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Games of the Year 2019: Backlog

I usually feel guilty when I write this article because I am forced to confront the list of developers whose hard work I straight up ignored. But when I went looking for excuses I realized that I actually played a lot of games this year. I was certain that there had to have been some time during the year where I was lazy and could have squeezed in another game but then I broke each month down:

Outside of June I really did a great job at playing new games every month.

But I'm sure I'll find time in 2020 to play some of these backlog games right? Let's take a quick peek and see what is coming out in the first four months:

Whatever, let's go over my list of shame which I will totally play in 2020.

Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice

The main reason I didn't play Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice is because, like most Souls games, it doesn't respect your time. I understand the appeal of dying to a boss and then having to fight your way back just to die again but at least you learned something new. I can appreciate that but I just don't have the time/patience for it anymore. If I could just retry a boss over and over I would definitely have given Sekiro a shot. I just don't wanna grind anymore.

The Outer Worlds

I have a real contentious history with Obsidian Entertainment. Their games have always been particularly buggy and after being bit one too many times I swore off ever playing another Obsidian game. They have always seemed to be bogged down by the histories of the game engines they use.

So color me surprised when Obsidian decided to make a game using Unreal Engine 4 that, according to popular opinion, is not buggy. Couple that with a dialogue system where the characters choices really seem to have an affect and The Outer Worlds suddenly seems up my alley.

I do have Xbox Game Pass Ultimate which makes The Outer Worlds essentially free on Xbox and PC so there is a decent chance of me trying to blow through it sometime in 2020.

Disco Elysium

Disco Elysium is another one of those games that came out of nowhere and received critical acclaim. Similar to The Outer Worlds, it is a role playing game where your choices matter which puts it right up my alley. Based on the amount of awards it has received it seems like I should find time for this in 2020.

Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order

A Dark Souls / Metroidvania game set in the Star Wars universe? How could I not have played Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order? The answer is quite simple, it came out on the same day as Pokémon Sword. There are only a couple of game franchises that I would choose over Pokémon and unfortunately Star Wars is not one of them.

Astral Chain

Anything released by PlatinumGames is immediately on my radar and Astral Chain was no exception. Unfortunately a perfect storm of events stopped me from buying it. Not only was it sandwiched in between Judgment, Fire Emblem: Three Houses and the Iceborne expansion. But I was also trying to clamp down on my spending because I realized I had been too liberal with my credit cards and Astral Chain was one of the easier things to cut. Sorry Platinum. I promise I'll buy Bayonetta 3 when it is released.

Dragon's Dogma: Dark Arisen for the Nintendo Switch

Dragon's Dogma is one of Elsie's favourite games and nary a year goes by where she says I should try it and every time I promise her I will. With it being ported to the Switch in 2019 I was really thinking that this would be the year, but the NHL playoffs, Mortal Kombat 11 and Rage 2 kept me occupied when it was released in April.

I'd like to say that I am going to go back and play this in 2020 but I want to keep the lying on the Internet to a minimum.

Final Fantasy VIII Remastered

I have played every Final Fantasy game since 7 EXCEPT for Final Fantasy 8 and SquareEnix actually remastered it this year. It seemed the planets were aligning and I would finally play Final Fantasy VIII Remastered but Fire Emblem: Three Houses and Iceborne distracted me throughout September and FF8 fell through the cracks again.

Total War: Three Kingdoms

I have never played a game in the Total War series but have always wanted to. Simply put the marketing for Total War: Three Kingdoms hooked me and I thought this would finally be the game. Unfortunately the NHL playoffs and my drive to get calibrated in Dota 2 ahead of The International 9 led me to not buy any games in June.

Dragon Quest XI S

Dragon Quest XI was one of my favorite games of 2018 and it took me 72 hours to beat. I simply didn't have that time again when Dragon Quest XI S was released in September.

I am happy that it exists though because I will bet dollars to donuts that I'll end up playing this version sometime in the the next five years because Dragon Quest XI is that good of a game.

Enhanced Editions of D&D games by Skybound Games

It is amazing how many enhanced editions of old school D&D games were released this year. Personally I was intrigued by Baldur's Gate: Enhanced Edition, Icewind Dale: Enhanced Edition and Neverwinter Nights: Enhanced Edition.

Gears 5

Honestly, Gears 5 is on this list simply as a reminder that I need to play Gears of War 4. I still am a fan of the franchise but apparently not a big enough one that I'll turn down other games.

NHL 20

Another year outside of Canada, another year of missing NHL hockey. NHL 20 seems to be a decent entry in the series by all accounts as well.

#GamesOfTheYear