James wasn't too impressed by Watch Dogs 2 when he reviewed it, and for good reason. The shooting isn't great, the stealth is basic and finickity, and the open world does suffer from that specific Ubisoft-brand busywork, with lots of collectibles all collected by doing the same basic thing over and over again. And while I'd never resort to using overly flowery terms like 'ludo-narrative dissonance', it's hard not to see some major dissonance within Watch Dogs 2's narrative—y'know, ludologically speaking. This is a game about hackers trying to solve the worlds problems by a) causing the same problems to different people, b) doing straight up crimes, c) possibly lots of murders with your 3D printed weapons. It's really dumb.
But this is the nature of subjectivity and preference. One man's 68% is another man's 'hold on, I'm having a great time here.' By which I mean Watch Dogs 2 has lots of problems, but I'm loving it despite them.
The key here is that I love playing around with systems in a sandbox environment, and, as long as I have that, I can forgive a lack of immersion or consistent characterisation. The best games—for instance, Dishonored 2—offer both. Even great games—Hitman—feature enough of the latter. Watch Dogs 2, arguably, does not. It is weird that this can be a game about shooting up the entirety of San Francisco—more so even than GTA 4, a game specifically about how much the main character wanted to make a new, less murderous life for himself. But Watch Dogs 2 is still filled with interesting systems, and each mission is a miniature sandbox in which to apply them.
These characters aren't using each other, or being needlessly dickish or competitive.
The RC car is a fantastic device. With it, you're able to scout out an area, remotely hack terminals, and, in the best cases, complete your mission objective without entering a vehicle. This is what makes Watch Dogs 2 work for me: even though stealth is shallow, it's the route to an extra level of systems and challenge that reward creative solutions.
In one ostensibly difficult infiltration mission, I sent in my RC car via window lift. Alas, downloading the data required me to be physically near the the target computer. Rather than repeat the RC car's route in person, I again used the lift to reach a place on the roof—technically putting myself in proximity of my target, but also far above it. An entire building of guards were searching for me as I chilled on the roof. That's a great expression of Watch Dogs 2's stated atmosphere.
Away from the systemic freedom on offer, I also appreciate Watch Dogs 2's fiction—something I never thought I'd say based on the tiresomely dour original. This is a game about people who fundamentally like each other. These characters aren't using each other, or being needlessly dickish or competitive. All of the conflict comes from outside the core group, who grow closer as a result of their shared goals. Essentially, they're mates. That's a surprisingly rare thing for a game to depict, and precisely why it feels so weird that you can print out an expensive sniper rifle and go full psychopath.
It's a cathartic game, too. There's something inherently satisfying about being able to dick over a person who is definitely not Martin Shkreli, or an organisation that is definitely not Scientology, or a company that is definitely not Facebook. It's silly of course—the most exaggerated, Hackers-esque version of hacking. But that's fine. It adds to the absurd sense of fun.
So yes, Watch Dogs 2 is a game with major problems. But its systemic depth, tone and setting made for my favourite open world game of the year. It's not something I'll ever 100% complete, or even remember much in a couple of years time, but, right now, it's an entertaining place to enjoy.
No other game has let me muck about with a scissor lift for an afternoon, and that has to count for something.
Among 2016's many gifts (I couldn't even limit my favorite games of the year to 10), it was the year that the best large-scale cooperative FPS got an awesome jungle.
Call Arma 3 a 'military simulation' if you want, but to me it's a platform for saying some military words with your buds as you wander over big, cool slabs of terrain to shoot AI targets. That terrain matters a lot, though—Arma's maps are the centerpieces for each game. They're the canvases that amateur mission makers use to create the nighttime recon missions, ambushes, tank fights, assassinations, and thousands of other scenarios that populate the Steam Workshop. Their contours, towns, regions, bridges, elevations, forestry, and other details are what give Arma's scenarios character.
When Bohemia added a South Pacific archipelago to Arma 3 this year, it made the game grittier. Anyone who played DayZ knows what it's like to get lost in Chernarus' forests, but that feeling pales in comparison to Tanoa's paranoia-inducing jungles. In places, Tanoa feels like you've stepped into Predator (there's an Easter egg to this effect, too).
Its overgrowth neutralizes some of Arma 3’s fanciest gear in a way I really like: thermal goggles and remote-controlled drones kind of suck when you’re inside a dense tropical forest with short sight lines, and helicopters have a hard time landing or spotting anyone hiding in the stuff. If Arma 3 in 2013 was about near-future tech, Tanoa nudged it closer to late-'80s warfare, where you had to wade through waist-high grass and your hands dirty rather than score kills with a recoilless prototype rifle with 10 attachments on the rail.
Tanoa has a clearer, more likable personality than Arma's other terrains, partly because it's 'just' 100km2, compared to Altis' 270km2. Arma 3's original map is massive and variegated, and it must be one of the biggest handmade environments ever released for a multiplayer FPS. But after awhile, its Mediterranean sunniness wore on me. Strafing an idyllic beach town with machinegun fire feels a little weird.
I love Tanoa's identity and the atmosphere it lends Arma. Its 100 square kilometers of tropical terrain is a cover album of real-life locations like Lihir Island and Fiji: huge swathes of jungle beside a variegated mixture of plains, shoreline, and scrubland. Populating the archipelago are farms, refineries, mines, beachside villages, logging camps, ancient ruins, and a dead volcano, all ripe landmarks for Arma's scenario editor. Step into the forest in the afternoon, and you’ll hear birds and insects chattering. But at nighttime, it’s a different sound: unsettling owls and other nocturnal things punctuating a constant cricket hum. Thunderstorms drop piercing rain and sky bass, imbuing any mission with drama.
It's a setting that encourages scrappy, grounded encounters—a lot of the missions in Steam Workshop are raids on drug lord hideouts or a similar theme, taking advantage of two of the added factions, Syndikat (local drug dealers) and Gendarmarie (militarized police). Creeping around through shrubbery with guerrillas or spec ops alike feels perfectly natural.
We already have a pretty clear sense of what's coming to Arma 3 in 2017: a variety of paid and free DLC with a focus on combined arms (including a return of Malden, the original Arma's terrain), and ongoing platform improvements. Modders will continue to fill in the gaps, but as an incredible year in PC gaming comes to a close I remain excited about the simple fun and tension of crawling on my simulated stomach through tall grass in Tanoa.
Videogame music has its classics, and they’re usually easy to pinpoint as they trickle out every few months, and previously, every few years—but now, we can hardly keep up. To help sift through all the (lovely) noise, we put together a collection of our favorite soundtracks of the year. If you don’t see your favorite here, share it with us in the comments and let us know why it stands out. If you like the music, be sure to let the artist know—maybe buy a few records on vinyl, invite some friends over, sip some fancy wine and let a track like “Yellow Furry Mushroom Tune” take you where it will.
Thumper
Brian GibsonListen hereThumper’s music isn’t comforting, it’s not easy to bob your head to, it doesn’t have delicious hooks that’ll pop up in your mind hours later for easy listening. It’s music designed to suffocate and overwhelm, composed around the violent, rhythmic game design, not as separate thematic entity. Completely intertwined with how Thumper plays and feels, it’s easily one of the best soundtracks this side of the fourth dimension. —James
No Man's Sky
65daysofstaticListen hereSay what you will about how No Man’s Sky plays, but from a purely aesthetic point of view, it’s a vast, gorgeous collection of sci-fi paperback book covers. 65daysofstatic’s soundtrack works as a musical stand-in for the wonder one feels ripping through the pages. It’s not a huge departure from their usual sound—distorted guitars, swinging dynamics, crisp percussion, and eerie electronics samples—but it’s all a perfect fit, like they were composing a soundtrack for space exploration this entire time. —James
Owlboy
Jonathan GreerListen hereAbove the jovial plucking of strings, another set sways in and out of a sad, mysterious melody. It feels like there’s a history to Strato, one that betrays the colorful pixel art and buoyant floating fantasy setting. Owlboy is spilling over with gorgeous, playful, and energetic musical motifs for every character and setting that would make classic Disney movies turn their head and stare. —James
Slayer Shock
Dave PittmanListen here‘Thirst’, appropriately enough, reminds of walking around after a few too many drinks. Like the rest of the soundtrack, it places a twangy bass front and center, and it walks around each sparse song, in and out of corners, scurrying across darkened dirt roads, all the while barely keeping itself together. It might be short, but Pittman’s score is a potent dose of whimsy and danger, one that can sustain as much supernatural sleuthing as you’re capable of. —James
Abzû
Austin WintoryListen hereAs lovely a venture as Abzû is, without Austin Wintory’s reverberating, mysterious, and invigorating score, its best moments would fall entirely flat. The psychedelic underwater visuals and music split the work of directing the player, emotionally and physically, through Abzû’s inspirational aquatic set pieces. You’ll never look at a shark without humming its motif again. Unless it’s about to eat you. Stay safe out there. —James
Okhlos
A Shell in the PitListen hereA good selection of the best game music of the last few years has all come from A Shell in the Pit, serving up lovely soundtracks for the likes of Duelyst, Rogue Legacy, Parkitect, and more. Okhlos’ tunes are another notch in the belt, an intense, fluid combination of modern chiptune headbangers and classic instrumentation. It’s the rare soundtrack that makes me want to sit around all day to play games and dance until I pass out. —James
Furi
Carpenter Brut, Danger, The Toxic Avenger, Lorn, Scattle, Waveshaper, Kn1ghtListen hereFeaturing host of talented electronic artists, Furi’s soundtrack sounds like John Carpenter reimagined for the dancefloor. It’s an energetic and indulgent synthesizer parade that stays glassy and mysterious through every Roxbury headbob. —James
Doom
Mick GordonListen hereDoom’s music is beaming with the same charm and energy as its brutal combat, both a tongue-in-cheek yet tasteful overexertion. The guitar has enough feedback to keep a family full for months and the double bass drum pedals might register as an earthquake in certain regions. This is some greasy, chewy metal with industrial influences. The main title incorporates the 1993 theme from Doom’s E1M1, while “Flesh and Metal” pulls riffs from Chris Vrenna’s Doom 3 theme. Listen to “BFG Division.” Turn it up loud enough to get grounded. —James
Samorost 3
Tomáš DvořákListen here The best of the year, for me. Captivating and unpredictable, one moment Tomáš Dvořák’s music fills the room like a dramatic film score, then pivots to being grounded, Bohemian, and playful. These songs match and elevate the spirit of Samorost 3, but they stand alone surprisingly well. “This is the first time that an album has inspired me to play a video game,” a Bandcamp review admits. Start with “Prenatal Hunters.” —Evan
Hyper Light Drifter
DisasterpeaceListen here Disasterpeace (Fez, It Follows) uses lo-fi digital audio to evoke history, mood, and place with surprising effect. Imagine unearthing a centuries old chiptune soundtrack, the analog decay turning otherwise clean digital frequencies into tired, weather worn instrumentation. Like the whole of Hyper Light Drifter, the music feels like an artifact from a distant future’s past. —James
Oxenfree
SCNTFCListen here SCNTFC’s Oxenfree OST is a dense collection of electronic music with a dark edge, like it’s being played through an analog boombox that’s been dropped a few times too many. Smooth synthetic tones give way to warbled distortion that, no matter how bright the melody, feel aged and mysterious. Boards of Canada definitely come to mind. Start with “Cold Comfort.” —James
Dark Souls 3
Motoi Sakuraba(OST included with game purchase)It takes 10 seconds to understand what kind of place Firelink Shrine is, all thanks to its theme. Before you talk to anyone or explore its space, the strings tell a sad story, wavering in and out of silence while the soft, somber vocals of a lone woman leave a quiet trace of hope. It’s an interpretive characterization of the world and its inhabitants rarely executed in games with such precision. —James
The Aquatic Adventure of the Last Human
Karl FlodinListen here Aquatic Adventure’s soundtrack layers chiptune minimalism with some atmospheric underwater distortion to give each song a clear identity with a strong melody or theme. I can hear a tune and immediately recall the location or boss fight it’s tied to. Start near the surface with “Seaweed Forest” before diving deep into “The Heart of the City.” —James
The Banner Saga 2
Austin WintoryListen here With The Banner Saga 2, Austin Wintory (Journey, Assassin’s Creed: Syndicate) scores his first sequel. His pieces swell and climax, but don’t give way to a massive orchestral crescendo. Instead, they stay sparse, even as bright brass instrumentation takes the lead, backing instruments fall out. The world is breaking apart, it’s cold, everyone is dying, and all the pride and hope in the world can hardly make a dent. —James
Brigador
Makeup and Vanity SetListen here Synthesizers operated by ski mask-wearing cyberpunks. It’s terrific to see the talent of Makeup and Vanity Set lended to this independent game, and their sound is a perfect fit. The second track, “There Is No Law Here,” says it all. If you really enjoyed the movie Drive, get in here. —Evan
Poly Bridge
Adrian TalensListen here Soothing and mellow acoustic guitar is the perfect match for building rickety, collapsing bridges. When you send busloads of tiny passengers plunging into a river amidst splintering wood and steel beams, you'll barely even care because the music is just so damn relaxing. You can buy the Poly Bridge soundtrack as DLC on Steam (it also comes with the Deluxe Edition of the game, which just left early access in July). The composer even invites you to learn to play songs from the soundtrack yourself. —Chris L
Abandon Ship first unfurled its mast last month, and excited us with its promise of "FTL-meets-Sunless Sea in the golden age of sail". We've not seen much since, which is why it gives us great pleasure to announce developer Fireblade Software will give its first ever Abandon Ship public demonstration at the PC Gamer Weekender 2017.
The session hosted by Fireblade will showcase some of the seafaring adventure's core mechanics—explaining how players will control their ship's crew, what each part of their ship does, and some of the gameplay systems they'll come up against such as weather and weaponry. More information on Abandon Ship can be found via the game's site.
As you may already know, Fireblade joins the likes of Failbetter Games at the PCG Weekender—the latter of whom will be chatting about its forthcoming Sunless Skies.
Both the Sega and Bandai Namco Entertainment Zones are also set to return for 2017—which means you'll have the chance to get your hands on the likes of Sega's Motorsport Manager, Dawn of War 3, Tekken 7, Little Nightmares and many more.
Microsoft makes it debut too, bringing with it Halo Wars 2—in particular its Blitz Firefight mode—while Torn Banner and Koch will be there with Mirage: Arcane Warfare and Sniper Ghost Warrior 3 respectively.
New Hitman is my favourite Hitman. Its levels are some of the most intricate, well-designed puzzle-boxes on PC, with countless entertaining ways to solve them. I love those early moments where you're wandering the level in disguise, learning its patterns and mechanisms, working out how to complete your objective. Then attempting something, inevitably screwing it up, and improvising to dig yourself out of a hole.
My favourite games are the kind that encourage and reward creative thinking, and that's something Hitman does brilliantly. If you have an absurd idea, the game will almost always accommodate and react to it. And even if your plan is hopeless, it's still fun to experiment, poking and prodding at the systems until they fall apart.
And the levels look beautiful. IO Interactive has some of the most talented environment artists in the business, and Agent 47's world tour in Hitman takes him to some amazing places. There's Sapienza, of course, which sees him travelling to Italy's sun-soaked Amalfi Coast. I love the upmarket spa and high-end hospital combo in Hokkaido too, and the jarring presence of the ultra-modern Swedish embassy in Marrakech. The variety of countries and locations you visit to cause trouble is very James Bond.
It's a game with a sense of humour, and there are numerous cruel and ironic ways to deal with your targets.
I wouldn't say the AI is smart exactly, but IO has definitely done a better job of making them feel like people. So if you get caught trespassing in a restricted area, you won't be immediately shot on the spot. A guard will warn you to leave, then guide you patiently to the exit if you refuse. It’s more forgiving in general, and the optional ‘opportunities’ to point out possible ways to complete the mission are a welcome addition.
These little AI touches make the NPCs around you feel a lot more organic and reactive. Although they are a little too eager to drop whatever they're doing, no matter how important, to follow the sound of a thrown coin. There's a cyclist in the Sapienza level writhing on the ground after an accident who will suddenly stand bolt upright, miraculously healed, if you drop a coin nearby.
But quirks like this are, weirdly, a part of Hitman's charm. It's a game with a sense of humour, and there are numerous cruel and ironic ways to deal with your targets. The forgettable storyline is told through cinematic, self-serious cut-scenes, but then you get into the game and suddenly you're killing people with explosive golf balls and dressing up in silly outfits. Hitman is at its best when it embraces the absurdity of its assassinations—especially in the brilliant bonus missions, which cleverly remix a few levels, including turning Sapienza into a B-movie set.
Hitman's level setups aren't quite as imaginative as those in Blood Money. That game still has the new one beat in terms of interesting premises. But in every other respect it's a much better game. The systems are richer, the AI is sharper, the controls are more refined, and the addition of side missions like elusive targets and escalations keeps you coming back for more long after finishing it.After the disappointing Absolution (which had some great levels hidden among all the forced cinematic nonsense, to be fair), it's great to see IO Interactive realising and doubling down on what people really love about their most famous series: namely big, open sandboxes full of possibilities, amusing ways to kill people, and a variety of ludicrous costumes to wear while doing it. I can't wait for the next season.
2015 had its fair share of spectacular moments, but this year has seen the combination of individual skill with copious amounts of luck taken to whole new heights. From airborne multikills to superb finales, here are some of this year’s standout moments for Counter-Strike: Global Offensive.
Death has wings
If this year left you feeling cold, that could only be a good sign: as Luminosity Gaming’s Marcelo 'coldzera' David demonstrated. In the first half of this year, LG (now SK Gaming) were carving a path through the best teams in the world. Running into Team Liquid in the semifinals of the MLG Columbus Major, they hit a bit of a bump. At 15-9 down, coldzera was the sole line of defence standing between Liquid and Mirage’s B-bombsite. As it turned out, he was all the defence LG needed.
Landing a jumping double-kill noscope is an unlikely prospect at the best of times, but for coldzera to pull it off and another two kills to save match point at a Major? Phenomenal. The blow proved too much for Liquid, who went on to lose the game in overtime. The full final can be found here.
The event has since been immortalized on the map with artwork of a winged AWP. You can find it tucked in by the van on the B-bombsite. Coldzera was such a fan of the piece that he commissioned a tattoo artist to recreate it.
Simple sniping
The AWP sniper rifle is Counter-Strike’s most iconic gun, recognisable instantly by its thunderous boom. If you think yourself an expert, however, let Oleksandr "s1mple" Kostyliev enlighten you with some less conventional uses.
Left in a 1v1 with his opponent holed up in Dust2’s B-bombsite, s1mple throws both caution and his AWP to the wind in an audacious play. By hurling a massive gun over the wall, his opponent is distracted just long enough for s1mple to push in and take the round with a pistol.
S1mple is no stranger to making bold plays and, clearly envious of coldzera’s success, he couldn’t help but pull of his own spectacular noscope kills. Taking an aggressive 1v2 fight, Simple drops from Heaven on Cache’s B-bombsite, sniper in hand. Hitting one player on the way down, he then follows up with an absurd unscoped shot on the remaining terrorist. Map creator FMPONE was quick to mock up some artistic graffiti for the level, a change since added by Valve. Matching coldzera, s1mple had the work tattooed onto his arm.
The best grand final: Luminosity Gaming vs. G2, ESL Pro League Season 3
The best grand final: Luminosity Gaming vs. G2, ESL Pro League Season 3The ESL Pro League Season 3 Grand Final hosted Brazilians Luminosity against the French G2 in a sublime five match finale. Taking place in May, LG were still riding high off their MLG Colombus Major victory. G2—after barely scraping through qualification— produced an underdog tale for the books, dominating the group stage before besting Fnatic in the semifinals. The final heralded one of the best series in years.
Map five honoured Inferno with a fitting send off before its removal and eventual rework by Valve. Despite the map holding a heavy CT-bias, the two teams traded round after round in a brutal slugfest each half. Both sides so evenly matched, it took a heart-stopping overtime finish to establish a champion. Best of five series are extremely rare these days in CS, and the ESL Pro League proved just how much of a spectacle they can offer. If you’d like to start from the beginning, game one can be found here.
A first for North America: Cloud9 win the ESL Pro League
Following the brilliant performance of SK Gaming, the standard of competition in North America (NA) has been driven to new heights. Everyone from Team Liquid to CLG has had their moment to shine, but none quite managed to capitalise on a large international win. Fortunately, when America needed a saviour, old favourites Cloud9 stepped up to the mantle. Ousting the defending champions SK gaming 2-1, they became the first NA team to win the ESL Pro League and claim the greater share of the $600,000 prize pool.
A recent acquisition for C9, Timothy "autimatic" Ta gave an exemplary account, rising to the challenge time after time to dismantle SK. Following C9’s success, OpTic Gaming have taken the ELEAGUE Season 2 crown, increasing NA’s foothold on the international circuit. With a foot firmly in the door, the American fanbase can anticipate an exciting year to come.
Fail of the year
For every success in CS there will always be an accompanying failure, and some provide far more entertainment than others. Topping the list this year could be no other than Splyce’s stand-in, Jaryd "summit1g" Lazar. At match point, 15-12, summit is left in a tense 1v1 against CLG’s FugLy. After a short exchange, FugLy falls and Summit needs only defuse the bomb to claim victory. With the match all but over, the production cut to Splyce’s booth in time to see the team erupt with an outburst of confusion and hilarity. Cut back to the game and we find summit has somehow died, earning CLG the round...
Oh dear. Elated in victory, summit runs over his own molotov, taking a staggering 40 damage to kill himself. Adding insult to injury, CLG then went on to recover the match, beating Splyce in overtime 19-16. He may be a successful streamer, but summit is also likely to be the only player who managed to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory. The full match is available here.
Unusual entertainment
2016 also saw a number of bizarre occurrences play out:
2016 has also seen interest in CS rise in the Eastern market, with China’s Tyloo asserting themselves on the international stage by knocking world champions Luminosity Gaming out of the Dreamhack Masters Malmo. Making their way into the quarterfinals, Tyloo were met by the might of NaVi. At 12-8 down, Tyloo attacked Inferno’s B-bombsite, producing an incredibly unconventional and unquestionably lucky AK headshot to take secure the plant.
Jumping over the first set of boxes, Hui "DD" Wu annihilates Navi’s AWPer with a single shot. Likely just looking for positional information, DD rolled the dice and came out on top, though NaVi would later take the match. The full game can be found here.
Moments like this are unlikely to be forgotten anytime soon, but the ELEAGUE Atlanta Major is just around the corner in 2017. Pitting the top teams against each other for a million dollar prize pool, CS fans will soon witness what the best of the best can be expected to achieve in the coming year.
The former Sony Online Entertainment and Daybreak Games president John Smedley set up indie outfit Pixelmage Games in January, before launching a Kickstarter for its debut project Hero's Song—a "2D pixel art action RPG." This was then cancelled after falling well short of its crowdfunding target, but independent investment saw it eventually arrive on Steam's Early Access initiative in November. As a result of poor sales, Hero's Song has now been shuttered and Pixelmage Games will now disband.
"It's with a heavy heart that I have to report that Pixelmage Games is going to be shutting down and we have ceased development on Hero's Song. For the last year, our team has worked tirelessly to make the game we've dreamed about making, and with your support, and the support of our investors, we were able to get the game into Early Access. Unfortunately sales fell short of what we needed to continue development. We knew going in that most startups don't make it, and as an indie game studio we hoped we would be the exception to that rule, but as it turned out we weren't.
"We sincerely value our customers. You’re our most important focus and have been from day one. We’re going to offer 100% refunds to all of the people who bought Hero’s Song."
The post then details how players who acquired Hero's Song via both Indiegogo and Steam should go about said refunds, before concluding with a message of thanks.
It continues: "Thank you for all the support you showed us. We're sorry things worked out the way they did, but we feel strongly that we gave it our all and we're proud of how far we came with the game. The fact that we weren't able to finish the game is painful, but the journey of making Hero's Song has been a great experience for us and we’re just sorry we couldn’t take it all the way."
Stardew Valley captured the spirit of the PC for us this year. GOTY gongs are chosen by PC Gamer staff through voting and debate. We'll be posting an award a day leading to Christmas, along with personal picks from the PCG team. Keep up with all the awards so farhere.
Phil: A twee, saccharine farming sim RPG about community, magic, and getting a good return on investment for your organic parsnips. Stardew Valley is a compelling thing, following your new life in a remote community as you grow your farm, meet locals and take part in local events. If you've played a Harvest Moon game, this will all sound familiar. But Harvest Moon never came to the PC. Its absence created a demand in the market filled by Stardew Valley's sole developer, Eric Barone, who single-handedly did the design, coding, art and music. It's easy to praise Stardew Valley as a technical achievement, and as a heartwarming PC success story. It's also worth celebrating because it's an incredibly good game. Whether you're planting crops, tending to animals, or exploring the mines, it's easy to get lost in the compulsive loop of integrated systems and crafting. Before long, you're invested—in the farm, the town, or the individual people—and expanding your local business in an effort to complete the next major goal.
in true PC fashion, it s being updated for free with new content and fixes, mods are being made and shared, and a community is growing in a similar way to that of Terraria or the early days of Minecraft.
Tom M: There was a solid month of my 2016 consumed by thoughts of planting crops and wooing a redheaded bookworm named Penny. Neither are easy tasks, as Stardew Valley likes to take its time, giving me long days that somehow still feel far too short to get all my chores done. It doesn’t rush relationship building, completing tasks like the community center bundles can take a full calendar year, and raising enough money to make a respectable looking farm takes even longer. In a similar style to Skyrim or The Witcher, it puts you in the driver's seat of an immaculately detailed world with no wrong choices. The game isn’t without problems—tricky controls and a relatively light late game, for example—but what makes it so compelling is just how good it is at drawing me into that world. And in true PC fashion, it’s being updated for free with new content and fixes, mods are being made and shared, and a community is growing in a similar way to that of Terraria or the early days of Minecraft. Stardew Valley is an underdog success story, and a game I imagine I’ll be playing for years to come.
There are natural disasters, and man-made ones. In Part 1, my Santa City was struck by a meteor, and in Part 2 I struggled to begin the rebuilding process. But as I'm busy trying to salvage my city I wind up killing almost as many citizens as those horrific acts of nature. Trying to keep my city condensed for maximum efficiency, I discover I've placed water tanks too close to my industrial areas, meaning the town's water supply has been tainted.
I've got a mass extinction event of my own making. I've poisoned every house in town. Nearly every single residence has a corpse in it. This is, as we say: bad.
Meanwhile, how's my second Santa doing? Well, the rebuilding and poisoning process has taken quite a bit of time, and Santa Mk. 2 is already retired and hobbling around town with a cane. I am pleased to see, at least, that he's spending his winter years in Snowman Park. Feels like a Santa thing to do.
Once I've cleaned up all the fresh corpses and moved the water tanks to a safer spot, things begin to turn around. My population grows to a few thousand citizens, which is good, but it also signals to the game that it's time to start sending natural disasters my way once more.
The fates are kinder this time, however. A sinkhole opens up, but it's in the ocean, doing no damage to anything except perhaps some unlucky fish. Another sinkhole strikes, but it's just on the edge of the shore, and while it takes out my water line it's an easy fix to get everyone's plumbing working again. Before long, my city has begun to grow properly, and as I've rebuilt it efficiently I'm soon flush with cash and able to buy early warning systems.
A deep space dish will give me advance warning of giant rocks headed my way. An offshore buoy will detect tsunamis before they happen. I've got weather detection systems and a radio tower to give citizens a heads-up about when they should put their heads down.
And sure, a tornado rakes its way through my city, killing 985 people and destroying over 100 buildings, but I've got the cash to recover quickly and none of the dead people are Santa so it's not that bad. Then an earthquake comes along and kills 407 more people, wrecking 84 more buildings, but again, Santa is spared. We even have a tsunami, but it only kills 40 non-Santas as it rolls along the coastline. I'm taking everything nature is throwing at me and rolling with the punches. My city keeps growing.
I do lose a few Santas, however, though none to disasters. One dies of old age, and is replaced by his kid, who moves away to another city (tough to blame him). I assign another Santa who was living in the same house, but he moves away as well. Soon I'm on my sixth Santa, who also dies of old age, so I assign a 7th.
My biggest problems is that I'm running out of room on my single map tile, which is half ocean. I convert low density residential and commercial areas to high density and watch towers spring up. The craters and earthquake scars that litter my map are now crisscrossed with roads and filled with homes and parks. You can barely see the evidence of the mass carnage that has taken place.
I'm slowly inching toward my goal of 20,000 citizens, and one living Santa, who by the way is now living in a pine-green highrise.
At a population of 19,119, another disaster hits. This time, it's an earthquake. As I idly scroll across the map to see how close it is to Santa's house, I see something incredibly alarming. I'm no seismologist, but I'd place the epicenter of the quake directly under Santa's home. The earth shakes and shakes. Houses next to Santa's high rise begin crumbling. Santa's house begins to shimmy.
And Santa is home. I can't do anything but sit and watch.
I'm not sure I can put into words how it feels to watch Santa's house collapse into rubble with Santa himself (well, his seventh self) inside. I guess I'll describe it like this: ah, crap.
Merry Christmas. And if Santa doesn't bring you any presents this year, I guess you know who to blame.
Summoner’s Rift looks positively festive as we look ahead to the New Year. It’s safe to say that 2016 has had its fair share of drama and many will be glad that it will be over. However, it certainly hasn’t been all doom and gloom. For Riot, 2016 was a year of celebration and reflection as it marked League’s ten year anniversary. It’s been a journey that has been filled with its own trials and tribulations, but this year proved that Riot and its community have no plans of slowing down. Here are some of the moments that defined League of Legends in 2016.
New champions
This year saw Jhin, Aurelion Sol, Taliyah, Kled, Ivern and Camille join the Rift. However, fans were most excited about the arrival of the new dragon, Aurelion Sol. Ever since League of Legends was released, players have been asking Riot for a dragon champion and this year fans finally got what they asked for.
Riot had teased a champion named Ao Shin in the Spirit Guard Udyr Comic and subsequent concept art back in 2013. Ao Shin was meant to be a powerful storm dragon and guardian of the natural world, but his development proved problematic for Riot as production difficulties held back Ao Shin's release until 2015. His release was then further delayed to early 2016 because of kit, tech and theme difficulties regarding the champion. It seemed as though we would never get our hands on this elusive dragon, but Riot surprised us all with the release of Aurelion Sol. The Star Forger was confirmed to be the spiritual successor of Shin. His release has been one of the most problematic and hyped launches we have ever seen in League of Legends. "There simply are no other dragons like me."
The Nautilus reef project
Back in 2015 Riot held a contest on the Oceanic server that awarded players in the region points for playing Ocean Week champions. They needed 275,000 points in order to get Riot to construct the artificial reef, and the response was massive. Players who contributed at least three points had their Summoner Name etched onto the statue before it was plunged into the watery depths below. In 2016 we finally saw the giant artificial reef shaped like Nautilus descending into the ocean off the coast of Moreton Bay, Australia. Over time the League-inspired reef will become a home for marine life and a monument to those who participated in its construction.
Champion updates
Some of the Rift's oldest champs received a much-needed makeover this year. Taric was given a complete overhaul and his abilities were changed to better reflect his new look. The former ‘Gem Knight’ can now partner up with his laner to simultaneously cast all his abilities from both himself and his ally, while his ultimate shrouds those near him with a brief spell of invulnerability. Taric oozes synergy and is hugely improved from his former playstyle.
Ryze underwent yet another rework as Riot aimed to once again redefine the Rune Mage. Originally, he required the player to quickly push all his buttons in the correct order to deliver tons of damage. His rework still revolves around his combos, but he now must compose spells that complement the problem at hand. This gives the 'Machine-Gun Mage' further decisions to make when it comes to taking down his foes.
Lastly, we saw League’s resident gravedigger receive some love, proving that even the most unpopular champs get to have a makeover. The Shepherd of Souls is still bad at engaging fights due to his slow movement speed and lack of gap-closing ability, but once he is in the heart of the fight Yorick can really unleash his ghostly ghouls to full effect. Yorick's passive and ult gives his team a unique way to capitalise on kill advantages. His ability to split push with Eulogy of the Isles and his trusty swarm of Mist Walkers makes him an absolute nightmare to deal with. He may be one of the most unpopular champions, but 2016 was a good year for those who main The Shepherd of Souls.
2016 Mid-Season Invitational
The Mid-Season Invitational was held in Shanghai this year and was the competitive scene's most ambitious undertaking to date. The event gave us eight days of nail-biting play and more hours of play than ever before. Fans from all over the world tuned in for 119 million hours of live broadcast content, which at its peak had over six million viewers tuning in concurrently to watch the drama unfold.
The finals saw the Korean champions SK Telecom T1 battle it out against the North American champions Counter Logic Gaming. SKT went on to sweep CLG 3-0 giving them championships in every possible competition: Worlds, the LCK, IEM and MSI. While CLG lost the final they did become the first NA team ever to make a major Riot final. The 2016 Mid-Season certainly was an event of firsts and one which will be remembered by fans for years to come.
Mid-season magic
The end of the Mid-Season Invitational gave Riot the chance to give some of our magic wielding friends a much-needed update. Over the years their strategic identities had become lost and mage play struggled to keep up the rest of the Rift’s changes. To combat this stagnation, mage items received a bewitching transformation. Before the update, mages would pick items purely based on stats alone with only minor changes to their build paths throughout the game. The update sought to focus on each item’s tactical impact, instead of offering up a bunch of stats on a platter. Six mages received major reworks, while a further eight received eight mini reworks. The most notable were Swain, Malzahar and Vladimir who wreaked havoc across the Rift for many a patch.
Elemental dragons
The mid-season magic certainly didn’t stop there, though, as the fire-spewing fiend of the jungle received a dramatic overhaul. Riot had set out to create a unique ecosystem where adaptation, team compositions and strategies were at the heart of each game. To achieve this goal they introduced the four elemental dragons, and their big daddy the Elder Dragon. These new dragons introduced controlled randomness that helped to create healthy game-to-game variety.
Doom Bots of Doom
League’s most hated champion finally unveiled his true nature in Doom Bots of Doom. The Halloween event saw players teaming up to overcome the cursed champions and their evil overlord Teemo. Players had to survive for 15 minutes as the cursed champions continually laid siege to their nexus. If you could hold off the Doom Bots long enough a gigantic Teemo dressed as Satan would appear to wreak havoc on his foes. Killing the demonic Yordle was no easy task and only the strongest could overthrow his tyrannical reign. "All shall hail me! My darkness will sweep across the world!"
The 2016 World Championship
For the second year in a row, Korea's SK Telecom T1 claimed the Summoner's Cup, defeating Samsung Galaxy in a tense 3-2 series. At the core of each victory lies the most accomplished duo in League of Legends history. Both Faker and Bengi have set the bar incredibly high once again and their team continues to ward off would-be challengers. However, this year’s final wasn’t an easy win for SKT as SSG weren’t going to go down quietly. Game 3 started with SKT methodically destroying each lane and turret. It looked as though SSG were beat, but they managed to win a teamfight and take Baron. SKT’s grip over SSG had been loosened and both teams traded blows for over half an hour. But it was SSG who went onto win as they stole Dragon buff and transformed this into a game winning play.
It was clear this wasn’t going to be the sweep SKT were hoping for. With the series pushed to Game 5 after another win for SSG it became apparent that both teams were evenly matched in the final three games. However, there was to be no miraculous comeback this time for SSG. The glimmer of hope had been snuffed out and SKT were once again crowned as champions.
