2021 was another year where we all spent most of our spare time cooped up in our homes due to the circumstances we all live in. That meant more time with our PCs and consoles. Given that many games are being delayed due to the effects of this prolonged pandemic, and release schedules were sparse, the ever-looming backlogs that we’ve all accumulated could start to see movement.
This is the space for those games: Those I played in 2021 that came out in years prior. Starting with:
Monster Train
At this point, the roguelike deck builder is such a cliche, and yet they still keep making good ones. The premise is simple: Hell has literally frozen over and the angels are winning, so we marshall its remaining forces, place its final flame into the titular monster train and defend it from our angelic opposition.
To do so, we draw cards that represent spells and monsters from the various tribes of hell and use them to construct a strong enough defense to repel the angels in a tower defense-style setup. Like most roguelike deck builders, part of the fun comes from discovering how these cards and their effects interact in order to create powerful combinations that decimate even the big boss encounters.
Credit must also be given to its toony art style that gives each enemy and ally a distinct visual identity and silhouette. There’s a certain charm that goes a long way to giving the game a unique visual identity.
It’s the kind of game I know I can always come back to if I need something to stream, and rare is the game I can say that about.
Bunsnax!
The only thing you need to know about Bugsnax is that it has Bunger, and Bunger is adorable. So much so that they’re gearing up to sell a plushie of him. This is an endearing little game where we help an isolated island community by catching Bugsnax.
They’re half-bug and half-snak. They’re Bugsnax. Just remember that we are what we eat! And as people who watched my streams would know, there is definitely nothing insidious going on behind the scenes. It’s just a cute, innocent adventure where nothing bad happens and there are absolutely no secret government conspiracies or insidious monsters.
That would be crazy. Just look at how precious Bunger is. How could anything like that be dangerous?
Adastra/Winds of Change
I put these both on the list for largely the same reason. For the longest time, I deliberately avoided playing games like these while logged onto Steam or Discord because I didn’t want to be mocked for playing “furry bait” visual novels.
But it’s the Covid years, I am a furry and I no longer care whether or not people know it. The games were fun for me, certainly. However, in truth, they’re on this list more because getting comfortable playing these games without concerning myself if I was doing so in Offline Mode, or in private, no longer mattered to me this year.
It sounds dumb, largely because it is, but it was a huge personal accomplishment for me.
Umaragi Generation
A friend of mine gifted me this game just as I was on the verge of finishing up my highlights article from last year. Since I was in the middle of writing that and my other end-of-the-year article, I just didn’t have time to get around to it until January.
Smarter people than I have already given Umaragi their attention, but at the risk of echoing their points, Umaragi is an excellent example of how to use gameplay mechanics to bring the darkness of its world into focus. We assume the role of a photojournalist, using our camera to fulfill commissions for specific photographs in order to get paid in a bleak, apocalyptic world.
It’s a game that trusts its players to be able to connect the dots and figure out how bad things are without throwing it in our face directly. Instead, it shows it through a list of objectives and the lens of a camera.
But even within that framework, there’s a strange joy in fiddling with your lens and filters, exploring the levels in order to find those perfect money shots. To some extent, it reminds me of the campaigns in the old PS1 Tony Hawk games. We have a list of objectives, a level to explore, and a time limit on how long we can take before we have to wrap it up. So it’s up to us to complete those objectives (possibly even the optional ones) before time runs out. Despite that, I never felt rushed while playing the game. If anything, it was oddly relaxing and peaceful, as I slowly figured out what my perfect run would be.
Sometimes, the best thing to do is pull out a camera and just enjoy the moment as the world burns around us.
Astro’s Playroom
A pack-in for a new console has no right to be anywhere near as good as Astro’s Playroom is. It may only be a 4-hour platformer, but those are some tight, finely crafted hours of play.
Even more than that though, as someone who grew up with PlayStation as my primary console of choice, this was aimed squarely at me. Every minute is packed full of references to and love for the games I grew up playing, from major icons like Crash to the more obscure ones like Sir Daniel Fortesque.
It was a joy to share Astro’s Playroom on stream because it’s one of those games that always made me smile from start to finish.
A Short Hike
When I told a few friends of mine that I had enjoyed playing Lake, they recommended that I also try A Short Hike. They were correct in doing so, as it too gave me that relaxing experience I was in the mood for at the time.
My playtime was short, just over one hour, but in the hour, as I hiked to the top of the moment, I had fun stopping to help the people I met on the way, whether it was playing low-stakes volleyball or helping someone work up the nerve to talk to their crush or just collect a bunch of seashells. It’s been months since I played it and I still have a vivid memory of the experience.
I’ve played entire 40-hour games where I can barely remember a single thing that happened, but this short little indie title still sticks with me.
Devil May Cry V: Vergil
I’ve made no secret about how much I loved Devil May Cry V when it came out, and the Vergil DLC was the perfect excuse to return to it.
Having played the Vergil campaigns in DMC 3 and 4: Special Edition, I was almost instantly familiar with the way he played in V before I even began, and it felt good to know that my skills had not rusted over in my time away from the game.
I don’t have much more to add here that I haven’t already said about Devil May Cry V, but this is a series I have quickly fallen in love with in recent years, and I hope that we’ll see more before long.
Killer7
I’ve had Killer7 recommended to me so many times by so many people that I’m sometimes shocked that it took until 2021 to finally play it for myself. It’s one of the most fascinating and non-conventional video games I have ever played. Surprisingly, it also holds up well despite how long it’s been since its release in 2005.
Admittedly, Killer7’s uniqueness also meant that it took me a solid hour just to understand the control scheme and mechanics. That said, my experience was smooth as silk once I got over that hump. I have difficulty explaining the story, mostly because it defies explanation, but I loved every aspect of the experience from start to finish.
It’s the kind of one-of-a-kind game one truly has to experience for themselves before they truly understand the hype.
FUSER
As a child, games like Rock Band and Guitar Hero passed me by. They’re the kind of games that are best played in a party setting, as everyone takes turns acting like a rock star as the rest of the group encourages them to let loose, and I didn’t really have the headspace and friend group necessary to enjoy them to the fullest.
While not exactly the same, FUSER continues in the tradition by allowing players to take the reins as a DJ in an island paradise where the party starts early and ends late. Our job is to make our own original mixes using sections of popular licensed songs.
Fun fact about me: I have no ear for music whatsoever. And yet, even I was able to have a ton of fun playing the game and learning how the systems work. This is the kind of experience I would want to have on stream, but the nature of the beast means that’s a non-starter, given that licensed music is the bread-and-butter of the game’s central hook.
I never finished the campaign, but just because I didn’t beat the game doesn’t mean I didn’t enjoy it.
Halo 3 (& ODST)
Though my opinion of Halo 3 has cooled somewhat in the time since I played it on stream. In hindsight, I was much kinder to the story than I probably should have been. I imagine part of that is just because I was still relatively new to the franchises campaigns at the time. Of particular note is how little they utilize Arby in the story, despite the fact that he’s one of the most interesting characters in the series.
And yet, in the moment as I was surrounded by enemies and fighting them off in tense and exciting combat, none of that mattered. All that I needed to worry about is what weapons were scattered about the field, the enemy placement, and how to best use the former to neutralize the latter.
ODST takes it to a whole new level. I was fascinated by the new mission structure they introduced in the form of a semi-open world map. It’s also cool to play as non-Spartans, ordinary (if highly trained and skilled) people who don’t have the enhancements Master Chief does. It fits the darker tone and mood of ODST to a T.
I was more than happy to finally cross this game (and its siblings) off my list.
Stellaris
Stellaris isn’t the kind of game I would normally expect to be in my wheelhouse. Historically, I’ve bounced off “freeform”/simulation games lightning-fast, at least normally. But when a friend gifts me a game over the holidays and dares you to play in on stream, it’s difficult to refuse. Doubly so when I’m making a point to try to go outside of my comfort zone.
At first, I found the game intimidating since I didn’t really have any idea what I “should” do. I still don’t have a complete grasp on the mechanics, but I have a solid enough understanding to play without worry I’m making any huge mistakes. Once I got over that bump, my time with Stellaris was, almost similar to Lake and A Short Hike, relaxing. Sometimes, I really want that kind of low-impact game just to defragment the background processes of my mind.
I might not play it often, but I’m happy I was introduced to Stellaris.
Wandersong
I will almost always be in favor of subversions to the traditional Hero’s Journey, so Wandersong already had one foot in the door. Rather than assume the role of a brave hero out to save the world, we play as a humble bard who wants to be a hero. And over the course of his adventure, he does so, not because he was chosen to (the chosen one is a jerk), but because he wants to and is willing to listen to other people.
And since we’re a Bard, we don’t have any combat ability. Instead, we have a lovely singing voice, which we can use the right stick to modulate. While that seems like a one-note mechanic, Wandersong manages to find many diverse ways to make use of it through that 10 to 15-hour campaign. It never felt like it overstayed its welcome, and I left feeling oddly impressed by what I had played.
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And that wraps up my time with 2021. Good riddance, and may the next year at least suck a little less.
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