule Warriors: Definitive Edition (Nintendo Switch)
If you like Zelda,
You will love the fan content.
Maybe the best one?
Post: Entertainment Out This Week: Hyrule Warriors Definitive Edition.
(2) Animal Crossing: New Horizons (Nintendo Switch)
Came back after 15 years,
Same experience but more.
A joyous life game.
Post: E3 2019: Summary of All the E3 News and Announcements.
(1) Pathologic 2 (PC)
I tried to save all,
But ended up killing myself.
A win is a loss.
When I played Pathologic 2 this time last year and made the theme for GOTY 2019 as “Death” I couldn’t have predicted how close that would be to reality in 2020.
Pathologic 2 does a good job of using the plague theme to tell an engaging story. This with the sometimes severe survival mechanics adds to the overall atmosphere of helplessness.
While the game may be too weird for some people and the themes may not be enjoyable, I would recommend you try it.
Post: King Toko Game of the Year 2019 (GOTY) Awards.
In Fine
That’s my Game of the Year feature for 2020 all done. It’s shorter than last year as I thought I do something different. I think I will continue using Twitter to post my Games of the Month in 2021 as it helps when making my Game of the Year list.
I hoped you enjoyed reading my thoughts on these games, as much as I did playing and typing about them.
2020 has been bad for many people this year for a variety of reason but remember people say that every year was the worse. May 2021 be a good year for all.
King Toko 