Tag: End Of Year

Geekscape Roundtable: Our Favourite Films of 2018!

by GeekscapeStaff

Can you believe that 2018 is coming to a close? In just a couple of days, we’ll abolish that dreaded eight for ten more years, and a cool, clean, sexy nine will take its place.

We say it every year, but 2018 has been an absolutely stellar year for all forms of media, so we rounded up some of our writers and podcasters to share their favourite movies of the year! You’ll see some individual lists for other topics coming down the pipeline as well, so be sure to be on the lookout for those, too!

Take a look at everyone’s top 10, top 5, or favourite film altogether, and be sure to let us know yours in the comment section below!

Matt Kelly

10. Christopher Robin


Spoiler Alert right out the gate, Disney has 3 films that made my top 10. Christopher Robin is a movie that I did not anticipate affecting me as hard as it did. I never had a ton of love for Winnie the Pooh, I certainly watched it as a kid but only started to love the character after reading Tao of Pooh. Christopher Robin is one of my favorite film message, someone rediscovering the childhood they lost. It starts with a dark and heavy opening sequence in which our titular character is sent to war and forced to grow up quickly. It’s only when he’s revisited by his childhood friends of fantasy that he’s able to truly find happiness inside himself.

https://youtu.be/0URpDxIjZrQ

9. Thoroughbreds

I missed this one during its theatric release and I’m still upset about it. The movie had what felt like a 2 day release at best but proved to be one of the most interesting dark comedies in years. I often hear the movies described modern-day Heathers but no film has been more deserving of this comparison. Since it’s likely most people still haven’t seen this I’ll keep the plot summary short; the film follows two estranged high school friends. One is pour and emotionally disconnected while the other has a fantastic life minus her emotionally cruel step-father, they reconnect over a mutual desire to see the Step-father dead.

8. Searching….


This movie should not have worked, I should have been annoyed in the theater. The entire structure of the film is based around staring at someone’s computer screen for 90 minutes. Instead the film is one of the most intense thrillers I’ve ever seen. The “inside a computer screen” concept has been done multiple times before but this is the first time it truly worked. The film follows a desperate father trying to find his daughter and manages to have fun twists and turns throughout. It’s the under-appreciated film of the year for sure.

7. Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse


I have never seen an animated film quite like Into the Spider-Verse but I genuinely hope I see many more. The premise should be hard to follow, it should be too complicated. Instead it’s a fun and quick-witted film that’s not afraid to be bizarre as all hell but avoids speaking down to the audience. The way various art-styles meld together and the films non-stop Easter Eggs made this the best super-hero film of the year by a long shot.

6. You Might Be the Killer


This was easily the best horror film of the year for me. I saw it in a midnight screening while I attended Fantastic Fest and immediately fell in love with it. I managed to meet the director and strike up a decent friendship with him but this is not a bias choice. Whether him and I met each other or not I would have still praised this movie. It’s everything you ever wanted to get out of a meta horror comedy. When Sam (Fran Kranz) wakes up at his camp with all his counselors slaughtered he has no choice but to call his friend Chuck (Alyson Hannigan) to help him survive the night. During their conversation they both get a sneaking suspicion that Sam might be the killer. What follows is an incredible mystery full of hilarious gags.

5. Love, Simon

I adore teen flicks, always have. Love, Simon was the perfect modern teen flick. It captures all your memories of High School (both the good and the bad), when I first saw this movie I remember being a little annoyed by the audience but in retrospect I’m glad I saw it in a theater filled with vocal teenagers. The movie spoke to them just as much as it spoke to 33 year old me. That’s always a sign of a great film that speaks to a wide audience.

4. Ralph Breaks the Internet

Disney always has a fantastic ability to tackle heavy adult themes in their light-hearted children’s films. Ralph Breaks the Internet is no exception. On the surface, it’s a delightful sequel in which your favorite characters from the original travel around the internet with lots of meme jokes and pop culture references. While that’s there, it’s also a touching story about friendship.

3. A Futile and Stupid Gesture


I saw this on the recommendation of my brother. I loved it so much that I watched it three times. From everything I’ve read it’s highly inaccurate but it also seems like the subject was a firm believer in “never let the truth get in the way of a good story” so it seems fitting for this bio-pic to be so outlandishly inaccurate. It tells the crazy story of National Lampoon’s founder Doug Kenney and the early days of the magazine and National Lampoon films.

2. Mary Poppins Returns

There is no film that captured my imagination this year quite like Mary Poppins Returns. It’s been a rough year for a lot of people but for 2 hours I had a permanent smile on my face and tears of joy down my face. The original Mary Poppins holds a special place in my heart, it reminds me of people who are no longer with us. Mary Poppins Returns is about holding on to the magic in our lives after losing very special people. It’s as perfect of a sequel I could imagine. I’ve read many reviews of people who disliked the film and while I understand their complaints I disagree on all accounts. Mary Poppins Returns was nothing short of fabulous for me and is easily the best movie of the year.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-3jsfXDZLIY

1.Won’t You Be My Neighbor


Everything that made me love the fictional narrative in Mary Poppins was very much alive in the documentary Won’t You Be My Neighbor. The film captures the incredible achievements of Fred Rogers. I heard someone describe it as a guide to living life. No film made me want to go out and try to make the world better like this documentary did. It is nothing short of wonderful.

David Traverso

Honorable Mention: Sadie, Thunder Road, Vice, Won’t You Be My Neighbor?, Halloween, First Man, If Beale Street Could Talk, The Wife and Borg McEnroe

10. Boy Erased

This tenth spot on the list was up for grabs. I could have just as easily went with indie delights Sadie or Thunder Road, but I decided to go with a more mainstream film with Joel Edgerton’s Boy Erased. The well-known Aussie actor completely blew me away with his directorial debut The Gift a few years back, and follows it up with a more character-driven, but still highly successful, true story. Lucas Hedges stars as Jared, the son of a pastor (Russell Crowe) who agrees to undergo a gay conversion therapy when he begins to question his sexuality. Rather than dwell on the ugliness of those who refuse to accept homosexuality, Boy Erased stays committed to this young man’s personal journey and its impact on his devout parents (Nicole Kidman and Crowe).

9. Thoroughbreds

I fell in love with Olivia Cooke’s remarkable acting talents the moment I saw Me and Earl and the Dying Girl in 2015. She hasn’t let me down since, but Cooke’s work reaches new heights alongside her co-star Anya Taylor-Joy (Split) in the darkly comedic crime drama, Thoroughbreds. Cook and Taylor-Joy star as former childhood friends who reconnect in their teens while living in upper class Connecticut. But when the two girls devise a plan to murder, their true inner colors begin to appear and we see them for who they really are. Thoroughbreds is a surprising treat with its devious plot and fascinating characters. But how it all unravels, that’s the real treat of the film!

8. Leave No Trace 

Debra Granik got the attention of Hollywood with her dark 2010 indie drama, Winter’s Bone. The film went on to earn 4 Oscar Nominations (including Best Picture) and introduced the world to a young star-in-the-making, Jennifer Lawrence. Eight years later Granik gives us another phenomenal unknown talent, Thomasin McKenzie, in Leave No Trace. Ben Foster and McKenzie star as a father and daughter living off-the-grid deep in the Oregon wilderness whose peaceful and ideal existence becomes disrupted when someone discovers them out there. Granik once again delivers a stunning example of indie filmmaking where big budgets and gaudy effects become unnecessary thanks to authentic characters and a truly emotional story.

7. The Favourite

Filmmaker Yorgos Lanthimos has long been described as one of the most unique visionaries alive. The director’s odd, yet captivating, stories always come to life through an unparalleled lens, and the trend continues with his first real Oscar contender, The Favourite. Set in the early 1700s, Queen Anne (Olivia Colman) rules over England with the aid of her loyal confidant Sarah (Rachel Weisz). But when Sarah’s downtrodden, albeit charismatic, cousin Abigail (Emma Stone) arrives in search of employment, she quickly latches onto the Queen and immediately threatens Sarah’s influence as the two women rival over their majesty’s favor. Lanthimos takes his career to a whole new level with this hypnotic tale that checks all of the appropriate Oscar boxes.

6. Hereditary

This year’s SXSW lineup was fantastic and right near the top of the list you’ll find Ari Aster’s unsettling and creepy horror masterpiece, Hereditary. The film offers an unforeseen “bang” early one and refuses to take the pedal off the throttle from that point forward. Annie (Toni Collette) is a married mother of two whose sanity slowly starts to unravel as she unlocks an insidious family secret following the death of her own mother. Collette is nothing short of terrific and she even earned some legitimate Oscar buzz, which is rare for a horror performance. Needless to say, she is absolutely deserving of the high praises and I promise you that Hereditary is an uncomfortable watch late at night with all the lights off.

5. Avengers: Infinity War

Rarely does a superhero film make it into my Top 10, but Joe and Anthony Russo’s Infinity War is far from your standard summer blockbuster. The ever-expanding Marvel Cinematic Universe come together in this “part one” film which finds The Avengers and other superhero allies working in tandem to prevent Thanos (Josh Brolin) from acquiring all six Infinity Stones and annihilating half of the galaxy’s population. What Infinity War does so well is it humanizes the villain and rationalizes his motive to create a moral dilemma unlike anything the film genre has ever seen.

4. Can You Ever Forgive Me?

Prior to viewing the film, much had been made about Melissa McCarthy’s wonderful turn as biographer Lee Israel, who struggles financially after a successful career as a bestselling writer. While researching a new subject, Lee comes across a personalized letter from the author and decides to sell it off to a collector. This sets off a reckless string of forgeries that begin to catch the eye of the authorities. Can You Ever Forgive Me? stands a surprisingly heartfelt dramedy that forces you to sympathize with characters who are completely in the wrong.

3. A Star Is Born

Bradley Cooper’s directorial debut is certainly a strong one. By now I’m sure you’ve heard plenty of chatter regarding A Star Is Born and all I can say is, the movie doesn’t disappoint. Cooper stars as fading rock star Jackson Maine who unexpectedly discovers the gifted voice of Ally (Lady Gaga) and he instantly falls head over heels for her. But their love becomes tested when Ally’s singing career begins to blossom, and Jackson’s slowly comes to a close. A Star Is Born is carried on the shoulders of sensational performances and Cooper’s sharp direction.

2. Blindspotting

Carlos Lopez Estrada’s compelling Sundance Film Festival Opening Night selection, Blindspotting, catapulted to the top of my yearly list and held firm for quite some time. This wildly original examination of human perception is set against the backdrop of a modern-day Oakland undergoing mass gentrification. It’s here we’re introduced to Collin (Daveed Diggs), a felon with three days left on probation, who experiences deep introspection when he witnesses a cop kill a fleeing black man one night. Trust me when I say you’ve never witnessed anything quite like Blindspotting. The film straddles the line between hilarious comedy and intense drama, reminiscent of Spike Lee’s Do The Right Thing, and its deep-rooted message is something we all could learn from.

1. Green Book

Peter Farrelly takes his natural knack for comedy and splices it with a Civil Rights Era backdrop to deliver 2018’s clear-cut number one film. Tony Lip (Viggo Mortensen) is a bouncer from Brooklyn who takes on a well-paying job as both the driver and muscle for a world class pianist (Mahershala Ali) touring the deep south in the early 1960s. Despite Green Book’s unoriginal premise, the film truly stands out thanks to a pair of superbly acted leads that make this a bro-mance comedy first, and a worthwhile drama as a distant second. The laughs are endless and the characters are vividly memorable in 2018’s best film of the year.

Analog Jones’ Stephen Bay’s Best Direct To Video Rentals Of 1993

Were you expecting a list of the best movies of 2018? Nope! Analog Jones and the Temple of Film doesn’t do that; we watch VHS. Let’s take
a trip to the phone booth and dial up 1993! This is my list for 1993’s Best Direct To Video Rentals.

Honorable Mention: Time Runner (1993)

Get ready for Mark Hamill and Brion James! Hamill had a hard time getting work after playing Luke Skywalker, so he paid the rent with a lot
of direct to video work. Most of the movies he appeared in were just
quick cameos, but not Time Runner – he stars in this one. Like most of
these low budget action films, the story is confusing. I know the film takes place in 2022, but we don’t stick around in that time period. In Time Runner we watch Mark Hamill travel back to 1992 and battle aliens. Not his best work but worth a watch. Now, on to the top five picks!

5. Remote (1993)

Who loves Home Alone rip-off films? This guy! Home Alone with Macaulay Culkin is still one of the best Christmas movies ever made. Iconic films like Home Alone always spawn a bunch of direct to video rip-offs, and a few weren’t that bad. Sure, Remote doesn’t have anywhere near the budget of Home Alone, but it’s got twice as many gadgets, like a remote control helicopter dropping Coke cans on nincompoop criminals. This film even finds a way to get a fire-breathing Godzilla toy in it to stop the thieves from getting away. If you are interested in Remote, you can see it on Full Moon Streaming.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PPpDvrgnhc8

4. Prehysteria! (1993)

If you were a kid in the early ’90s, then you remember the tidal wave
of dinosaur movies. It was a great time to be a kid in the rental store on a Friday night. One film that immediately drew attention from my brothers and I was a little film called Prehysteria! The cover had
small dinosaurs on it, so of course it was getting rented. The best part
is the dinosaurs were named after famous singers like Elvis and Jagger. Just like Remote, Prehysteria! is available on Full Moon Streaming.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oQowzNDi6WI

3. Puppet Master 4 (1993)

I swear to you this isn’t the Charles Band movie list of 1993. For
those of you who don’t know who Charles Band is, I don’t have to time
to get into that mad scientist of a filmmaker. Short story, he is the
man behind Moonbeam Entertainment and Full Moon Entertainment, which did Remote, Prehysteria! and Puppet Master 4.

Anyway, let’s dive into Puppet Master 4 and the murderous dolls we can’t help but love. This film is about little demons sent to Earth to kill nazi murder dolls. I know what you are thinking, take my money!

Again, you can catch this on Full Moon Streaming. Alright, enough Charles Band films, seriously, I’m not kidding.

2. TC 2000 (1993)

As I said above, Dinosaurs were enormous in the early ’90s! But, you know what else was cool to rent? Futuristic fighting movies with robots or androids like Robot Wars and Nemesis. You’ll notice very quickly that this film feels like a low budget Robocop world. The story takes place in 2020, not 2000 like the title would suggest. Already my kind of story! A disaster has killed most life on the Earth’s surface, and the rich have moved underground to survive. You don’t need to know much more than that. Just enjoy Billy Blanks and Bolo Yeung fighting, sweating and kicking butt.

https://youtu.be/Dy7GPKw4KBg

1. Cyborg 2 (1993)
Every once in a while you will see an older film with a present-day megastar in it and wonder, WTF? A perfect example is Cyborg 2 and
Angelina Jolie. She’s an android assassin that kills her target by exploding during sex. SOLD! You’ll notice I said android and not a cyborg. The movie doesn’t know the difference between the two, but we
will let it slide. Jack Palance is hamming it up in this, and it’s a joy to watch. He was barely on set, but Palance still is a blast here. This movie also has one of my favorite VHS covers! You can even listen to our review of Cyborg 2 right here.

Thanks for reading! Enjoy your holidays and remember you can listen to Matt Storc and I review old VHS tapes on Analog Jones and the Temple of Film right here on Geekscape!

Derek Kraneveldt

5 . Ready Player One

Ready Player One is the most fun that I had watching a movie this year.

I simply couldn’t put the novel down when I first read it back in 2011 (back before everyone hated nostalgia trips), and I was so engrossed with this adaptation that my full bladder nearly exploded in the theatre as I simply couldn’t look away.

I wasn’t exactly sure just how the film would handle the transitions between the tired and crumbling real world and the computerized land of the OASIS, but the virtual world that Spielberg and company crafted was overflowing with passion and visual splendor. Much like Ready Player One’s characters, I simply wanted to spend as much time in the OASIS as I possibly could.

From every Easter egg, to every reference (I still cannot believe all of the different IP featured in this film), to the insane chase scenes and tearjerking moments between Parzival and Art3mis, Ready Player One is a popcorn hero’s journey that connected with me like very few can, and one that I’ll be watching over and over again for years.

4 . A Star Is Born

I went into A Star Is Born without knowing all that much about it. I vaguely remembered the film looking like a fairly standard romantic drama, and I could not have been more freaking wrong about it.

I wasn’t expecting the incredible chemistry between Bradley Cooper and Lady Gaga. I wasn’t expecting the heartbreaking relationship between Bradley Cooper and Sam Elliot’s characters. I wasn’t expecting the beautiful original songs (and the sultry, raspy, way better than expected singing voice of Bradley Cooper), and I certainly wasn’t expecting to listen to ‘Shallow’ on repeat for several weeks after I left the theatre.

No, I wasn’t expecting all that much from A Star Is Born, and it ended up being one of the most memorable films that I watched this year. It’s a film that expertly lifts your spirits and breaks your heart numerous times over its two-hour duration, and one that I’ll be recommending for years to come.

3 . Searching

Searching absolutely terrified me.

The film’s presentation is beyond impressive — the entire movie is shown through computer/phone displays (an idea that I first saw back in 2015’s Unfriended, taken to another level here), putting you front and centre into the unorthodox, often illogical conversations and attempts at coping of a desperate father on a near impossible search for his missing 16-year old daughter.

With an incredible, heartbreaking performance from Jon Cho, and a myriad of unexpected twists and turns throughout, Searching had me in tears during its opening scene, and on the edge of my seat until the credits started to roll.

Searching marks one of the best thrillers that I’ve seen in years, and is an absolutely underrated gem of 2018.

2 . A Quiet Place

I never could have imagined that Jim from The Office would become a bad-ass action hero and direct one of the very best films of 2018 (and probably one of the most intense films that I’ve ever seen).

A Quiet Place may have been the most impressive theatregoing experience that I had this year. I’ve never heard a packed auditorium become so absolutely silent before in my life – almost as if the audience themselves were trying not to alert the film’s terrifying creatures. I heard no chatter, no crunching of popcorn or laboured opening of M&M’s packages – you could feel the tension in the building, and nearly everyone freaked the hell out during the film’s early jump scares.

A Quiet Place is simply a horrifying tale of the lengths that one will go to to protect the ones they love. It’s chock full of incredible visuals, memorable performances, and has some of the best sound design in recent memory. It truly freaked the shit out me, and I cannot wait to visit this world again.

1 . Eighth Grade

Eight Grade was such a powerful, moving feature that I don’t even know where to begin.

The film is a scarily accurate portrait of growing up. From anxiety to introversion to trying (and failing) to put yourself out there and the repercussions of all of it, there wasn’t a moment of Eighth Grade that didn’t resonate with me; the scene with Kayla and Riley in the car may just be the scariest and most disgusting scene of any film that I saw this year, while watching Kayla befriend and look up to Olivia the twelfth grader warmed my freaking heart. Seeing Kayla and her father truly connect (after failing to for most of the film) was both heartwarming and heartbreaking, and definitely made me wish that I could cultivate deeper relationships with my own family.

Eighth Grade was my favourite film of 2018, and I think its one that will be revered for a long time to come. Bo Burnham has crafter a nearly perfect, hard hitting, coming of age drama, and the fact that I’m tearing up just thinking about the film almost six months after I last saw it is probably the best commendation that I could possibly give it.

Honorable Mention: First Man – Those scenes on the moon certainly looked spectacular in IMAX, but the most impressive part of First Man was Ryan Gosling’s performance. As someone who has lost a daughter (though in my case, one that I never really got to meet – a stillborn, to make a long story short) watching Gosling’s Neil Armstrong trudge through his life and his relationships as an absolutely broken man felt like looking in the mirror at times. To watch him achieve and achieve and literally change the world, and to so rarely look proud or even crack a smile doing it even years after the loss of his daughter resonated deeply with me, and watching the relationships with his partner, his kids, and his friends and colleagues certainly reminded me to focus on what’s really important when dealing with one’s grief. For me this year, there was no more impressive, or more important performance, than this one.

Mikaela Maxwell

5. Life Itself

Last year Derek and I watched The Glass Castle, which was a super poignant story about a family and how confusing and painful it can be to be a part of one, and I soooobbed the whole way through. I figured that was a one off. Turns out I was wrong, because I sobbed a whole dang lot during Life Itself, too.

This movie swerves you at the beginning as you are trying to figure out who’s who in the zoo, and then you jump into another tangle of family dynamics. I think looking at family dynamics is always interesting to me and pulls at my heart strings, cause I come from a family made up of so many different bits of different families and people who just want to love and be loved and have to fight through so much pain to do that. That is the kind of feeling this movie captures.

This movie does a wonderful job of telling a story about people and their lives and the events that shape them. It shows us the power of perspective and how no one can ever really know someone else’s whole truth.

4. Ralph Breaks The Internet

I saw the original Wreck it Ralph way after it came out, and I had no idea what I was missing! I enjoyed that movie so much, and was so excited for the new one, that I became a little nervous it wouldn’t be able to live up to the hype in my head. I needn’t have worried, as Ralph Breaks the Internet was amazing!

The story is about following your dreams and letting go a little so the people you love can follow theirs, and it is so well done. I am always so amazed when a “kids” movie can be so fun and entertaining while dealing with concepts that feel so adult. Navigating through friendship and feelings and figuring out who you want to be, all feel like big adult problems, but are really things we starting having to do and learn from a very young age.

I really enjoyed how cleverly this movie nods to sooooo many internet cliches. It’s like they found the perfect mix of child and adult humour and it is all based on real life stuff from this bizarre, fickle, internet obsessed culture we live in. I also liked that this movie did not revolve around a romantic relationship. It seems like so many movies are focused on that, which makes sense cause it is a big part of our lives, but this one didn’t and it was so perfect without it. It is just such a refreshing feel good film!

Whether you have kids in your life or not, I definitely recommend making this one a priority!

3. Hereditary

It is kind of surprising to me that I am so eager to put a horror movie on my favourites list, until a few years ago I probably hadn’t watched a horror movie since I was about 14. With Derek in my life I started watching them again, and have come to really appreciate some of them! This one I was super extra excited for, like to the extent that I was the one pestering everybody to see it immediately when it came to theatres.

This movie did not disappoint.

I was so uncomfortable the entire time we were watching it.

Every aspect of Hereditary is designed to make you uncomfortable, from the eery sounds, to the camera angles, the characters and the creepy art. The story takes turns you never expected and you spend the whole time trying to catch the clues you know you are missing. I walked out of there wanting to go back and rewatch immediately so I could see how the story was spelled out without me even realizing it, but also feeling too disturbed to handle sitting through it again.

I’m probably almost ready to watch it again, though my tummy is twisting a little just thinking about it. But if you have yet to watch it, and are up for the challenge of a truly horrifying movie, I highly recommend this one!

2. A Star Is Born

I went into this movie not even knowing that there had been multiple versions of it previously, so it was all new and wonderful. I wouldn’t say I go out of my way for Bradley Cooper or Lady Gaga, but I definitely will now. I was interested to see Lady Gaga’s acting performance, and to hear Bradley Cooper’s singing, and both were phenomenal. I was engaged from the moment this movie started.

The music is so well done in this movie, and was a big draw for me, their voices are simply incredible. I definitely listened to the soundtrack repeatedly after watching A Star Is Born. The story is hopeful and heartbreaking all at the same time. It looks at the hardships of mental health and addiction, demonstrating not only the impact on the person who is struggling, but also the people around them who love them the most.

1. A Quiet Place

I remember walking out of the theatre feeling totally amazed that I could be so emotionally invested in a scary movie. This movie made me cry too many times for a movie about some sort of planet invasion by an alien species, but that’s not really what it was about in the end anyways!

This movie shocks you right from the beginning and you have to wonder how anyone survives what they go through. Monsters that can only find you by hearing you and having to live in complete silence seemed like a clever twist on an alien movie. And then you find out this movie is actually about the love of a family, and people who would do anything to give their kids the best life possible in the worst of circumstances. I’m sure I spent a good portion of the movie wishing they had just used some danged birth control because how in the hell are you supposed to go through labour without yelling, and how are you supposed to stop a danged baby from crying?!

The movie was super well shot, the sound design of a silent movie was pretty incredible, and the acting was on point. This movie had so many things going for it , and it totally delivered. Do yourself a favour and go watch it.

Honourable Mentions:

Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse
Unsane
Searching
Eighth Grade

Jonathan London

A Quiet Place

Avengers: Infinity War

Three Identical Strangers

Eighth Grade

Juliet, Naked

Mid90s

Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse

Won’t You Be My Neighbor?

Green Book

Game Night

Matt Kelly’s Top 10 Moments In Podcasting Of 2017!

by Saintmort

It’s important to start this off by stating a few things up front. This is one of the most subjective lists imaginable. There are thousands (and thousands) of podcasts out there and it’s completely impossible to listen to everything. This is coming strictly from the 50+ shows that I listen to weekly, however I should also note I’m leaving off all Geekscape podcasts for a special awards portion at the end.

Now that I’ve got that out of the way, let’s tackle my top ten moments in podcasting for 2017!

10. ‘YOU MUST REMEMBER THIS’ – The Bela & Boris Series

YMRT is one of the very best podcasts out there. It’s always informative and captivating. In 2015 their series on the Charles Manson murders was one of the most compelling podcasting phenomenon this side of Serial. This year had three different series, and while all of them were great (Dead Blondes, Jean & Jane), it was the October series focusing on the careers of Bela Lugosi and Boris Karloff that truly stood out among the pack. Insightful and informative, it’s definitely worth a listen, specifically for a horror fan.

9. The Debut Of ‘ADAM SANDLER PLEASE STOP’

There were a handful of great shows that debuted this year, and while this is the first one I’ll mention out of five shows, that doesn’t take away just how great the show is. In early episodes co-hosts Robert and Marie were trying to find their footing, but somewhere around The Waterboy it all clicked – the movies kept getting worse and their sanity kept being put into play. At this point they’ve finished watching every Adam Sandler movie (proving it can be done in a year so… get on that) and plan to keep the show going by focusing on other Happy Madison stars like Kevin James and Rob Schneider while waiting for future Sandler releases. They kept each episode a manageable drive time length and pack it with constant laughs. This might be the funniest podcast you’ve probably slept on.

8. ‘THE CRACKED PODCAST’
 – Schmitty The Clam Takes Over As New Host

At one point The Cracked Podcast was one of the best shows out there. Over the years the show became fairly dark, focusing on our impending doom in the political world. While I consider this important, I didn’t go to The Cracked Podcast for that. If anything I listened to their show for an hour distraction from the darkness of the world. In June, then-host and editor-in-chief Jack O’Brien stepped down and Alex Schmidt (aka Schmitty the Clam) took over and brought the show back to conversations about pop culture. It’s given the show an entirely new breath of life.

7. The Debut Of ‘I ONLY LISTEN TO THE MOUNTAIN GOATS’

Fandom has never sounded better than
when Welcome To Night Vale’s Joseph Fink sits with John Darinelle of The Mountain Goats and breaks down the album All Hail West Texas track by track. It provides such incredible insight on the songwriting process, as well as Darinelle’s own perspective of himself. Even if you’re not a fan of the band, it’s an interesting listen for any music fan who’s curious about the songwriting process.

6. ‘SHOCK WAVES’ – The Day of the Woman Episode

Shock Waves is probably the best horror podcast from an informative standpoint. All four co-hosts bring such different perspectives that you’re always sure to discover a new movie to watch through the show. Prior to Shock Waves, ¾ of the team was doing the incredible Killer POV (episodes are still on iTunes and are essential listening for any horror fan). Picking a standout episode for this year is a little difficult but I feel like I have to shine a light on this episode specifically. When I heard that the main focus was going to be on women’s exploitation and rape I felt uncomfortable about the episode, however guest BJ Colangelo’s insight on the subject and the empowerment watching revenge films can provide really changed my perspective of the topic. I’ve recommended this to so many of my friends and everyone who checked it out felt the same. This was a truly powerful episode of horror podcasting.

5. The Debut Of ‘S-TOWN’

What more can be said about a show that has been discussed and dissected to death over the last year. I was late to the train – just two weeks ago I was working alone in my office with nothing to listen to so I decided to give Serial (which I had put off for a year or so) a listen. I loved the first season, but was starting to lose interest after season two. However, when I checked out S-Town I was totally hooked. A lot of people really were disappointed by the show, but I wanted more in the best possible way. It was touching, interesting, and genuine. It wasn’t a story like Serial that focused on one person in an extraordinary situation, this focused on very strange but very real people in a very common situation but it never stopped being engrossing. If you’ve avoided this due to people’s negative response to it, give it a shot. You may love it on the same level I did.

4. ‘ALL FANTASY EVERYTHING’ Finds Its Footing

All Fantasy Everything is quickly becoming my favorite podcast. I get beyond excited each time a new episode drops on Thursday Afternoon and I immediately listen to it when I leave work. The first few episodes started in the Fall of 2016 and while there are a handful of memorable discussions it really found its footing in 2017. The draft topics continued to become more insane and also more entertaining discussing things ranging from “Stuff To Do When You’re Drunk” and “Taco Bell Menu Items” to more bizarre topics like “Kanye West” and “Music Videos You Wish You Could Live In” or (my personal favorite) musical episodes like “TV Theme Songs” and “Soft Rock Ballads”. It’s also propelled three comedians not on my radar (Ian Karmel, Sean Jordan, David Gborie) to guys whose careers I want to follow and cheer on. If I had one goal in 2018, it’d be to get Horror Movie Night big enough that I’ll one day be invited to join these three for a draft (like, I don’t know … Scariest Scenes in Movies That Shouldn’t Be Scary).

3. The Debut Of ‘EAR HUSTLE’

This show absolutely captivated me for its brief first season run. In just 20-30 minutes each episode takes us into different stories of life behind the prison walls of San Quentin State Prison. It shines a nice light on these men and lets you get a rough idea of their day to day life. The show juggles a weird balance between making you hope that some of these people will one day get a second chance out the outside while also feeling like life behind bars is a slightly better life than they’d have on the outside (in a few cases). It is one of the most heartfelt and interesting podcasts in years. The Second Season starts in March so you have plenty of time to get caught up on the first season over the next few months.

2. The Debut Of ‘LABELLED: “THE STORIES, RUMORS & LEGENDS OF TOOTH & NAIL RECORDS”’

I grew up as a church kid. I love punk/ska music as well. This meant in my eyes the ultimate record label was Tooth & Nail Records. It was the best mix of bands and had arguably the biggest Christian label success with bands like MxPX, Underoath and Anberlin to name a few. The first season of Labelled focused on different bands, tour stories and topics that captivated me and really anyone who grew up listening to this music. I recommend starting with either the first episode about Further Seems Forever or the episode on the worst tour prank ever.

1. ‘THE ADVENTURE ZONE’ “Balance” Arc Wraps Up

I never expected to love a podcast as much as I loved The Adventure Zone. Every other Thursday the McElroy Brothers and their Father told the story of the Tres Horny Boys using D&D as the storytelling device. While the show is far from an accurate depiction of a real D&D campaign, it doesn’t stop it from telling a compelling story. As we grew to love the three adventurers as well as Griffin’s many NPCs, we started to dread the unavoidable conclusion when we would no longer hear the voices of Takko, Magnus, and Merle. The series wrapped up on a beautiful note leaving many listeners teary-eyed. If there was one podcast in this world that’s worthy of the time it will take up, it’s The Adventure Zone. If you’re a fan of storytelling than you owe it to yourself to listen to the full 69 episode run of the “Balance” arc and listen to the biggest evidence of podcasting’s capability to be more than just interviews and movie discussions.

GEEKSCAPE AWARDS:

Best Flagship Show – GEEKSCAPE
Best Podcast About Women Drinking Wine While Discussing Star Trek – SEVEN OF WINE
Best Boy Meets World Podcast – PLAYING WITH SQUIRRELS
Best New Podcast – THE OVER LEAGUE
Best Video Game Podcast – GEEKSCAPE GAMES
Best Show That Ended Too Soon – THE 90’S TV HOUR
Please Listen To My Podcast (Please) – HORROR MOVIE NIGHT

Derek Kraneveldt’s Favourite Video Games Of 2016!

by Derek Kraneveldt

Can you believe that 2016 has come to a close? We’ve finally abolished that dreaded six for ten more years, and a cool, clean, sexy seven has taken its place.

2016 has been an incredible year for everything aside from presidential candidates and celebrity deaths, so as always, we wanted to share our favourite games, movies, moments and more of 2016.

We’ve seen Adam’s favorite things, MCDave’s favorite films, and Josh’s favourite games too. Today, it’s Derek’s turn, so read on for his top seven video games of 2016!

Yeah… that’s a weird number.

7. Pokemon GO

This one is on the list less so for the game itself (which I’m still playing on my way to and from work), and more for the incredible way that it came into this world. It was the epitome of phenomenon – before Pokémon GO even officially launched in my country hundreds upon hundreds of people were gathered at “Tri-Lures” nearly 24 hours a day; I witnessed dozens and dozens of full grown men and women run as fast as they could when a rare ‘Mon appeared, and I heard the collective groan of 6000+ eager fans in Comic-Con’s Hall H this past Summer as Niantic’s John Hanke revealed that a legendary bird would not be making an appearance that morning.

The game has (sadly) died down a lot since those first incredible months, though I still see quite a few people at popular Pokéstops at almost all hours of the day. Really, the launch of Pokemon GO was like nothing I’ve ever seen before, and likely unlike anything we’ll ever see again.

While most of the folks I know now play pretty casually, or have stopped playing entirely, the real genius of Pokémon GO has been in its ability to raise or re-kindle interest in the brand. I swear that I hear more people (friends included) talking about or playing some form of Pokémon today than I have in the past 15 years. Thanks for this one, Nintendo and Niantic.

6. Overcooked

Overcooked is probably the most fun I’ve had playing a video game this year.

I’ve been getting way into couch co-op experiences on my Xbox One over the past six months, and while my fiancé and I are still slowly making our way through the Halo and Borderlands games, Overcooked is a title that I’m eager to jump into every time we have friends over (as it feels essentially impossible with less than four players).

The game has all players as chefs cooperating in crazy, constantly changing kitchens so that they can save a bleak, bleak future from certain destruction. Typically, players will be cut off from certain ingredients or cooking apparatus’, and your group needs to have amazing communication to do well in each level. Typically, our group will do poorly in a stage, figure out how each of us could be better used in the particular stage through way too in-depth discussion, and then jump back into the same level to perform substantially better. It’s an absolute blast and there have definitely been multiple instances where I’ve had to pause the game from laughing so, so hard.

It’s cheap, and it’s so much fun. You can even play with four players using just two controllers, which adds further challenge and hilarity to the already gut wrenching title.

5. Stardew Valley

I always loved the idea of games like Harvest Moon or Animal Crossing, but regardless of the iteration that I tried, neither game could ever hold my interest for more than a few hours.

I picked up Stardew Valley on a whim for my still figuring out her gaming niche fiancé, and pretty quickly became as addicted to the game as she is.

Every time I turn the game on, it’s a constant struggle to turn it off in order to do something more productive. “Just one more day.” I’ll tell myself over and over again as the seasons and hours pass, but hours later the game is still on. It’s simple, it’s incredible, the soundtrack is definitely in my Apple Music library, and I bet that I end 2017 having played Stardew Valley more hours than anything that’s set to come out this year.

If this game gets some co-op multiplayer, I think we may both quit our jobs and die of bed (couch) sores. If you’re trying to get your non-gamer partner into a video game, this is a great place to start… though you may need to buy a second console as they’ll be hogging it all the time.

4. Oxenfree (Review Here)

Oxenfree was one of the very first titles that I played in 2016, and as I noted in my review last January, it was “far and away the first standout title of 2016”.

From its unique put-this-on-my wall art style, its incredible soundtrack (that I still listen to regularly), the harrowing what-could-happen-next plot and the themes within, and that angsty teen coming of age dialog that I simply can’t get enough of, Night School Studio crafted an absolute gem that deserves to be played by more gamers.

I could go on, but you can head right here for my review and full thoughts on the title (play it)!

3. The Last Guardian

I can’t believe it’s finally here.

As a YUGE fan of Ico and Shadow of the Colossus, I firmly believed that I’d never have an opportunity to play this game,

Now it’s here, and it’s everything that I’d hoped for from a Team Ico game, and mostly what I expected as well (including its clunky controls).

I haven’t had an opportunity to finish the game just yet, but if Trico dies I know I’ll be bawling my eyes out. The relationship formed here is like nothing I’ve ever seen in a video game before, and it’s likely a bond that I’ll remember for the rest of my life.

While I’m disappointed that you’ll need a PS4 Pro to get decent performance from The Last Guardian, regardless of the model you have this needs to be on your must-play list. Reviews came out divisive, but Team Ico’s latest tells an incredible tale and will be one of the most memorable titles of this generation. You just definitely need to expect a title that doesn’t feel completely modern.

2. The Elder Scrolls Skyrim: Special Edition

2016 marked the first time that I played Skyrim in the launch of its PS4/Xbox One Special Edition, and for the past few months I’ve been wondering: what the hell took me FIVE years to ever give it a shot.

As a huge fan of Bethesda’s Fallout series, a similar game in an incredible fantasy world with insane creatures like massive dragons, mammoths, witches and literal giants (that I still cower in fear from) sounds right up my alley. And it is right up my alley, as it turns out.

Yes, combat has come a long way in the past five years (my character is pretty stealthy and into archery, and it’s still pretty odd when a dude with an arrow sticking out of him decides that there’s nothing to worry about), and a lot of the game’s mechanics feel clunky as hell compared to newer titles like Fallout 4 and even The Elder Scrolls Online (which I’m also playing thanks to Skyrim), but with every quest feeling as varied as it does, and such a vast world so ripe for exploring, I cannot wait to see where my journey as Dragonborn takes me.

If you haven’t played Skyrim, and you like video games even a little bit, you owe it to yourself to pick this one up. Heck, even if you have played it, the ability to mod the game on Xbox One and (to a lesser extent) PS4 is pretty damned cool.

1. Firewatch (Review Here)

Another incredibly gorgeous indie gem from ex-Telltale Games staffers.

Back in February I noted that “tears were welling in my eyes within the first few moments of Firewatch, and I can’t think of a single other video game in my 25 years that’s had such an affect on me so quickly.”

It’s that damned good.

The game features incredible performances from Mad Men’s Rich Sommer and The Walking Dead (game) Cissy Jones, and aside from (still) being the most gorgeous game that I’ve ever played, it’ll have you on the edge of your seat for nearly every second of its too-short campaign.

Since writing my review back in February, the game has been updated to fix some of the performance issues that plagued its early builds, and has added a neat new mode where you can just wander around the beautiful forest and chillax.

Seriously, every frame of this game looks like the Olly Moss painting that its art style is based on. It doesn’t get better than this. Yep, its ending is pretty divisive, but I fell firmly on the “love it” side of things.

You can read my review of Firewatch here, and listen to Shane and I discuss the game here.

Game That I’m Going To Love But Have Only Put An Hour Into So Far: Overwatch

Josh Jackson’s Favorite Games Of 2016 (So Far)!

by Josh Jackson

Can you believe that 2016 is coming to a close? In just a few days, we’ll abolish that dreaded six for ten more years, and a cool, clean, sexy seven will take its place.

2016 has been an incredible year for everything aside from presidential candidates and celebrity deaths, so as always, we wanted to share our favourite games, movies, moments and more of 2016.

We’ve seen Adam’s favorite things and MCDave’s favorite films, and now it’s Josh Jackson’s turn. No, his yearly list of Waifus isn’t ready quite yet (read last year’s list again to tide you over), but here are his top games of the past year.

5. Pokemon Go

No, Pokemon Go isn’t the best game out there. Hell, a better Pokemon game came within the same year with Pokemon Sun and Moon! But the reason why the popular mobile game ranks so high with me was because of its ability to encompass what a mobile game could be, offering players around the world the chance to bring Pokemon into the real world, complete with plenty of incentives to have us socialize, explore our environment and go outside for all those hatched eggs.

Not to mention that this game was a global phenomenon that thrust Pokemon into the mainstream for the first time in years, When the games that I ranked higher than this one come and go, expect to see Pokemon Go discussed for years to come. Would anybody be surprised to see Buzzfeed using it to fill their nostalgia lists in 10 years?

4. MegaDimension Neptunia VII (Review Here)

Despite what the many Neptunia releases on PS Vita may suggest, the fourth main entry in the RPG series saw its debut on the PS4 and Steam after a three year gap since its predecessor was released. The lighthearted parody of the game industry returned in full force, telling the story of the death of Sega as a hardware publisher using cute anime girls, all while forcing Neptune to share the spotlight with the rest of the CPU’s, Newcomers like Gold Third, the embodiment of the top four third party Japanese developers and ms. Dreamcast herself, Uzume, to round out the cast, there was plenty of humor and insider references to keep me playing for hours on end.

But while the humor still carries the narrative, I consider VII to be as close as you can get to a perfect sequel. The graphics and framerate received a noticeable upgrade. The game play stayed true to its roots while implementing multiple new features to make fights more dynamic. New types of battles like giant fights kept things interesting, while teamwork amongst your party played a much bigger role. It should be a no brainer, but sequels seem to have a harder time these days when it comes to differentiating themselves from the rest of the series while still feeling familiar. VII isn’t one of them.

3. Titanfall 2

What a difference a campaign makes! The original game was a fantastic display of what an online shooter can be when the developer thinks outside the box, but once the player base dried up, there was no reason to go back into your mech and do battle. Titanfall 2 fixes that with one of the best shooter campaigns I’ve ever played, complete with some of the most creative sequences I’ve played in a very long time.

Despite being as short as it is, (my first run on the hardest difficulty took about seven hours including deaths), it’s easily a story I could play through over and over again. By doing a great job of building up some interesting villains alongside the bond between you and your Titan, the story constantly keeps up with the incredible action.

Oh, and online is still fun! New abilities, a wider variety of Titans, weapons and abilities, free content updates and a variety of incentives to keep you online make it one of the better online games of 2016 as well, Inferior maps compared to the first game hold it back, but with the focus on fast movement, unique features like having the losing team evacuate while the winners hunt them down for extra EXP, and the wider array of options on the battlefield, there’s no reason why this gem should be passed up.

https://youtu.be/EXwdWuSuiYA

2. Overwatch

There was no game that I played in 2016 more than Overwatch. What started off as somewhat of an impulse buy became an obsession, racking up as many loot boxes I could grab as I took on heroes from around the world in Blizzard’s latest offering. The thought of an online only shooter may be intimidating at first, but with the wide variety of characters, each with unique abilities, (and personalities), that are sure to fit any play style, there’s sure to be a character or two for everyone.

But Overwatch’s true brilliance comes from when you explore the ins and outs of every character and start to think of playing for the benefit of your team rather than yourself. Using that clutch Ultimate that wins, (or saves), the match, hearing that rewarding sound as you accumulate a quadruple kill, or somehow holding off an entire team when you’re the only one on the objective are some of the incredible moments the game has offered throughout my many matches. As the lore opens up and the free content rolls in, it’s looking like Overwatch will be a popular choice well beyond 2016.

1. Tokyo Mirage Sessions #FE (Review Here)

There’s not much I can say that I didn’t already cover in my review, but I’ll just say this. Tokyo Mirage Sessions is the best game of 2016 and it’s not even close.

Let’s check off the list of what makes a great game for its genre:

A JRPG with endearing characters that flip their tropes on their heads, complete with excellent voice acting that had me laughing out loud constantly.
An addictive battle system that puts its own unique spin on the traditional turn based formula.
Stylized graphics and presentation that make it look incredibly unique.
The best soundtrack of the year, both because of its BGM and its full songs, most of which get the music video treatment.
Plenty of creativity, from using the Wii U game pad as your phone to send and receive text messages, to its unique spin on the Fire Emblem universe.

But in the end, its biggest strength is to balk at all the expectations that came from a crossover between a dark series like Shin Megami Tensei, and the feudal themed turn based strategy that Fire Emblem is known for. Whoever came up with the idea of taking these two universes, setting it in the modern day, and having it revolve around teenage Japanese idols was insane. They were also onto something. Because it would be easy to throw the two series’ together and make some generic mash up between the two, (much like Pokemon Conquest, a game that in some ways is this one’s predecessor). Instead, we got the best parts of both to create something brand new, all of which was executed at a level of excellence expected from Atlus and Intelligent Systems. It was a risky move, one that paid off in a big way for all those involved. Now, let’s hope it gets the spotlight it deserves with a Switch port!

MCDave’s Top Ten Films Of 2016!

by MCDave

Can you believe that 2016 is coming to a close? In just a few days, we’ll abolish that dreaded six for ten more years, and a cool, clean, sexy seven will take its place.

2016 has been an incredible year for everything aside from presidential candidates and celebrity deaths, so as always, we wanted to share our favourite games, movies, moments and more of 2016.

Adam shared his favourite things yesterday, and today longtime critic MCDave is here to share his favorite films of the past year!

#10. Arrival

My top ten list begins with Denis Villenueve’s sci-fi drama, Arrival. This Oscar hopeful deviates from the stereotypical sci-fi structure by offering majestic cinematography and an artistic vision from its filmmaker. After 12 alien spacecrafts appear across the globe, the U.S. military reaches out to a linguistics expert (Amy Adams) to form a line of communication and determine if their motive is peaceful or violent. This cerebral effort works in opposition to some punishingly sluggish pacing which, admittedly, concludes in a remarkably clever fashion.

#9. The Nice Guys

One of the year’s most entertaining features came from Iron Man 3 director, Shane Black, and jump-started the summer blockbuster season. The Nice Guys stands as a successful twist on the buddy-cop genre as two private investigators (Ryan Gosling and Russell Crowe) look into the disappearance of a teenage girl. There are countless laugh-out-loud moments scattered throughout this hilariously scripted story that’s bound to get the sequel treatment.

#8. Remember

One of the only upsides to this year’s middling crop of releases is it allows me to offer praise to some lesser-known titles. One such film is the early-year release, Remember, from director Atom Egoyan. Christopher Plummer stars as Zev, an elderly man living in a retirement-home and experiencing early stages of dementia. He is reminded of his gruesome childhood in the Auschwitz internment camp where a Nazi guard killed both his and a fellow resident’s families. With nothing left to live for, Zev sets out on a vengeful mission to find the prison guard and kill him. Remember is a wildly engaging thrill ride that’s elevated by an explosive final scene you won’t want to miss.

#7. Nocturnal Animals

Tom Ford’s stylish sophomore effort isn’t everything you’d expect it to be, but it’s still quite good. Amy Adams stars as an art gallery owner who receives a manuscript of her ex-husband’s new novel. The book is dedicated to her and, as she becomes consumed by its grisly story, she reflects on the emotional torment she caused her former lover (Jake Gyllenhaal). I expected a more brutal and twisted affair, but what it lacks in physical anguish is made up with psychological misery. Michael Shannon and Aaron Taylor-Johnson offer fine supporting work while Tom Ford’s direction is on-point.

#6. Don’t Think Twice

The modern evolution of the comedy genre is actually quite sad. Character development in such a setting has become a lost art and cleverly-crafted humor is a dying skill. Thankfully, Mike Birbiglia’s personal indie comedy, Don’t Think Twice, represents a return to the glory days. The film follows a tight-knit improv comedy group who begin to experience fierce competition between one another when the world’s most notable sketch-comedy show scouts them for new talent. This wonderfully told story draws the audience into each of its characters and is highlighted by hilarious situational humor.

#5. Manchester by the Sea

Kenneth Lonergan’s emotionally charged Oscar contender is by no means an easy watch. Casey Affleck, who stands as the Best Actor frontrunner for his unmatched performance, plays a brutally scarred handyman who returns to his home town to care for his nephew after his brother passes away. Deeply immersed in feelings of hope, heartache and uncertainty, Manchester by the Sea absolutely pushes the dramatic envelope.

#4. Captain Fantastic

There’s something so euphoric about Captain Fantastic. On the surface the film’s central characters appear to be a crazed family who shut themselves off from the world by living deep in the wilderness of the Pacific Northwest. But at the same time, to have the fortitude and survival instincts to actually pull it off are impressive and convincing. There are countless controversial elements scattered all throughout this captivating story and artistically shot film that make Captain Fantastic a movie unlike any other.

#3. Hell or High Water

David Mackenzie’s tale of bank-robbing brothers is the perfect blend of the classic Western genre with a modern day flair. Chris Pine, Ben Foster and Jeff Bridges all provide phenomenal performances that catapult this slow-boiling and often witty screenplay into a completely well-rounded piece of filmmaking.

#2. Moonlight

I had heard all of the lofty praises for Barry Jenkins’ indie drama, but a familiar premise left my expectations extremely tempered. However, Moonlight was this year’s biggest surprise. It delivers the finest ensemble of 2016 and tells its powerful coming-of-age story with a level of tenderness and humanity that will leave you craving for more long after its credits roll.

#1. La La Land

In a year overrun with grim storylines from its major awards season contenders, Damien Chazelle’s whimsical musical is a fresh breath of upbeat originality and a bona-fide Best Picture selection. La La Land comes with its own roller coaster of emotions, but the film tells a deeply passionate story using a deliberate nod to classic cinema all while injecting a modern touch.

Geekscape’s Favorite Things Of 2015: Video Games

by GeekscapeStaff

Can you believe that 2015 is coming to a close? In just a few of days, we’ll abolish that dreaded five for ten more years, and a cool, clean, sexy six will take its place.

2015 has been an incredible year for all forms of media, so as always, we rounded up our ever-growing pool of writers to share their favorite things of 2015. First up, video games!

Take a look at everyone’s top 5, or favourite game altogether below, and be sure to let us know yours in the comment section below!

Derek Kraneveldt

5. ​Splatoon

I truly did not expect to love Splatoon as much as I do.

In fact, I largely ignored the title as our fearless leader, Jonathan London, told me after E3 that is just wasn’t that good.

Want to know how I got the game? My largely non-gamer fiance and I were watching the Nintendo World Championships earlier this year, and after watching a few rounds she told me that ‘We’re going to go and buy that game right now.’ So we did, and its the most fun I’ve had playing a full-on shooter in years.

We’ve talked about it endlessly on Geekscape Games, but with Nintendo regularly releasing new stages, weapons, and costumes for the title, plus the consistent schedule of incredibly addicting Splatfest events (not to mention the always adorable MiiVerse drawings), Splatoon has ascended the ranks of first person shooters to become something that most titles (especially in this genre) can only dream of: a full-fledged, lasting community.

It still feels so odd to start a match and simply point my gun at the ground instead of heading straight for my opponents, but at the same time, it’s (obviously) instantly satisfying. Of course only Nintendo could turn the genre on its head as it has, and it’s amazing to see the company get such positive recognition for the title (including 2 awards at this month’s The Game Awards).

So, hot dogs or pizza?

4. Until Dawn (Review here)

Until Dawn is the best game that Sony didn’t want you to play.

After the heavy marketing (and disappointment), that was The Order: 1886, Sony basically ignored the fact that Until Dawn existed, giving the title barely-there marketing and no recognition leading up to its quiet August release.

Which is truly disappointing, as the game is one of the PS4’s best, and you simply can’t play it anywhere else. In the game, you’ll take control of eight (old looking) teens gathered at a remote (Canadian) mountain lodge over the course of one night (including Heroes Hayden Panettiere and Mr. Robot’s Remi Malek, among others). They’re there on the one-year anniversary of the disappearance of two of their friends (who disappeared from the same remote mountain lodge), to remember them, and to, of course, party. Things turn sour pretty quickly, as the group discovers that they’re not as alone as they thought they were. It’s then up to you to ensure that they survive UNTIL DAWN… Did I mention that the surrounding area also contains an abandoned sanatorium and a partially collapsed mine with a terrible history?

Yeah, it’s cliched as hell, but I firmly believe that it’s entirely deliberate, which just adds to the charm of Until Dawn.
The game is extremely cinematic in its presentation (funky camera angles included), and like this year’s Life Is Strange, often offers Telltale-level difficult choices. A game like this is obviously full of quicktime events, but unlike most titles, one wrong button press in Until Dawn can (and often will) kill your current character, thus ending their storyline (and skyrocketing the game’s replayability).

There’s no rewinding or retrying either. Play well enough, and all eight characters can survive this terrifying night. Or, if you suck at games or horror movies, you might not even make it to the end.

Performances are spectacular, presentation is some of the best in recent memory, and the game’s cheesy-as-hell plot is beyond welcome. I’d imagine you’ll see Until Dawn hit the bargain bin fairly soon, and regardless of the price, I’d implore you to pick it up.

3. Fallout 4

It’s pretty impressive that Fallout 4 was officially a secret for so very long. The first assets for the title were created over seven years ago, and yet Bethesda announced Fallout 4 last June, then essentially went silent, and then released the game this November.

A far cry (ha ha) from the announce too early, then delay cycle that seems to be the standard for most developers today.

Yep, it’s Fallout, and it looks and feels like Fallout… which for some reason is garnering a lot of hate on the internet. Fallout 4 is Bethesda at its best, and the myriads of armchair cowboys who are ridiculing the title for its ‘bad graphics’, and the fact that yes, it’s similar to the previous two iterations of the series are the same people who constantly talk about how little graphics matter, and how plot and gameplay are key (and who buy Call of Duty and Assassin’s Creed ever. single. year).

Then again, it did get an insanely long list of improvements from the last title; graphics, soundtrack, shooting mechanics, cover system, settlement system, dialogue, better companions, really, there are far too many to list.
Plot and gameplay? Fallout 4 has a ton of that, and an incredible amount of variety too. I’ve never become as unfocused in a game as I have playing this one, as each and every time I’m on an important mission I’ll simply become distracted by something interesting off in the distance, a new radio signal, or an unfamiliar icon on my map. It’s crazy.

I’ve put over 30 hours into Fallout 4 thus far (which may not seem like a lot, but that’s a lot of game time for me), and every chance I get I’m jumping right back into the world of the Commonwealth. My map looks full-as-hell, yet I know that I’ve barely scratched the surface of this unbelievably deep title.

Fallout has never been better, and I can’t wait to see this story through! Where are you Shaun!?

2. The Witcher 3

2015 was truly CD Projekt Red’s year.

From physical packaging so memorable that I just had to write about it, to an insane amount of free DLC after launch, to potentially the best after release support of any game ever, The Witcher 3 and its hundreds of hours of content is one of the very best titles available on current generation consoles.

It certainly felt odd jumping straight into the third game in an RPG series after missing out on the first two titles, but I beg you not to let that shy you away from this experience. The Witcher 3 does a great job of catching you up on past events, and you’ll very quickly be so enamored with this world (and its insanely addicting card game, Gwent), that you’ll forget that the other two (excellent) games exist.

It’s an incredible action-RPG, but what impressed me the most about The Witcher 3 was the incredible after-release support that CD Projekt Red provided. Had they not released a single patch, the game would have still made it on a myriad of end-of-year lists, but constant updates provided new content, UI enhancements, control updates (and additional options), and more.

One of the updates even made my life substantially easier, as when the game launched, Geralt’s ‘Witcher Sense’ was completely invisible to me due to color blindness issues. Things like this happen fairly often in today’s games, and typically I just have to suffer, stop playing, or in the case of The Witcher 3, ask someone for help. One day, I was looking through the release notes of the newest patch, and the developers added a freaking colorblind mode that made the previously-invisible elements clear as day.

This is not only the best RPG of the year, but it could be my favourite RPG’s ever.

Go buy this game. You’ve only got about a year to finish it up until Cyberpunk 2077 drops.

1. Life Is Strange

This one will come as no surprise to regular readers of Geekscape or listeners of Geekscape Games, as I stated numerous times throughout 2015 (and the title’s too-sporadic release cycle) that Life Is Strange was the best gaming experience that I’d had (so far) this year.

Now, we’re at the close of 2015, and absolutely nothing has changed. DONTNOD Entertainment took the Telltale formula of intriguing plots, incredible characters, and impossible choices, and turned that formula on its head with Max Caulfield’s time-rewinding powers (not to mention a wonderful new IP to boot).

Surprisingly enough, having the ability to rewind and make an opposite choice, does not make those choices any less impossible. Like, at all.

Life Is Strange offers an incredibly realized world, with one of 2015’s best video game soundtracks (not to mention voice acting), and some truly relate-able characters put into absolutely incredible circumstances. The game will have you guessing to the very end, laughing (and crying… a lot) throughout, and have you strangely interested in reading the lengthy journal of a teenaged girl.

Life Is Strange is my Game of the Year. Thank you DONTNOD for such a memorable experience, and screw you DONTNOD for making me cry so much.

Honorable: Her Story, Guitar Hero Live, Metal Gear Solid V (at least its mechanics), Yo-Kai Watch

Joshua Jackson

As longtime Geekscape readers might know, I usually write a variety of end of year lists, including games of the year and best waifus. Sadly, school has kicked my ass this year and I haven’t played as much as I need to. With that said, I did want to post some of my favorite games of the year so far, then put together the usual lists after I play some catch up!

2015 was an interesting year for games. Between gamers waiting on pins and needles for the next Smash Bros DLC reveal, to the ongoing Konami / Hideo Kojima drama, the first half of the year being dominated by Amiibogeddon and the ongoing censorship debate among many other hot topic issues, it seemed as if much of this served as a distraction from the fact that not a whole lot of impressive software released this year. With that said, there still were some impressive games on the market over the last 12 months, many of which caught me completely off guard. So in no particular order, here are my favorite games of 2015, (so far.)

Guitar Hero Live (Review here)

To echo what Derek said in his review for the game, not only is Guitar Hero Live one of the most addicting gameplay experiences of the year, but it manages to revitalize a franchise that many thought they were far too burned out of to care about again. Serving as more than just a guitar change, the new format that Freestyle Games used for the game makes it feel so fresh. Scrapping the cartoon inspired band mates for real stage footage that changes with your performance was brilliant, but is trumped even still by Guitar Hero Live. By completely rethinking what DLC can be, GHTV lets players select channels that play certain genres during certain blocks of time, shuffling the entire catalouge into one giant score battle against players from around the world. If you want to play on demand, you have to pay, but with a variety of ways to earn free plays, you can pick and choose the songs you want to try without committing to buying one you might not like. If you haven’t tried it, do yourself a favor and step on the stage one more time! You’ll be glad you did!

Skylanders Superchargers

Another year, another Skylanders game. But before you pass this off as another shallow cash grab, know that this vehicle themed sequel to the first Toys To Life game is not only the best in the series to date, but one of the best action platformers of the year. I always feel that the franchise is at its best when Vicarious Visions is at the helm, and they prove it once again with the most imaginative stages in the series. Combined with more interesting additions to the cast, visual presentation that must have taken a small miracle to pull off without framerate drops considering how crowded the screen can get, excellent implementation of vehicles, and a full on racing mode courtesy of Spider-Man: Shattered Dimensions developers, Beenox, and you have one of the most content filled entries in the entire series, (despite the core experience still being relatively short.) For Wii U, Wii, and 3DS owners, the extra bonus of playing as a fully realized Donkey Kong and Bowser, each with some really fun abilities that reference the entire history of the characters, make a great game even better. If you’re jaded about the franchise and need an excuse to fall in love with it again, (or for the first time,) Superchargers is your best bet.

Disney Infinity 3.0

You obviously can’t talk about Disney Infinity without comparing it to Skylanders, and while the latter’s biggest problem has been its lack of content to use all your figures with, (which Superchargers alleviated to an extent,) the former’s was developing interesting campaign modes for those who aren’t into spending hours in the title’s deep world building Toy Box mode, (which is even better this time around.) However, Disney employing a variety of developers worked out well for their latest Toys To Life game has payed off big, offering some of the best combat in a Star Wars game to date across any genre. Primarily developed by Ninja Theory, the influences from DmC, Devil May Cry are clear, with juggle combos, delay combos and air combat abound. Each character stands out well, helping gamers travel through the prequels, sequels, and even The Force Awakens in the guise of a well made action game. Throwing in the Inside Out platforming game that again, has some wildly imaginative stages that I would LOVE to see realized in a full fledged game, and the new Toybox Games that add more content for your non Star- Wars characters are icing on an admittedly expensive cake.

https://youtu.be/DWnA-yXUmJI

Hyperdimension Neptunia Re;Birth 2 and 3 (Review here)

We had FOUR new Hyperdimension Neptunia games this year, and while the spinoffs, especially Hyperdimension Neptunia U if our review is anything to go by, nothing beats the core series. Being too similar to split off into their own entries on this list, the real time turn based combat is back with a lighthearted, fourth wall shattering adventure to save Gamindustri is present in both. Re;Birth 2 introduces the CPU Candidates, the little sisters of the main characters of the first game, as they fight to save the elder goddesses from a group of game pirates who are distributing software for free! Led by Nepgear, (a strong candidate for this year’s top waifu,) this more serious story has divided the fanbase, but I found myself being a big fan of the younger girls’ struggle to fight their way out of the shadows of their more powerful siblings. Re;Birth 3 on the other hand, is back to the never serious style of the original, placing Neptune back into the lead role while leading a hilarious new cast to the forefront in an alternate Gamindustri based on the late 80’s through the early 2000’s. Either one is a great RPG to play if you need something to play on your Vita, (which I know you do,) and in a year that was surprisingly heavy on the JRPG front, Neptunia still stands out strong!

Xenoblade Chronicles X

What can I say that hasn’t been said about this incredible title? When the promotion material for this game promised 100’s of hours of game play, they weren’t joking. Taking place on Mira, an uncharted planet that humans are forced to call their new home, this living, breathing world is easily the most stunning environment of the year. Wildlife fills the world and goes about their own business, whether or not they’re hostile. High level monsters mingle with low level ones, forcing you to think twice about how you’re going to travel to the next uncharted point. Side missions reward you with a deeper understanding of the citizens of New Los Angeles and the citizens that inhabit it. And most importantly, the game play is top notch, allowing you to switch between firearms and melee attacks to hit enemies at the right position and keep them from attacking. Oh, and when the mechs, or Skells come into play, then the world really becomes your playground. With all of this said, Xenoblade‘s biggest accomplishment is that despite the acceptance that a large game being glitchy is just a byproduct of a game of this scope, this Nintendo exclusive RPG on the weaker Wii U manages to pull it off without anything nearly as bad as some of the large open worlds released this year. Constant pop in is the worst you’ll come across. A surprisingly well done online mode rounds out what is a strong candidate for game of the year, and shapes one of the definitive Wii U experiences on the market.

Danganronpa Another Episode: Ultra Despair Girls (Review here)

What happens when you take a text adventure, (which I named my game of the year last year,) and spin it off into a Resident Evil 4 style third person shooter? You get one of the more innovative takes on the genre in a long time. As Komaru Naegi, the younger sister of the protagonist of the first game, you’re forced to fight your way through an abandoned island that’s being torn apart by an army of the murderous Monokuma bear robots. Led by the Warriors of Hope, a group of children who look to kill every adult, Ultra Despair Girls featured some of the more gruesome, shocking and uncomfortable scenes in a game this year, and it was so much better for it. Naturally, you can’t make a game of the year list on story alone, (on my list at least,) but Ultra Despair Girls has some incredibly lighthearted mechanics for a game so sadistic. Dancing killer robots? Ammo that forces cars to drive? A variety of weapon types to fit multiple situations? This game constantly keeps you on your toes, making a typically bland genre feel fresh again. Like Neptunia, this is one of the better games for the Vita this year, and is absolutely worth dusting off the handheld to check out.

Splatoon

My early candidate for game of the year, Splatoon is everything I look for in a game. Creative? Check! Innovative? Who would’ve thought about making a 3rd person arena shooter where the goal is to shoot the ground instead of your opponent? Single player content? While short, it has plenty of collectibles, fun boss fights and serves as a great tool to learn the game before you jump online. When it launched in May, the game’s biggest flaw was that it lacked a lot of basic features that you’d expect to be standard in an online shooter. For better or worse, all of that content was rolled out over time and made available by August. Fast forward to December, and I’m still playing it, which is much more than I can say about other so-called AAA titles throughout the year. By adding a variety of game modes, monthly Splatfests, which are nationwide competitions where each player picks a team to represent, more new weapons and stages than you can shake a tentacle at, and an insane amount of gear to customize your character with, and its no wonder why this game stands tall as one of the premier games of 2015.

Shane O’Hare

Not only was this a bad year for Shane, this was a bad year in video games for me too! I had to seriously sit and think what games I bought that came out this year that I played and enjoyed! It took me some time, but these are the Top Five Games I played in 2015

5: TIS-100

TIS-100 was a real surprise to me. A new take on the puzzle genre, you take the role of a guy who finds a used computer at a yard sale and attempts to fix it up to get it working again. Instead of replacing parts, you have to reprogram modules and nodes. What follows is you, the player, LITERALLY writing code to create programs. Each level you are faced with a problem, a series of inputs, and a series of outputs. You have to figure out how to get the numbers from the inputs, move them down through the different nodes and to the outputs. The early levels can be done pretty easily, but just a few levels in you will be hitting your head against the keyboard as you have to SERIOUSLY figure out some intense logic puzzles.

4: Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate

I’ll admit, I haven’t put as much time into MH4U as I did 3, but I’m not really sure WHY. MH4U is a GIANT leap forward in the franchise. More monsters, more armor, more DLC, more environments, more everything. Gone are the tedious underwater battles, and in its place are some interesting climbing elements. Monsters will fight you in areas that span multiple levels, and you will have to strategically place yourselves above them to get the literal drop on them.

3: DmC: Definitive Edition

When DmC came out a couple years ago, it made my Top 5 games of the year. It was a fresh take on the Devil May Cry franchise, with a “new” Dante. A Dante that was overtly muscly man god, a Dante with more depth. The gameplay was tight, and the levels were extremely creative and interesting. So when they said they were releasing it on current gen, upscaled to 1080P, 60FPS and all the DLC I freaked out and jumped at the chance to get it. I originally played it on the Xbox 360, but this time around it was on the PS4. I couldn’t be more happier with this HD rerelease.

2: Homeworld: Remastered

Homeworld is one of my all time favorite RTS games. A different take on the genre, Homeworld puts players in space in charge of giant motherships. The most unique thing about this game, is the ability for your ships to traverse space upwards and downwards. No longer are you stuck on a 2D plain, you can travel below your enemies and strike them from their weak spots. OR come in from above. It literally added a whole new dimension to combat.

The Remastered edition features both Homeworld 1 & 2 in their original states, plus fully upgraded HD graphics and sound. The updated UI from Homeworld 2 is in both versions of the game. This is such a wonderful product, but I do not remember it being so damned hard!

1: Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain

Admittedly I had zero interest in this game until Ground Zeroes hit Playstation Plus for free. I snagged that and almost 100%’d it. It got me on the hype train, and with all the surrounding controversy with Kojima and Konami, I figured it was going to be the last Metal Gear Game ever.

This is the game I put the most time into. The graphics are beautiful, the story is compelling and intriguing (exactly the kind of story that I love, the kind where it fucks with the player just as much as the characters in it) and the gameplay is top notch. The side ops were never boring, and even doing the same type of mission over and over again never felt old. The grind was enjoyable because the core mechanics of the game were enjoyable.

The audio tapes really fleshed out the story, and being able to listen to a playlist of them while grinding out some side ops really helped fill in the gaps of the story that main cutscenes left out.

HONORABLE MENTION : Counter Strike: Global Offensive

Yeah CSGO came out in 2012, but besides MGSV I put dozens of hours into this game this year. The constant updates Valve relased this year kept the gameplay fresh and new. The operation packs gave players mini missions to complete to get ingame weapon drops and skins. The skin market BLEW up this year, with some skins becoming contraband and being removed from the cases. So existing skins of certain weapons would go for THOUSANDS of dollars.

The competitive scene always made going into a match fun. Even if you were getting stomped, there was a reason. It is a skilled based game, and there are very little variables that come into effect. You either out shoot your opponent, or get outshot.

Natalie Kipper

Yo-kai Watch (Nintendo 3DS) (Review here)

This title came out late in the year and, while I anticipated liking it, I had no clue that I would love as much as I do. This is one of those games that I will play for hours upon hours on end, all with a smile on my face. Yo-kai Watch delivers an experience that caters to the child in me, filled bug-catching activities and gachapon machines. The yo-kai designs are so likable that I often find myself filled with the desire to give them a hug. A tad sentimental perhaps but 100 percent true.

Xenoblade Chronicles 3DS (Nintendo 3DS)

I missed out on purchasing and playing the original Wii version and regretted it ever since. Thank goodness for this version! I am a fan of portable games in general so adding the ability to finally play title on top of it being on the Nintendo 3DS and I was over the moon. My all-time favorite game is Xenogears and I was happy to visit to a related universe. Xenoblade Chronicles 3DS is huge, as in “how-in-the-heck-did-they-fit-this-into-a-cartrtidge” huge. Voice acting abounds and thankfully, it is actually decent (some characters are even good). The battle system took some getting used to but by hour two or so I was accustomed to it. It keeps you on your toes and, for someone who likes to sit and ponder moves like a chess player, things can get dangerous fast. The storyline was engrossing and one I wouldn’t dare spoil. I will say one thing: I teared up/cried more than twice. Every RPG fan owes it to themselves to give this title a shot.

Yoshi’s Woolly World (Wii U) (Review here)

Another feel-good game on favorites list (ironically developed by the studio, Good-Feel) was Yoshi’s Woolly World. This game appeals to the crafter in me on a level that no other has before. The level and character designs so cleverly incorporate the fiber arts theme that it leaves with a warm, fuzzy feeling, no pun intended. I am one of those fans who waited in line at 4a.m. to buy a Mega Yoshi amiibo and I have no regrets. Now if only Nintendo would make a nice big plush of Poochy …

Skylanders Superchargers (Wii U)

I have been a fan of the Skylanders franchise since Spyro’s Journey but I was honestly a bit skeptical about adding vehicles into the mix. Thankfully, Activision managed to make the inclusion flow seamlessly. And while it is available for pretty much every console (sorry, Vita), I had to buy the Nintendo versions. The ability to play as Donkey Kong and Bowser in Skylands is an experience that should not be missed. Their abilities are true to character (Bowser can summon Koopas to attack enemies, for example) and sometimes cleverly pay homage to Nintendo’s past (DK causes ladders and girders to fall in one of his attacks). The fact that every single previous Skylander is compatible is icing on the cake.

Citizens of Earth (Nintendo 3DS) (Review here)

Citizens of Earth is a RPG that aims to be funny and while it wasn’t enough to make me laugh out loud, it definitely kept me playing. People say this game is reminiscent of Earthbound but having never played that title (blasphemy, I know), I judged the title for what it was: an entertaining and clever old-school RPG. The gameplay, from the battle system to the over-world, drips of old-school charm. A clever script and impressively large cast gave Citizens of Earth more staying power than most of the eShop-only titles I find. Every playable character added something new to your team strategy and finding a combo that worked well for my playing style was a fun challenge. Recruiting all 40 of them was a sort of obsession of mine. For these reasons, this game earns a place on my top games of 2015.

Matthew Rodriguez

1. Xenoblade Chronicles X

It’s been a long time since I last had a game that permeated my every thought, yelling out, “Play me!” throughout the course of the day no matter where I am, whether it’s work, traveling, or otherwise. Xenoblade Chronicles X, with it’s expansive, open, and vibrant world, near-endless customization of character classes, and treasure troves of loot and quests, can leave any gamer with a sense of wonder, and a drive to improve oneself, especially since you can encounter high level enemies in the open world.

The battle system is similar to the ATB (Active Time Battle) systems in Final Fantasys 7/8/9, except each separate command his its own gauge. This results in RPG style battles that still tests your reflexes and strategy in crucial moments. All of these battles happen in real time in the open world, so you never lose your sense of immersion in the game.

I believe this is a title every gamer must own, especially if you enjoy sci-fi genres.

2. Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate

This franchise has always been tested and true, and is gaining great traction in the West. It is a game focused on cooperative play, where the main objective is to beat boss-like baddies to protect the town civilians. The only way to power up your character is by making said baddies into armor and gear, to help you fight new baddies.

It is a game that rewards skill and time, and you can truly feel your character getting more powerful as you progress through the game, and the most hardcore can get into nitty gritty details on how to customize sets and skills. While the learning curve can be difficult, that also is a strength of this game because there’s always something new to learn, and thus there’s always a reason to be playing with friends.

Online is very well implemented, although I still won’t recommend playing with “randoms” online. There are plenty ways for people to troll and very few ways to report them. And it’s a little more difficult to strategize without being able to speak to the person.

It is a game with lots of depth and reward, and is simply easy to recommend to any gamer that loves the satisfaction of taking down boss-style enemies.

3. Splatoon

Also a winner of several awards this year, Nintendo has a great winning formula game. Even people that I know who normally wouldn’t even touch a shooter play this game. With adding the “paint the floor” mechanic for both stealth and mobility purposes, a lot lies underneath the surface than just a kid’s game here. The main characters, Callie and Marie, the squid sisters are great characters that kids can relate to, and are extremely colorful and fun. The weapon sets, whether it is a ranged blaster, or a huge paintbrush, are all varied to provide different levels of expertise from a depth standpoint. And the monthly Splatfest festivals pits all kinds of players at different skills levels against each other in a bid to see which “topic of the month”, whether it is cats vs. dogs, marshmallows vs. hot dogs, etc., is the reigning fandom.

The lengthy single player is also really good and paints the storyline very well. Overall, you’ll find yourself having tons of fun and it’s hard to put down. Nintendo regularly updates the game with free DLC so the metagame can be totally different every few months. It is splatacular!

4. Final Fantasy Type-0 HD

I actually haven’t completed this game yet, but it’s one of the most memorable Final Fantasys I have played. It’s all action oriented, as Kingdom Hearts style, but each of the characters have their own weapon and skill lineup, so there’s plenty to choose from. The characters are very likable, I could easily see the personalities of many anime characters being portrayed here—for example, Jack’s personality is very much like Shikamaru from Naruto, where he cannot be bothered with most assignments.

I do hope to return to it one day, but be warned: this game is not for the faint of heart. At times its difficulty can be daunting and it may take the most grizzled Final Fantasy veteran to get through its trials and tribulations.

5. Nintendo Badge Arcade

This game has soaked up more of my money than I’m willing admit. Although some might argue that it isn’t a game at all, I’ve definitely spent a lot of time on it, generally enjoying the crane games and enjoy the mascot’s (the pink bunny’s) witty sense of humor.

It is a game centered around crane games, and the badges you obtain from this game can be used to decorate your 3DS home screen, allowing a level of customization that is rare for any portable system. You can show off these designs through miiverse or 3DS image share, but the satisfaction of booting up to your own customized screen is a pleasure in itself. I’ve managed to chalk up a few myself, such as an underground mario level, and a collection of Pokemon folders!

Adam Lemuz

Rare Replay

What better way to celebrate the gaming industry then with a celebration of one of the most beloved studios of all time. Rare Replay is a love letter to Rare fans both old and new. Ranging from their humble beginnings making Spectrum games to their Xbox 360 days, there’s a game for everyone here. Top that off with dozens of snapshot challenges behind the scenes videos, and one catchy opening tune, and you have one recipe for pure fun. Not to mention you’re getting 30 games for only $30. There’s absolutely no reason not to buy this if you own an Xbox One. Press A, HOORAY! It’s time for Rare Replay!

Eric Francisco

While I think Rise of the Tomb Raider should be Game of the Year, I think Destiny: The Taken King might be my favorite. I could write all day about the improved content, the story, blah blah. What I love about Taken King is that it’s an appointment for myself and one of my best friends to get together and talk about work and life and just bullshit while shooting aliens. We get a weird sense of accomplishment when we level up, but then we’re back to wondering what’s up with this person we know IRL. Thanks Taken King, for bringing a friend who lives a bit too far a little closer on Sunday afternoons.

https://youtu.be/RpDLxs8z08A

Mary Campos

Lego Dimensions

I just really love this game. I love how they had a grand character to vehicle scheme. Scooby Doo Driving the Batmobile? Huh?

Gimme!

Well, granted Lego isn’t the first “toys to life game” but in a way, by holding out, this game was exciting for me. I do like to mix my universes together, and I like the fact that I have to spend the effort to put my Lego characters together. It’s why Lego Dimensions won me over in our instant gratification life style.

So, what do you think of our lists? What were your favourite games? Be sure to sound out in the comments below!