What a year it has been, filled with ups and downs as we prepare for 2018. So I figured I would crap out some typical “Best/Worst of 2017” post for all of you to bitch about my choices later. So without further ado, here are…

MATTO’S FAVORITE AND LEAST FAVORITE MOMENTS OF 2017!

FAVORITE GAMES/MOMENTS

Nintendo Switch did amazingly well which made some people lose their minds.

Despite all the hit piece articles about it being “another underpowered Nintendo console”, “no games” and stupid controversies, Switch has not only managed to get to ten million units sold in it’s first year, but is now just short of the WiiU’s total LTD. While Nintendo has somehow officially made a comeback to the eyes of the general and gaming journalism media, please don’t tell them they still sold plenty of software before BS (ie Before Switch).

Also, indie developers have been hitting gold thanks to the Switch eShop thanks to Nintendo’s new News App on the Switch home screen (and start up screen). Keep those great indie games coming, indies!

Metroid: Samus Returns was an amazing 3DS remake!

Despite the terrible fanbase trying to get Federation Force cancelled and sending death threats to Next Level Games (seriously, this hasn’t been said enough, but fuck you people), it didn’t stop Yoshio Sakamoto and relative unknown game director Takehiko Hosokawa from supervising MercurySteam of all people in remaking Samus Aran’s second adventure. Despite MercurySteam’s tarnished reputation (which was partially Konami’s fault), the team delivered a stellar remake of a prior Metroid title, in a series that saw a stellar remake of the first NES game on GBA.

Amiibo are getting cooler and I have a problem!

It is amazing to see just how far Amiibo have come since debuting alongside Smash Bros. for WiiU. Since launching, my Amiibo collection has grown. Yes, I have a problem. This year my personal favorite releases were the Metroid 2-pack (featuring squishy Metroid!) and Bayonetta.

Pyra!

With certain groups losing their mind that Xenoblade 2 female characters have breasts, it takes certain unknown heroes on the internet to take Xeno 2’s heroine Pyra and put her into meme reaction images to troll the fuck out of these people. Because Pyra is indeed best girl and best Nintendo JRPG girl.

WORST GAMES/MOMENTS

Third Party support for Switch is still smeared with shit.

Switch is in a slightly better position than Wii was in regards to being a successful Nintendo consoles. For starters, the standard excuses Thirds use can barely work anyone (thanks to Bethseda of all people, and Panic Button for porting DOOM to Switch), but still, the console is barely getting support from the major players while they continue the group-think of thinking the PS4/Xbone eco-system is healthy enough for them. Fun fact: it isn’t. For Capcom, the situation is dire thanks to major underperforming games and betting their future with Sony despite Street Fighter V performing horribly.

Also, a big healthy fuck you to Namco for making us have to beg for major releases. If you have Twitter, readers, give Bandai Namco a message from me to them: “Sit on a fucking rail road spike. We are not begging for Switch ports.”

MicroTransactions got extremely scummy thanks to EA and Star Wars.

For those of you who are my age (thirty) who grew up loving the original Star Wars trilogy and experiencing great Star Wars games on the Nintendo 64 and the one GameCube flight sim (didn’t have a PC, but I heard most of those Star Wars games were pretty baller!), how does it feel to have your childhood wonder what the fuck happened? Actually, I know what the fuck happened; Disney decided to put EA in charge of the Star Wars licence because Disney never made good video game decisions minus the invention of Epic Mickey, even if that final product was kind of iffy.

For this game, EA thought that in order for gamers to properly win the game, they had to pay real-world money for LootBoxes. LootBoxes give you random loot, which was a form of gambling that has now gotten EA in hot water. As they say, Karma is a bitch.

Pretend Platinum Games fans’ salt over Bayonetta 3 is stupid.

Because exclusives are bad when Nintendo gets them (because they fund them out of their own pocket), but they are not bad when they are on PS4. If that was the case, NieR Automata would’ve sold more than a million.

So those were my favorite and least favorite moments of 2017! Share yours in the comments section below!

3 thoughts on “2017!”

Dude, Nintendo keeping games to themselves is wrong. Sony moneyhatting 3rd parties to keep games exclusive to PS4 is just a smart business move. Women having breasts is sexist. It’s 2017! All female characters must be flat chested, manly looking lesbians.

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You put Pyra on the wrong list.

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Top 3:
3. Most Indie Games on eShop are AMAZING
-Seriously, even if you’re not a fan of 1st Party Nintendo games (not everyone’s cup of tea… But it does lock you out of the most polished experiences in the Switch), the array of indie titles that perfectly fit the portability of the console being great games on their own? I practically purchased a new game every week since the Switch’s release!

2. Nintendo Switch is a Solid Experience
– Not sure what most people were expecting, but being a huge fan of the Wii and Wii U, my hopes in the “NX’s” reveal were kinda dashed. I thought the Switch was too safe of a design, and it didn’t feel like a proper step forward. It looked more like a sidestep.
But despite that, this far into owning the console – I have to say I’m quite happy with it.
Sure, it’s not as exciting as my Wii or Wii U, but it’s just a solid console all around. And it’s making me consider selling my PS4.
If it were an innovative, experimental console, I would have heavy reason to keep my PS4. But since it’s starting to cover the same areas of gaming that I used my PS4 for? … I prefer the Switch’s exclusives.

1. Couch Multiplayer is Coming Back
– The Wii and Wii U were awesome in the field of couch Multiplayer, but they mostly came from Nintendo titles. With the Switch, 3rd party companies are starting to reconsider local multiplayer again. Some normally online-multiplayer-only games are plugging in local wireless functionality, and some may even have LAN functionality hidden away.
I was already having fun playing these games with my friends and family, but if I can have the option of completely ignoring the online function of these games and pretend that it’s the 90s-00s again (or that it’s just a really pretty rendition of the DS/DSi days) – count me in.

Bottom 3:
3. Fire Emblem Warriors is Pretty Disappointing
Hyrule Warriors for the Wii U was an amazingly fun game. And playing it with my friends was pretty great too.
But Fire Emblem Warriors, in comparison, is a mess. Characters don’t feel too different from one another, the higher performance makes the game look plastic-y (I opt in for higher fps just so I get the less-shiny models), local multiplayer has no wireless/LAN function + the split screen makes us squint our eyes, and overall there’s nothing really compelling in this to make it a great Warriors title.
At least other Warriors games has you earning historical information. It would have been amazing if they did that with Fire Emblem lore.
But nope. Even with the DLC this game feels really bare bones compared to other Warriors games, ESPECIALLY when it stands next to Hyrule Warriors.

2. Ports
If you owned a Wii U, most of the games that the Switch has released/will release aren’t too compelling. Still, you buy them so you can play with new people.
But the problem that exists comes in the form of questions…
Will the Switch get its own exclusive Zelda title? Will Smash Bros only come in as a port of Smash 4 + new DLC? Will we get a Mario Kart 9 this generation? Will Pokken Tournament get the DLC/sequel it deserves? Are they just going to have ports of games from the last 5 years for 3/5 of the titles in 2018??

1. Wii U Deserved Better
The more I play the Switch, and the more games are announced for it, the more I think about the potential of the Wii U and how it didn’t get the love it deserved.
No, not by players, but by developers.
How many times have I played a Switch game and thought “you know, if this had a second screen…”
And then when I think about the development times on most of these titles, I get depressed over the thought that a majority of these titles were probably made for the Wii U, but were dragged into the Switch’s years just so they could maximize profits.
And the love Indies and 3rd parties give the Switch… How sad it is that the Wii U could have had the same. And we’re not even talking about the issue of porting titles, but simply the old, unanswered for argument of “If you build it, they will come”…
All these companies/teams had to do was put out original games, or solid ports that had extra functionality, and they would have owned a market that was HUNGRY for games.
All the Indie titles getting massive sales on the Switch, would have had (to a lesser extent) the same kind of love on the Wii U – but with double the loyalty.
Instead, the Wii U indie scene died within months of its push (and the solid titles came out too slowly to keep people’s attentions), and 3rd parties never even bothered over horribly hypocritical reasons.
Point is, I still start up my Wii U, still play it, but just get sad over the idea of how much more I could have played on it.
I mean, we didn’t even get a new Harvest Moon/Story of Seasons game on it! And those games NEED a touch screen menu for their items!!

Runner-ups:

Top – Nintendo Mobile
-Nintendo entering the mobile scene was controversial to many. And as usual of the gaming scene: quick to be dismissed.
What most people don’t realize is… Months later, these games (outside of Miitomo) have become absolutely SOLID experiences.
Fire Emblem Heroes is the shining example of this, as all its added features and expansions have made it into a game that even console Strategy games would envy. And by the sounds of it, there’s still more to come.

Bottom – Goodbye Miiverse
You could consider Miiverse a cancer, or you could consider it a home. Whatever the case is, it was a truly unique experience.
Before it became flooded with nonsensical ramblings from children who didn’t know what they were doing with their Gamepad (or trolls who had nothing better to do), the creative use of Miiverse functions developers threw into their games were really exciting and interesting.
And where else would you have a function that SHOWS whether or not someone played a game before they could even state their awful opinions over it?
That needs to be a function on the internet.

So long 2017. I’m really curious over what 2018 has to offer.

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