Nicholas Plouffe (Editor) –Â Portal
Easily one of the best puzzle games ever made, let alone of its time. Portal 2 is arguably better, but Chel’s first adventure deserves the credit for ubiquitous lines like “the cake is a lie” or any of the turret voice lines.
James Paley (News Editor/Contributor) –Â Batman: Arkham Asylum
Never before had Batman been so powerful yet vulnerable as he was in Arkham Asylum. Yes, you were the night, but you were also deathly allergic to shotguns. It was sublime. Plus, since I never got down with Splinter Cell or any of its many sequels, the stealth mechanics felt totally new. To top it off, Mark Hamill’s Joker is still the best in the business.
Stephan Adamus (Contributor) – Grand Theft Auto V
I didn’t think I would like it more than Red Dead Redemption, especially after being really disappointed with Grand Theft Auto IV (a major step back from San Andreas), but Grand Theft Auto V did everything perfectly. There was so much weird stuff to do, like join Scientology cults, search for treasure in submarines, climb mountains to do yoga, and investigate the existence of aliens. The triple character story hooked me completely. Every now and then I would switch to Trevor and he would have somebody tied up under a dock with a grenade stuffed in their mouth, while he ranted conspiracy theories at them. *wipes tear*
Click on thru to page four for the last of the team’s picks…