Top 10 Video Games of 2018
It's that time of year again. So it's time to look back some great games that came out during the year. And 2018 had a generous amount of games that won over so many people including myself. With that being said, it’s time I reveal the Top 10 Video Games of 2018. Before I get started there's two things to note about this list. First, I'm only including games I both played and own a copy of. No borrowed games will be on here. So while I've played a bit if God Of War 2018, I don't own a copy of it. So it won't be on the list. And second, this is just my own opinions on games I enjoy throughout this year. Respect mine and I'll respect yours. That way everyone's happy. With that said, onto the countdown!
Number 10. Sega Megadrive Classics
Now this isn't the first time that Sega has delved into releasing collections of beloved Megadrive games(Or Genesis for all you Americans out there). But so far this is a pretty good collection from what I've played. You have over 50 titles to choose from ranging from Sonic The Hedgehog, Gunstar Heroes, Golden Axe, Street of Rage and Vectorman to name a few. The emulation for each game runs pretty well though for some like Bio-hazard Battle there is some slow down. But other than that they all run smoothly. The version was the Nintendo Switch version and noticed that there’s two games missing from this version. Wonder Boy III: Monster Lair and Wonder Boy in Monster World are completely absent from the Switch version of Sega Megadrive Classics. Sega did mention on Twitter prior to this version's release that these were excluded but haven't given any statement to why. But despite that, this is still a great collection and for £30 it's worth it.
Number 9. Captain Toad Treasure Tracker
Now here's one of two ports of Wii U games to be featured on this list. Captain Toad Treasure Tracker was originally released back in 2015 in Europe based on the Captain Toad levels from Super Mario 3D World. You explore around levels inspired by Japanese gardens known as Hakoniwa collecting coins, gems, do various level objectives and fight bosses to obtain the Star at the end of each level. All the touch screen gimmicks from the Wii U version have been replaced with either analog stick rotations or use motion controls to move the onscreen cursor to activate touch pads. Using the Pro Controller’s built-in gyroscope can be a little problematic despite having a button to recalibrate the cursor. Apparently it's better with the Joy-Cons but I haven't tried that yet. But if you want to want to use touch controls, you can do that in handheld mode. The presentation looks colourful and bright while running at a solid 60fps and the music is nicely composed. Another thing to note is that the Super Mario 3D World levels from the Wii U version have been removed and replaced with levels inspired by Super Mario Odyssey which are pretty cool. So if you missed out on this game on Wii U like I did I recommend picking up Captain Toad Treasure Tracker for the Switch. And who knows? Maybe Nintendo will port Super Mario 3D World to the Switch. I mean they're going to be porting New Super Mario Bros U in 2019 so a port of 3D World is bound to happen.
Number 8. Shenmue 1 & 2
After many years of requests and fan demand, Sega with help of D3T has finally released an HD collection of Shenmue 1 and 2. And as someone who’s never played these games when they first came out I’m so glad to finally experience a series that's beloved by gamers worldwide. In the first game, a teenager by the name of Ryo Hazuki witnesses the death of his father at the hands of Lan Di and is now seeking revenge. And in the second game it continues the story as Ryo travels to Hong Kong to hunt down his father's killer. Now I've literally only just started Shenmue 2 so I can't say much about it due to my PS4 breaking down shortly after I started playing it. So I'll talking about this collection from my playthrough of the first game. The games are open world RPG's with fighting game mechanics for it's enemy encounters which play like Virtua Fighter. Coincidentally this series directed by the same creator, Yu Suzuki. It took me a bit getting use to given this game's age. Which can also be said about using the forklift. And the motorcycle section can DIE IN A FUCKING HOLE!!! Stiff steering controls and a strict time limit. Granted you can try again if you fail which is the same when you lose a fight or fail some Quick Time Events. The presentation is an HD version of a Dreamcast game so the character models have shown their age and while the soundtrack is good but the audio for the English voices are noticeably compressed compared to the Japanese voices. Luckily the English voices are much clearer in the second game and the graphic look nicer due to being based on the Xbox port of Shenmue 2. But overall this collection is really good and worth the purchase at the low price it's at. And with Shenmue 3 on the way in 2019, now is the perfect time to get caught up.
Number 7. Mega Man Legacy Collection 1 and 2
I was really caught between which one to put here but since it was the entire classic series at the time of it's releases I decided to both Mega Man Legacy Collection 1 and 2 for this spot. So yeah, it's a tie. In Legacy Collection 1 you have the first 6 classic Mega Man games. With the addition of save states and a rewind button you can use anytime in case you mess up. Meanwhile on Legacy Collection 2 you have Mega Man 7 – 10. No Mega Man and Bass here which isn't a great loss considering how flawed and overly difficult that game is. The save state feature is back here but the rewind button has been omitted. The emulation for each game across both collections run really well and stay true to their original console counterparts. Tons of extras such as a museum mode to look at artwork for each game and a challenge mode where you part take in various challenges based on the game you selected. Which ranges from time trials and boss rushes. But my absolute favourite thing is finally being able to experience the sheer majesty that is Mega Man 8’s English voice acting. It's so ungodly bad is hilariously good and I love it. The gameplay for each game is accessible and challenging that really test the players skills and with a certain game that I'll talk about later on the horizon at the time, owning both Legacy Collections was a purchase I did not regret.
Number 6. Kirby Star Allies
As of recent, new Kirby platformers mostly been appearing on the 3DS and the only console Kirby game we had was Kirby and the Rainbow Paintbrush on the Wii U. Which was a follow up to the 2005 DS game Kirby Canvas Curse. But in 2018 we were greeted to a brand new Kirby game for the Nintendo Switch titled Kirby Star Allies. The story is that on the Jambandra space station far away from Kirby's home planet, a dark crystal heart explodes due to an imperfection in a mysterious ritual, sending its numerous fragments, Jamba Hearts, hurtling into deep space. Many characters, including King Dedede and Meta Knight, are possessed while investigating the hearts that land on Popstar. A heart hits Kirby, but it instead gives him the ability to befriend enemies by throwing hearts. And that's the main gimmick for this game. Along with copying enemy abilities like in most Kirby games you can throw hearts to befriend enemies to form a team of four to clear certain stage obstacles and have a better advantage against boss fights. Gameplay is easy and simple as that's per the norm for a Kirby game but for some of the additional modes it does get noticeably challenging. The presentation looks clean, colourful and detailed and the music is catchy and delightful to listen to. I can hands down say this is one my favourite entries in the series and hope Nintendo does well in the next one if they decide to make another one for the Switch.
Number 5. Hyrule Warriors Definitive Edition
Now it's time to talk about the other port of a Wii U game I played in 2018. And it's one that I thoroughly enjoyed. Hyrule Warriors Definitive Edition is an enhanced Switch port of a 2014 Wii U game that's a Dynasty Warriors spinoff featuring characters and settings from The Legend of Zelda series. In this game you travel through multiple Zelda timelines to stop a sorceress named Cia and recovery the pieces of TriForce to save Hyrule. Since this uses the Dynasty Warriors style of gameplay you run around beating up enemies while defending and claiming bases to lure out the boss in each level. It plays really well but like all Dynasty Warrior games the combat does get repetitive after awhile so it's best enjoyed in short bursts. You have an Adventure Mode with various challenges to unlock more characters. Some of which were DLC in the original Wii U game and the 3DS port Hyrule Warriors Legends. But the two exclusives to the Switch version is two player split screen and costumes for Link and Zelda based on their appearances from Breath of the Wild. The presentation is clean with improved visuals and draw distance compared to the Wii U version and running close to 60fps. Compared to Fire Emblem Warriors from last year I honestly think that Hyrule Warriors is the superior game. I liked Fire Emblem Warriors but I felt that this game did a better job in my opinion. If you missed out on this game the first or second time it came out then I highly recommend getting this version.
Number 4. Super Smash Bros Ultimate
I've only played this game for about a week now and I absolutely love this game! Because Ultimate is the right title for this entry. Every Super Smash Bros character from past and present are here along with new characters such as Ridley from Metroid, Simon from Castlevania and even Ken from Street Fighter to name a few. Like in previous entries, the game is a fighting game where you play as various Nintendo and third party characters to deal damage to your opponents. Higher the percentage, the more chance of knocking them off the stage to win. This goes for the multiplayer, Classic Mode and the returning Adventure Mode titled World of Light. Where a being named Galeem takes control of most the game's roster with Kirby being the sole survivor who is tasked with saving everyone and defeat Galeem. In this mode there's some RPG mechanics where you can level up your characters and spirits that you can use for additional perks. The gameplay is tight and solid, presentation looks amazing and detailed while running at a solid 60fps in both docked and in handheld mode and the music is epic and well composed consisting of remixes of classic tunes. The Amiibo feature returns from the last game where you can train your own CPU version of a character by scanning that character's Amiibo. And with the new Spirit feature you can also equip your Amiibo with spirits for additional attack and defence. So far this is a really enjoyable game and I'm already looking forward to the DLC.
Number 3. Dragon Ball FighterZ
Back at E3 2017 one of the games that got me super excited for was a new Dragon Ball fighting game developed by Arc System Works. The studio behind the Guilty Gear and BlazBlue series making a fighting featuring characters from Dragon Ball Z and Dragon Ball Super? Sounds badass doesn’t it? Well guess what? It is! Using the simplistic button combo system of the recent BlazBlue games and the cel shaded character model style of Guilty Gear Xrd for the fast paced intense battles of DBZ all combined to form one of the best fighting games in recent memory. The game features an original story mode that’s set between Dragon Ball Super's Future Trunks and Universe Survival sagas. Where an android from the Red Ribbon Army named Android 21 has made clones of the Z Fighters and villains they've fought over the years to cause havoc in order to obtain the energy from Earth’s strongest warriors to contain the hungry Majin Buu like monster inside her. So now it's up to Goku, his friends and even old enemies aswell a spirit(possibly the player) to save Earth from Android 21’s tyranny. The gameplay is simple yet satisfying to pull off ground and air combos to deal damage to your opponents with the tight controls the game has. The presentation looks great with the cel shaded character models that stay true to Akira Toriyama's original designs from the anime and manga. While it runs at 60fps but like in Guilty Gear Xrd during ultimate attacks, victories and story mode cutscenes the character models move at about 24fps to replicate the animated movement in a animated show or movie. Which is really good attention to detail. The soundtrack is consists of hard rock with some orchestral pieces thrown in and the voice actors from the anime are all present In English and Japanese. Surprising enough the online works really well with no input delays whatsoever. Even when facing someone with a poor connection. My favourite Dragon Ball game is still Dragon Ball Z Budokai 3 but this one comes close to being on par. Easily the best anime game on the market right now and I strongly recommend it to any fan of Dragon Ball.
Number 2. Mega Man 11
Just when we thought Capcom had abandoned the blue bomber for good. As part of Mega Man's 30th anniversary Capcom gave the fans what they wanted for years, a brand new classic Mega Man game simply titled Mega Man 11. Dr. Wily is up to his old tricks again so now it's up to Mega Man and the new Double Gear system to put a stop to him. The gameplay is the traditional Mega Man style of 2D platforming where you run, jump and shoot enemies in order to reach the Robot Master at the end of each stage. It's both challenging and addictive and the new Double Gear system is easily best new addition to the series as it lets you slow down time and power up your charge shots. The 2.5D presentation looks nicely cel shaded and runs at a solid 60fps in both docked and in handheld mode when played on the Nintendo Switch and the soundtrack has kinda grown on me since my review of the game. The challenge mode is a nice addition aswell as it really is challenging. It's just a joy to see Capcom finally releasing a new Mega Man after so long and I really hope we see more. Which as of this list Capcom has revealed they're working on a new Mega Man game but haven't confirmed weither or not it's either Mega Man 12 or Mega Man X9. But whatever game it is, I'll be looking forward to it. Until then we have this beauty of a game that shows that Capcom can make a new Mega Man game without Keiji Inafune.
And before I reveal the Number 1 spot, here are a few quick Honourable Mentions:
Pokémon Let's Go Pikachu
A really enjoyable 3D reimagining of the first generation of Pokémon. More specifically Pokémon Yellow. The motion controls work really well for catching Pokémon and the presentation looks great and the reimagined soundtrack is really good and nicely orchestrated. There's also an Eevee version for those who prefer to start they're journey with an Eevee. A great game to tie us over until the next mainline Pokémon game arrives.
Starlink: Battle for Atlus
I've only just started this game and I'm already won over by it. The toys to life functionality works well, the gameplay is solid and accessible to beginners, presentation looks great and music is pretty good. Especially the remix of Corneria from Star Fox. Oh yeah! The Switch version's starter pack includes an exclusive Fox McCloud pilot figure and Arwing to use for the game. So I strongly recommend getting Starlink for the Switch.
Mega Man X Legacy Collection 1 and 2
Since beating the entire classic series I decided to tackle the X series. I'm still currently playing each game on both of these collections so these only get an honourable mention. But the emulation for each games run flawlessly, has a museum mode to look at artwork and videos and there's a challenge mode for both collections for some added challenge.
Dragon Quest Heroes: The World Tree's Woe and the Blight Below
A pretty good game that merges the RPG mechanics of the Dragon Quest series with the hack ‘n slash gameplay of Dynasty Warriors. Also the presentation and music are good too. But this game's been out for a few years now so I decided to leave it off the list.
And without a doubt, my Number 1 Video Game of 2018 is...
Marvel's Spider-Man
Out of all the games to come out in 2018, this was the one that won me over the most. From start to finish Marvel's Spider-Man gave me the most enjoyment I've had in a open world game in awhile. The writing for this game story is superb as we take control of an adult Peter Parker who goes through the daily struggles of fighting crime, working at a lab with his mentor Otto Octavius, volunteering at a homeless shelter and dealing with relationship problems with Mary-Jane. And throughout the story there's suspense, laughs, intense battles and moments that are almost tear shedding like the ending that I dare not spoil because it's something that the player needs to experience for themselves. The gameplay is amazing and responsive. You really feel the weight of Spider-Man as you fight criminals and web swing across the city of New York. Already making it the most faithful interpretation of Spider-Man and even exceeding over Spider-Man 2 which for the longest time has been regarded as the best Spider-Man game. But from a gameplay stand point this game does it better in my opinion. Especially with all the upgrades and unlockable suits you can get in the game. The presentation is spectacular. Character models look expressive and detailed. And speaking of detailed, New York City in this looks amazing! Easily the best looking and near accurate portrayal of NYC I've seen in a video game. Complete with Easter eggs littered throughout for Marvel fanatics. Some of which you can't help but go nuts with the photo mode. The music is epic and grand scaled and sounds likes it's rip out of a Marvel movie. In recent years gamers have regarded the Batman Arkham series as the best modern superhero games but in some areas I honestly think this is better. It may have taken two years to develop but it was worth the wait and I'm already eagerly awaiting to see what Insomniac has in stored for a sequel. With it's amazing story and spectacular gameplay, I easily consider Marvel's Spider-Man as the Number 1 Video Game of 2018.
And those were my Top 10 Video Games of 2018. This was kinda a hard one to do as I tried to decided between Marvel's Spider-Man and Dragon Ball FighterZ for the Number 1 spot. Obviously there were games that didn't get to play like Red Dead Redemption 2 and Shadow of the Tomb Raider but I managed to do what I could and hopefully some of you aren't too bummed out that God of War wasn't on here. Do you agree with this list? And what were your favourite games of 2018? Feel free to let me know on social media. Until then thanks for reading, have a happy new year and I'll see you all in another list.
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Number 10. Sega Megadrive Classics
Now this isn't the first time that Sega has delved into releasing collections of beloved Megadrive games(Or Genesis for all you Americans out there). But so far this is a pretty good collection from what I've played. You have over 50 titles to choose from ranging from Sonic The Hedgehog, Gunstar Heroes, Golden Axe, Street of Rage and Vectorman to name a few. The emulation for each game runs pretty well though for some like Bio-hazard Battle there is some slow down. But other than that they all run smoothly. The version was the Nintendo Switch version and noticed that there’s two games missing from this version. Wonder Boy III: Monster Lair and Wonder Boy in Monster World are completely absent from the Switch version of Sega Megadrive Classics. Sega did mention on Twitter prior to this version's release that these were excluded but haven't given any statement to why. But despite that, this is still a great collection and for £30 it's worth it.
Number 9. Captain Toad Treasure Tracker
Now here's one of two ports of Wii U games to be featured on this list. Captain Toad Treasure Tracker was originally released back in 2015 in Europe based on the Captain Toad levels from Super Mario 3D World. You explore around levels inspired by Japanese gardens known as Hakoniwa collecting coins, gems, do various level objectives and fight bosses to obtain the Star at the end of each level. All the touch screen gimmicks from the Wii U version have been replaced with either analog stick rotations or use motion controls to move the onscreen cursor to activate touch pads. Using the Pro Controller’s built-in gyroscope can be a little problematic despite having a button to recalibrate the cursor. Apparently it's better with the Joy-Cons but I haven't tried that yet. But if you want to want to use touch controls, you can do that in handheld mode. The presentation looks colourful and bright while running at a solid 60fps and the music is nicely composed. Another thing to note is that the Super Mario 3D World levels from the Wii U version have been removed and replaced with levels inspired by Super Mario Odyssey which are pretty cool. So if you missed out on this game on Wii U like I did I recommend picking up Captain Toad Treasure Tracker for the Switch. And who knows? Maybe Nintendo will port Super Mario 3D World to the Switch. I mean they're going to be porting New Super Mario Bros U in 2019 so a port of 3D World is bound to happen.
Number 8. Shenmue 1 & 2
After many years of requests and fan demand, Sega with help of D3T has finally released an HD collection of Shenmue 1 and 2. And as someone who’s never played these games when they first came out I’m so glad to finally experience a series that's beloved by gamers worldwide. In the first game, a teenager by the name of Ryo Hazuki witnesses the death of his father at the hands of Lan Di and is now seeking revenge. And in the second game it continues the story as Ryo travels to Hong Kong to hunt down his father's killer. Now I've literally only just started Shenmue 2 so I can't say much about it due to my PS4 breaking down shortly after I started playing it. So I'll talking about this collection from my playthrough of the first game. The games are open world RPG's with fighting game mechanics for it's enemy encounters which play like Virtua Fighter. Coincidentally this series directed by the same creator, Yu Suzuki. It took me a bit getting use to given this game's age. Which can also be said about using the forklift. And the motorcycle section can DIE IN A FUCKING HOLE!!! Stiff steering controls and a strict time limit. Granted you can try again if you fail which is the same when you lose a fight or fail some Quick Time Events. The presentation is an HD version of a Dreamcast game so the character models have shown their age and while the soundtrack is good but the audio for the English voices are noticeably compressed compared to the Japanese voices. Luckily the English voices are much clearer in the second game and the graphic look nicer due to being based on the Xbox port of Shenmue 2. But overall this collection is really good and worth the purchase at the low price it's at. And with Shenmue 3 on the way in 2019, now is the perfect time to get caught up.
Number 7. Mega Man Legacy Collection 1 and 2
I was really caught between which one to put here but since it was the entire classic series at the time of it's releases I decided to both Mega Man Legacy Collection 1 and 2 for this spot. So yeah, it's a tie. In Legacy Collection 1 you have the first 6 classic Mega Man games. With the addition of save states and a rewind button you can use anytime in case you mess up. Meanwhile on Legacy Collection 2 you have Mega Man 7 – 10. No Mega Man and Bass here which isn't a great loss considering how flawed and overly difficult that game is. The save state feature is back here but the rewind button has been omitted. The emulation for each game across both collections run really well and stay true to their original console counterparts. Tons of extras such as a museum mode to look at artwork for each game and a challenge mode where you part take in various challenges based on the game you selected. Which ranges from time trials and boss rushes. But my absolute favourite thing is finally being able to experience the sheer majesty that is Mega Man 8’s English voice acting. It's so ungodly bad is hilariously good and I love it. The gameplay for each game is accessible and challenging that really test the players skills and with a certain game that I'll talk about later on the horizon at the time, owning both Legacy Collections was a purchase I did not regret.
Number 6. Kirby Star Allies
As of recent, new Kirby platformers mostly been appearing on the 3DS and the only console Kirby game we had was Kirby and the Rainbow Paintbrush on the Wii U. Which was a follow up to the 2005 DS game Kirby Canvas Curse. But in 2018 we were greeted to a brand new Kirby game for the Nintendo Switch titled Kirby Star Allies. The story is that on the Jambandra space station far away from Kirby's home planet, a dark crystal heart explodes due to an imperfection in a mysterious ritual, sending its numerous fragments, Jamba Hearts, hurtling into deep space. Many characters, including King Dedede and Meta Knight, are possessed while investigating the hearts that land on Popstar. A heart hits Kirby, but it instead gives him the ability to befriend enemies by throwing hearts. And that's the main gimmick for this game. Along with copying enemy abilities like in most Kirby games you can throw hearts to befriend enemies to form a team of four to clear certain stage obstacles and have a better advantage against boss fights. Gameplay is easy and simple as that's per the norm for a Kirby game but for some of the additional modes it does get noticeably challenging. The presentation looks clean, colourful and detailed and the music is catchy and delightful to listen to. I can hands down say this is one my favourite entries in the series and hope Nintendo does well in the next one if they decide to make another one for the Switch.
Number 5. Hyrule Warriors Definitive Edition
Now it's time to talk about the other port of a Wii U game I played in 2018. And it's one that I thoroughly enjoyed. Hyrule Warriors Definitive Edition is an enhanced Switch port of a 2014 Wii U game that's a Dynasty Warriors spinoff featuring characters and settings from The Legend of Zelda series. In this game you travel through multiple Zelda timelines to stop a sorceress named Cia and recovery the pieces of TriForce to save Hyrule. Since this uses the Dynasty Warriors style of gameplay you run around beating up enemies while defending and claiming bases to lure out the boss in each level. It plays really well but like all Dynasty Warrior games the combat does get repetitive after awhile so it's best enjoyed in short bursts. You have an Adventure Mode with various challenges to unlock more characters. Some of which were DLC in the original Wii U game and the 3DS port Hyrule Warriors Legends. But the two exclusives to the Switch version is two player split screen and costumes for Link and Zelda based on their appearances from Breath of the Wild. The presentation is clean with improved visuals and draw distance compared to the Wii U version and running close to 60fps. Compared to Fire Emblem Warriors from last year I honestly think that Hyrule Warriors is the superior game. I liked Fire Emblem Warriors but I felt that this game did a better job in my opinion. If you missed out on this game the first or second time it came out then I highly recommend getting this version.
Number 4. Super Smash Bros Ultimate
I've only played this game for about a week now and I absolutely love this game! Because Ultimate is the right title for this entry. Every Super Smash Bros character from past and present are here along with new characters such as Ridley from Metroid, Simon from Castlevania and even Ken from Street Fighter to name a few. Like in previous entries, the game is a fighting game where you play as various Nintendo and third party characters to deal damage to your opponents. Higher the percentage, the more chance of knocking them off the stage to win. This goes for the multiplayer, Classic Mode and the returning Adventure Mode titled World of Light. Where a being named Galeem takes control of most the game's roster with Kirby being the sole survivor who is tasked with saving everyone and defeat Galeem. In this mode there's some RPG mechanics where you can level up your characters and spirits that you can use for additional perks. The gameplay is tight and solid, presentation looks amazing and detailed while running at a solid 60fps in both docked and in handheld mode and the music is epic and well composed consisting of remixes of classic tunes. The Amiibo feature returns from the last game where you can train your own CPU version of a character by scanning that character's Amiibo. And with the new Spirit feature you can also equip your Amiibo with spirits for additional attack and defence. So far this is a really enjoyable game and I'm already looking forward to the DLC.
Number 3. Dragon Ball FighterZ
Back at E3 2017 one of the games that got me super excited for was a new Dragon Ball fighting game developed by Arc System Works. The studio behind the Guilty Gear and BlazBlue series making a fighting featuring characters from Dragon Ball Z and Dragon Ball Super? Sounds badass doesn’t it? Well guess what? It is! Using the simplistic button combo system of the recent BlazBlue games and the cel shaded character model style of Guilty Gear Xrd for the fast paced intense battles of DBZ all combined to form one of the best fighting games in recent memory. The game features an original story mode that’s set between Dragon Ball Super's Future Trunks and Universe Survival sagas. Where an android from the Red Ribbon Army named Android 21 has made clones of the Z Fighters and villains they've fought over the years to cause havoc in order to obtain the energy from Earth’s strongest warriors to contain the hungry Majin Buu like monster inside her. So now it's up to Goku, his friends and even old enemies aswell a spirit(possibly the player) to save Earth from Android 21’s tyranny. The gameplay is simple yet satisfying to pull off ground and air combos to deal damage to your opponents with the tight controls the game has. The presentation looks great with the cel shaded character models that stay true to Akira Toriyama's original designs from the anime and manga. While it runs at 60fps but like in Guilty Gear Xrd during ultimate attacks, victories and story mode cutscenes the character models move at about 24fps to replicate the animated movement in a animated show or movie. Which is really good attention to detail. The soundtrack is consists of hard rock with some orchestral pieces thrown in and the voice actors from the anime are all present In English and Japanese. Surprising enough the online works really well with no input delays whatsoever. Even when facing someone with a poor connection. My favourite Dragon Ball game is still Dragon Ball Z Budokai 3 but this one comes close to being on par. Easily the best anime game on the market right now and I strongly recommend it to any fan of Dragon Ball.
Number 2. Mega Man 11
Just when we thought Capcom had abandoned the blue bomber for good. As part of Mega Man's 30th anniversary Capcom gave the fans what they wanted for years, a brand new classic Mega Man game simply titled Mega Man 11. Dr. Wily is up to his old tricks again so now it's up to Mega Man and the new Double Gear system to put a stop to him. The gameplay is the traditional Mega Man style of 2D platforming where you run, jump and shoot enemies in order to reach the Robot Master at the end of each stage. It's both challenging and addictive and the new Double Gear system is easily best new addition to the series as it lets you slow down time and power up your charge shots. The 2.5D presentation looks nicely cel shaded and runs at a solid 60fps in both docked and in handheld mode when played on the Nintendo Switch and the soundtrack has kinda grown on me since my review of the game. The challenge mode is a nice addition aswell as it really is challenging. It's just a joy to see Capcom finally releasing a new Mega Man after so long and I really hope we see more. Which as of this list Capcom has revealed they're working on a new Mega Man game but haven't confirmed weither or not it's either Mega Man 12 or Mega Man X9. But whatever game it is, I'll be looking forward to it. Until then we have this beauty of a game that shows that Capcom can make a new Mega Man game without Keiji Inafune.
And before I reveal the Number 1 spot, here are a few quick Honourable Mentions:
Pokémon Let's Go Pikachu
A really enjoyable 3D reimagining of the first generation of Pokémon. More specifically Pokémon Yellow. The motion controls work really well for catching Pokémon and the presentation looks great and the reimagined soundtrack is really good and nicely orchestrated. There's also an Eevee version for those who prefer to start they're journey with an Eevee. A great game to tie us over until the next mainline Pokémon game arrives.
Starlink: Battle for Atlus
I've only just started this game and I'm already won over by it. The toys to life functionality works well, the gameplay is solid and accessible to beginners, presentation looks great and music is pretty good. Especially the remix of Corneria from Star Fox. Oh yeah! The Switch version's starter pack includes an exclusive Fox McCloud pilot figure and Arwing to use for the game. So I strongly recommend getting Starlink for the Switch.
Mega Man X Legacy Collection 1 and 2
Since beating the entire classic series I decided to tackle the X series. I'm still currently playing each game on both of these collections so these only get an honourable mention. But the emulation for each games run flawlessly, has a museum mode to look at artwork and videos and there's a challenge mode for both collections for some added challenge.
Dragon Quest Heroes: The World Tree's Woe and the Blight Below
A pretty good game that merges the RPG mechanics of the Dragon Quest series with the hack ‘n slash gameplay of Dynasty Warriors. Also the presentation and music are good too. But this game's been out for a few years now so I decided to leave it off the list.
And without a doubt, my Number 1 Video Game of 2018 is...
Marvel's Spider-Man
Out of all the games to come out in 2018, this was the one that won me over the most. From start to finish Marvel's Spider-Man gave me the most enjoyment I've had in a open world game in awhile. The writing for this game story is superb as we take control of an adult Peter Parker who goes through the daily struggles of fighting crime, working at a lab with his mentor Otto Octavius, volunteering at a homeless shelter and dealing with relationship problems with Mary-Jane. And throughout the story there's suspense, laughs, intense battles and moments that are almost tear shedding like the ending that I dare not spoil because it's something that the player needs to experience for themselves. The gameplay is amazing and responsive. You really feel the weight of Spider-Man as you fight criminals and web swing across the city of New York. Already making it the most faithful interpretation of Spider-Man and even exceeding over Spider-Man 2 which for the longest time has been regarded as the best Spider-Man game. But from a gameplay stand point this game does it better in my opinion. Especially with all the upgrades and unlockable suits you can get in the game. The presentation is spectacular. Character models look expressive and detailed. And speaking of detailed, New York City in this looks amazing! Easily the best looking and near accurate portrayal of NYC I've seen in a video game. Complete with Easter eggs littered throughout for Marvel fanatics. Some of which you can't help but go nuts with the photo mode. The music is epic and grand scaled and sounds likes it's rip out of a Marvel movie. In recent years gamers have regarded the Batman Arkham series as the best modern superhero games but in some areas I honestly think this is better. It may have taken two years to develop but it was worth the wait and I'm already eagerly awaiting to see what Insomniac has in stored for a sequel. With it's amazing story and spectacular gameplay, I easily consider Marvel's Spider-Man as the Number 1 Video Game of 2018.
And those were my Top 10 Video Games of 2018. This was kinda a hard one to do as I tried to decided between Marvel's Spider-Man and Dragon Ball FighterZ for the Number 1 spot. Obviously there were games that didn't get to play like Red Dead Redemption 2 and Shadow of the Tomb Raider but I managed to do what I could and hopefully some of you aren't too bummed out that God of War wasn't on here. Do you agree with this list? And what were your favourite games of 2018? Feel free to let me know on social media. Until then thanks for reading, have a happy new year and I'll see you all in another list.
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