The Delfies 2021: Some Other Games I Liked This Year

If you haven’t read my Delfies 2021 Top 10 yet, you can find that here.

I found myself in the interesting place of having too many games and struggling to cut them down to a top 10 this year. At the same time, it felt like nothing in my top 10 could really compete with the top four or so from 2020, so it was harder still to make the selection. I’m ultimately satisfied with the placement of where everything ended up, but there were more games that I feel I could shine a light on. Some of them are the more mainstream triple A games that I enjoyed but ultimately washed over; some are indie games that were really charming in their own right but just couldn’t quite make the mark.

But hey, I’ve got a platform and time, so it’s only right that I spare some words for those as well.

With that sentiment in mind, I ended up ballooning this list even further. Many of these didn’t make the top 10 candidate list, and a few I’ve yet to finish at all (or they themselves are in early access, thus proving ineligible for now). Some I’ll get to in full later on, with any luck. This is more of a quantity over quality lightning round, but I’ll try to give them all a fair shake, and none of these are in any particular order.

Before we proceed, there’s a few games I also want to mention that interest me, but I’ve yet to actually start playing them properly or else they’d likely be here too. Those are: Everhood, Tales of Arise, Death’s Door, Psychonauts 2, FIST: Forged in Shadow Touch, The Forgotten City and Outer Wilds’s DLC Echoes of the Eye. I just haven’t had the chance to tackle them for more than an hour if at all yet, but they’re all in my immediate future. So now let’s cover the ones I actually did get to.

Deathloop

Arkane’s latest title didn’t live up to its potential, sadly. It has garnered a lot of love and acclaim in many circles, but for me the novelty wore off before it ended, only for the ending to then be massively unsatisfying. Too much time is spent in menus and plotting out the mission rather than actually doing it, and the AI really poses no serious threat. But for those first few hours where you’re learning the ropes, getting your powers, and trying to line up everything for the final run? Deathloop really is a blast, and the banter between Cole and Julianna really spices up the level learning process in a great way. It’s just not nearly as tightly composed as Arkane’s other work though. Ultimately, we’re probably better off playing Prey: Mooncrash to best deliver on the promise Deathloop attempts for.

Unreal Life

This delightful little indie game is one that nobody has ever heard of, and one that I would remain in ignorance of had it not been requested that I review it by Iyane over at DualShockers. I’m glad he did, because it really was a delightful experience that came quite close to breaking into the top 10. Unreal Life’s pixel art is gorgeous, and the variety of puzzles and story beats keep it relatively fresh for its run time. The conclusion is heartfelt and ultimately satisfying, so it really was a great way to start off my year. It’s such a shame that more people haven’t looked at it though, so I’d probably urge you to go and support Unreal Life on principle more than anything else on my lists.

Fights in Tight Spaces

A deckbuilding card game that wears its Slay the Spire influence on its sleeve, Fights in Tight Spaces is nonetheless incredibly good. It manages to nail a James Bond skirmish with the control and finesse of a John Wick film (even better than the actual John Wick Hex game did). There’s a ton of variety in moves and options, a good arrangement of side objectives and enemies, and a steady drip of unlocks to keep it feeling fresh as you progress. This was the game that got me through the Endwalker queue times; by the end of those, I was relishing the chance to just stay in queue and play more Fights in Tight Spaces. Plus, come on. If this isn’t the best named game of the year, I don’t know what is.

Adios

This is an interesting one for me, because it’s the sort of game that I recognise the quality and skill of its execution far more than I actually vibed with it while playing. Adios is a short, narrative-focused walking sim that actually offers verbs and activity to supplement just walking and being told a story. Instead, you’re a part of that story, and the writing is incredibly interesting despite being what would amount to an intricate side quest from a different perspective in another game. It really is special, and I can see that plainly… I just wish it had personally hit me as well as it did others. But that’s how it goes sometimes, and I’ll still happily sing its praises and recommend it. Maybe listen to the Castle Super Beast podcast’s discussion about it after playing if you felt similarly to me.

Monster Hunter Rise

Another close contender for the top 10, the latest Monster Hunter was an absolute ton of fun. It’s the most streamlined and accessible entry in the franchise by far; I mean that positively, as it’s accomplished by giving the players more of an arsenal and mobility options than ever before. The verticality of the levels and extreme mobility might honestly have tipped the balance of power out of the monsters favour towards the hunters; we’ll have to see if the upcoming expansion and PC release can really provide the higher end challenges of the series. Ultimately, what held this back from the heights of World/Iceborne was everything else outside of the combat not feeling as well designed. Still, it was a ton of fun, and I’ll almost certainly be taking it for a second playthrough come the PC port this year.

New Pokemon Snap

It’s amazing how good a Pokemon game can be when it’s not an underdeveloped Game Freak game, spinoff or not. This is everything a Pokemon Snap sequel should have been after two decades. There’s heaps of levels, including numerous ways to interact with them and unlock new paths or variations. The Pokemon roster on offer is varied and decently sized. There’s ultimately just a ton of game here, all stylised, vibrant and full of charm. It even got a free update with more content after launch for good measure; something I still need to go back to. Once again, this would’ve been right at home in my top 10, but frankly I’m just glad it exists at all. Experiencing Pokemon is much better these days when it’s not in a mainline Pokemon game.

Forza Horizon 5

I’m not much of a car person or a particular fan of racing games, truth be told. When I do get invested in the genre, I prefer something more fantastical (F-Zero GX); otherwise, I’m more interested in games with a progression track through its career mode. A caRPG, if you will. Forza Horizon 5 is neither of those, and so ultimately my attention didn’t stay with it for long, but I cannot deny the quality and content on offer here. For a car fan and an arcade racing enthusiast, this game is packed to the gills with cars, content, and ways to interact and play with it. It’s an amazing playground and I know for sure that plenty of people will be having a ton of fun with it. I certainly don’t regret my time with Forza Horizon 5 and I wish it well, but it just wasn’t my thing in the end.

Halo Infinite

I’ve yet to play the campaign on this one, and I’m overall not really in a rush to do so. I didn’t grow up with the Halo games and was more into the speed and tone of PC FPS games like Quake or Unreal Tournament. Nonetheless, I decided to try the multiplayer for Halo Infinite and found it really fun. The weapons, abilities, and movement feel pretty great to use and the levels are interesting to traverse and battle in. My time with it was brief, but positive enough to mention. Now if they can sort out their progression and battle pass issues without being grindy and horrible, it might be something I return to in the future. 

NieR Replicant

More than anything else unfinished on this list, NieR Replicant is one I need to come back to. I didn’t finish a playthrough — let alone the extra ones — but I did nonetheless enjoy what I played a lot. The combat and movement feels much better than the original, and given that that’s what drove me from it, that’s a welcome change. Sadly, this remake doesn’t really do anything about the antiquated quest design and frequently grindy sections, so that was ultimately what kept me from sticking to it fully. But the music, visuals, music, twisted writing of Yoko Taro, and of course the music still holds its allure and I do intend to revisit it properly.

Omori

Speaking of revisiting, Omori is probably the title on this list that I’m most guilty of not putting the playtime into it that it deserves. The few hours I’ve spent with this indie RPG have been really enticing, and I’m incredibly curious to see where the story and character arcs all go. Plus the visual style is amazing and worth playing just on that merit alone. There’s at least two people I know who are potentially reading this and getting angry that I haven’t finished the game yet, and they’re right to be so. I will be tackling this one real soon for sure, and I suspect it’ll be as strong and hard hitting as those opening hours promised.

Blue Reflection: Second Light

So I bought this one on a whim when I was seeking out RPGs to play on Switch in my downtime. The original Blue Reflection was basically a JRPG inspired by magical girl anime, and it was flawed but entertaining enough. I think that’s an equally apt way of describing this sequel. The combat is much better and there’s a pretty good rhythm to it, but everything else is mostly just serviceable. Still, I’d probably rather have played an Atelier game; Gust is a lot better at making those feel more balanced and worthwhile. Speaking of…

Atelier Ryza 2

I was surprised by just how much I enjoyed Atelier Ryza 2. It’s probably the Atelier game I had the most fun with, all things considered. The battle system is pretty interesting and the crafting is as detailed and rich as ever before in the series. There’s nothing too much to write home about as far as the story is concerned, but the character interactions and moments more than carry that front in lieu of a tighter narrative. It kept my attention from start to finish and had me thoroughly satisfied by the end. Atelier Ryza 2 isn’t the sort of game that I’ll carry with me for the rest of my days, but it was something I greatly enjoyed spending time with regardless.

Dyson Sphere Program

Had Dyson Sphere Program not been in early access, it’d be another easy top 10 contender, so look out 2022. This is basically a gorgeous looking Factorio of utterly unprecedented scope and scale. Setting up your resource generation and factory lines on the ground is just the first step; it’s not too long before you’re jetting to other planets for rare resources, setting up massive interstellar shipping chains, and then ultimately converting your star into a titular Dyson Sphere. It’s crazy to comprehend how this was made by a five-person Chinese development team, but I’m glad they did. The entire experience is fully playable already, so there’s no real reason not to check it out even in early access. Dyson Sphere Program is easily the most engaging of the factory simulation style games I’ve personally played.

Persona 5 Strikers

I cannot deny how strong Strikers is. I expected a typical Dynasty Warriors-esque spinoff for Persona 5, and instead I got a bonafide sequel that just happens to be an action-RPG. Everything from the presentation, music, characters and general level design is at similar quality levels to the excellent Persona 5. Ironically, what kept me from finishing Persona 5 Strikers was actually the battle system being TOO good; by which I mean, the options and variety of approaches that a player has are honestly so in-depth that the battles themselves aren’t able to let you utilise most of them. Cannon fodder enemies will be dispatched quickly and effortlessly, so you’re really only using a fraction of your capabilities until you reach a mini-boss or boss. In those moments, you’re really able to make it shine. Outside of those? I just felt like there were a wealth of systems and no reason to bother engaging with them, so it felt strangely rote and off-putting. Which is a shame, because I do think it’s a game worth playing. I must return to it one of these days.

Hitman 3

I’ll be real: as one of the first games that I played and reviewed this year and one of the last reviews I did for DualShockers, I almost completely forgot that Hitman 3 came out in 2021. So much has happened since then and it’s been a slow, tedious year. As I said in my review for it, this was a game that I could respect and admire but simply didn’t really enjoy playing, personally. The way I play stealth games leans towards perfectionism and getting everything right, and I’ve had to actively force myself to just roll with the punches and adapt to mistakes and failures on the fly to actually make it fun. Hitman 3 certainly has a lot of potential shenanigans available to create that fun, and there were some great moments and level designs within it. It’s definitely worth acknowledging, even if it’s not really my thing.

Hardspace: Shipbreaker

Like Dyson Sphere Program, this is another game that would easily make my top 10 if not for the early access tag. I’ve nonetheless played it to the point where I ran out of story and had disassembled every type of ship at least once, and still feel the urge to play more. It’s a weirdly compelling game that plays almost like a massive first-person puzzle, where I have to carefully navigate the hazards of a zero-gravity spaceship salvage job. The faster and more efficiently I work, the greater the rewards for bagging and tagging the most valuable ship systems intact. Couple that with a fairly compelling — albeit depressingly real — narrative about the extremes of unchecked corporations, and you have a real gem. I know plenty of people who have avoided it because they already have one job and don’t want another, and you know what? Totally fair. But this is one job I find genuinely fascinating and enjoyable to engage with.

Age of Empires 4

A big-budget RTS release that’s actually good! Somebody pinch me, it’s been so long! Age of Empires 4 is a very competent and well-designed real-time strategy game that’s a worthy addition to the series, even if it’s not exactly treading unfamiliar ground. I also really respect the historical documentary approach to its campaign and presentation, giving it a genuinely educational touch in between the missions. Unfortunately though, that approach led to the campaigns being devoid of character or a real narrative through line compared to most other genre staples. Age of Empires 4 is really great, but it’s just not quite the style of RTS that’ll keep me coming back in the years to come. I can only hope it serves to kickstart a revival of the genre.

Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous

Given that I found the previous Pathfinder game (Kingmaker) to be a real mixed bag, I was astonished at how improved Wrath of the Righteous was. The story and characters are so much more compelling, while the translation of tabletop Pathfinder to a digital medium was more complete and full of options than ever before. This is a CRPG power fantasy like no other, and I had devoted more than a hundred hours to it before I even realised. The only thing keeping this from my top 10 was the unfortunate fact that the game was simply too ambitious for the devs to keep up. The further I got into it, the buggier it became and the more awkward and unpolished it began to feel. The final chapter just seemed thoroughly unfinished in multiple ways, so I stopped shortly before reaching the finish line. It’s been patched multiple times since then, but I’ve opted to give it a few more months before trying again and giving it a more complete run-through. With a little more polish, Wrath of the Righteous will easily find itself ranked among the better CRPGs of recent years.

Guilty Gear Strive

I can’t do it, dammit. I don’t have the patience to properly train and correct my inputs from the habits I’ve fallen into from decades of playing other genres. Frankly, I love Guilty Gear Strive, and it’s some of the most fun I’ve had with a fighting game outside of the Soul Calibur series. ArcSys are still utter sorcerers when it comes to their visuals, and the soundtrack kicks all sorts of ass. But most importantly, the design and netcode meant that I was actually having great matches and not feeling tortured for daring to be Australian! What a novel concept. I really do wish I had the patience to properly get invested in fighting games, because I want to love them so bad. But the gulf that I have to overcome to retrain myself has proven too large and frustrating despite my best efforts. I may dabble from time to time, but fighting games are something I’m best served watching from the fringes.

Valheim

This little indie game that could seemingly emerged out of nowhere and became an overnight success story, selling millions of copies and attracting attention from gamers the world over. And they’re absolutely right for doing so, because Valheim is impressive. It’s a thoroughly satisfying and stunningly beautiful survival game that just hits all the right spots for its genre. Sadly, I only had the chance to play it solo thus far. There’s still a great time to be had here, but this is the sort of game that is only improved with friends, and so I ended up putting it down until I had the opportunity to do so. I really can’t wait to do so though, and look forward to watching Valheim progress through its early access development.

And now, with all the honourable mentions out of the way, I’ve covered the vast majority of games that left a major positive impact on me during the year of 2021. But there’s one more that I’ve threatened to touch on before, and it’d be remiss of me not to speak about it briefly.

Final Fantasy 14: Endwalker

I stand by what I said: Endwalker has the worst story and writing of any Final Fantasy 14 expansion. There’s no part of the new content that isn’t touched by that monstrous negative in some fashion. But while the story is a crucial and key part of FF14, it’s not the only element in its design. I still enjoy playing the game on a semi-regular basis. The balance updates and class design is almost all really solid this time around, and the two new classes of Sage and Reaper are amazingly well designed and fun to play. It’s still an astonishingly beautiful game that really pushes the boundary of what its engine is capable of, backed by fantastic voice work and strong music (even if I felt less tracks were certified bangers than in Shadowbringers). I cannot call Endwalker a bad game, and it at least deserves a mention here. But I can and will continue to call it a bad story. Previous expansions used their writing to hurt me in amazingly compelling ways; Endwalker’s writing simply pained me. This one is getting a massive and thorough write-up, mark my words.

And that’s about it. There’s plenty of other games I played in 2021, but most didn’t release in this year. Anything else I’ve forgotten to mention either didn’t leave an impact enough for me to recall it, or else I didn’t really care for (fuck you, Outriders). I do have a terrible memory though, so it’s inevitable that as soon as I launch this, I’ll just start swearing and race to edit in something important I forgot. We’ll see!

Now it’s time to look forward and watch as all of 2022 is consumed by discussion of NFTs and/or Elden Ring. I get the feeling that I’ll be playing a lot less new games in the coming months, somehow. But remember folks: it’s morally acceptable to emulate games that aren’t being sold in any way that benefits the actual staff members who worked on them.

Until next time!