What are your favorite games by year?

[Messiah]

Simple, what are your favorite games from each year dating back however long you have been gaming? The only rule is the game can only be applied to the year it came out. If it came out in 2014 and you played it this year, it is still a 2014 game.

For me...

2016: TBD. Partially because I have been too busy to really commit to any game, but nothing has stuck out for me. Battlefield I and Gears of War 4 are two really good games, and if I had to choose I guess I would say Battlefield is my favorite game to come out this year. However, I have Final Fantasy 15 and Watch Dogs 2 (which I have heard a lot of really great things about so far) sitting on my shelf and that could change things. Not to mention The Walking Dead Season 3 will be out in a couple of weeks and I might give Dishonored 2 a go one of these days.

2015: The Witcher 3. Not even a question. The Witcher 3 is the best single player game I have ever played. Shout-out to Metal Gear Solid V: Phantom Pain and Dying Light.

2014: Destiny. 2014 was a terrible year for gaming IMO. This was after the X1 and PS4 had just came out and it was just an empty year for gaming. Destiny benefits from all the expansion packs they released down the road. At launch, this was a game with so much potential but no content. While I strongly disagree with their DLC approach rather than including it with the game, I can't lie and say I didn't end up loving the game. The House of Wolves DLC adding Trials of Osiris made this one of the best games of 2015 Summer. Honorable mention to Alien Isolation.

2013: The Last of Us and The Wolf Among Us. This year was excellent. The Last of Us, The Wolf Among Us, Tomb Raider, Bioshock Infinite, Walking Dead Season 2, Splinter Cell, Battlefield 4, AC: Black Flag (which, compared to the other recently released ACs, was really good I thought), Arkham Orgins, Dead Space, State of Decay. Ultimately I couldn't choose between The Last of Us and Wolf Among Us. The Last of Us obviously had the better gameplay and the story was strong, but Wolf Among Us was an amazing experience. I wish they would do a sequel, but it isn't looking promising.

2012: The Walking Deadon (Season 1). Perfect. Honorable mention to Black Ops 2, which is one of the most underrated games ever.

2011: Batman: Arkham City. Holiday 2011.

2010: Red Dead Redemption. One hell of a game that still plays great. Probably still in my top five.

Other:
2009 - Uncharted 2
2008 - Fallout 3

[SlightlyJames]

Alright let's see. Some of this may differ from those yearly top 5 things I've done a couple of times. My opinions on a few games have changed a bit as time's gone on and I've played a good deal of games that slipped through the cracks when they first released.

Side note, as far as the episodic Telltale style games, I tend to attribute them to whatever year the majority of the episodes are released in, rather than the first episode. For example, The Wolf Among Us was first released in 2013 but 80% of it was the following year so I associate it more strongly with 2014.

I can't be arsed going that far back because it's late and I don't want to half arse what I'm saying about the games, so I'm just going to do the last three years, for now at least.

2016
Overwatch - By a large margin. A fast paced team shooter driven by its distinct cast of playable heroes, the roster is deep and every addition has their own distinct playstyle and identity. Learning the intricacies of the game mechanics is rewarding and I've never felt more like part of a team than when playing this game.

2015
Bloodborne - Simply phenomenal, from the eerie, atmospheric and dark setting of Yharnam, the drip feed of unsettling insight into the horrors of the world we find ourselves in, the tension of exploration and the thrill of the hunt. Bloodborne is an absolutely sublime experience and stands among the greatest games ever made.

2014
The Binding of Isaac Rebirth - Take the foundation of a solid twin stick shooter. Add grotesque biblical satire, one hell of a soundtrack, a gauntlet of unique enemies and procedurally generated levels with varied upgrades that interact in all sorts of interesting and unexpected ways and you've essentially got the pinnacle of the rogue-lite genre.

[EmperorWu]

I just started playing Witcher 3 this weekend even though I've owned it for over a year. It has consumed my life. It makes Dragon Age and Skyrim look like piles of shit. This is how you do it boys!

[Everlong]

I'll have to go back and look up exactly which games came in which years, but here we go:

2016: So far, I haven't played a whole ton, so the jury is still out. I'm still working on Dishonored 2, haven't started Gears, haven't played Overwatch. So I guess by default right now my favorite is Forza Horizon 3. It's been quite a while since I played a racing game, and this one is just really really good.

2015: There were a lot of games this year that I really liked, but two stand head and shoulders above the rest: Rocket League and The Witcher 3. The Witcher 3 was one of the best RPGs ever released and an incredible emotional journey. Rocket League single-handedly revived my hope that gaming companies can still produce outstanding multiplayer games that maintain their appeal for longer than a month or two. I've put more hours into this game already than almost any other I've owned.

2014: Shadow of Middle Earth was the first time I've ever been truly impressed by a game set in the world of Lord of the Rings. While the final boss fight was a bit of a let down, I loved the "rivals" system that the game used, and had a lot of fun sneaking around Mordor. The game wasn't perfect (after a certain point it got really easy) but looking back at 2014 titles, that was easily my favorite out of ones I played.

2013: A few really good titles this year, including BIoshock Infinite, Tomb Raider and a few more, but come on. Gotta give love to GTA V. It went back to its roots of being over-the-top and ridiculous, and I've put in a ton of hours running around causing mayhem online with friends.

[Kreashko]

2016: Uncharted 4 (PS4)
- One of the most cinematic, intriguing stories I have ever played.

2015: Until Dawn (PS4)
- If you have a PS4 and don't have Until Dawn, I suggest you pick this one up and give it a chance.

2014: The Last of Us: Remastered (PS4)
- I know, I know. Technically TLOU came out on PS3 in 2013 but damn, the remastered version that came out in 2014 is scrumdidlyumptious.

2013: Grand Theft Auto V (Xbox 360)
- GTA V is possibly one of the best overall games I've ever played...and that's saying something. (I play ALOT of games.)

2012: The Walking Dead: Season One (Xbox 360)
- I cried at the end. Amazing.

2011: Batman: Arkham Asylum (Xbox 360)
- This to this day is my favorite Batman game. Simply awesome.

2010: Alan Wake (Xbox 360)
- If you've never played Alan Wake, go play it. It's different. But in a good way.

2009: Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (Xbox 360)
- This COD game was the first game I can remember buying myself for myself. P.S. MW2 is my favorite COD game to this day.

2008: Grand Theft Auto IV (Xbox 360)
- The first "FIRST next gen" game I ever played. Awesome.

2007: Halo 3 (Xbox 360)
- A damn fine Halo game.

2006: Gears of War (Xbox 360)
- Gears of War was my shit back in the day.

2005: WWE SmackDown! vs. Raw 2006 (PS2)
- The intro to being a GM was amazing. Still is.

2004: Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas (PS2)
- GTA San Andreas is a classic. Plain and simple.

2003: Tony Hawk's Underground (PS2)
- This game consumed my teen years. I still play it to this day.

2002: Grand Theft Auto: Vice City (PS2)
- This was my first GTA game I ever played and damn was it a good one.

2001: Grand Theft Auto III (PS2)
- GTA III is the first third person GTA game we got and boy was it something.

2000: WWF SmackDown! 2: Know Your Role (PS1)
- What can I say, It's a classic.

1999: WWF WrestleMania 2000 (N64)
- Still my favorite wrestling game of all-time.

1998: The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time (N64)
- Where my love of Zelda games started.

1997: GoldenEye 007 (N64)
- My first FPS. Also a classic.

1996: Super Mario 64 (N64)
- I spent countless hours playing this game. A Classic.

1995: Yoshi's Island (SNES)
- The first game I ever beat.