DavPoint 2021 Rewind

History will probably remember 2021 as Year Two of the COVID-19 Pandemic, when nothing really went back to “normal” no matter how much denial we want to live in. Game dev cycles are still being disrupted, release dates are still changing, and the scarcity of chips and consoles continues. In game industry news, Amazon launched Luna, Microsoft bought ZeniMax, Valve announced a handheld gaming PC called the Steam Deck (and had to push back its launch), companies like Activision Blizzard are struggling with lawsuits, and Facebook went Meta. For me, I started the year with some leftover gaming from 2020, coasted through the summer by playing or re-playing some refreshed, remastered, and remade games, and wrapped up 2021 with some true next-gen experiences.

Calling it “leftover gaming” sounds dismissive, but after beating Assassin’s Creed Valhalla (Nov 12, 2020) in January, remember that I also called it “one of if not the best Assassin Creed games,” and said that it “raises the bar for action/adventure/RPG games,” and “easily resides within my pantheon of most favorite games of all time!” That’s a great way to start a new year! I followed that with the “frustratingly difficult” but “very rewarding experience” that was Immortals Fenyx Rising (Dec 3, 2020). Soon after, I returned to both games and enjoyed their next-gen upgrades on my new Xbox Series X; I can never return to gaming under 60 frames per second!

With my shiny new Xbox, I returned to a few “GaaS” games like The Division 2 and Destiny 2, played the short but stunning Medium (Jan 28, 2021), and greatly enjoyed the controversial Cyberpunk 2077 (Dec 10, 2020) in spite of its many flaws. Note that even though Cyberpunk 2077 is technically a previous-gen game playing in “backwards compatibility” mode on my Series X, and the “official” next-gen version has not been released, I did have a better experience than those playing on Xbox One or PS4, and even beat it twice, at about 60 hours each.

After that, Outriders (April 1, 2021), Resident Evil Village (May 7, 2021), The Ascent (July 29, 2021), and Hades (August 13, 2021) were the only new (Xbox) games I played through the summer. Bethesda games like Fallout 4, Fallout 76, and Elder Scrolls Online got an “FPS Boost” in March, and combined with playing the Mass Effect Legendary Edition (May 14, 2021) and Mass Effect Andromeda (March 21, 2017), these refreshed and remastered games kept me busy until I found a temporary obsession with New World (Sept 28, 2021) on PC. The excellent Guardians of the Galaxy (Oct 26, 2021) thrilled me with its gameplay and narrative, and I was thrilled to see it win the Best Narrative at the Game Awards!

A few “new to me” PlayStation 5 games that I played, after finally getting one in August, were the free ASTRO’s Playroom game included with the console, which I adored, and Spider-Man Miles Morales (Nov 12, 2020), which I consider one of the “must haves” for the PS5. Some complain about it’s length, but I was impressed at how Miles Morales improved on the excellent Marvel’s Spider-Man (2018), which happens to be one of my favorite games of the entire PlayStation 4 generation. I also enjoyed playing the free to play online fantasy RPG, Genshin Impact, and started replaying the FFVII Remake, bafflingly titled: Final Fantasy VII Remake: Intergrade, thanks to its PS5 upgrades. I mostly closed out the summer on Xbox, and I didn’t return to playing with my new PS5 until the release of Call of Duty: Vanguard (Nov 5, 2021).

Call of Duty was great, and I’d probably still be playing the multiplayer if a little game called Halo Infinite (Halo Multiplayer, Nov 15, 2021; Campaign, Dec 8, 2021) hadn’t come along. Ever since I had a chance to play an early “test flight” back in July, I knew this new Halo was going to be something special, and aside from a problematic Battle Pass (which keeps improving), Halo Infinite has exceeded my anticipations and expectations! Developer 343i took some risks with the narrative, by focusing on a more personal conflict instead of tying up 20 years of Halo history in one story, and took risks with familiar Halo gameplay, by turning most of the game into an open playground, and those risks paid off, big time. More story content is coming, as are the options to play the campaign cooperatively and the “Forge” map editor, so I’m looking forward to playing Halo Infinite for a long time!

Here are some quick shout outs to the movies and shows that kept us entertained all year: Disney/Marvel provided the most (and best, in my opinion) content: WandaVision (Jan 15), The Falcon and The Winter Soldier (Mar 19), Cruella (May 28), Loki (June 9), Luca (June 18), Black Widow (June 29), Jungle Cruise (July 30), What If? (Aug 11), Free Guy (Aug 13), Shang-Chi (Sept 3), Eternals (Nov 5), Hawkeye (Nov 24), West Side Story (Dec 10), and of course, Spider-Man No Way Home (Dec 17)! I can’t overlook James Gunn’s irreverently outstanding The Suicide Squad (Aug 6, USA), Cary Joji Fukunaga’s emotionally satisfying No Time To Die (Oct 8, USA), and Denis Villeneuve’s visually stunning Dune Part 1 (Oct 22, USA). Also noteworthy are the Masters of the Universe: Revelation (July 23) series on Netflix and The Wheel of Time (Nov 19) series on Amazon. Finally, a special shout out to the “king of nerds” Henry Cavill returning in Season Two of The Witcher (Dec 17) on Netflix!

For a year mostly dominated by remakes and remasters, I feel lucky to have framed 2021 with two amazing open world experiences: Assassin’s Creed Valhalla in January and Halo Infinite in November-December! If I really had to decide between the two, Valhalla is a more impressive achievement in game development, but Halo Infinite is my personal favorite! Similarly, I respect the artistry of Dune Part 1, but Spider-Man No Way Home is easily my favorite movie of the year! My other favorite games and experiences in 2021 are: Mass Effect Legendary Edition (Xbox), Marvel’s Spider-Man Miles Morales (PS5), New World (PC), and What If? (TV). Between the two next gen consoles, I might be logging in the most hours on my Xbox Series X (Game Pass for the win!) but I actually prefer the hardware (DualSense controller!) and the user interface of the PlayStation 5!

Thanks for tuning in to the DavPoint.com! Don’t forget to follow me here, on Twitter(@DavPoint), and playing on twitch.tv/DavPoint! Have a Happy Holiday Season and a Happy New Year!