Aaron Blevins- Top 10 Games of 2013

2013 was one of the best years we have ever seen in video games.  With the launch of the PS4 and Xbox One bringing new consoles into my life, but yet Nintendo delivered great games all year long (taking up half of my list!), if you enjoy games, there was something for everyone this year.  This is my personal top 10 games of 2013 , of the games that I played, (sadly I have not played Last of Us)

10. Bioshock Infinite (360)

Bioshock Started off this year strong, releasing in March, had me taking off from work to see what the next entry in the Bioshock series brings.  As a HUGE fan of the first 2 and the atmosphere it created, Infinite focused on a story and had one of the best endings we have ever seen in video games.  It had me confused and thinking while having to show the ending to my Fiance (who does not follow video games) just so she could experience it.  Infinite would have been higher if it wasn't for rather average shooting gameplay and Vigors leaving me wishing  for Plasmids had come back.

9. Animal Crossing New Leaf (3DS)

Animal Crossing is one of those games that feeds my "addictive personality" of collecting and having the absolute best.  Nintendo spends so much time adding so many items and customization options for your house, while also giving you the power to layout your city with your Mayor powers.  New Leaf is a game that goes along with my 3DS everywhere I am going and I haven't spent this much time with Animal Crossing since getting my gold statue erected in the original.

8. The Legend of Zelda : Windwaker HD (Wii U)

Nintendo blessed me with a HD remake of my second favorite Zelda.  While playing through the original MULTIPLE times, it is nice to see more people get to experience the wonderful art style and gameplay, while making sailing and the last quest "easier" so more people can complete this wonderful masterpiece.

7. Dead Rising 3 (Xbox One)

Never being a fan of the previous Dead Rising, yet always a fan of zombies, Dead Rising 3 would be my surprise of the year.  The scale of the city is perfect enough to never get lost in, with TONS of zombies on screen at once, make it a blast to explore in.  With the enhanced combo system, I got so much joy of finding new weapons and testing them out on the 100's of zombies in front of me.  With so many side quests and just pure fun of slicing a zombie in half with a lightsaber, I have completed this game twice, once regular and another Nightmare mode, and still never gets old slaughtering 400 zombies at a time.  Dead Rising 3 is my definitive Next Gen title of the year.

6. Devil May Cry (360)

Devil May cry was one of my favorites of all time, and the reboot to the series felt so fresh and the combat system Ninja Theory created is top notch.  The fast paced action, with great boss battles, left a mark on me very early in the year and I knew that it would have a spot in my top games of the year.  With challenging difficulty modes and the ability to "never touch the ground" during certain combos, solidified it's spot and still is a game I love to load up and play a few levels.

5. Super Mario 3D World ( Wii U)

Another reason my Wii U kept the dust off of it this year was this wonderful gem of a Mario game released in late November.  A game me and my girlfriend can play together, while planning to have the true 4-player experience soon, the time I get to spend with Mario in a cat suit in these WONDERFULLY designed levels, proves that Nintendo always has an Ace up their sleeves with Mario, whether it's classic 2D, sending him to another Galaxy, or bringing him back to a 3D world.

4. Pokemon X and Y

It’s always an exciting time for me when a Nintendo releases a new Pokemon game.  With a worldwide release, everyone gets to experience and discover everything Pokemon has to offer, instead of information leaking and being translated beforehand.  With major graphic enhancements, easier training, new techniques for shiny hunting, and an easy to follow, streamlined experience make these enhancements feel fresh and exciting.  With spending over 100 hours collecting, training and shiny hunting,  Pokemon X and Y mark my favorite game in the series since Gold and Silver.

3. Grand Theft Auto 5

Rockstar created one of the best swan songs to a console generation ever.  They created a living, breathing sandbox city with so much to see, you can literally get lost in city, not only due to it's size, but it's beauty.  Rockstar's attention to detail in GTA 5 is top notch.  I spend most of my time trying out every type of sports car that I can find and with all the customization options available, i can truly make it mine.  The mission design is also excellent and pulling off the major heists just leaves you satisfied.  I could go on for hours talking about GTA 5 but it's one of those game you must play to believe.

2. Killer Instinct (Xbox One)

ULLLLLLTRAAAAAAA COOOOMMMMMBOOOOOO!!  Killer Instinct has been on my list of games that need a sequel for a LONG time and Double Helix came through!  It's been so many years since I got to hear the announcer making me feel accomplished for every combo i pull off.  In fact I turned the announcer up to 100 with everything else normal just so he would SCREAM every time i pulled off a combo breaker or the Ultra finisher.  All of the characters feel different, I use Saberwulf, and with the addition of being able to customize your character adds special flare to your favorite character.  Killer Instinct is a fun fighting game that is easy for anyone to play and a tough game to master.  With an in depth training guide and the ability to see hit boxes, you can spend hours praticing your perfect combos.  Whenever people come over and want to check out the Xbox One I always show off Killer Instinct.  Killer Instinct is an excellent fighter game and challenging fighters online and locally is just a ton of fun.

1. Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds (3DS)

Nintendo creates another masterpiece with A Link Between Worlds.  A sequel to one of the greatest games ever, A Link to the Past, will seem familiar at first, but as the game progresses, you will see how Nintendo always figures out a way to make every Zelda game a near perfect experience.  With Link's new ability of pressing on to the wall it adds a unique twist to the traditional style of puzzles we are used to seeing over the years in past Zeldas.  Another neat addition is the ability to rent items instead of having to find them, which helps exploration, so you can take off and handle the game the way you want too.  An excellent story is also told and once you "find your usual 3 items" in the beginning the game really takes off.  A Link Between Worlds is reason enough to own a 3DS.