3. A Hat in Time
When you play an indie game and the first comparison that comes to mind is Super Mario Galaxy, chances are they did something right. A Hat in Time has a recognizable name, but few know what it’s actually about. Hat Kid is returning home in her spaceships as she flies over a planet and is stopped by the local mafia, who break open her ship and cause the time-control pieces to fall out. It’s up to Hat Kid to find the pieces, repair the ship, and get home. While the premise may sound cheesy, you’ll feel right at home with double jumps, wall jumps, and a number of fun tricks to get around the stage – and let us not forget the arsenal of hats that unlock various powers. In hindsight, this should have been a much bigger deal than it was, especially with such an overt comparison to Super Mario Galaxy; fans of the game have been telling us all to play it but for some reason, we just didn’t listen. Metacritic ranked it at 80, but we simply fell in love with the game, giving it a 92.
2. What Remains of Edith Finch
If you ask someone who played What Remains of Edith Finch to sum up the game, the most common response you will get is: “It’s an experience.” Most likely followed by a satisfied sigh and a smile of fond memories. Edith Finch combines a heavy, emotional narrative with a wholly unique first-person playstyle. Gamers will uncover the past of Edith Finch and her family curse: returning home after her mother’s death, Edith Finch discovers the terrible past of her family, and the game puts you in the shoes of her family members shortly before their death. Despite the morose narrative and setting, What Remains of Edith Finch just feels remarkable. Anyone who has played it will cringe at the fact not enough people have given it a shot, and the only downside to the game is it’s less than stellar length. Metacritic ranked it at 92, and you absolutely must give it a shot.
1. Night in the Woods
While this entire list makes up a variety of games you really ought to play, Night in the Woods is by far the single most important game to look at. Ranking #10 on our Top 10 Game of the Year for 2017, Night in the Woods uses simple controls, gameplay, and graphics that might make it easy to overlook, and to do so would be criminal. The game is deeply emotional and heavy, dealing with mature themes of mental health, society, coming of age, and a number of other topics you wouldn’t imagine from this quirky, animal-filled game. To be honest, whatever I say here simply won’t do the game justice, so I highly recommend checking out COGconnected’s review of Night in the Woods where we scored it at 95. The name has been floating around in the gaming community, but not enough people have given it the attention it needs.
Honorable Mentions
Despite their critical acclaim and meteoric rise onto many publishers Game of the Year lists, NieR: Automata and Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus somehow managed to skirt by with relatively low sales. These are both award-winning titles that quickly became household names, but for one reason or another, the sale simply have not reflected the incredible experience both of these games offer. These could have been in our top 10 list but given the huge publicity behind them, we felt it best to note games that may have slipped you by.
So there you have it, 10 games you probably missed from 2017. Let us know what you think on Facebook, Twitter, or the Comments section below.