5 games you should and 5 games you shouldn't have played in 2010

Well, 2010, that finished a while back. Dragged a bit towards the end, too. Here are some games you should have played last year, and some you should have avoided like people holding clipboards in city centres.

Should – Super Mario Galaxy 2 (Wii)

There were rumblings when Super Mario Galaxy 2 was announced. Hardcore gamers thought it was a concession, a bone thrown in their general direction by a Nintendo that didn't care about them any more. Got that a bit wrong, didn't you? Super Mario Galaxy 2 was a triumph, a game that sparkled with the Nintendo glitter of old. It built on everything that the original had offered, as well as decades of accumulated platforming experience. Hardcore games don't have to be soaked in blood and swear words and breasts, but they do have to be really bloody good, which Super Mario Galaxy 2 is.

Shouldn't – Fighters Uncaged (Xbox 360)

A Kinect launch title that was all gritty violence, streetwise cool and sweaty men wearing hoodies. The control mechanism was floppy and unresponsive, the content was lacking and what was a reasonably good idea was lost underneath a mess of a game, in desperate need of another six months testing before release. A bandwagon jumper that attempted to ensnare gamers who weren't interested in cartoony adventures, dancing or looking after virtual tigers. It didn't work.

Should – Red Dead Redemption (multi)

Rockstar's nun wrangling, great Western adventure is everything you'd expect it to be and more. A vast, bristling, changing world for you to play in, and a sweeping, epic story to lose yourself in. Much more than GTA: Sergio Leone, RDR showed the world that videogames can have the same scope and beauty as films, whilst still being engaging and enjoyable. It may have had its share of bugs and problems, but boiled down to its simplest parts, it's a real joy.

Shouldn't – Quantum Theory (multi)

Quantum Theory is less of a Gears Of War clone and more of a Gears Of War paint by numbers. The game lifts the main roll-hide-shoot mechanic from Epic's modern gem, adds nothing to it save for a few curves in the architecture and thinks that that's enough. It's not. The game feels muddy and incomplete, ugly and lacking the polish you'd expect from a triple A title. The fact that it's the most cynical rip off of the year is the putrid icing on the rotten cake.

Should – Limbo (XBLA)

One of the bleakest games of the year turns out to be one of the best. A download-only platformer with a jarring art style, creepy music, terrifying giant spiders and some of the most excruciating death animations you'll have ever seen. Limbo is almost as grim as it is enjoyable, a gruelling experience wrapped in a monochrome shell and topped with the sort of puzzling only 2D platformers can offer. A joy and a trial, and worth every point you spend on it.

Shouldn't – Dead Space Ignition (multi)

A cynical, cash sucking downloadable title that primarily exists to unlock extras for the forthcoming Dead Space 2. So devoid of content that it could be seen as a metaphor for the vast emptiness of space, Ignition is neither particularly interactive or slightly entertaining. Much like Fable 2's Pub Games from 2008, this is a marketing ploy wrapped in the promise of DLC. No extra unlockables can be worth the mind numbing tedium you'd have to endure to get them.


Should – Bayonetta (multi)

Bayonetta is a spectacularly camp masterpiece. Hilarious and fiendishly difficult, it's the illegitimate daughter of a bawdy 60s sex romp and Devil May Cry. A crazed, cheeky hack and slasher with all the presentational subtlety of a Vegas strip show and a combat system so intricate and layered it deserves an award on its own. Platinum Studios are one of the most exciting development houses out there at the moment, and Bayonetta is their crowning achievement.

Shouldn't – Star Wars: The Force Unleashed 2 (multi)

The first Force Unleashed was flawed but enjoyable, losing its way after the first three hours or so and stumbling to a conclusion that was at least satisfactory. Unfortunately, Lucas Arts decided that to rectify this problem, they'd make a sequel that only lasted three hours and that lacked any of the original game's charm, excitement or fun. Strangely enough, the plan didn't work, and The Force Unleashed 2 in an execrable mess.

Should – Enslaved: Odyssey To The West (multi)

Enslaved is the forgotten gem of 2010, a magnificent, beautiful, epic game that was criminally ignored by the buying public. A retelling of Journey To The West set in a distant future where robots rule the world, Enslaved was a cerebral blockbuster, eschewing bombastic explodey combat for a more measured, narrative led approach. Critically lauded, colourful and home to some of the best acting seen on any console for a long time, Enslaved deserved to sell far more units than it did.

Shouldn't – Final Fantasy XIV (PC)

Final Fantasy XIV may one day turn into a decent MMO, but at the moment it's a cobbled together mess. People have resigned over how buggy and incomplete the game is. Trading on its title, the game is an update of the grind heavy FFXI, and on release was, in places, unplayable. Cue complaints, team restructuring, and a payment suspension for anyone who bought the game. FFXIV should be a lesson to anyone planning on releasing a game that isn't ready: don't. Maybe in 2011 the game will reach a position where it's as enjoyable as it promised, but in 2010 it was one to avoid.

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