PSNP 2021 Year End Awards

[Dr_Mayus]

 

Welcome again to the annual PSNP Awards

 

So...here we are again. I am sorry I am a few days late getting this up but hopefully it gave you all time to think of what you want to highlight.

 

If you don't know what to do..here is the breakdown. For each award pick a game you play/platted this year (it doesn't have to have come out this year). Some will be the best...some the worst but all of it is meant to be fun and a way for us all to remember the games we have played.

 

For a trip down memory lane check out the previous events.

 

2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020

 

Hey, all those games that have 11 golds, 1 plat and like 6 stacks?...well this is the trophy for that.

 

Ahh, the It's Like Dark Souls plat. The game that had you pulling your hair out and cursing the gaming gods.

Which game had you pleading in the Status Updates for just one little thing to go your way?

 

Not necessarily a Platinum but a moment in a game where you sat back and said "I'm a Badass"

 

What game had you running around racking up kills? playing through 6 times? Trying to find the one item with a 0.01% drop rate?

What game did you just sink a ton of time into to earn that beautiful

 

This one isn't opinion based...just what game in your backlog took you the longest (in terms of days, months, years) to complete.

 

This trophy is for the most fun you had playing online. Maybe it wasn't even for trophies.

Was it COD, or Fall Guys or some other game that you sunk hours into playing.

 

The complete opposite of the last one. Which buggy server, shitty campers, ridiculous online requirements

or complete deserted wasteland did you waste your time playing for that

 

Which games has the most toe-tapping tunes. The game where the music doesn't drive you nuts while grinding out trophies.

 

We all have that game that we got from PLUS or off some digital sale. Which game did you just enjoy so much despite barely hearing about it before.

 

Usually reserve for some shitty AAA game with too much hype...but could also just be a game in a series you love.

Which game made you regret buying it and wished you could have your money and time back.

 

Simply put what is the best trophy image you earned this year.

Normally it would be a Platinum image but maybe there is some bronze trophy you earned that just had great image art.

 

 

Here is the award for the lazy developers that cannot figure out that trophy hunters might actually like to look at a nice trophy image.

 

Which Female character this year was your favourite to play as?

 

Which Male character this year was your favourite to play as?

 

This award isn't meant for your favourite game of the year...it is meant for your favourite plat. A favourite plat should be something that was a pure joy to earn.

It is one that you wish had multiple stacks so you could replay it to earn all the trophies again.

 

This is the opposite. This is the platinum that made you want to quit earning trophies. The one that was just a waste of your time.

Please go nuts and rip that shitty game a new one, you earned it.

 

Which game are you most interested in getting the platinum in 2022. Go ahead and go nuts with your fantasizing.

 

Thank you again for participating in this fun event Have a great year.

Edited December 4, 2021 by Dr_Mayus

[Helyx]

Piece of Cake: Legends of Talia: Arcadia

It's Like Dark Souls: Aliens: Fireteam Elite

Badass Award: Aliens: Fireteam Elite

Grind of the Year: Max Payne 3 (online grind + challenge mode before servers closed)

Finally Done: Heavy Weapon (after 11 years and 6 months)

King of the Internet: World War Z

Worst Online Experience: Mushroom Wars (empty servers meant boosting against myself with 2 PS3s)

Best Music: Luckslinger (very Nujabes influenced)

Sleeper Hit: Tesla Force

Biggest Bomb: Godfall

Best Trophy Images: Aliens: Fireteam Elite

Worst Trophy Images: Baseball Bout: Otterrific Arcade

Best Female Character: Cirno (Gensokyo Defenders)

Best Male Character: Clid (Clid the Snail)

Best Plat of the Year: Outriders

Wurst Plat Ov Teh Yeer: Balancelot

Most Anticipated Platinum of 2022: Dead Space Remake

[Copanele]

OH baby it is TIME! I am fairly sure I won't get any extra fancy plat this year (or rather I want to have a chill December) soooo here I go with my list!

 

Piece of Cake Award - Contraptions

 

This was the textbook definition of EZPZ game. I played this one because it remembered me of an old series called The Incredible Machine, a series where you created puzzles via whacky contraptions. Only...this game wasn't it. It was a crappy buggy and messy game with dumb easy solutions (and for the broken puzzles you could just go for the online solution). Not recommended.

 

It's Like Dark Souls - Nioh 2

 

This game legit made me pull my hair out and curse whoever deity was unlucky enough to be in my mind. Bonus points for being like Dark Souls (not really, I was joking Nioh fans CHILL).

The only downside is that I didn't enjoy it as much as the first Nioh, not even counting the actual Souls series

Honorable Mention: The Surge. That one was the EZPZ version of Dark Souls so the hair pulling ain't viable here.

 

Bad Ass Award - Completing Score Attack mode in Persona 4 Arena

 

There's no secret that I am a fighting game enthusiast and Persona 4 Arena is one of the toughest fighting games out there platinum wise. Score attack is basically fighting a string of 13 overpowered AI opponents with some extra buffs on the side who can kill you in 1 combo. Completing the Score Attack with all 13 characters and getting the C'est magnifique! trophy made me feel abit of a badass not gonna lie

 

Grind of the Year - Ultimate Marvel Vs Capcom 3

 

Bruh, what is it with Capcom and crazy trophy lists? This one made me finish the arcade mode with all 50 characters, reach 6th lord rank online (boosting galore) AND boost 30 hours of total online play. Only in-game time counts, not lobby. It was some STUPID thing to grind, but eh was worth it in the end. Not really ?.

 

Finally Done Award - Slain Back From Hell

 

2 years and 11 months. Don't ask me why it took so much time, because this game was BADASS! Probably my innate fear of platformers and no-death runs lol.

 

King of the Internet - Guilty Gear Strive

 

The fact that I play this game from time to time even now after platinuming it speaks for itself It's probably the only game that I've extensively played online this year.

 

Worst Online Experience - Battle Fantasia

 

I summon here my good friend @FreshFromThaDeli to back up my words (and awaken his PTSD ) - this game had THE WORST ONLINE I've ever met. What did they use for servers, potatoes? Not to mention that I had lag boosting this with my second PS3. The online in this was so bad it can't even be called an experience, it was more of a torture.

 

Best Music - Yakuza 0

 

This was a surprisingly tough one. I had to pick between the classic stuff like NieR Replicant, the madness of Blazblue series and Tony Hawk Pro Skater 1+2. But in the end I have to surrender my heart to Yakuza 0, a game with a soundtrack so good it actually took over my iPod. Nothing hits better than Receive You in the playlist.

 

Sleeper Hit of the Year - Chaos Code New Sign of Catastrophe

 

I legit NEVER heard of this game before it got recommended to me. I played it and holy damn I did not expect to have such a great time with it. Even now I have the "man, I wish there was a game to take me by surprise like Chaos Code did".

And all this game had was sick soundtrack, tight fighting mechanics and anime girls . Sometimes the simplest formulas are the most efficient.

 

Biggest Bomb of the Year - Castlevania Lords of Shadow

 

In my pure and honest opinion, this game was hot garbage. It got tons of praise, it's part of Castlevania (rebooted but still Castlevania) and I hated it big time. What the hell was even this game? Crappy camera, brooding main character, tons of random unwanted mechanics... yeah no. I want my money back.

 

Best Trophy Image - Top of her Class (Mitsurugi Kamui Hikae)

 

I am gonna be honest, there's been a LOT of trophies this year so there you go, hottie Japanese girl from an arena brawler that I did this week

Truth be told I doubt I could find anything better even if I tried :>

 

Worst Trophy Image - Mother of all Battles (Turok 2 Seeds of Evil)

 

This one however was easy. As much as I loved this game, the trophy images are just butt ugly. 1999 graphics can be the stuff of nightmares.

 

Best Female Character - Labrys (Persona 4 Arena)

 

Yes yes, another fighting game character. Can't help it. Out of all characters, I loved her playstyle the most since she is a pretty straightforward axe wielding cyborg-girl. Also has a cute personality (or that's what I assume, never really paid attention to the story)

Honorable Mention: Kaine from NieR Replicant. Not gonna tell anything more out of fear for spoilers.

 

Best Male Character - Kazuma Kiryu (Yakuza series)

 

Since I recently became a Yakuza series fan (goddamn you @PooPooBlast, also thank you lol ) the Dragon of Dojima became my favorite. Noone else can dance like him, sing like him, beat up punks with their own motorcycle like him, golf like him...you get the idea hands down the best character of 2021 for me.

 

Best Plat of the Year - The King of Fighters XIII

 

If I were to pick game of the year, it would have been Yakuza 0. But in terms of platinum of the year? Nah I have to give that title to KoFXIII. No other game made me go full research mode, learn the actual intricacies and controls for each character and get mad hype when hearing Goodbye Esaka. There's something about SNK games that make me go all hype. So yeah I can say that this is the platinum I am most proud of in 2021 and I actually wish for a PS4/PS5 port of this game just for that juicy stack.

 

Wurst Plat of Teh Yeer - Battle Fantasia

 

 

The only good part of this game was "You want me to do WHAT?" trophy. Other than that...crappy online grind and 100%ing the story mode (which meant losing then winning every single fight as each character) drove me nearly insane. So no, the sub 1% rarity was NOT worth it.

Also the cherry on the cake, the character on the platinum image is fkin MARCO, a 9 year old kid who keeps whining for the entire game. This is the double worst plat for sure!

 

Most anticipated platinum of 2022 - Git Gud - ELDEN RING

 

Ohhh, what is that? Fromsoftware is releasing another mad good game? With even more improved mechanics, where they combined everything that was good from Dark Souls, Bloodborne and Sekiro and proved that they still got it with the last month's beta? Who am I to say no, there's my money!

Seriously though, Elden Ring is my most anticipated game of 2022. I expect to waste even more time in Miyazaki's world and honestly no other release could hype me as much as this one does.

 

Soooo that's it for this year from my side. Thanks @Dr_Mayus for hosting this amazing award event

 

[Dr_Mayus]

@Helyx shame. I would have considered boosting mushroom wars with you.

 

@Copanele you are welcome. And nioh must have been hard if P4A didnt beat it out.

[KenjiCBZ]

Piece of Cake: The Smurfs 2

I saw a guy in my city selling this game, and I didn't resist buying it. After getting the Platinum, I was like "Did I really buy and plat The Smurfs 2? Really?"

 

It's Like Dark Souls: Fall Guys: Ultimate Knockout

We all know the history of the Infallible Trophy. I am quite skilled in Fall Guys and, at the time being, I have around 500 wins, managed 3 Infallibles and in four occasions I also lost the fifth final after getting 4 wins in a row... But getting Infallible done for the first time was THE struggle.

 

Badass Award: Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2

I wish I could say Infallible again (Also because just three days earlier I had managed to beat Zico's HD time in Wipeout Omega Collection, I was on a roll), but in order to say something different, I go with the rarest Trophy from Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2 instead. I slowly worked my way through it during the last two years and half, and when I finally pulled it off, it was satisfying as fuck.

 

Grind of the Year: WWE 2K16

Again, I could repeat myself with Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2, but I say something different and I go with the grind I'm forcing myself to at the time being: the Untouchable Trophy from WWE 2K16. It's basically a 50-60 hours grind for a lone bronze Trophy, in a game that doesn't even have an obtainable Platinum. I'm currently like halfway through it, but one day it will be over.

 

Finally Done: Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2

Nothing else comes to my mind.

 

King of the Internet: Fall Guys: Ultimate Knockout

I will never forget how praised I was in the discord chat with my teammates when I survived the fifth final by myself and I got Infallible.

 

Worst Online Experience: None

 

Best Music: Tekken Tag Tournament HD

A truly underrated soundtrack, not much to say about it. It aged like wine.

 

Sleeper Hit: Control

Control just by itself was worth the entire money I paid for PS+ last year: a unique game to say the least. A bit weird sometimes, but great.

 

Biggest Bomb: Vampyr

I have already shitted on this terrible game so many times before, that it doesn't deserve my time again.

 

Best Trophy Images: None in particular

 

Worst Trophy Images: None

 

Best Female Character: Jesse Faden (Control)

 

Best Male Character: /

 

Best Plat of the Year: Fall Guys: Ultimate Knockout

 

Wurst Plat Ov Teh Yeer: Vampyr

 

Most Anticipated Platinum of 2022: WWE 2K22

 

[AK-1138]

Piece of Cake: Funny Truck

 

As reticent as I am to give any kind of acclaim to a game as genuinely irredeemably trashy as this... objectively it must be so as it can literally be done blindfolded, and with one hand at that. The more industrious among you might come up with something to do with your free hand, but you'll never forgive yourself for engaging in the worst fap in all the known multiverses.

Dark Souls: Kingdom Hearts III

 

Hmm, I guess technically I had a harder time with A Hat in Time, but it's going to have to go to Kingdom Hearts III, with whose unforgivable Pro Code challenge I am currently contending... because this DLC turned what was previously the easiest and most mindless KH into an experience in which every third boss or so is harder than 75% of the previous' games' bosses on Critical Mode. I'm getting there, but it's taking both serious grit, and forcing myself to play KH in a way I don't really fully enjoy. Nevertheless, there's just about enough leeway for me to squeak on by... eventually.

Bad Ass: The Last of Us Remastered

 

Because of the sheer amount of odds and variables involved (not least my limited amount of competency), being online and all, I'll give this one to the four-five I managed to crack the safe and win games for my team in The Last of Us, especially given I have a tendency to be placed on teams unfit to carry the burden of my comparative inadequacy. Some of my biggest neighbour-bothering exhortations of pure joy were borne of this, and technically I never needed to do any of it to get the online portion done.

Grind: Mortal Kombat 11

 

That is all.

Finally Done: Kingdom Hearts III

 

Well, I'm not there yet (though I am just about past the worst of it), but when all is done and dusted, it'll be Kingdom Hearts III, just a month shy of two years since its release. Completing the DLC will be one thing, but cashing in the platinum--deliberately put on hold until after DLC completion--will truly be the topper of the entire year. And should Nomura decide to add even more trophies after the fact, well, I'm just going to have to hunt him down and feed him to a flock of ravenous kookaburras.

Best Online: Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1+2

 

Aside from the joyous self-affirmation of still being able to hold my own online--sometimes more--even with the comparatively exploitable gameplay additions, Playlist Exploration is one of the coolest Tony Hawk innovations ever. Forcing you to complete some tricky level-specific gap-to-gap combinations during the all-too-brief span of a round of online, it evokes the same manic frenzy previously reserved for the level goals themselves when I was but a wee semi-skilled inbe-teener. Probably only the very few have ever completed all of them, as I have. Kind of wish it were part of the trophy hunt, actually.

Worst Online: Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1+2

 

...But it's also an online mode that loads at a snail's pace, and has a very frequent tendency to crash your game. It was the best of times, it was the blurst of times.

Music: New Super Lucky's Tale

 

I'll always have a soft spot in my heart for a chipper and carefree platformer soundtrack as it pretty much represents the genesis of my fondness for VGM, and Super Lucky's New Tale is just about the best to come around in some time. Eclectic as all get-out--and as engaging and catchy on a surface level as it is profoundly edifying to peel back its layers of dense yet focused instrumentation--it never fails to provide exactly the right atmosphere, and has an intangible, ebullient pureness to it that spurs you along to victory. All is as it should be.

Sleeper: Days Gone

 

I was expecting a competent Oregonian open world motorbike zombie game... and left with my greatest game experience of the year. My full review is yet to come, so any further elucidation would at this point only lessen the depth of my future summations, so I'll leave it at that. Now, granted, I haven't technically the platinum at time of writing, but only for pragmatic purposes akin to the aforementioned Kingdom Hearts situation. I might not be able to resist cashing it for my next milestone, so we'll see.

Bomb: Mortal Kombat 11

 

 

Granted, I've played objectively worse games this year, but MK11 was such a massive self-Fatality of its own momentum, it's hard to justify any other choice. No game has made me hate contemporary gaming more, and there are few things I hate more than a well-polished turd: see the majority of Square Enix's output for the last fifteen years.

Best Image: Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1+2

 

 

 

I love the shiny yet subdued colour aesthetics of this trophy list.

Worst Image: Detroit Become Human

 

 

 

Like Heavy Rain before it, this is just a thoroughly shitty aesthetic idea for a trophy list, and an affront to the game's general visual polish. You could tell me this was the list of the most abhorrent of EZPZ games and I'd believe you in a heartbeat, and that's about the worst fate imaginable.

Female: Eivor

 

 

 

Now, I was planning to put Abby here just to piss certain people off--and indeed, I do like her more than most--but, nah. And even as much as I like Ellie, my opinion of her is currently a bit up in the air depending on Naughty Dog's next move.

 

Eivor it is. The series' best female protagonist by a comfortable distance, she is a lot more than just your average ace Assassin (even if in an unofficial capacity). A fearless fighter with a certain inherent bloodlust, sure, but also a responsible leader who listens to her subjects, and can elect to avoid bloodshed if possible. Sure, she's as cool and quippy as Kassandra, but there's a much bigger sense of inner life here. She has a bit of an Arthur Morgan-esque sense of erudite down-to-earth fatalism about her, living as she does in a constant state of balancing her violent nature with doing what's right. Her evident and pervasive passion for life in all its aspects just makes her seem so damn human.

 

...Or maybe it's just systemic bias on my part, as sharing your protagonist's nationality is a bit of a rarity for me. Nevertheless, I applaud Ubisoft for showing a more nuanced view of our people's cultural history than the de-humanizing propaganda that still lingers... granted, not all of it unearned. Like I said, man... nuances.

 

Male: Deacon St. John

 

 

 

You know, it's funny. I went into the game with the same expectations of Deacon St. John as all too many people in the story itself: just a headstrong badass biker with little to offer past some admittedly admirable combat chops. Couldn't be more wrong. Deek is a nuanced and achingly tormented character whose gritty survivalist nature is eclipsed only by his human one.

 

Those who forsake their humanity taste of death long before their bodies do, and Deek encapsulates its invaluability even in a world gone to shit. He, too, has an Arthur Morgan-esque grace about him, constantly surprising me with newfound depth of character and capacity for abstract thought in lieu of attacking everything hoping for the best. Flawed and not wholly unselfish, but always trying to do the right thing, Deek is the hero we deserve. Oh, and the love story is one of the best in gaming history, so... love can bloom, even on a battlefield.

Best Platinum: Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1+2

 

 

Being somewhat of a life-affirming bridge between past and future as mentioned previously, Tony Hawk was hands down my most consistently enjoyable hunt this year. There is something truly special about (mostly) breezing through something ostensibly difficult by way of twenty year old muscle memory.

Worst Platinum: Spirit of the North

 

 

Again, I've played objectively worse games, but this has got to clinch it on the basis of both its length, and the endless array of bad design choices that suffuse this entire experience. Pissing about in a forest where everything looks the same hoping to encounter some characters that don't even stay stationary is the height of despair... and damn it, I bought the stacks a long time ago, and I do abhor an unused resource... sigh. Not looking forward to it.

Anticipation: 2022

 

Speaking of looking forward, though... Horizon Forbidden West, day one. I'm also cautiously optimistic about the rumored new tier-based model for the merged Plus/Now. There are also some exclusives that have passed me by that I'm aiming for, such as Bloodborne and the Uncharted trilogy.

Edited December 5, 2021 by AK-1138
Visual aspects.

[Yuber6969]

Piece of Cake Award - XBlaze Lost: Memories

 

 

Very easy game. The story was great though; it's a shame a lot of people skipped it.

 

It's Like Dark Souls - Catherine: Full Body

 

 

I've never played Dark Souls but I'm guessing this category is basically supposed to be a plat that I found difficult? Babel Mode was a miserable experience that required full mastery of the game's mechanics; there were no cheese methods available. Having to speedrun all of Hard Mode was rough too.

 

Badass Award - Battle Fantasia - Beating Deathbringer on Very Hard mode without taking damage

 

 

This took several hours worth of practice/attempts to get done. You have to parry rather than block all of his hits, including his super.

 

Grind of the Year - Digimon All-Star Rumble

 

 

Not sure if this counts because I haven't platted it yet, but I expect to before the year is over. This game is 100+ hours and most of it is playing the same 8 levels over and over again for card drops and money farming.

 

Finally Done Award - Borderlands: Game of the Year Edition (2 years, 2 months, 3 weeks, 3 days, 9 hours)

 

 

Popped a couple of trophies in this a couple of years ago when I was trying to find a game to play with my non-gamer girlfriend at the time. About a year later, ran through the game very slowly in co-op with an friend.

 

King of the Internet - BlazBlue: Cross Tag Battle

 

 

This is the only game I play online outside of trophies. I play this online occasionally with one of my friends. It's my least favourite BlazBlue, but it's the only one he has.  

 

Worst Online Experience - Red Dead Redemption

 

 

This is not a knock against anyone in my boosting group; they were phenomenal people. The online requirements in this game were so annoying. A lot of them required large groups of people. One trophy in particular required 8. Try organizing a boosting session with 8 people in different time zones while you work evening shifts. I'm hesitant to play the sequel to this otherwise great game because of this.

 

Best Music - The Caligula Effect: Overdose

 

 

I will never shut up about how much of a masterpiece this OST is. It's even better than the Persona OSTs, and I'm a diehard Persona fan.

 

Sleeper Hit of the Year - Akiba's Trip: Undead & Undressed

 

 

Picked this game up solely because I wanted the title for my 69th platinum. I was surprised at how fun the game turned out to be. I gave it an 8/10, and would have given it a 9 if it wasn't so short.

 

Biggest Bomb of the Year - One Punch Man: A Hero Nobody Knows

 

 

Obviously not a AAA game, and I knew it wasn't going to be a masterpiece. But I expected some enjoyment out of it because OPM is my favourite anime (and TV show in general). This game was dull, grindy, and low budget. It only took me about 20 hours but it felt so much longer.

 

Best Trophy Image - Valkyrie Drive: Bhikkhuni - Platinum Trophy

 

 

What can I say? I'm a man of culture.

 

Worst Trophy Image - Adventures of Mana

 

 

These three images aren't bad. The issue is that of the 37 trophies in the game, 36 of them recycle these 3 images over and over. The only one that doesn't is the platinum.

 

Best Female Character - Persona 4: Arena Ultimax - Margaret

 

 

I played a lot of ArcSys fighters this year, and this game was my first exposure to them. Of all the company's games I've played so far, she's the only character who's combo challenges proved useful to me in battle. It was always so satisfying mopping the floor with the high level AI in Golden Arena using Margaret's Expert Combos. Also, she's hot.  

 

Best Male Character - BlazBlue: Chronophantasma Extend - Ragna the Bloodedge

 

 

I played every single game in the series this year, and never got tired of Ragna. He's my favourite video game protagonist of all time. I related to his struggles and character development in Chronophantasma Extend.

 

Best Plat of the Year - Senran Kagura: Peach Beach Splash

 

 

This was a really fun plat. The grinding is very minimal and because the game was so fun, it didn't even feel like grinding. I was actually sad when it was over.

 

Worst Plat of the Year - J-Stars Victory Vs+

 

 

Dozens of hours of just mashing square, square, circle (or whatever the combo was).

 

Most Anticipated Platinum of 2022 - Yakuza 0

 

 

A number of my friends recommend this game to me. I watched a review of it and I know I'm gonna love this.

 

This was fun; thanks @Dr_Mayus!

[Thirsty_Otter]

Piece of Cake award 

My Name is Mayo

 

 

It's like Dark Souls

Remnant: From the Ashes

 

Badass Award

Dragon Ball Z Kakarot

 

Grind of the Year

Clicker Heroes

 

Finally Done Award

Apex Legends

 

King of the Internet

Call of Duty Vanguard

 

Worst Online Experience

Realm Royale

 

Best Music

Chess Ultra

 

Sleeper Hit of the Year

Siralim 2

 

 

Biggest Bomb of the Year

Hyper scape

 

Best Trophy Image

Trophy Triumphant

Dragon ball FighterZ

 

Worst Trophy Image

Any of the trophies - they are all the same image

Bowling

 

Best Female Character

Madison Paige 

Heavy Rain

 

Best Male Character

Jack Ryan

Bioshock

 

Best Plat of the Year

Stranded Deep

 

Worst Plat of the Year

Little Adventure on the Prairie

 

Most Anticipated Plat of 2022

Bioshock Isolation

RUMORED - Hope it's true!

 

[Cassylvania]

I wasn't going to post anything because I'm doing my own 2021 awards in my checklist thread, but then I realized most of these categories are separate from the ones I'm giving out. I think I can do all of these without spoiling anything. Let's see...

 

Piece of Cake Award: The Walking Dead: A New Frontier AND The Walking Dead: The Final Season [TIE]

 

Telltale steals the show, as usual. Easy to finish, but not always easy to make the tough decisions. I know a lot of people rush these and don't care about the story, but I'm going to miss playing through these games. I don't think I have any left that look interesting. I mean, there's Michonne and GoT, but I'd like to end my time with the company on a good note. And these were both excellent entries. I guess A New Frontier was a bit easier because it didn't ask me to kill two rabbits in rapid succession with terrible aim controls.

 

It's Like Dark Souls: The Surge

 

Such a tough category. My initial reaction is, "Oh, if something is like Dark Souls, that means it's a good game with enjoyable combat mechanics, rich lore, beautiful world design, and a rewarding sense of progression," but we're really just going with the game journalist definition here, right? OK, then I'll give it to The Surge, which had none of the things I mentioned, but sure made me rage every time I died. I actually played it shortly after Lords of the Fallen, and I honestly think LotF was the more enjoyable of the two, even if The Surge is a better game on a technical level. I just really, really didn't enjoy my time in that world. (The DLC was OK.)

 

Bad Ass Award: Slay the Spire (too many times to name)

 

There is a point in every Souls-like game where everything just clicks. You reach a state of nirvana and you become one with your character. The thing is, it's usually only once per game. There's usually some boss in the early to mid-game that forces you to git gud enough that it trivializes all of the future content (or at least puts you on an even fighting ground). What is remarkable about Slay the Spire is this feeling can happen during any run. You never start a run feeling like you're a badass. It happens gradually and in a different way every time. Sometimes it's not even an entire run. It can be a single battle where all the cards fall your way and you're pulling off some hilarious combo on an enemy that ended your last fourteen attempts. Dead Branch + Corruption led to some of my favorite runs towards Ascension 20, but there are countless ways this game can make you go from a punching bag to an omnipotent god in a matter of seconds.

 

Grind of the Year: Dragon Quest Heroes 2

 

PTSD is real. I don't want to talk about it.

 

Finally Done Award: A Hat in Time

 

I didn't allow many games from 2020 to carry over to this year (Slay the Spire and Ys Origins come to mind, but I finished the first early on and haven't bothered with the second), so it really just comes down to the slew of finished games that suddenly dropped DLC. I think AHiT wins, since I platinumed it back in May 2018. Loved the game, but didn't want to relearn the controls.

 

King of the Internet: Torchlight 2*

 

*Didn't actually like this game. Also, didn't finish it. But I guess it was fun playing with @Briste since I made him do all the work...

 

Worst Online Experience: N/A

 

Best Music: The Bard's Tale IV: Barrows Deep

 

This game needs to be played alone with the volume cranked to max. Also, I recommend a higher difficulty to really set the mood.

 

Sleeper Hit of the Year: Lair of the Clockwork God

 

This is where I'm a liiittle leery about stepping on the toes of my checklist thread... But I went with "Biggest Surprise" there, which isn't quite the same thing. Biggest Surprise could mean a game that I thought would disappoint me but didn't, or a game that was significantly better than I expected. For Sleeper Hit, though, I'm thinking about which game had very few owners (I think LotCG had less than 100 at the time I played it) and which I barely researched before purchasing. I'm not even sure I watched a review. But it is one of the funniest games I have ever played. And yes, I said funniest. I never thought a game could be considered a comedy before, but this changed my mind and I'd like to see more people play it.

 

Biggest Bomb of the Year: Doraemon: Story of Seasons

 

For those of you who don't know me, Harvest Moon is my favorite video game series of all time. I HATE when Natsume has done to the series over the past decade or so, but Story of Seasons is supposed to be its spiritual successor. I don't know what "Doraemon" is and I'm not sure I ever want to because this was a HUUUGE letdown. I think I may have been more disgusted with this game than Light of Hope (which I still haven't played) because I actually fell victim to the pretty graphics. At least LoH had the courtesy to look like trash so I didn't buy it on release day. Absolute garbage game that has soured my taste on farming sims all over again.

 

Best Trophy Image: Space Otter Charlie's "Welcome Back, Otter"

 

 

That's hilarious.

 

Worst Trophy Image: Plagued Inc: Evolved's "Anti Vaxxer"

 

 

For obvious reasons.

 

Best Female Character: Clementine from The Walking Dead: The Final Season

 

STILL. NOT. BIT. (OK, that was from Season 2, but I still love her character.) Maya from Phoenix Wright would be a close runner up.

 

Best Male Character: Mugen from Shadow Tactics

 

Well, a quick Google search tells me the goose from Untitled Goose Game is either a female or genderless, so I guess I'll give this to Mugen. Dude was awesome. If you haven't played the game before, you're basically tasked with controlling up to five characters as you silently maneuver your way across a map full of enemies. Each character has their own strengths and weaknesses, so the strategy comes from clever use and timing of their abilities, but Mugen feels like he's leagues above the others in terms of strength, durability, and power. He can kill up to three enemies with a single blow, carry up to two bodies at once (without losing speed), and he's the only one capable of taking down a samurai. Most maps are simply a matter of using the other characters to line up the kill for Mugen, which makes him your most valued ally. He also a pretty decent storyline, in a year where I haven't come across many engaging plots.

 

Best Plat of the Year: TBD

 

Not announcing this now. This will go in my checklist thread.

 

Wurst Plat Ov Teh Yeer: TBD

 

Can't announce this either, but wow, there are a lot to choose from.

 

Most Anticipated Platinum of 2022: Elden Ring

 

This is the first year of my life since 2011 where I didn't play a real Souls game and it shows.

[Platinum_Vice]

Piece of Cake award: 
We Were Here

 

 

This is a 4 hour plat involving basic puzzles. You do need a co-op partner, but this game is a breeze.

 

 

It’s like Dark Souls: 
Brütal Legend 

 

 

Turns out I didn’t complete many hard games this year. There was one trophy Brütal Legend that required a lot of practice and patience as it required mastery of the RTS elements to beat the hardest AI difficulty in a skirmish. I gained a few grey hairs from that one.

 

 

Badass award:
Return of the Obra Dinn

 

 

This is a puzzle game that is kind if like a 3D sudoku/whodunnit and I was very proud of myself for not needing online hints. If you like puzzles, PLAY THIS GAME.

 

 

Grind of the Year:
Mass Effect

Mass Effect requires 3 full length playthroughs INCLUDING side content (15-25+ hours each), including a hardest difficulty playthrough. Not cool man.

 

 

Finally done:
Red Dead Redemption

My 100th platinum was fitting for this one. June 2013 – April 2021.

 

 

King of the Internet:
Rocket League

 

 

This game is yet to be a grind for me. I don’t think I’m alone in having that opinion.

 

 

Worst of the Internet:
Brütal Legend

 

 

- 50 wins requiring boosting with someone who hasn’t already done it before (wins rank you up which means you can’t find new players after having reached the rank cap).
- A viral trophy and five or six other boosting trophies that actually DO require someone’s help who has completed the game.
- A many, many hour grind to earn and spend 250,000 of the in-game currency. You can’t just leave this on overnight because you can only hold 9,999 at any given time.
So this was yucky.

 

 

Best Music:
Hard one... Brütal Legend, but only BARELY.

 

 

It has over 100 licensed metal tracks from bands including Def Leppard, Ozzy Osborne and Tenacious D.

To give this award to Brütal Legend I had to pass over some incredible OSTs though: Surviving Mars, Return of the Obra Dinn and Red Dead Redemption. Not an easy choice!

 

 

Sleeper Hit:
Moving Out

 

 

I downloaded the demo for this game on an uncaring whim as my wife and I weren’t head-over-heels for Overcooked. Within five minutes of playing the demo I went and bought Moving Out. We love it so far.

 

 

Biggest Bomb:
The BioShock series

 

 

This series is very highly critically acclaimed. I didn’t like it.

 

 

Best Trophy Images:
The Mass Effect series

This series has some of the best looking trophies that I’ve popped. See?

 

 

 

Worst Trophy Images:
God of War: Chains of Olympus

All bronze trophies look identical. The silver trophies have a silver coloured Omega symbol. The gold and platinums are respectively coloured. That's one trophy tile with four colours for a whole trophy list. LAZY.

 

 

Best Female Character:
Bonnie McFarlane

 

 

Bonnie is intelligent, pragmatic and assertive. Exactly what I like in a woman's personality.

 

 

Best Male Character:
John Marston… or Garrus Vakarian

 

 

 

My personality is similar to both John and Garrus. Any chance to hang out with them again is a blessing.

 

 

Best Plat of the Year:
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2: Campaign Remastered

 

 

This trophy list was designed to supplement the experience of playing this game. Every level has one to three small goals to complete for individual trophies that require the player to do something a little out of the ordinary within the game's systems or with a skill-test. This list harmonises with the rollercoaster that is Modern Warfare 2’s campaign.

 

 

Wurst Plat Ov Yeh Yeer:
Shadow of the Colossus

This game wants to be completed way too many times. There’s unnecessary collectible hunting, time attacks that are undermined by elements of randomness on the AI's behalf, and shanky controls. Trophy hunting did not enhance the time I spent with Shadow of the Colossus.

 

 

Most Anticipated Plat of 2022:
Elden Ring? God of War: Ragnarok? Hogwarts: Legacy?

 

 

Edited December 9, 2021 by GonzoWARgasm

[Ac3dUd3-]

Piece of Cake: Infestor

It's Like Dark Souls: Snake Pass

Badass Award: Cozy Grove

Grind of the Year: PC Building Simulator

Finally Done: Tom Clancy's Rainbow 6 Siege (2 years)

King of the Internet: Playerunknown's Battlegrounds (2x PUBG stacks)

Worst Online Experience: N/A

Best Music: Ghost of Tsushima

Sleeper Hit: Biomutant

Biggest Bomb: Godfall

Best Trophy Images: Bastion

Worst Trophy Images: Breakthrough EZPZ games

Best Female Character: Dani Rojas (Far Cry 6)

Best Male Character: Ratchet (Ratchet & Clank)

Best Plat of the Year: Ghost of Tsushima

Worst Plat Of The Year: Stranded Deep

Most Anticipated Platinum of 2022: Elden Ring

Edited December 5, 2021 by Ac3dUd3-

[reaperveteran86]

Piece of Cake: Legend of Talia: Arcadia

It´s like Dark Souls: Red Faction 1

Badass Award: School Girl/Zombie Hunter (beating the last boss on extreme difficulty with an SSS rating on my first try)

Grind of the Year: Castlevania Advance Collection (Soul in Aria of Sorrow and Cards/levels in Circle of the Moon)

Finally Done: School Girls/Zombie Hunter (3years and 6 months)

King of the Internet: -

Worst Online Experience: Marvels Avengers

Best Music: Where the Water Tastes Like Wine

Sleeper Hit: Mundaun

Biggest Bomb: Through the Woods

Best Trophy Images: Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon 2

Worst Trophy Images: The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel 1 (extremely lazy/bland Images for such a great game)

Best Female Character: Mai Toyama (Death end re;Quest 2)

Best Male Character: The Bard (The Bard´s Tale)

Best Plat of the Year: 13 Sentinels Aegis Rim

Worst Plat of the Year: A Knight´s Quest

Most Anticipated Platinum of 2022:Record of Lodoss War: Deedlit in Wonder Labyrinth or The Legend of Heroes: Trails from Zero.

[Alternatewarning]

Piece of Cake: Doki Doki Literature Club Plus!

It's Like Dark Souls: Neptunia Virtual Stars

Bada$$ Award: Taking out the Unknown Figure (KH:BBS) with Ventus in one go

Grind of the Year: Digimon Story Cyber Sleuth: Hacker's Memory - Just everything

Finally Done Award: Beyond Two Souls (will be done in the next few days) - Started October 2016 so over 5 years

King of the Internet: -

Worst Online Experience: -

Best Music: Final Fantasy X-2

Sleeper Hit of the Year: 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim

Biggest Bomb of the Year: Chaos Child

Best Trophy Image: Kingdom Hearts Melody of Memory

Worst Trophy Image: Beyond Two Souls

Best Female Character: Futaba from Persona 5 (etc. all)

Best Male Character: Keitaro Miura from 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim

Best Plat of the Year: Kingdom Hearts: Melody of Memory

Wurst Plat ov teh Yeer: Chaos Child

Most Anticipated Plat of 2022: Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel III

 

While I did play FFXV this year, I'm excluding it from my list since it was just DLC

[Leon Castle]

Piece of Cake Award

The easiest Touhou I have played and it was a fun racing game that reminded me of Mario Kart: Double Dash and Sonic Riders.

 

It's Like Dark Souls

The final boss on Shadow Soul route on Otaku(Very Hard) difficulty took me many tries to defeat him until I was lucky with the "Kamehameha" and one hit killed him(his outfit at least) whlie Holic(Nightmare) difficulty on the other hand, that was a bloody nightmare. Thank god the Sequel(Undead & Undressed) did not have that godforsaken difficulty.

 

Bad Ass Award

Getting to kick this goddamn One-Winged Angel's ass in both KH1 and KH2 without dying too much after having been killed by him a lot(in KH2 on PS2) in my childhood.

 

Grind of the Year

Was finally able to deal with this game's grind without anything making me lose motivation and there being a handy Trophy Guide to help with the grinding for lifestyles and titles.

 

Finally Done Award

( 4 years, 3 months, 2 weeks )

I thought I would never plat this game since I could not clear that damn Tutorial and Combo Challenge. but one day I finally cleared the remaining lessons in the Tutorial and found Naotora Ii the easiest to clear the Combo Challenges for (It was mostly only using one button in certain ways)

 

King of the Internet

In both Fighting EX Layer and DoA5 Last Round I had no problems with the online mode and was able to find a boost partner for both games.

 

Worst Online Experience

Luckily did not have a bad online experience since the only games that had online trophies had no "Win certain online matches" trophies.

 

Best Music

Hmm... No single game's soundtrack comes to mind but I do like certain games's ost/songs.

 

Sleeper Hit of the Year

One would thought it was bad due to how Marvel's Avengers was, but Guardians of the Galaxy ended up being more fun than Avengers.

 

Biggest Bomb of the Year

None in the third year in row.

 

Best Trophy Image

Kinda the same reasoning as the past two years but the Button Badge Trophy Images from Akiba's Trip: Hellbound & Debriefed is nice.

 

Worst Trophy Image

Using the same Image for all Trophies even the Plat is lame compared to coloring the same Image in 4 different colors.

 

Best Female Character

Hu Tao (Genshin Impact)

Did not play Genshin Impact much until Hu Tao came out, She was very fun to play.

 

Best Male Character

Haku (Utawarerumono)

See Below

 

Best Platinum of the Year

Utawarerumono: Mask of Truth

The Utawarerumono Trilogy was a blast to play and I enjoyed story. Still the 1st and the 3rd games had some hard parts.

While I like Hakuoro as the MC of the 1st game. The lazy Haku was more fun especially in the 3rd game then he uses Oshtor's Sword alongside his Fan.

 

Worst Plat of the Year

 

Might be Marvel's Avengers if I plat it this year, still a work in progress.

 

Most Anticipated Platinum of 2022

Top 3(New Games)

Spoiler

LEGO Star Wars The Skywalker Saga

It got delayed again to Spring 2022, hopefully it does come in 2022, I been missing playing a LEGO game for a year now.

 

Hyperdimension Neptunia: Sisters vs. Sisters

It's been 3 games since the last time The CPU Candidates has been in a Neptunia Game that's not a Remake. The New Game looks fun so I won't mind If Noire is not playable but it's Neptunia so you never know if the CPUs are in it too.

 

Atelier Sophie 2: The Alchemist of the Mysterious Dream

Sure it's a new "4th" game of a Atelier trilogy, but unlike the 4th Arland game it's more like how the Mysterious trilogy was. Looking forward to it.

Top 3 (Games from the backlog)

Spoiler

Dragon Ball Z: Battle of Z

Did not get to it this year but hopefully I have it done before that "The Breakers" game is out.

 

P4G

Looks like I won't have time to finish it this year. Might get it done some time next year.

 

Neptunia x Senran Kagura: Ninja Wars

Plan to do it after Marvel's Avengers and Neptunia Virtual Stars. Looking forward to get to it since it's the only game I know that has both of my Waifus(Noire and Homura) in the same game and a crossover between two of my favorite game series.

 

[Dr_Mayus]

You were all busy last night.

 

Got some reading to do this morning.

 

Keep them coming ?

[DrBloodmoney]

I wasn't going to answer, as I'm doing my own awards...

...but then realised this is much more 'trophy-centric’ - and as such, has entirely different categories!

 

 

 

 

Piece of Cake:

Metropolis: Lux Obscura

 

Actually, a pretty decent little game, but certainly a breeze to plat.

 

 

It's Like Dark Souls: 

 

Curse of the Dead Gods

 

A brilliant game, but I don't have the platinum (yet) due to the insane requirements of one trophy! (Kill all bosses without getting hit 10 times over? Kill the final boss without getting hit 5 times over? - Ive not managed that one once! ?)

 

Badass Award: 

Batman: Arkham Knight

 

Finally defeating the infamous "Community Fuck You Challenge Pack"

 

 

Grind of the Year: 

Kane & Lynch 2: Dog Days

 

I don't do boosting very often - and this one reminded me why.

 

 

Finally Done: 

 

Kane & Lynch 2: Dog Days

 

Completed in: 10 years 7 months.

Nuff said.

 

 

King of the Internet:

 

 

Playing Co-Op with my mate was a great time, and super fun. 

More DLC please!

 

 

Worst Online Experience: 

 

Kane & Lynch 2: Dog Days

 

Had to boost, since the servers are dead as disco, and had the added bonus of people in the group not buying DLC, or noping out after they finish theirs - all the usual joys.

 

Plus, the game is even harder to find people for, as it (inexplicably) doesn't allow people who bought the digital version to play with those who have physical copies. 

What a wierd-ass decision that was.

 

Best Music: 

Mass Effect 2

 

Jack Walls soundtrack to the whole trilogy is great, but I think the best individual one is ME2 - the music in the End Run sucide mission absolutely makes it the epic it is, and is enough to well up the eyes of the steeliest galactic warrior. 

 

Sleeper Hit: 

Invisible Inc.

 

 

This sat squatting on my PS+ additions list for years, until I decided to give it a go... and discovered it's one of the best games ever made.

 

Biggest Bomb: 

Jedi: Fallen Order

 

Seemed like a AAA game, sold as a AAA game... plays like a budget knock-off Souls-lite. 

 

 

Best Trophy Images: 

 

  

The Pedestrian

 

I liked these ones - with the little pin, like they're post-its on a cork-board. 

Game is pretty great too!

 

 

Worst Trophy Images: 

 

Shadow of the Colossus

 

Great game. Boring Trophy images.

 

 

 

 

Best Female Character:

Returnal - Selene

 

Voiced by Jane Perry (who also does the sexiest woman in videogames - Diana Burnwood!) and has a hell of an interesting story, while also being awesome.

 

Best Male Character:

Hitman III - Agent 47

 

You know the name.

You know the number.

You know the inexplicable ability to drum/mix drinks/massage/walk a runway / kill a man with a rubber duck.

 

 

Best Plat of the Year: 

 / 

Hitman III / Invisible Inc.

 

A tie here.

 

The new Hitman games have basically the perfect trophy lists  - and Invisible Inc does theirs in the same vein.

Both games allow for incredible variety of approach, but they don't tailor the trophies to certain ways of doing things. You play however you want, master the game (or levels), and as long as you are being creative and varied in your approach, you get a platinum at the end of it.

 

No grind, no forced constraints, no silly busywork or unnecessary or counter-intuitive design, just encouragement to enjoy the game fully, and think outside the box.

Perfect.

 

 

 

Wurst Plat Ov Teh Yeer: 

Jedi: Fallen Order

 

A calamitously shit game on virtually all levels, but compounded by some of the worst, collectible-heavy trophy requirements I've ever seen.

 

Most Anticipated Platinum of 2022: 

 

Weird West

 

A new game from Raphael Colantonio.

That's enough to guarantee my attention.

 

(Yes, I'm also looking forward to Elden Ring, but that's the boring answer, since everyone will be saying that one! ?)

Edited December 5, 2021 by DrBloodmoney

[eigen-space]

Piece of Cake: Batu ta Batu

 

Very easy "puzzle" type game. None of the trophies were particularly difficult at all. It has become my quickest platinum with a time of 42:40.

 

 

It's Like Dark Souls: Little Town Hero

 

I had difficult time picking between this one and FF7R, but this one won out because I found myself cursing at this game more often than not. The battles in this game are very strategic, but due to the RNG of deck building, this can go awry very quickly. Given that battles in this game can take up to half an hour, it sucks to get so far into a single battle only to lose when you've almost won.

 

Bad Ass Award: Just Dance 2021

 

I suck at dancing, but eventually I was able to get good at this game with enough practice. My bad ass moment, however, was mega-starring the extreme version of Temperature.

 

Grind of the Year: Just Dance 2021

 

I played this game for at least an hour a day for over 2 months straight for two different trophies, the one for reaching level 100 and the one for getting all prizes from the gift machine.

 

Finally Done Award - Okami HD

 

This one took 2 years, 1 month. I wasn't really into it the first time around playing it but decided to just get it done. Don't have fond memories of it.

 

King of the Internet - Just Dance 2021

 

This was the only game I played this year with online components. I had fun getting into the top 3 of the World Dance Floor, even sometimes first place.

 

Worst Online Experience - None

 

Best Music - Final Fantasy VIII

 

Perhaps it's nostalgia, but I always have loved this soundtrack.

 

Sleeper Hit of the Year - Maneater

 

There's a couple games I could have picked for this category, but I think Maneater surprised me the most. It isn't one that I would have voluntarily picked up on my own, but it had been recommended by @AffectatiousDonk so I had to at least try it. The gameplay was pretty fun and the humor was top-notch. Definitely was not expecting this to be as fun as it was.

 

Biggest Bomb of the Year - Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot

 

So this is a light bomb. I didn't really play anything this year that I completely hated, but this one was just not as good as most RPGs that I played. It felt very slow, and the battle took some time to get used to. Was fun to learn about DBZ characters and lore as it's something I didn't watch as a child, but many of my friends were super into DBZ so it's nice to finally understand references.

 

Best Trophy Image - Final Fantasy VII Remake

 

I think this is a pretty cool image. Lots of detail here, and I really like the way the stars look.

 

Worst Trophy Image - SaGa Frontier Remasterd

 

I had several games this year which reused the same trophy image throughout the entire trophy list, but this one is the most generic.

 

 

Best Female Character - J.J. Macfield from J.J. Macfield and the Island of Memories

 

J.J. was a really fun character to play as. Very deep backstory that was interesting to unfold throughout the game. Plus, she's very pretty.

 

Best Male Character - Ethan Mars from Heavy Rain

 

Ethan was a great character to follow throughout Heavy Rain. He was put through a lot of trials that would completely break most people, but he went through all of them for his son. Thought he was a very dedicated and interesting individual.

 

Best Plat of the Year - Final Fantasy VIII

 

This is one of my favorite games and also had a really great trophy list to complete. I do wish it was a bit harder to achieve, but overall the platinum was very fun to get while also getting to play one of my favorite games of all time.

 

Wurst Plan Ov Teh Yeer - Block-a-Pix Deluxe

 

Seriously, screw this game. Having dozens puzzles that take up to an hour to complete feels like such a time sink for a game that is not very interesting. It was fun with the smaller-sized puzzles, but doing the larger puzzles was just a huge pain in the ass. Would not recommend this game to anyone.

 

Most Anticipated Platinum of 2022 - Tales of Arise

 

I'm saving this for platinum #175, otherwise I would have already played it. I love Tales games, and I have only heard good things about this game so I'm very excited to play it.

[Jens]

Piece of Cake: Walden, a game

It's basically a Walking Simulator. You can't die, it's nothing but patience. It did get tedious at some points, but it never had any form of difficulty.

 

It's Like Dark Souls: Ys Origin

That boss rush was just something else dude... I didn't practice beforehand, which was a major mistake. But beating this crap took me 7 hours (!) straight. Another issue was the danger of crashing lurking behind every single death, which made the game significantly more taxing on the mind.

 

Bad Ass Award: Celeste

Yes, this game has the "Win the Game Button", erasing all difficulty. But for some reason I was too stubborn and did all B-Sides + 3 C-Sides legit. That was pretty difficult I must say, and ultimately pointless. But having done it was at least very, very memorable

 

Grind of the Year: Star Ocean: Till The End of Time

Well, it's Star Ocean alright. Thirty hours watching squeaky bunnies running in circles. That's what happens when your best friend is a dancing queen I guess...

 

Finally Done Award - Final Fantasy Type-0

Played it years ago, but dropped it for reasons I couldn't even fully remember. So reviving something as ancient as this and getting it done was quite nice.

 

King of the Internet - Torchlight 2

Kind of a stinky win, but it was the only thing that I played online, even if it was just for a few minutes. At least it forced me to have a conversation with that @Briste guy, while holding my controller up in my face.

 

Worst Online Experience - Nothing

 

Best Music - Cuphead

Not much left to say about this one. The perfect soundtrack for an amazing overall design.

 

Sleeper Hit of the Year - Valkyria Chronicles 4

Usually we get tired in games that almost exclusively deal with war, and I consider myself quite bad at strategic combat. But both things kept getting better and better as time went on, adding up to a surprisingly good experience.

 

Biggest Bomb of the Year - Hades

Considered the best rogue-like ever, so the rogue-like guy had high expectations for this one. And it pretty much messed up every aspect I like to see in a game like this. But at least it made me learn how awesome asparagus is!

 

Best Trophy Image - Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night

Dunno, it kind of looks like it's taken from the window glass of a freaky church. Which is quite fitting for the game, so I like it

 

Worst Trophy Image - Ys: Memories of Celceta

Same as for many other people in here, the "Use the same image, just change a bit of the color" - gimmick that's kind of cheap. Took this one because I don't like trophies with the game's logo in it either.

 

Best Female Character - Amicia de Rune from A Plague Tale: Innocence

Just a very believable big sister type of character. That's pretty much it to be honest, it doesn't really take more than that for me

 

Best Male Character - Rean Schwarzer from Trails of Cold Steel 1-4

Kind of unfair, because this game closed a 500-hour series. But whatever, saying farewell to a protagonist like that does stick with me.

 

Best Plat of the Year - Cuphead

A game I was anticipating for a long time. A game I wasn't sure about me being able to complete. And it arrived, and it had a very satisfying and rewarding difficulty. Not as horrendously hard as people say, but for me it hit the sweet spot of having a fun learning experience. That made this platinum way more entertaining than I was anticipating.

 

Wurst Plat Ov Teh Yeer - Torchlight 2

Online co-op plans that didn't work out. A grind that overstayed its welcome. And a game that's not terribly interesting overall. While scrolling through my profile for this category I thought "Which game would I like to re-play the least?", and it is this one.

 

Most Anticipated Platinum of 2022 - Zero Time Dilemma

This time around we're not planning that many games ahead. This is one though, and finishing a series is always a big plus in our book

[Briste]

I'll throw my selections into the ring here.

 

Piece of Cake Award

Déraciné

 

I had a few that could probably have qualified here, but this game was really easy and not very good. Some of the ‘chapters’ were literally three minutes long. The only challenge present was the fact it wasn’t clear what you had to do sometimes….but there was no challenge here at all. This may also have been my worst plat of the year.

 

It’s Like Dark Souls

Jotun

It’s not really in the mold of Dark Souls as far as gameplay. This boss rush game wasn’t so bad if you just wanted to beat the game, but completing the trophy list was another matter. Killing each boss without getting hit and without using god powers (doesn’t have to be at the same time) took a lot of practice and sometimes the RNG on the moves done made it more challenging but this was probably my most gratifying platinum of the year and I made it my 150 milestone.

 

Bad Ass Award

 

Dragon Age: Inquisition - Jaws of Hakkon DLC

Not for the game itself, but for the DLC ‘Jaws of Hakkon’. One of the bosses in the DLC is in a mission that you can’t back out of unless you saved before entering. I had gone in on Nightmare difficulty not thinking it would be so bad and without really thinking about my party setup. I didn’t realize I’d be trapped in the zone until I beat the boss. I tried for a few hours and couldn’t get the boss under 40% health. The only backup save I had was from like 3 or 4 hours before I had started the DLC zone. I really didn’t want to lose everything I had done in the DLC because the gear was really good and it was quite a bit harder than the main game, but decided to bump the difficulty down to just finish the DLC and then reload that earlier save to finish the main game in Nightmare. After I did it, I felt really dirty about it and decided to go back in Nightmare mode to try again. This time I made sure my party was more optimally set up. It still took a couple hours, but I was able to beat that boss on Nightmare and proceed. I did feel like a bit of a badass for going back to tackle something that I legitimately couldn’t do a few days earlier. Overall, the game wasn’t that hard, but that part was!

 

Grind of the Year

Torchlight II

Wrapping up this trophy list was pretty brutal. I didn’t mind the Hardcore playthrough that much, but going through another almost 3 times to get level 99 was pretty boring. There’s no real variation in the game at all and the story seems extremely thin so it wasn’t even interesting. It wouldn’t have been as bad if there was a purpose to running through multiple times, but this grind kind of killed this game for me.

 

Finally Done Award

A Hat in Time

This technically wins since I went back and completed the DLC this past month after getting the plat in 2018 so it has the longest completion time for all my games for the year….this DLC was not very easy and felt good to finish up.

 

King of the Internet

Torchlight II

Well, due to my lack of online games, this one wins by default. I did my first playthrough with @Cassylvania and got to play for a short time with @Jens. It was fun enough the first time through, but as I mentioned before the grind to finish was bad. I probably had more fun than Cass, but it wasn’t a great game either.

 

Worst Online Experience

Mount & Blade: Warband

I absolutely adored this game, however the MP portion of it wasn’t really good. The controls for the battles are too stiff to be fun. I self-boosted most of the MP trophies by using my son’s profile on the PS4 and mine on the PS5 so it wasn’t that bad….but it would have been absolutely horrible if I tried to do it via normal gameplay. The single player campaign was so good and if they incorporated the fief side of single player into the MP, I might have enjoyed it….but it’s just not a good MP game as is.

 

Best Music

Hollow Knight

The nostalgia side of me wanted to put WWE 2K Battlegrounds since I got to listen to a lot of my old, favorite wrestler’s entrance music….but that’s not what the spirit of this award is for. The music in Hollow Knight was really well done and fit the theme beautifully. None of the other games I played really stood out to me so this was a pretty easy pick.

 

Sleeper Hit of the Year

NeverEnd

Don’t get me wrong…this is not a great game per say. I started this game while on my vacation to keep my trophy streak alive and didn’t really know much going into it. It sports Atari level graphics and no story to speak of, but I was pleasantly surprised with how much I enjoyed this rogue-like. It came completely out of left field and I had no idea what to expect from it and ended up being a mostly fun experience

 

Biggest Bomb of the Year

Maneater

I had pretty high hopes for this game when I played it but it was just really boring and repetitive. It felt like I spent the first two hours of the game just eating catfish and avoiding crocodiles. The narrative attempts to be funny, but felt mostly stupid. The DLC also dropped with a ton of bugs that ended up glitching out on me. Thankfully they fixed it, but this game was just a major disappointment for me. I would say at least it was free, except the DLC was overpriced at like $15 and I don’t think the game + DLC is worth that.

 

Best Trophy Image

           

Tie: Hollow Knight & Mount & Blade: Warband

Artistically, Hollow Knight was very well done. Almost all of the trophy images were well done and I chose one as a milestone. While I earned the majority of the trophies in 2020, the couple I earned in 2021 were still artistically superior to any other game I played this year. Mount & Blade: Warband gets credit for adding humor to the trophy art. Nothing was amazing, but none of them were lazy, all with clever names referencing something and I appreciated the effort. Honorable mention goes to the Mass Effect and Dragon Age games as those are pretty intricate as well.

 

Worst Trophy Image

Ghost Giant VR

So lazy….they all looked like this

 

Best Female Character

Tali’Zorah nar Rayya (Mass Effect Series)

This was probably the toughest choice I had to make. I played several games with great female characters. I played The Walking Dead: The Telltale Definitve Series where I fell in love with Clementine. Jotun also had a badass female lead with Thora as the Viking warrior, but this came down to how much I actually got to experience with the character. Since The Walking Dead is more story driven and Jotun was less about story and more about battle mechanics, Tali in Mass Effect got the slight edge. I loved Tali in the ME series. I loved her loyalty, I loved her humor and awkwardness and she was also badass as a teammate with her abilities. She was strong and independent and wasn’t afraid to do what she thought was right, even if it went against the tradition of her people. She was the Shepard love interest throughout my playthroughs (well in ME2 and ME3 anyway). I was loyal to her and was rewarded with some really well done extra cutscenes where her character was really well developed. Tali is probably one of my favorite characters of all time in games and deserves to be my best female character of the year.

 

Best Male Character

Commander John Shepard (Mass Effect Series)

This was less difficult…Shepard is perhaps one of the greatest video game heroes of all time….you really just can’t compete with him. I mean, I did play a few Batman games and Batman is my favorite super hero of all time….but I’m not counting him here. I enjoyed the characters from the Dragon Age series as well (I played the main characters as male), but you didn’t get to play the same character throughout the series so didn’t develop the same attachments.

 

Best Plat of the Year

Slay the Spire

This game came recommended by @Jens and was another game I had never heard of. This rogue-lite card game was probably the best game I played this year. I played several good games and Jotun, Hollow Knight and Mount & Blade: Warband are close runners up…but no game this year captivated me as much as StS did. I stayed up waaaay too late on several nights caught in the ‘just one more run’ mode. Each of the characters is unique and fun to learn to play and the challenge of the game is hard but fair. I cannot recommend this game enough

 

Wurst Plat ov the Yeer

Secret of Mana

I had played this on the SNES when I was a kid and remembered liking it, but never finishing because I got stuck. I was looking forward to playing this one and it was just wretched. Between not being able to have more than three enemies on the screen at one time and the delay between attacks due to the stamina….it was just a horrible experience and it probably turned me off to the other games in this series.

 

 

Most Anticipated Platinum of 2022

Demon’s Souls (PS5)

I bought this game at the same time I bought my system and I’ve really been looking forward to playing it. I plan on doing the complete Soulsbourne series in order for 2022 and it’ll start with this game here. I don’t really know of any new games coming out that I’m frothing at the mouth to play, but I’m pretty hyped to play this one right here.

Edited December 6, 2021 by Briste

[DoctorDrPepper]

Here's my awards for 2021 with the caveat of I can never use the same game twice.

 

Piece of Cake Award

The Pig D

During quarantine i've been way more interested in quantity not quality but this is the game that made me finally start to think some of these games just aren't worth it. You just hold R1 for two minutes and the platinum is yours. I'm gonna make an effort in 2022 to stop buying shit like this.

 

It's Like Dark Souls Award

Resident Evil Village

The S rank all mercenaries maps is the reason for this award. That was the most I bashed my head against a game all year.

 

Bad Ass Award

Hitman 3

At no point in this game did I not feel hella rad picking people off with headshots in a suit or pushing them off the worlds tallest building. Fantastic game.

 

Grind of the Year

Yakuza Like a Dragon

The grind for levels to be able to complete the True Final Millennium Tower easily added somewhere between 50-60 hours of just killing the same 4 enemies over and over and over and over.....

 

Finally Done Award

Fall Guys: Ultimate Knockout

9 months, 1 week, 1 day

 

King of the Internet

Probably the most fun i've had playing online co-op with a friend.

 

Worst Online Experience

Rocket Arena

Some friends and I tried playing this online and the community (or whats left) were shitty and stream sniped the hell out of me. Gave up after a few days and i'll probably never return to it.

 

Best Music

Persona 5 Strikers

The new jazz bangers they put in this one rival the original Persona 5 music. Insane levels of cool.

 

Sleeper Hit of the Year

Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy

No one I know expected this game to be good but it has to have the best writing and narrative of a game I played this year. It's a better written Guardians movie than the two MCU movies.

 

Biggest Bomb of the Year

Resident Evil 4

I get a lot of shit for this opinion, but this year was the first time I ever fully played through RE4 and I don't think it's aged well. The controls are bad, Ashley is hard to deal with, and I hate any game that spawns enemies behind you. Not a fan.

 

Best Trophy Image

I can't believe you've done this! - Her Majesty's Spiffing

A trophy celebrating one of the best videos of early youtube.

 

Worst Trophy Image

Planet of the Apes: Last Frontier

It's just this image in different colors for bronze, silver, gold, or platinum. What the fuck is this shape? It's not in the game at all.

 

Best Female Character

Tali'Zorah - Mass Effect Legendary Edition

I had never played Mass Effect until this year with the legendary collection and I get why everyone loves this series now. And Tali was the coolest.

 

Best Male Character

Zagreus - Hades

Zagreus is always there with a joke or a quip but also isn't afraid to have real meaningful conversations with the other denizens of the underworld. He's well written and fun to play.

 

Best Plat of the Year

Into Eternity - Deathloop

After years of shitty constant commercials at every Sony event I was ready for Deathloop to be a bust but it really was one of the most fun games I played in 2021 and had the tightest and most fun platinum list. Nothing is missable and everything is fun working towards.

 

Worst Plat of the Year

All Roads Traveled - Life Is Strange 2

Fuck this game, fuck every character in it. It's boring, badly written and insulting. I fucking hate this game. It dragged to hell and I despised every second I played of it.

 

Most Anticipated Platinum of 2022

God of War Ragnarok

I am so insanely pumped to see Kratos kill Odin.

Edited December 6, 2021 by DoctorDrPepper

[jonesey46]

I haven't taken trophy hunting as seriously this year but managed to snag a few platinums along the way. Happy to share my personal awards with everyone and look forward to reading everyone elses

 

Piece of Cake Award

A Short Hike

A really nice little adventure game that has a sweet, subtle story about anxiety and how the great outdoors can help. A Short Hike is an incredibly relaxing game with a cheerful soundtrack and charming visuals, and the platinum only takes a couple of hours.

 

It's Like Dark Souls Award

Kena: Bridge of Spirits

I was one of the suckers on here who didn't utilise the Master difficulty glitch and did it all legit. Despite platinuming Bloodborne, Dark Souls and Dark Souls II this year, none of those games compare to the hair pulling frustration that came with Master mode. I still really love the game though and was glad to have done it.

 

Bad Ass Award

Hollow Knight - Pure Completion

(Achieve 112% game completion and finish the game)

Yeah, Pantheon of Hallownest took way more effort but for me, nothing compared to finally beating Pure Vessel in pantheon 4. It took me 4 days to beat him in the hall of gods and another day on top of that to best him at the end of the 4th pantheon. I don't think I've ever been so satisfied by defeating a boss before. Incredible moment in an incredible game.

 

Grind of the Year Award

Killzone: Mercenary

Now, I'm cheating a little here as I haven't actually earned this platinum yet, but I'm on track to earn it by next week. Currently I'm replaying the same story mission over and over to rack up kills for the Blood Bank trophy, which is to get 10,000 kills. This is my last step for the platinum but before this I had to play each story mission 4 times with different side objectives, play the story on the hardest difficulty, boost a bunch of online stuff AND play 100 matches in multiplayer. Because it's on Vita, thankfully I've done all of this grind during my work breaks. Still a hell of a grind though.

 

Finally Done & King of the Internet Awards

 

Fallout 76

Two in a row going to Fallout 76! Despite the hate this game got at launch (rightfully deserved I believe) it really has pulled itself back and is quite a competent and enjoyable Fallout game now. Hundreds of hours worth of content and a signature Bethesda made open world to explore which I honestly think is their best world yet. This game took me 10 months, 1 week to complete which was my longest running platinum this year.

 

Worst Online Experience Award

Deathloop

Ugh the online component in this game was WHACK. Julianna invasions were a cool idea but in the endgame and trophy clean up stages I just wanted to be left alone. I even turned off online invasions but obviously you then just get AI Julianna which is still just as annoying, but at least she can be killed easily. Then when I became Julianna for the respective trophies I found out the matchmaking is atrocious! Takes like 10 minutes to join a game. I have more to say about this game down below, unfortunately.

 

Best Music Award

Hollow Knight

Well this one is a no-brainer. Probably the best soundtrack I've ever heard. I love it so much I bought it on vinyl and listened to it so much that it dominated my Spotify Wrapped. Pretty much everything about this game is perfect.

 

Runner Ups:

 

Outer Wilds & Spiritfarer

Both of these games have incredible soundtracks and it really helped elevate my appreciation for the game.

 

Sleeper Hit of the Year Award

 

Guardians of the Galaxy

I imagine this will be a lot of peoples sleeper hit. The way Square Enix massacred The Avengers I had no faith in this game being any good. And holy fucking shit I was wrong. A fantastically well written and beautiful game, and it was everything I wanted from a Guardians title.

 

Biggest Bomb of the Year Award

Deathloop

In last years PSNP Awards I gave Deathloop my most anticipated award. Arkane are my favourite developer and I was extremely excited for this game but ultimately it let me down, big time. I found it to be way too linear and repetitive. With none of the freedom of choice that comes with a typical Arkane game. A huge disappointment and I really hope they make the next game more like Prey and less like this.

 

Best Trophy Image Award

Hollow Knight - Heart of Hallownest

(Platinum)

Okay, I'm biased as hell cause I love this game so much but fucking hell look at that image. It's beautiful.

 

Worst Trophy Image Award

Axiom Verge - Hard

(Complete the game in hard difficulty)

This image isn't that bad but I don't really understand it. It's an enemy type from one of the mid-game areas. But, what in the hell does it have to do with beating the game on hard? I have no idea. That's why this gets the award.

 

Best Female Character Award

Jill Valentine - Resident Evil 3

I mean, look at her. She's perfect. Not only is she just unbelievably attractive, she's an absolute bad ass with so much personality. Jill is easily my favourite female character of this year, but also of all time.

 

Best Male Character Award

Ethan Winters - Resident Evil Village

He gets a lot of hate, mainly for being dumb and saying weird things at inappropriate times but I absolutely loved Ethan in Village. He stopped at nothing to save his daughter and for that he gets this award as well as the father of the year award which should totally be a thing from now on.

 

Best Plat of the Year Award

Resident Evil Village

It was an absolute joy to platinum this game and I'm really looking forward to any DLC that comes out for it. Village perfectly captured all my favourite parts of the Resident Evil franchise from quiet and tense sequences to insane, heart thumping action. I truly can't wait to see what Capcom does next. GOTY for sure.

 

Worst Plat of the Year Award

The Crew 2

Just utterly unremarkable and a complete waste of time. The Crew 2, for me, was a watered down version of the first game. It was missing half the features and swapped out the story for a generic "be the best" plot. I'm sorry lads but downgrading everything including your graphics and slapping a new coat of paint on your UI doesn't make a sequel.

 

Most Anticipated Platinum of 2022 Award

I wish!

[PooPooBlast]

Oooh it's that time again! Thanks for hosting this @Dr_Mayus

 

Piece of Cake: 

Spider-man Miles Morales. Not much to talk about other than that the trophy list was very straightforward and I encountered little to no resistance. 

 

It's Like Dark Souls: 

 

Cuphead was a super frustrating experience for me. On paper, the game was begging me to try it out what with its cool visuals and soundtrack. I took a gamble despite knowing well that I suck at platformers and bullet hell games. Unfortunately it didn't pay off and what started as a fun experience quickly devolved into a frustrating one. ?. Just like any dark souls games, I was never able to complete this game and I have shelved it indefinitely for now. It's too frustrating at the moment and any fun that I was having with the game is long gone by now. 

 

Badass Award: 

I was saving ghostrunner for my sleeper hit of the year but I think that it deserves the badass award moniker even more. Nothing feels cooler than wallrunning, dodging a bajillion enemy projectiles and closing the distance to dismember enemies with your sword all while some badass cyberpunk track is playing in the background. 

 

Grind of the Year: 

It wasn't that bad but maxing out my characters' levels to tackle the final dungeon in the game took quite a while! Thankfully, nothing that some nice tunes cannot fix to make the grind more bearable. 

 

Finally Done: 

Nothing for this category. I started all my games this year.

 

King of the Internet: 

This was the only online game I played this year so by default it wins . Jokes aside, I can hardly imagine any other game out there toppling It Takes Two for me. It's a perfect game to play with a buddy or a significant other. Highly recommend it! 

 

Worst Online Experience: 

Nothing for this category. I'm a singleplayer guy. It Takes Two was the only online game I played this year and it was solely because a buddy of mine wanted me to play it with him.

 

Best Music:

Lost Judgment wins hands down, no contest. It had so many bangers but my favourite is linked down below.

 

Sleeper Hit: 

Hard reset redux is an old school first person shooter made by the same team from Shadow Warrior. The gameplay was very frenetic, fast paced with tons of action, explosions and environmental destruction. On PSNP, it only has ~3100 owners and so when I played it, I wasn't expecting a hidden gem but here we are! Recommended if you're into fps and it's especially a no brainer if you enjoyed Shadow warrior.

 

Biggest Bomb: 

I can't say I played any game that was shit but the closest one I suppose is cuphead simply because of the frustrating experience I had. One might argue that if I was good at the game, then I may have enjoyed it and that's a valid point... However, cuphead by default wins this category as the rest of the games I played this year were more enjoyable.

 

Best Trophy Image: Astro's playroom 

After nabbing a PS5 (finally), I think that this trophy image perfectly commemorates this moment! 

 

Worst Trophy Image:

WTF is this??

 

Best Female Character: 

Unfortunately, I didn't play that many games with female leads but Jesse Faden from Control wins this category. What I liked about her were the constant snarky remarks she made during the game. However, I didn't like how she was more or less an errand girl doing quests for people rather than a freaking director of the Old House.. 

 

Best Male Character: 

My custom character from Saints Row IV

 

Best Plat of the Year: 

 

Lost Judgment wins this one without a doubt. I bought the game on release and dived right in blindly without a guide and figured out things on my own along with the help of a couple of community members. After ~110 hrs of playtime, the plat was mine and it was a very rewarding experience! 

 

Wurst Plat Ov Teh Yeer: 

 

Fallout 4. I won't say that the plat was horrendous or anything but having to worry about missables due to angering factions was not a pleasant experience especially because this is an RPG which could set you back many hours if you screwed up something. Took a lot of planning to get it right from the first time.

 

Most Anticipated Platinum of 2022:

Lmao I remember last year saying that this was my most anticipated plat for 2021 but little did I know it would get delayed . Anyway, my hype for this game still has not wavered. Might be a weird thing to say but I'm most interested in the hardcore parkour aspect more than decapitating zombies! Dying light without parkour would feel very limiting and would probably have a difficult time separating itself from other generic zombie games out there. Anyway, can't wait!

Edited December 6, 2021 by PooPooBlast

[FreshFromThaDeli]

Seen some wicked picks in this thread. This is a nice walk down memory lane for me so here goes.

 

Piece of Cake: Duke Nukem 3D: 20th Anniversary World Tour

 

 

Not only is this award perfectly named after a quote from Duke Nukem himself, it's actually easier than the way I played this game where I refused to use cheat codes until the last couple trophies.

 

It's Like Dark Souls: Dead or Alive 5

 

 

I was gonna be left dead or alive myself after having gone through the torturous survival mode! DOA5 had the most cheating, scumming, bastard AI that it would make SNK final bosses blush ? I spent an entire week beating the last 4 difficulties of Survival, each of these difficulties had you beat 100 opponents in increasing difficulty on one health bar! This was one of those games that had me howling at my TV everytime I lost in a high round knowing that I had to restart from round 1 all over again. It comes down to being more of an endurance test over a test of skill in the end. Also, fuck Ryu Hayabusa's ballerina twirl Tony Hawk 360° no scope Izuma throw. I still have nightmares ?

 

Badass Award: Battle Fantasia - You Want Me To WHAT?

 

 

'In single-player arcade mode, on a difficulty higher than NORMAL, survive Deathbringer's Apocalypse Flame attack and win the round with full health.'

 

This is the first game that comes to mind when I think of my most badass moment of trophy hunting in 2021. The trophy name alone lends itself well to that. One day I decided to channel my inner Daigo Umehara and have a crack at going for this trophy for myself. I was so excited to parry every move in Deathbringer's Apocalypse Flame and 5 hours later I did just that. This trophy has a reputation for being a Platinum killer and one of the hardest PS3 trophies. I can't agree with that myself as I guess I played a lot of Third Strike on my Dreamcast growing up parrying Sean's basketball and Ryu's Hadoken's.

 

Grind of the Year: Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 

 

 

Treyarch games and grind go hand in hand. Ranking up 25 guns to max level in Zombies was just the beginning. I had to then spend over 60 hours playing Blackout hoping that RNG would favour me and find the character items and trinkets. Mason's stained white t-shirt alone took me 12 hours to find for the first time. Then I had to worry about actually completing the requirements in the same match I pick up the item. The entire 4 Zombies DLC packs each had their own fair share of convoluted and grindy trophies to boot. 

 

Finally Done: GTA IV - 12 Years, 1 week.

 

 

Almost as much time passed getting GTA IV 100% as I have had my PSN account. I got GTA IV in January of 2009 and managed to get round to completing the 100% in January of 2021. Time flies when you trophy hunt. 

 

King of the Internet: Street Fighter V

 

 

One reason why, my favourite Street Fighter character came out in SFV this year: Rose. Shameless plug but here's what came of it. 

 

 

Worst Online Experience: 

 

 

Second shout out to this game and it's this time it's not for a good reason. Refer to @Copanele's update for my reasons. We suffered through this broken online together and vowed to shit on it every chance we get ? 

 

Best Music: Guilty Gear -Strive-

 

 

Banging soundtrack. Thanks to Guilty Gear -Strive-, I now know the 'smell of the game' and also have a wicked playlist in my YouTube library. Makes me want to play the game every time I think of this OST. Potemkin theme is a personal favourite. 

 

Sleeper Hit: Concrete Genie 

 

 

I decided to play both of February's Plus games this year in Control and Concrete Genie. Concrete Genie left a good impression on me and the story of getting bullied which then transpired towards the end was a nice message and was a useful game to play to those who have been bullied. 

 

Biggest Bomb: Call of Duty: Vanguard

 

I play the new CoD every year at launch. I came so close to not buying Vanguard at launch as I had low confidence in it since it got announced. It's tradition for me at this point. This is a hollow and forgettable CoD game with one of the worst renditions of Zombies and Mulitplayer. Coupled with annoying buggy trophies. Campaign had it's moments but the whole package was just not exciting at all and it reflects in the sales. Lowest launch sales in the series in over 13 years. Sledgehammer stop making CoD games. 

 

Best Trophy Images: Duke Nukem 3D: 20th Anniversary World Tour - Duke, use the Force!

 

 

The name. The image. It's perfect!

 

Worst Trophy Images: Burnout Paradise 

 

Mostly the same image recycled into different grades corresponding to the different trophy types. Lazy!

 

Best Female Character: Rose - Street Fighter V

 

 

Of course I would put Best girl Rose here. I was so excited she made it into the last season of SFV. Big ups to Capcom for making her play differently from SFIV but still staying true to her character archetype. 

 

Best Male Character: Welkin Gunther - Valkyria Chronicles 

 

 

Leader of squad 7 on his first appointment. Got to hand it to him, he handled himself so well in the course of this game amidst the impending attack from an Empire who want to take over Gallia. 

 

Best Plat of the Year: Ethan Winters- Resident Evil Village 

 

 

I am a diehard Resident Evil fan. I think the trophy lists in RE games are the perfect mix of fun and challenging. It took me 4 playthroughs and a few tries at each Mercenaries stage to get the Platinum and I was ready to do it all over again after I was done, very fun and engaging Platinum journey. I'm excited to go back to Village and get every trophy again in the PS5 version. 

 

Wurst Plat Ov Teh Year: Overwatch

 

 

Opportunistic luck based trophies that demand boosting in the late life cycle of this game. Getting 12 people together from different timezones sounds about as fun as you think.

 

Most Anticipated Platinum of 2022: The King of Fighters XV

 

 

My most Anticipated Platinum of 2022 is actually Street Fighter VI. With all the hints of a new entry for next year but nothing official I can't put it here. Instead I will say another fighting game: The King of Fighters XV. Fighting games recently have gone very soft with their trophy lists. Skill has taken a step back in favour of grind. Comparing KoF XIV trophy list to KoF XIII trophy list is a good example of that. Hopefully SNK go back to their old ways and make us complete 200 or heck, all of the trials again ?

Edited December 6, 2021 by FreshFromThaDeli

[Copanele]

11 minutes ago, FreshFromThaDeli said:

 

Worst Online Experience: 

 

 

 

Second shout out to this game and it's this time it's not for a good reason. Refer to @Copanele's update for my reasons. We suffered through this broken online together and vowed to shit on it every chance we get 

I have seen cabbages who would do a better job as a server than whatever this game had nice list there! Appreciate the counter shoutout lol

 

12 minutes ago, FreshFromThaDeli said:

Skill has taken a step back in favour of grind. Comparing KoF XIV trophy list to KoF XIII trophy list is a good example of that. Hopefully SNK go back to their old ways and make us complete 200 or heck, all of the trials again   

[Joe Dubz]

I'll just start by saying I have been coming to this site regularly for a few years now, but this is the 1st I've come across this fantastic event... I have thoroughly been enjoying reading everyone's choices so far! Without further ado, here are my carefully curated selections:

 

Piece of Cake:

Going Under

What a gem of a game this one is! It's a roguelite action game, which honestly those normally tend to be challenging. However the game offers many assist options, such as an extra 5 health, lesser enemy health, and longer invincibility times, making it fairly easy... Let's just say I've needed a break from all the ridiculously challenging games I've completed this year and didn't feel like struggling through this one without!

 

Honorable mention goes to My Name is Mayo 2, but that one was just too easy of a pick ?

 

It's Like Dark Souls:

Super Meat Boy Forever

It was really a toss-up between this, Super Meat Boy, I am Bread, & Downwell... But this one definitely took the cake for me! It also conveniently enough became milestone #200 for me. 

 

While not nearly as much fun as the original, I still enjoyed my time with this game. And boy oh boy, this one seriously pushed me to my limits! I had my doubts I'd ever get it done, but sure enough I stuck it out until the end. I think the most challenging part was, unlike SMB where I had loads of others' videos to reference when making my way through, I was on my own unique seed and therefore had to figure out the most optimal routes when going for the deathless runs! That and there are just a shitload of mechanics that need mastered in order to be able to perfect the game. I am seriously glad this one is over, because I WOULD NEVER EVER DO THAT AGAIN ? I even went so far as to write up a trophy guide for it ?

 

Bad Ass Award:

Downwell: Well Master - Beat the boss on Hard Mode

This game actually sat in my backlog for slightly over a year just because of this one and only trophy keeping me from the almighty . Well I decided to hunker down, practice my ass off, and finally see this through to the finish line! The levels and upgrades are randomly generated each time you play, so it was really a matter of hoping for the few perks I needed to succeed. Well that and gitting gud of course! I was feeling pumped after going BEASTMODE on this one ?

 

Grind of the Year:

Mercenary Kings

I am not a huge fan of when devs decide to include extremely grindy trophies that still require many hours of playing after you have finished everything else in the game. MK here was fun and all, it reminded me of playing Metal Slug in the arcade cabinets back in my younger years! Despite grabbing as many parts as I could during my actual playthrough, knowing this was coming at the end, I still had to spend at least 5 more hours after all was said and done just to grind out parts to craft so many different weapons! Hardly a terrible grind, compared to other games, but devs straight b h8n sometimes when they make it so you are completely finished except for more grinding at the end ? Not a fun way to pad out players' total play time in your game, guys... Sheesh!

 

Finally Done Award:

Bioshock: Remastered (a mere 3 years, 7 months, & 2 weeks!)

It's very easy for me to say that the Bioshock series is my all-time favorite when it comes to FPS games! The beautifully creepy atmosphere, the crazy drugged out Splicers, the scary and beastly Big Daddies, an arsenal of weapons, traps, and Plasmids to light them up with, coupled with a very intriguing and thought-provoking story had me sold from the start. It was my goal to nab at least 1 for each of the 3 games in the series, not necessarily every iteration of them tho... But this was the last one I had left and pushed my way through to victory! Not sure what took so long; I think oftentimes for me, I get bored quickly then it's off to the next new shiny thing ? But now I can proudly say I've platted all 3 at least once!

 

King of the Internet:

Hammerwatch

This was another game that was wasting away in my endless sea of backlog for close to 2 years! It wasn't for lack of me wanting to finish it tho... When I started playing this, there was no online feature as it exists today and there are several co-op trophies that need completed. I don't really have any solid couch co-op friends normally, as my wife at least usually prefers things more casually along the lines of Overcooked and such! 

 

Fast forward to a few months ago, when I had someone reach out to me about giving the co-op stuff a go, since the online part of it was now live. I actually got to meet 2 cool people in the process named @starcrunch061 & @StarstormDX (you are both allstars in my book, just for the record ?)! It was truly a challenge and took many hours of testing and trying different things with both peeps separately. But Starstorm and I were able to pull it off eventually and both finally pop the  ?

 

As much as I enjoyed meeting those 2 fine folks and had a blast getting our asses handed to us repeatedly, it also qualifies as my:

 

Worst Online Experience:

Hammerwatch (again )

Lets just say the devs put this online mode out and then seemed like they could give 2 shits about how terribly it worked, on PS at least! The true challenge was surviving through the 45 minutes of terror that was Survival mode. As I mentioned, the online was an absolutely glitchy mess... There is an upgrade teleporter you use to, yano, upgrade! However the caveat here was that once both players enter the portal, only the host was able to leave successfully; P2 would just get booted into the NetherRealm  Couple that with stalactites that fall every 15 seconds, which previously had a silhouette indicating where they would fall, but magically disappeared after the new update leaving you guessing where they were about to hit, and this one was an unnecessarily trying challenge.

 

But I'll be damned if StarstormDX and I weren't determined to figure out a solution! We figured the only logical way to do it at the time was via Shareplay, where we could at least visit the upgrade portal and make it back together! This method sucked only because we then had to do it twice for each of us to pop that sacred , but we stuck it out and came through on top in the end. There has since been a much better method figured out for how to make it work, so you can check out the excellent trophy guide someone made on this site if you ever give it a go. It's a damn shame too because this is such a fantastic game otherwise!

 

Best Music:

Super Meat Boy

Man, I am such a sucker for a great OST! SMB was hands down my favorite this year. It really fit each level perfectly, plus the Cotton Alley levels were absolutely top notch and helped to keep me motivated, even when I was getting my ass kicked over and over going for those deathless runs! I still pop on those tunes from time to time just to hear them again ?

 

Sleeper Hit of the Year:

Wuppo

I had no idea this game even existed before I happened across it... It's a very interesting twin stick shooter adventure, with some lite platforming elements to it! Such a cute and charming world had me captivated right out of the gate ? This one was all fun until going for the Boss Rush 0% run... You only get 2 healing items and IIRC, the game is defaulted to either Normal or maybe even Hard, making this an extreme challenge. On Steam, they actually changed it to the lesser difficulty as well as giving you 3 healing items, but honestly I got it done and feel all the more powerful after doing it the hard way!

 

Biggest Bomb of the Year:

Cozy Grove

I needed something lite and fun to play, a little crafting and maybe farm simulating?! So this one looked interesting and I decided to give it a go. But man I got bored so quickly with it. Couple that with an absolutely ridiculous set of crafting/toolbreaking/other random things trophy grind I've ever seen, and I gave it a quick kick to the curb! Thanks but no thanks.

 

Best Trophy Image:

Super Meat Boy Forever & Wuppo (tie)

 / 

I really loved both of these images and I couldn't decide which one I liked better, so a tie it is!! The former representing the fun and cute Meat Boy family, lil Nugget included... The latter representing an adorable lil Wum who has achieved transcended status! Without a doubt my 2 faves this year!

 

Worst Trophy Image:

Bless Unleashed:

All the trophies are more or less the same bland "B", just slightly different shades for the different trophy types. C'mon devs, don't you know us trophy hunters love some variety with those images!!

 

Best Female Character:

Bandage Girl from the Super Meat Boy series

Love this little gal and she without a doubt my fave gal to rock out to some extremely challenging platforming with! My close 2nd would be Aloy from Horizon Zero Dawn. 

 

Best Male Character:

Skul from Skul: The Hero Slayer

This dude was just awesome in my book! Anyone who can switch heads and then subsequently entirely change their playstyle gets an A+ ??

 

Best Plat of the Year:

Metronomicon: Slay the Dance Floor

This badass unique gem of a game combines rhythm gameplay with an RPG-flare to it!! Couple that with a pretty decent soundtrack and I would do it all over again ? Except for the 3.5 hour setlist run for a trophy... I don't have enough spare time with a baby in the picture now to do that over again!

 

Wurst Plat Ov Teh Yeer:

I am Bread

Don't get me wrong here, the game is actually loads of fun, despite being quite glitchy at times!! I was speeding along through it, up until reaching that dreaded garden level during Cheese Hunt Mode... In comparison to the rest of the game, the time for this is soooooooo incredibly tight and probably took me well over 100 tries to finally get it right! I did enjoy the time with this game tho, but I'd only recommend it if you are a true glutton for punishment.

 

Most Anticipated Platinum of 2022:

Bioshock "Isolation"

I can't say how excited I am to hear news about this new and long overdue game with this franchise!! That was just the given name I read in a recent article, so not sure that's actually what it will be. But regardless I am SUPER PUMPED for that one!

 

 

It has been such a pleasure playing along with you all, what a fantastic year 2021 was for me! Thanks so much @Dr_Mayus for hosting this event yet again, as well as for bringing it to my attention this time around ? I look forward to participating in next year's festivities as well as seeing what the rest of you go with! Cheers, happy holidays, and a happy new year PSNP!

Edited December 6, 2021 by Joe Dubz