Greg “DoubtingThomas396” Decker
It’s getting down to the wire for those of you that occupy the venn diagram overlap area between “people who give other people presents in December” and “shameless procrastinators.” Fortunately, I’m here to offer you the buyer’s guide you need! So instead of the usual list of games coming out this week (of which you should check out Drawz, Meadow Fun!! and Assembly Required), I’m going to give you a list of games that came out this year that you should consider gifting to your friends, family and self. To be clear, this isn’t my top-ten list for 2018, it’s just a list of games I think other people should play.
Let’s start with the most obvious one for Switch owners (to me, anyway): Katamari Damacy: ReRolled hit the Nintendo Switch and PC this year, and anyone who likes fun should have a copy.
Wandersong was my game of the week when it came out, and it’s a no-brainer as far as gifting is concerned. My imagination is not strong enough to envision a person who would not be charmed by this game. Buy it for everybody.
Adventure Pals is another light and funny platformer that should be an easy fit for your gift list. Give it to people who like wacky, frenetic humor and exploratory side-scrolling platformers.
Far Cry 5 got a lot of hate this year, but of all the open world games I played this year, this was the only one I enjoyed enough to finish. If you know someone who likes open worlds, crafting and redneck jokes, then this is an easy recommendation.
Way of the Passive Fist is not just a fantastic pun of a title, it’s also one of the best side-scrolling beat-em-ups to hit the stores in years. Give it to that person in your life who keeps buying Sega Genesis collections just to play Final Fight again.
For the fighting game aficionado in your life, a lot of great stuff came out this year, and Namco definitely led the pack. Soul Calibur 6 and Dragonball Fighter Z are two outstanding examples of the genre, and if your friend who maintains and mods their own HORI stick doesn’t own either of them, they probably should.
Finally, just to round out the list at eight, I’d like to add one of my favorite couples-games for 2018. Fallout 76 surprised me in a lot of ways, mostly for being darn fun to play with my wife. I know it has a bad reputation, but those are people who don’t like fun anyway (as evidenced by their devotion to Fallout: New Vegas) so they can be safely ignored. If you know anyone who likes Fallout for the exploration and world building, or who might like the concept of survival-crafting games but likes a little more narrative than most of that genre offers, they might appreciate this underappreciated gem.
So get shopping, everyone! You still have a few days left, and digital titles don’t even have to be wrapped!
Felix “Don’t Stop Til You Get Enough” Threepaper
A drive-by shoutout to the last bit of Spidey DLC: Silver Lining. Silver Sable returns to wrap up some unfinished business, as foreshadowed in the main game. Any excuse to keep thwipping it – it’s been a good year for games, and this one deserves to be up there in GOTY roundups, even though it will likely get robbed as everyone’s second or third favourite game.
Erik "Wordsmythe" Hanson
Gosh, is that list long. I mean, I thought I'd take a quick look and chime in, but … nope.
Here's the list, now in release-date order!
PC
-
12-17
- 30 days to survive
- Amanda's Sticker Book
- Artillery Globe
- Assembly Required
- Atrocity
- BEAK SQUADRON
- D.R.O.N.E. The Game
- Duck Hunt Challenge
- Easy Racing
- EEP 15
- Happy Claus Christmas Edition
- Hentai Hexa Puzzle
- HENTAI PUZZLE (NEKOPURU)
- Highway of death
- Hikari! Clover Rescue
- Hunt and Snare
- I Walk Among Zombies Vol. 1
- MAAA
- N.E.U.F.O
- Niplheim's Hunter - Branded Azel
- Plat4mer
- Rats, Bats, and Bones
- ROGO
- Sanguo: War Under Heaven
- Sayaka Relaunched
- Shan Gui 2
- Shieldwall Chronicles: Swords of the North
- Sierra Madre
- Sins of a Solar Empire: Rebellion - Minor Factions
- Survival Hell
- Tank raid
- Telekinetic
- The Scenic Treasures - Japanese Learning
- Tiny Bird Garden Deluxe
- Total Battle
- Wizard Slime
-
12-18
- Air Combat
- Ashes of Creation: Apocalypse
- Bladed Fury
- Butterbies
- Christmas Defence
- Cosmonet: Space Adventure
- Deathly Storm: The Edge of Life
- Elleros Origins: Season I
- Erolyn Chan Fight
- FIT IN
- Garden Paws
- Hopper Rabbit
- Hypership Out of Control 2
- Last Year: The Nightmare
- Legend of Homebody
- Murder Diaries: Ankara
- One minute of death
- Ottoman Empire: Spectacular Millennium
- PASKA BATTLE STYLE!
- Planet Coaster Magnificent Rides Collection
- Poly and the Marble Maze
- qop 4
- Red Dead Pixel Man
- SAMURAI IN AFRICA
- Shadow of the Tomb Raider: The Pillar
- SoulCalibur VI: 2B
- Super Chains
- Tech Executive Tycoon
- The Black Knight
- The Spy Who Shrunk Me
- UNDEFINED
- Zup! Arena
-
12-19
- ALIEN FIELD
- Atlas
- Don't Shoot Rabbit
- GBC game Legend
- Heathen - The sons of the law
- Hellfront: Honeymoon
- I'm Turkey
- Meadow Fun!!
- Miami Cruise
- MORDER
- Mysteries of Neverville: The Runestone of Light
- Overcraft
- Paradise checkers
- Skater XL
- Space Struck Run
- Strike of Horror
- Sweet Pool
-
12-20
- A Front Too Far: Normandy
- After Hours
- Balloon guy
- Blades of Worlds
- Block Fuse
- Cherry in the Sky
- Christmas Mahjong 2
- Color Knight
- Crashy Racing
- Dummy!
- Esc: From Planet
- Finding summer
- Gunny Clock
- Hentai Mosaique Puzzle
- Hill Racing
- HotPuzzle:Grils
- INVAXION
- Jump & Shoot
- Keyhole Spy: Frozen Hotties
- Lady's Hentai Mosaic
- Leopoldo Manquiseil
- Link the Dot
- Maths Challenge
- Melordandek
- Mochi Mochi Boy
- Monster Hentai
- Mr. Maze
- My Cabin And I
- Parallel World
- PsyShift
- PyroMind
- Reach 50 : Sexy Hentai Girls
- Scarlet Fantasy
- ShotKill
- Snake VS Block Numbers
- Snowballed: Crazy Downhill
- Tales From Windy Meadow
- The Clean Up Clyde Collection
- They That Feast
- Throne Quest
- Yanpai Simulator
-
12-21
- Abstract Hell
- Beasts of Bermuda
- Bloody Mary (Drunken Apes)
- Burnouts
- Chieftain
- Chinese Driving License Test
- Corma
- Darkwinds
- Dig to the Stars
- Drawz
- Duality
- Encourage
- Epic of Serinor: Dawnshadow
- Erotic Winter Sports
- Frozen Mystery
- FUBAR
- GACHIMUCHI Arcade: Lustful Boys
- Guilds Of Delenar
- Gyro Buster
- Hiking Simulator 2018
- Hypergate
- Ilhumia
- In the Village of Grandfather: Summer,Sun,Heat.
- Inclement
- Jewel Match Solitaire Winterscapes
- JUMP UP
- Miracle snack shop
- MonGirlTile
- Nuclear Power Station Creator
- Olea's Descent
- Operation Snowman
- Paradigm Blast
- Piquant Bathing
- Pogo
- Riftwalker
- SEQUENCE STORM
- Star Destroyer
- The Blame
- The Ghost of You
- The Seduction of Shaqeera
- TheSecretGame2
- Trio Adventures
- Virtual Surfing
-
12-22
- Evolo.The Sun
-
12-23
- Chain Reaction : Sexy Hentai Girls
- Christmas Wonderland
PS4
-
12-17
- Nippon Marathon
-
12-18
- Beats Fever
- Cook, Serve, Delicious! 2!!
- Dreamwalker
- One Word By Powgi
- Scintillatron 4096
- Shadow of the Tomb Raider: The Pillar
- SoulCalibur VI: 2B
- Warhammer: Vermintide 2
- Warhammer: Vermintide 2 - Back to Ubersreik
-
12-19
- Hellfront: Honeymoon
- R-Type Dimensions EX
- RAZED
-
12-20
- Battle Princess Madelyn
-
12-21
- Marvel's Spider-Man: Silver Lining
PSVR
-
12-18
- Gun Club VR
-
12-19
- VR Apocalypse
Xbox One
-
12-18
- Donut County
- Nippon Marathon
- Shadow of the Tomb Raider: The Pillar
- SoulCalibur VI: 2B
- Warhammer: Vermintide 2 - Back to Ubersreik
-
12-19
- Hellfront Honeymoon
- Road Redemption
-
12-21
- Asdivine Hearts II
- Sundered: Eldritch Edition
Switch
-
12-17
- Firewatch
- Hyperide: Vector Raid
-
12-18
- Donut County
- Sheltered
-
12-20
- Awe
- Battle Princess Madelyn
- Bring Them Home
- Cake Laboratory
- Chronus Arc
- Funghi Puzzle: Funghi Explosion
- Guess the Character
- Horizon Shift '81
- Kingmaker: Rise to the Throne
- Leopoldo Manquiseil
- Nightshade
- Revertia
- The Keep
- Viviette
-
12-21
- Clouds & Sheep 2
- Dynamite Fishing: World Games
- Sundered: Eldritch Edition
-
12-22
- Koloro
- Mana Spark
- Wondershot
Vita
-
12-18
- London Detective Mysteria
- One Word By Powgi
- Scintillatron 4096
-
12-19
- Atari Flashback Classics
RIFT
-
12-17
- Hell Breaker
-
12-18
- The Seduction of Shaqeera VR
-
12-19
- Counter Fight 3
- Eggcellent VR
- PANTY SLIDE
-
12-20
- Escape Legacy VR
- Fightttris VR
- FlyInside Flight Simulator
-
12-21
- Family Park
- Mad Hunting Simulator VR
Vive
-
12-17
- Hell Breaker
-
12-18
- Project Aeronaut
- The Seduction of Shaqeera VR
-
12-19
- Counter Fight 3
- Eggcellent VR
- PANTY SLIDE
-
12-20
- Escape Legacy VR
- Fightttris VR
- FlyInside Flight Simulator
- Orc Towers VR
-
12-21
- Dreamland Defender
- ELASH
- Family Park
- Mad Hunting Simulator VR
- Starblazer
Comments
I thought Streets of Rage was the Genesis side scrolling beat-em-up of choice. I always associate Final Fight with the SNES in my mind to the point I didn't realize it ever came to the Genesis.
Backloggery
Same
What Stele said ^ -mortalgroove
Switch: 6273-9936-5107