(Disclaimer -- There are plenty of games I didn't get to put time into, so this list isn't meant to be all-inclusive. I'm not a professional critic! The format(s) I played on are in parentheses, although some games are available on more formats than what I have listed. Also, this list is my personal opinion, and does not represent my employer.)
Honorable Mentions (in alphabetical order):
Far Cry 3: Blood Dragon (X360) -- An 80's action film re-skin of my favorite game of 2012. Having a button dedicated for flipping the bird? Genius.
Gears of War: Judgment (X360) -- People Can Fly took some risks with the campaign (focusing on Baird, bite-sized level sections with optional challenges built in) that I thought worked pretty well. I also had fun with the Battlefield 'Rush'-like game mode Overrun (even if the maps felt a little too small for it), and I liked playing as some of the higher-powered Locust characters.
Killzone: Mercenary (Vita) -- The best looking handheld shooter to date, and plays pretty well too. It gives me hope for what the Vita is capable of accomplishing.
Payday 2 (PC) -- A big improvement over the original in terms of friendly AI and mission variety. It's still better to play with a group of people who know what they're doing, but fortunately there's a strong community around it (and they're largely noob-friendly), so you shouldn't ever have to play alone.
My favorite games of 2013:
15. Splinter Cell: Blacklist (X360 / PC) -- The stealth aspect of the series has all but been removed, and that disappoints me. However, as a straight action game, it's still pretty good. My favorite multiplayer game mode (Spies vs. Mercs) came back, but it felt more like a cover band than the brilliant original from Pandora Tomorrow and Chaos Theory. However, the co-op levels are the real star of the multiplayer, and make it worth recommending.
14. Surgeon Simulator 2013 (PC) -- Nothing I played this year had me laughing more. The bad-on-purpose controls are a thing of beauty. Probably the best $10 I spent this year.
13. The Swapper (PC) -- A deceptively simple puzzle game on paper, but it gets brutally hard about half-way through. I still haven't finished it because I'm trying to avoid cheats / FAQs, but I'm hoping some time away will help me come at it fresh again.
12. Killzone: Shadow Fall (PS4) -- One of the better console launch shooters since the first Halo. Jaw-dropping graphics, a respectable story (stay after the credits!), and an enjoyable multiplayer suite (even if it feels a little slow when compared to other FPS). Multiple batches of free DLC will be coming next year, so I'll keep coming back to it.
11. Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag (PS4) -- A major improvement over the last installment. They took what was best about part 3 (the boats!), removed all of the nagging tutorials, and just hand you the keys and say 'Have fun!' I have minor complaints about some scripting and bugs in some missions, but it's nothing that we haven't dealt with in previous games in the series. I can't wait to get back on the seas and start pillaging again.
10. The Stanley Parable (PC) -- Poor Stanley. Trapped in a game. Or ... is it a game? Is it a story? Is Stanley me? Where did my coworkers go? If you love GLaDOS and her irreverent sense of humor, you should download the demo (which is a completely separate experience) and see if it's up your alley.
9. Grand Theft Auto V (X360) -- This is what a very talented group of developers can do when they have access to an almost unlimited amount of time and resources. Was it worth the wait? From a technical standpoint, yes. It's massive, and runs as stable as any open-world game on a console to date. However, we get three playable characters, yet not one of them is even remotely sympathetic. Each is a step back from Nico in part IV, and I found myself not wanting to spend time with any of them. Also, the online mode was hugely ambitious, but by the time they got it working properly, I'd moved on to something else.
8. Saint's Row IV (PC) -- GTA V wants to be a Michael Mann film. Saint's Row IV wants to be Billy Madison. When it comes to interactive entertainment, sometimes it's more fun to light bags of dog poop on fire and leave them on Old Man Clemens' porch.
7. Gone Home (PC) -- More of an interactive short story than a game, but it invokes real and honest emotions. It's only two hours long, but it's something everyone should experience, and the less you know about it before you start, the better.
6. Animal Crossing: New Leaf (3DS) -- The most relaxing game I've ever played. It's hard to explain to people who haven't tried it. Either you get it or you don't. I got it, and put literally hundreds of hours into digging up fossils, fishing, catching bugs, selling things at the shops, etc. I finally walked away from it a couple of weeks ago, but I'd be lying if I said I didn't think about turning it back on so I can make snowmen.
5. Battlefield 4 (PC, XB1) -- An improvement over the previous game in many ways. More destructibility, more vehicles, better overall map design, and more variety in the weapons and gameplay options. It makes Battlefield 3 look like a beta for this game. So why is it only #5? The constant connectivity / server issues that plague each version make it hard to defend. At least one game website went back and lowered their review scores because of these issues. I still enjoy the game, and I'll be putting more time into it on multiple formats, but I really hope they fix the online stability.
4. Tomb Raider (X360, PC) -- An almost perfect reboot of a once-great franchise. The campaign is long and yet almost never loses its pacing, and the graphics are outstanding. I did get tired of the quick-time-events ("Press X to Not Die"), but fortunately there are less of them the further you get into the game. They've announced a next-gen version coming in early 2014, and it may have me buying a third version of it.
3. Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons (PC) -- I started to type a synopsis of what this game is about, and then I deleted it. Just play it. Take some time to get used to the 'two player co-op on one controller' setup, and let it draw you in. You won't regret it. The comparisons to 'Ico' and 'Journey' are valid in a lot of ways, and the last 30 minutes are some of the best in any game I've ever played.
2. Bioshock Infinite (X360, PC) -- Irrational Games had a tough path in front of them: Meet or exceed the expectations set by the greatness of the first Bioshock. I think they were successful. It's not perfect though. The gameplay is a little lacking (not much weapon variety, fewer 'Plasmid' powers than before), and the final 'boss' battle felt like a victim of a couple of bad decisions made late in development. However, the setting and graphics are one-of-a-kind and instantly iconic. The skyhook makes getting around in the levels unlike anything else you've ever played. And then there's the story, which will have you scratching your head for 99% of the game, and then that last 1% drops on you and you feel like you stood up too fast, and have to instantly get on the internet to find out just what took place. It was a real head rush of a game, even if the gameplay didn't innovate as much as I'd hoped it would.
1. The Last of Us (PS3) -- I avoided the hype as much as possible. I tried to look at it as 'just another post-apocalyptic game'. But I knew Naughty Dog would deliver. And deliver they did. They're the best triple-A developer in the business, hands down. They understand their tools and craft better than anyone else, and while their graphics are some of the best you'll ever see on a console, they put more attention into their scripts and performances than any other. But I still wasn't fully prepared. If the Uncharted series are game versions of the Indiana Jones films, then this is Cormac McCarthy's The Road: Bleak, unforgiving, and relentless. The lengthy campaign stays impressive through almost 20 hours of gameplay, with only one or two very minor missteps, and you remain constantly in fear for Joel and Ellie's lives. The human touches that Naughty Dog bring to the game make it even more impressive. Early on, the two characters keep their distance in combat, but as the game progresses and Ellie grows to trust Joel more, she starts to huddle close to Joel when they're hiding, using him as protection. And then there's the subtle way that Joel looks at his broken watch in some cutscenes, as if he's remembering a simpler time. Most games have yet to nail this level of humanity in their characters, but Naughty Dog makes it look easy.
A lot has been said about the ending. Some loved it, and others hated it. I won't spoil it here, but I will say that I didn't like it at first. Then I slept on it, and I realized that there was no other ending that made sense for the characters. I can't say I loved it, but it's just 'right' for them. In the final chapter, you'll be doing things with the lead character that you may not agree with. However, much like a book or a movie, you ultimately have no control over what the character does. It's a story, and you're experiencing it. Whether or not the ending is emotionally satisfying to the player, it's emotionally honest to the characters, and that's what matters most.
I'll be the first to admit that not every video game is "art". However, this game is incontrovertible proof that games CAN be art. To even attempt to debate the question now is laughable.
