Your 2012 Year in Review

[Ulminati]

2k12 seems to have been the year indies became my main source of digital entertainment. Grimrock, Faster Than Light and Kerbal Space Program were definite high points of the year. Had a decent amount of fun with CK II as well, but it didn't hold my interest for as long as I thought it would. Maybe I'll give it another go once the pagan/viking DLC is out.

Fallen enchantress was probably the biggest disappointment for me this year, since that was the one game where I clung to the foolish optimistic hope that it might actually be good. I got Warlock to scratch the itch that FE didn't address and it was 'k. It just wasn't MoM though and I quickly grew bored with it. I've heard that the patches improved Warlock a lot however, so it's on my to-try list of games to give another chance.

The AAAAAA+ releases of 2k12 have been so uninspired I didn't even bother giving the pirated version a go. Amalur, Far Cry 3, CODBLOPS, Dishonored, ME3, Specops: The line, Asscreed, Max Payne 3, 5Hitman etc haven't been near my hard disk and I doubt I missed out on anything meaningful.

What really stood out for me about 2012 was how many big titles bombed. Diablo 3 caused a shitstorm, same with Mass effect 3. In general, people seem to have been picking up the "new shit is shit" attitude in more and more places, although a steady stream of doritos and mountain dew still keeps the major media outlets sated. Even so, with developers dying left and right, AAA games may finally have reached the breaking point where they can't just shovel more money at them and hope that cash will hide the shit underneath.

So to summarize: 2012 releases were mostly meh, but 2013 looks like it's going to be the first year to see a marked incline on the predecessor since 1997.

Developer of the year award goes to Tim Schafer for kickstarting the kickstarter craze. His game isn't out (and may turn out to be shit), but the publicity he drew to KS meant a LOT of games that are genuinely promising became possible. We already had FTL which was quite good as a result. And we're looking at Banner Saga, SR Returns, Wasteland 2, Project Eternity, Xenonauts, Eisenwald and more for 2k13, all of which we probably wouldn't have seen if Tim Schafer had not made his pitch video.

 

[Wyrmlord]

The AAAAAA+ releases of 2k12 have been so uninspired I didn't even bother giving the pirated version a go. Amalur, Far Cry 3, CODBLOPS, Dishonored, ME3, Specops: The line, Asscreed, Max Payne 3, 5Hitman etc haven't been near my hard disk and I doubt I missed out on anything meaningful.

Wait wait, back a minute. On a second reading, this sentence doesn't make much sense.

You found certain games so uninspired...you never even played them? You never even played certain games...so you doubt you missed anything you would like?

The whole structure and thought process and logic behind this statement is messed up. Aren't you supposed to have played a game, before you decided it was not worth your time? When I was reading your second sentence, I thought you were going to mention what was wrong with all those games you listed, before it suddenly turns out that you merely wanted to say you did not play it. In which case, what was wrong with those games to begin with when you admit you never played them. It's just very strange.

 

[Ulminati]

The AAAAAA+ releases of 2k12 have been so uninspired I didn't even bother giving the pirated version a go. Amalur, Far Cry 3, CODBLOPS, Dishonored, ME3, Specops: The line, Asscreed, Max Payne 3, 5Hitman etc haven't been near my hard disk and I doubt I missed out on anything meaningful.

Wait wait, back a minute. On a second reading, this sentence doesn't make much sense.

You found certain games so uninspired...you never even played them? You never even played certain games...so you doubt you missed anything you would like?

The whole structure and thought process and logic behind this statement is messed up. Aren't you supposed to have played a game, before you decided it was not worth your time? When I was reading your second sentence, I thought you were going to mention what was wrong with all those games you listed, before it suddenly turns out that you merely wanted to say you did not play it. In which case, what was wrong with those games to begin with when you admit you never played them. It's just very strange.

I didn't play them. I watched a couple of let's play videos and read the reviews. From what I saw, all the "big releases" of 2012 looked so mediocre I didn't bother pirating them. Judging from what I've seen of the games being played and the impressions from people who played them I doubt I missed anything. That's one of the wonders of the internet these days. I can actually go watch a live stream of someone playing the game and see if it's a QTE-enriched, cutscene-laden corridor/corver/health regeneration cookie cutter game before wasting bandwidth on a torrent.

I was originally going to make a "new AAA games are shit as expected" statement. But then I realized I haven't actually played any of them as following the post-release coverage of them and watching them being played was enough to convince me not to give them a go. So I figured it'd be more accurate to say I didn't bother getting them but doubt I missed out on anything judging from what I've read and seen.

 

[Wyrmlord]

The AAAAAA+ releases of 2k12 have been so uninspired I didn't even bother giving the pirated version a go. Amalur, Far Cry 3, CODBLOPS, Dishonored, ME3, Specops: The line, Asscreed, Max Payne 3, 5Hitman etc haven't been near my hard disk and I doubt I missed out on anything meaningful.

Wait wait, back a minute. On a second reading, this sentence doesn't make much sense.

You found certain games so uninspired...you never even played them? You never even played certain games...so you doubt you missed anything you would like?

The whole structure and thought process and logic behind this statement is messed up. Aren't you supposed to have played a game, before you decided it was not worth your time? When I was reading your second sentence, I thought you were going to mention what was wrong with all those games you listed, before it suddenly turns out that you merely wanted to say you did not play it. In which case, what was wrong with those games to begin with when you admit you never played them. It's just very strange.

I didn't play them. I watched a couple of let's play videos and read the reviews. From what I saw, all the "big releases" of 2012 looked so mediocre I didn't bother pirating them. Judging from what I've seen of the games being played and the impressions from people who played them I doubt I missed anything. That's one of the wonders of the internet these days. I can actually go watch a live stream of someone playing the game and see if it's a QTE-enriched, cutscene-laden corridor/corver/health regeneration cookie cutter game before wasting bandwidth on a torrent.

Crystal clear.

Though video LPs can be deceiving. I mean MP3's gunfights look pretty dull on video, but can be a blast to play by itself.