Another year has come and gone, and we here at Gamepedia are still collectively trying to catch up on all the fantastic games that released over the past 12 months. It seems like the past few years have been exceptional for gamers, but 2017 especially feels like a perfect storm of fantastic new IPs and the triumphant return of beloved franchises. I mean, it’s not every year we get a new entry in franchises like Legend of Zelda, Super Mario, Metroid, and Persona all in one year, and that’s without even mentioning incredible new franchise starters like Horizon Zero Dawn and Cuphead. And who can forget the incredible (and ongoing) success of a game like PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds, a game that seemingly came from nowhere to take the the gaming world by storm and even ended up walking away with a “Best Multiplayer Game” trophy at this year’s Game Awards?
With all that in mind, it’s hard, nay, impossible, to narrow down the year’s best games to just a meager handful. But we are going to try anyways. Here are the Gamepedia editorial writing team’s favorite games of 2017.
Dustin Bailey
Dustin is a Missouri-based freelancer who enjoys long walks in digital woods. When he’s not writing about geeky pastimes, he’s producing videos on them. He and his wife bond best over tabletop role-playing.
1. The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
Platform: Nintendo Switch, Wii U
Wiki: https://zelda.gamepedia.com/Main_Page
Every time I think about The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, I can hardly believe it exists. It’s a game with all the breadth and beauty of the biggest modern AAA title, but with all the intuitive accessibility of the original NES game. A billion tiny details add up to make this the one of the most organic, adventuresome game ever made.
2. Metroid: Samus Returns
Platform: Nintendo 3DS
The sudden return of Samus after so many years dormant was exciting, but given the questionable legacy of Metroid: Other M and Metroid: Federation Force, it was also troubling. Luckily, Metroid: Samus Returns marked a triumphant awakening for our favorite bounty hunter, reimagining the series oft-maligned Game Boy entry into something modern and engaging, building deeper combat without taking away the exploratory isolation that makes the series great.
3. Horizon Zero Dawn
Platform: PlayStation 4
Wiki: https://horizonzerodawn.gamepedia.com/Horizon_Zero_Dawn_Wiki
Horizon Zero Dawn is massive, colorful, and imaginative, showcasing a world where robot dinosaurs walk alongside the tribal descendants of our collapsed modern society. Discovering the ways that post-post-apocalyptic life has grown and the exact details of what caused that apocalypse in the first place was a wonderful journey that kept me wanting to return to Aloy’s world again and again.
Ashley Parrish
Ash is a part-time writer/full-time gamer and has managed to successfully combine the two hobbies into one profession. She enjoys RPGs of all stripes and dreams of being a competitive Triple Triad player.
1. Persona 5
Platform: PlayStation 4
I missed out on the earlier Persona games, so at the start of the year Persona 5 wasn’t even on my radar. But enticed by everyone’s hype and the need to fill the JRPG sized-hole Final Fantasy XV left in my chest, I checked it out. And from the opening screen, all those beautiful characters skating across the screen to catchy techno synth-pop in what appeared to be an obvious homage to my beloved anime Yuri On Ice!!, I was hooked.
2. What Remains of Edith Finch
Platform: PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PC, and Mac
I live for story heavy games, so it’s no surprise Annapurna Interactive’s latest masterpiece would land on my GotY 2017 list. What Remains of Edith Finch is a beautifully narrated story told in such a way that makes you feel like you’re solving a puzzle even though the actual game is very light on puzzle mechanics. Also, the game gets a big plus from me for having a South Asian female protagonist, something refreshing given gaming’s preponderance of white leads.
3. Super Mario Odyssey
Platform: Nintendo Switch
Wiki: https://supermarioodyssey.gamepedia.com
Keeping it 100, this game should have beat Breath of the Wild for “Game of the Year” at this year’s Game Awards. Both games are perfect, with the ideal mix of accessibility for casual players and challenges for veterans. Both games are also stunningly beautiful and ingeniously innovative for their respective franchises. But Mario was just the better game. There. I said it.