Jeff Grubb’s Top 10 Matches of 2020

Unlike many of you, I suddenly did not have much free time for games in 2020. I have been working from home, and my children are still young and need a lot of attention. So I maintained a rule I set last year, that I would not spend much time in any game that I could not interrupt. In fact, the rule seems rather that I will not have time for games I can not play on Switch or use the Steam Link app on my phone. Despite these limitations, I still have a lot of games to put on my list. Here’s what I ended up with.

Strate of Rage 4

I like to go back to Streets of Rage 2. My wife and I do this about once a year. The nicest thing I can say about Streets of Rage 4 that I checked out is that I plan to go back and play it just as often in the future.

9. Microsoft Flight Simulator

I knocked Animal Crossing: New Horizons off of this from my top 10, but that’s right. I like Animal Crossing, but it occupies a space next to Fall Guys and other intrinsically social games that are more about my relationships with other people. And I do not want to think about putting those games on a list – they do not even compete in my brain. Flight Simulator is a technical marvel that feels like it opens up the genre to more people than ever before with its great difficulty level. It’s also one of the rare games I turned into an event by taking out the flying stick.

Paper Paper: The Origami King

Nintendo and Intelligent Systems have nailed down so many important aspects of Paper Mario: The Origami King. It’s funny with numerous amazing characters, and it has a variety in both the mechanics and the environment. The only shortcoming is its combat system, which is boring at best. Luckily, you can avoid a lot of fights, and that only leaves you with the good stuff.

7. Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1 + 2

As I wrote in my review, Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1 + 2 is the platonic ideal of the game. Skateboarding and video games are soulmates. All those years later, games still don’t get much better than that.

Pikmin 3: Deluxe

Pikmin 3: Deluxe is still mostly Pikmin 3 from 2013, but it’s also the best Pikmin game so far. It turns the Wii U game into something that plays effortlessly on Switch. And that means you get the satisfying pleasure of working with your little crew members to gather fruit and expand your Pikmin army.

5. Astro’s playroom

Here’s all I have to say about Astro’s Playroom:

Back to my nonsense pic.twitter.com/l80WuVHmcN

Jeff Grubb @JeffGrubb 19 December 2020

4. Ori and the Will of the Wisps

Ori and the Will of the Wisps has some of the best moves in a 2D game ever. Combine that with fun exploration, exciting boss fights, gripping characters and the best music, and it’s easy to see why it’s GamesBeat’s Game of the Year. It’s also one of my favorites and a game I’m been stirring to return to.

3. Hades

Sometimes a studio pulls it together completely to create what feels like a miracle. This is what happened to Supergiant Games and Hades. This masterpiece plays and looks better than almost any other game. It does Greek mythology better than any other game, and it says something considering how many games go to the source material. And if it just did those things, that would be enough. But then Supergiant goes ahead and solves the roguelite barrier by building a linear story that progresses, even if you have to start over.

Prepare yourself in five years to play many games from India and studios on big budget that Hades mentions as a major influence.

2. Hardspace: Shipwreck

Games where you build things get a lot of attention and credit. Minecraft is endlessly popular, and Roblox is likely to have one of the biggest IPOs of 2021. But we must not forget that games are really good at enabling us to tear things apart as well. And Hardspace: Shipbreaker does it better than almost anything else. It is so satisfying to use a laser gun to slowly peel debris apart. But it’s also exciting when you forget to push the cabin, and end up being blown into space before the ship becomes nuclear. It was one of my favorite moments of the year.

I said “oops” pic.twitter.com/LRvEHXdjDW

Jeff Grubb @JeffGrubb 20 June 2020

1. SnowRunner

I could spend tens of hours in SnowRunner moving a truck 50 feet. This is what I consider a good time. And the game encourages my bizarre behavior. Fighting for every inch feels like real progress. So I understand for many people: a game about getting stuck in mud or snow seems staggering or boring. But the reality is that it’s a game to take ownership of your choices. When I get a truck stuck in the mud, SnowRunner makes me want to do whatever it takes to get it going again so I do not lose the progress I have already made.

Developer Saber Interactive has also improved SnowRunner as a game relative to MudRunner. It comes in the form of building shortcuts and bridges that provide a tangible reward for completing missions.

There is nothing more satisfying in a video game than pulling this truck out of the mud. pic.twitter.com/p7yyP6cVdS

Jeff Grubb @JeffGrubb 28 April 2020

But I’m really here for the physics and the deformation of the terrain. The realistic behavior of the site makes each problem feel analogous and tangible. You are not going to suddenly find your wheels on the good dirt – you really have to pull your rig through every inch. So when you finally get to your destination, you have earned the achievement by overcoming your own failures. What a hell of a game.