The 10th Hour 2.04.12: Top 10 Games of 2011

Posted by Justin Weinblatt on 02.04.2012

From Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3, Batman: Arkham City and Uncharted 3 to Catherine, Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim and more, 411's Justin Weinblatt breaks down his top 10 games of 2011!



Hello, and welcome back to the 10th Hour, the top list of all of the top lists. I've spent the last month desperately trying to catch up on all of 2011's games. With bleeding eyes and chaffed thumbs, I'm finally ready to list off my top games of 2011.

Top 10 Games of 2011

Disclaimer- Naturally, I've yet to have played every game of 2011. I wish I had the time and money to play every game of 2011, but that isn't in the cards right now. It would be quite egotistical for me to think that I am the absolute authority on video games. Therefore, take this list for what it is, my personal opinion on the ten most enjoyable games of the year.

This list only includes retail games.

Honorable Mentions

Portal 2- Portal 2 has great puzzles, and excellent production values, but for whatever reason I just never got too into the game.

Sonic Generations- Sonic Generations built upon the foundations that Sonic Colors laid last year. Sega finally seems to have a grasp on what makes Sonic fun, and I can't wait to see where the series goes from here. Sonic Generations doesn't deserve game of the year, but the fact that it's actually a good Sonic game earns it an honorable mention.

Kirby Mass Attack- It's a shame that the 3DS seems to be moving away from touch controlled games. Kirby Mass Attack shows that there are still many creative ways to implement touch controls.

Rayman Origins- One of the best looking games I've ever seen, and a damned fine platformer to boot.

L.A. Noire- An ambitious title that couldn't quite figure out if it wanted to be a point and click adventure, an open world game, or something else altogether.





10. Catherine

While Catherine didn't set the world on fire, it sold far better than anyone would have expected from such a quirky, blatantly Japanese title. The meat of the gameplay in Catherine revolves around a reasonably enjoyable block moving puzzle game that can best be described as a very Freudian version of Q-bert. This is a rather odd foundation to build a full retail game around.

While its gameplay is put to shame by most AAA titles, Catherine's presentation is incredibly impressive. Through great dialogue, well drawn anime cut scenes, and clever mechanics, Atlus has created a world that is easy to get lost in, and a main character that is easy to empathize with. Catherine also features the best implementation of a moral choice system in any game I've ever played. While playing Catherine, I wasn't going for a "good" playthrough or an "evil" playthrough. I was actually evaluating each choice presented to me, and making decisions based on my values. I actually feel like Catherine forced me to question what kind of person I am, which is a pretty impressive feat for any form of entertainment.



9. Super Mario 3D Land

The Super Mario Series has been gaming's most reliable franchise for many years. Whenever you buy a Super Mario game, you're assured of a good time. The newest entry plays like a mix of Super Mario Galaxy and Super Mario Brothers 3. Like Super Mario Brothers 3, gameplay is divided into bite size levels. Like Galaxy, each level is wildly creative. No two levels in Super Mario 3D Land are quite alike. Levels are cleverly designed to emphasize the game's 3D visuals, and the controls are as perfect as you'd expect. Super Mario 3D Land is a true joy from start to finish, even with Nintendo's bizarre tanooki fetish.



8. Saints Row The Third

Saints Row the Third came out in the midst of the holiday game season, and it was a breath of fresh air. While other games struggled to achieve an epic and dramatic feel, Saints Row was content to simply be a hell of a lot of fun. If you're looking for a well crafted story, well rounded characters, or anything resembling art, you should probably look elsewhere. If you're looking for a ridiculously good time, Saints Row has you covered.

In Saints Row, you get to play as the head of a gang known as the Third Street Saints. The Third Street Saints are gangsters in the same way that Jack Sparrow is a pirate. That is to say that the game is over the top and farcical. There is a flimsy, and somewhat indecipherable, story in Saints Row the Third that serves as an excuse to send you out on a series of ridiculous missions. Within the first few hours of the game, you'll have rode a tank through the streets of a city, raided a military weapons cache, taken down a plane with your bare hands, beaten people with a purple dildo bat, been ambushed by armed prostitutes, and blown up more cars than you can count. Saints Row is one of the most consistently fun games of this year or any other. Rampaging through the streets of Steelport is one of the best ways to wind down.



7. The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim

I've tried a few times, but it's hard to describe how I feel about Skyrim. Throughout the first 6 hours or so of my playthrough, I was convinced that I would trade the game into Gamestop. At around hour 12 or so, I was riveted. Suddenly, improving my smithing seemed like the most important thing in the world. I spent countless hours forging and enchanting iron daggers, muffling myself repeatedly to improve my illusion magic, and pickpocketing every citizen unlucky enough to cross my path. I slayed the world eater, became the Arch-mage of Winterhold, rose through the ranks of the Companions, and committed near genocide against the dragons.

After countless missions, I just stopped. I couldn't stomach the idea of another quest. The thought of scrolling through any more menus seemed repugnant, and if I would have rather licked an electric socket than fought one more Drugar with Skyrim's clunky combat system.

Skyrim is an example of quantity over quality. There are dozens of NPCs who you can recruit as the Robin to your Batman, but none of them have more than ten lines of dialogue. There are hundreds of dungeons to explore, yet no one dungeon differs from the others in any significant way. There is a seemingly endless amount of weapons, yet none of them makes the combat feel any more engaging.

That's not to say Skyrim isn't a good game. The reason Skyrim gets a huge, and somewhat negative, write-up is because I felt the need to clarify why the consensus choice for GOTY placed so low. Skyrim is one of the most fully realized gaming worlds ever created, and it provides a truly staggering amount of content. It's easy to get lost in Skyrim for hours at a time. For those people looking for a great open world experience, Skyrim is unequaled in the amount of freedom it grants players. However, this freedom also comes with some very significant drawbacks.

P.S. The game is buggy as hell.



6. Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3

I've been a huge fan of Street Fighter for about as long as I've been playing video games, and each new entry in the series, or the spinoff series in this case, is bound to take many hours out of my life. Marvel vs. Capcom 3 follows in the tradition of the wild "vs." crossover series. Characters can string together sickeningly long combos, super attacks fill up the entire screen, and if you blink you may die. If you're a new player, you'll have fun mashing buttons and watching the spiffy special effects. If you're an experienced player, you'll get lost in the world of mix ups, zoning, frame traps and OTGs.

Marvel vs. Capcom 3 and Ultimate have been fixtures in my break room at work since they came out, with a handful of gamers constantly battling for bragging rights. If I wasn't fortunate enough to have a constant source of competition on my level, Marvel 3 probably wouldn't have made it too this list at all, but a good fighting game plus good competition equals gaming bliss.

Note: Normally, I wouldn't have put a re-release on a GOTY list, but in this case both Marvel vs Capcom 3 and Ultimate Marvel vs Capcom 3 came out within the same year, and it's hard to justify putting Marvel vs Capcom 3 on the list instead of Ultimate. Capcom screwed us over a bit, but Ultimate Marvel vs Capcom 3 is still a great game.



5. Infamous 2

Infamous is a series that has gotten lost among bigger and more hyped franchises. It's a shame, because both games are incredibly solid. Infamous 2 picks up more or less where the first game left off. Cole needs to hone his electrical powers to deal with an unspecified threat, the plague is killing humans left and right and Cole is steadily progressing towards savior of humanity or evil demigod depending on your decisions.
Infamous 2 builds upon the great foundation laid by its predecessor. You'll once again guide Cole through a fairly large open world taking on various missions. You'll once again gain a wide variety of awesome powers. Navigating through the city of New Marais and beating on legions of thugs never ceases to entertain. Infamous 2 does a great job of making you feel like a powerful super hero, without completely sacrificing challenge.

Infamous 2's narrative struggles at times. The developers try to juggle too many different plot threads. There is an evil preacher who runs a militia and wants to create supervillains, there are swamp monsters, two girls trying to lure you towards good and evil, a plague, a resistance movement, a giant energy monster, and much more. The story can be hard to follow, but it eventually comes to a fitting and satisfying conclusion, regardless of whether you chose the good or evil route. While many games, I'm looking at you Uncharted 3, fail to create one satisfying ending, Infamous 2 was able to create two.



4. Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective

Like any internet writer, I have to include one very un-mainstream game near the top of my list. Ghost trick is a visual novel made by the mind that brought you Phoenix Wright. After playing through the Phoenix Wright series and Ghost Trick, I'm confident in saying that Shu Takumi is a genius.

Ghost Trick places you in the role of Sissel, a recently deceased spirit searching for his identity. With only one night to spend on Earth, Sissel must unravel the mystery behind his life and his death. Of course, Sissel's case is far from simple, and to solve the mystery of his identity, Sissel must also solve another mystery that's been brewing for ten years. To accomplish this goal, Sissel uses his unique powers, which include the ability to manipulate objects, and even the power to reverse death.

Shu Takumi uses his unique gifts to craft one of the most compelling stories in the world of gaming. He deftly blends the surreal with the mundane to create a unique world. He also manages to make every character that you come across in your quest memorable. Each character has a very distinct visual design and is loaded with their own quirks. Silky smooth animation and a brilliant localization job bring these characters and their tale to life.

Like any good mystery, Ghost Trick's story becomes more nuanced as you go on. The story keeps building until it reaches a suitable and fulfilling climax. Sissel himself emerges as one of the most unique protagonists of any game. Ghost Trick flew under the radar, but it isn't too late to seek out a copy. If you're interested in point and click adventures in general, or the Phoenix Wright series in particular, you should definitely give Ghost Trick a try. The iPhone version is a steal at ten dollars.



3. Uncharted 3

Uncharted 3 is essentially an interactive action movie. Basically, Naughty Dog took a list of things that they thought were cool, and created a somewhat decent story to chain those things together. Bar room fight? Check. Horseback shoot out? Check. Sinking ship? Check. Uncharted 3 feels like a videogame designed by Michael Bay, and I'm totally cool with that. Even though Uncharted 3 doesn't contain a single original idea, it's fun throughout, and sometimes that's all that matters.

The one thing I had to take points off for was Uncharted's incredibly weak ending. I don't want to spoil the ending for anyone, but *spoilers* Drake stops the bad guys, and by the end everything is pretty much the same as when you started. Considering that Uncharted 3 is billed as a narrative experience, the lackluster ending knocked this game down a peg.



2. Batman Arkham City

Arkham City is one of the most well rounded games that I've ever played. The story is well done, despite a few plot holes, the voice acting is amazing, the combat is easy to learn but hard to master, the boss fights were unique and fun, and there is a wealth of sidequests to keep you occupied after the main quest ends. Most impressively, Rocksteady fully understands Batman and his supporting cast. They get why the character has been so successful and use that knowledge to please longtime fans and draw new ones into the Batman mythos. Only the nitpickiest gamers could find a major flaw in Arkham City.

Surprisingly though, Batman hasn't received many GOTY awards which is simply a testament to how tough this year's competition was. Arkham City is easily the best super hero game of all time, its predecessor being the only real competition, one of the best games ever made, and could have easily been my GOTY in a different year.



1. The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword

I've already sung the praises of the latest Zelda many times. It's fair to say that in many ways Nintendo has fallen behind the pack in some aspects of game development. In terms of graphics, in a technical sense, cinematic storytelling, and online play, Nintendo is frankly years behind its competition. However, in terms of game design, artistic design, and control, Nintendo still leads the pack by quite a large margin.

As always, gameplay is the bottom line. Skyward sword features the most satisfying gameplay mechanics of the year. Aspiring game developers should study Zelda's level design in gaming 101. Each dungeon revolves around a satisfying central mechanic that is used in numerous creative ways. Every environment you enter feels unique, which is something I can't really say for the other games on this list. The game's motion controls work flawlessly and contribute to some of the most engaging boss battles of this console generation.

To top things off, Skyward Sword features a beautiful art style that compensates for the shortcomings of the Wii's hardware. There are a few moments when an ugly texture will remind you of the Wii's 480p resolution, but there are many more moments of stunning beauty.


Well, those were my choices for the Top 10 Games of the Year. I'm sure you all have your own opinions. If you didn't the world would be a very boring place. Did Portal deserve far more than an honorable mention? Did you enjoy the sadistic charms of Dark Souls? Is Skyrim the greatest thing since sliced bread? Did you take issue with the lack of love for shooting games? Let your opinions be known in the comments section.

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