To put it lightly, I think I nearly doubled my game library this year.  I had a well paying job that allowed me to splurge for myself in ways I really haven’t in the past.  With all this new disposable income [insert ‘Thanks Obama’ meme here], I managed to purchase a number of games I’ve never played before in addition to the many incredible releases that came out this year.  And as a year ends, it’s pretty obvious that every blogger in the world is going to be coming up with the “Best of 2013” lists.  So naturally I’m just doing my duty as another blogger, who doesn’t have the time or wit to come up with something more original.

Truth be told, the number 1 shouldn’t surprise you, it’s pretty much one of the greatest games I’ve ever played, but it might be interesting to see the other games I’ve taken a hand at this past year.  If you’re doubting my nerd cred, these games do not take into account the older games that were released in other times that I’ve picked up [These titles include Minecraft, League of Legends, and Shadow the Colossus, Sly Cooper, etc].

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2013 Releases

8. Saint Row IV

I absolutely adored Saints Row the Third as an over the top third person shooter that let you do a lot of the things Grand Theft Auto games didn’t because of it’s very serious tone.  So when Saints Row IV promoted it’s alien nemesis and super powers, it was pretty difficult to let this one slide.  And while I had a blast running, flying, and beating up everything around Steelport, I felt like this game was largely a reskin of Saints Row the Third.  That being said, Saints Row the Third was still a ton of fun, so a reskin isn’t exactly the worst thing in the world.

7. Bioshock Ultimate Rapture Edition

To get hype for Bioshock Infinite, I decided to buy this Ultimate Edition to accomplish two things: 1) replay Bioshock 1 in higher resolution [the first time I played it was on my crappy laptop on the lowest settings] and 2) play Bioshock 2.  I was able to relive the horrors of Rapture in addition to diving deeper into the atmosphere and lore.  I haven’t exactly finished Bioshock 2, but it’s comfortable knowing that it will be there when I have the free time to finally finish it up.

6. Starbound [Beta]

Some of my favorite Youtubers all of a suddenly started uploading this game that looked similar to Terrairia called Starbound.  After looking into it, I found out that it had a very successful Kickstarter campaign.  Being an incredible fan of Minecraft and wanting to get into Terrairia myself, this was a perfect jumping platform to get on a very cool bandwagon.  This was the first time I’ve ever participated in a Beta and I’m having a blast testing out this incredible and seemingly endless game.

5. Kingdom Hearts 1.5HD Remix

I had a PS2 and I never got into Kingdom Hearts.  I thought that chance would be gone forever until I heard that they would be releasing an HD release onto the PS3.  I immediately pre-ordered it to get a chance to find out what all the buzz was about.  I still find it incredible that Disney among other companies allowed this incredible universe to be put together.  I quickly fell in love with the game and it’s adorable characters.  I’m very glad to have joined a new cult following and eagerly await for the 2.5 HD remix in addition to the eventual Kingdom Hearts 3 release.

4. Bioshock Infinite

Being an incredible fan of the original Bioshock, I was mega hype for this would be sequel.  As I traveled to Columbia, I was immersed in a city as complex and compelling as Rapture.  With similar horrors, plot twists, and chaotic gameplay as the original game, Bioshock Infinite continued the incredible reputation for Irrational Games to create memorable games.  Though there are some flaws that don’t make it as great as the original Bioshock, that doesn’t stop this game from being one of the most memorable games of 2013.

3. Grand Theft Auto V

There isn’t a game that has probably put more time and effort into a game as Grand Theft Auto V.  So much love and detail was poured into created Los Santos, the three main characters, and the now addictive multiplayer component.  Grand Theft Auto is fairly flawless, creating an incredibly memorable single player story [that I have yet to finish because I’m an awful person, during the multiplayer launch my main story file got corrupted].  The continued addition of multiplayer features makes me continue coming back to this game.  It’s such a great game to be added towards the end of the previous generation consoles that allow us to still have reasons to keep our current consoles before trading them out for the newest versions.

2. The Walking Dead Complete Series

I know this was a big 2012 release and that everyone talked it about it then, but it didn’t properly port to consoles on a single disc until 2013, so I’m including it here.  I’ve already wrote an indepth article as to why this game is so incredible, but I’ll reiterate in a tl;dr fashion.  This game truly makes you live the consequences of your choices in emotionally brutal ways.  Clementine is probably one of the top video game characters of this decade.  The events that happened in this game will never leave you.

1. The Last of Us

Was there any doubt in your mind?  If you’re reading this list, odds are that you’ve read about a dozen other lists that have this same exact number 1 in their slot.  There isn’t a more potent emotionally and physically wrecking game out there.  After my play sessions, I recall being exhausted from the stress inducing atmosphere that is The Last of Us.  I’ve already written an article that goes through the best and worst of The Last of Us, but the tl;dr version is that this game isn’t getting all the buzz it’s getting for nothing.  Whether you think it’s the best game ever or overrated, you can’t deny that it’s accomplished such an incredible release during the PS3’s last years of exclusivity before the PS4 wave of games.