2014: The Good, the Bad, and the Unplayed
I had originally intended to write this yesterday, but instead spent most of the day feeling like someone had taken a baseball bat to my skull. So instead I wallowed in my own self-pity. 😛 So today I felt better enough to get to this.
2014 is a noteworthy year for me. I built my first computer, participated in Extra Life for the first time, and redesigned the Lair (again). I think I’ve finally shook lose of any residual interest in WoW, discovered my love for Mass Effect and all things FemShep (as I sit here in my N7 hoodie), and began amassing a collection of video game music. I also feel as though I’m moving away from most MMOs and focusing on playing the single-player and indie games I’ve missed over the past several years. All in all, it’s been a fun year.
Now it’s time for some lists!
Favorite games from 2014
Some of these are games that were released in 2014, others have been around for a while and I finally got around to playing them.
- Mass Effect series (obviously)
- The Sims 3
- Banished
- Planet Explorers (still in alpha)
- The Fall
- Never Alone
- Portal 1 & 2
- Mirror’s Edge
- Transistor
- A Story About my Uncle
2014 Disappointments
- ArchAge. I usually have little to no problems running most programs but no matter what, I cannot get ArchAge to run. I’ve uninstalled, reinstalled, restarted, redownloaded, turned off my firewall and antivirus…and every time, I get Hackshield errors and can’t get past the opening cinematic. I’m just glad I decided to try it before buying anything or I would have been pissed.
- Mount & Blade. I really want to like this game and play it a lot. But it seems I am horrible at realistic combat and I quickly end up as someone’s prisoner. Maybe I just need more practice.
- 4X games like Civ 5 and Endless Space. More games that I want to like but I just can’t seem to get into. I think it’s the turn-based gameplay, it’s just too boring for me. Coming from a Wurmian, that’s saying something.
Games I am looking forward to playing in 2015
- Planet Explorers. What they’ve done just in alpha is amazing and I can’t wait to see what the finished game will look like.
- Sequel games to The Fall. I need to know what happens to ARID!
- Maia. I love the idea of managing a space colony and this game has a lot of potential.
- The Book of Unwritten Tales 2
- The Long Dark. I’ve played a few hours of it already and I really like what I see.
- Ether One. This game has special meaning for me and I really need to play it more.
- All of the Half-Life games
- Finishing off the Dragon Age games (maybe?). I still haven’t finished the first one…
- The F.E.A.R. series
- More of The Sims 3.
As for MMOs, I’ll probably continue playing Wurm Online but I don’t know how much at the moment. My interest is waning since they keep setting back adding bridges again and again. The Sims is also filling my need to build and create much better. I’ve also been jumping in Fallen Earth from time to time. What I really like about this game is that I don’t have to pay a subscription, so I don’t feel like I’m wasting money by not playing.
I hope 2015 is off to a good start for you all. Happy gaming!