Toronto – Currently I am playing Red Dead Redemption, a game I would put at #2 in terms of my favorite video games of the year. Did you know I played video games? Yup, even pseudo indie kids can like a video game once in awhile. For the record, here are my top games of the year. I didn’t really play that much, but when I did, I made sure they were worth my time.
1. Mass Effect 2
This might be the best game ever. Great story, great action, memorable characters and just completely epic and engrossing.
2. Red Dead Redemption
It’s great to see Rockstar move away from the urban landscape for their most recent GTA themed game. Red Dead Redemption is an amazing experience – exceptional graphics, original storyline and man, is the music in the game great. Probably the best western game ever.
3. Halo: Reach
You are either a Halo fan or not a Halo fan. I am a Halo fan and this Halo game had good level design, and a bunch of neat little things that made you feel like it’s an actual new Halo game. I haven’t really tried multiplayer besides co-op, but I don’t think I play enough anymore to enter the harsh multiplayer landscape. There’s nothing like being taunted mercilessly by pre-pubescent teenagers as they bash your head in with a rifle. Still, this game was pretty good and despite my reservation about some of the vehicle missions, it just added to the originality of the single game.
4. Civilization 4
I don’t even know if this game was released for the Iphone this year, but this was the year I downloaded it, and it is incredibly addictive. I used to play games like Civilization and Master of Orion for hours back in the day, and this game was a nice lesson in nostalgia. It made my subway commutes seem like seconds and often, I was so addicted to taking over the world that I’d just play on my iphone after commuting. I also saw Frank play it in between sets at a concert. So I’m not the only one addicted.
5. Angry Birds
Who wasn’t addicted to Angry Birds? What a simple concept, with immaculate execution. Add in a halloween and a holiday edition, and it’s the game that doesn’t stop giving.
Back to the game. Red Dead Redemption is basically Grand Theft Auto in the West, but better. The mood and atmosphere of the game is done with perfection and it really plays out as a nice western. So there’s a moment in the game, where you go on a new adventure, and you ride your horse into a new area and this song plays. It’s an exclusive song written by everyones favorite Swede whose name would indicate otherwise and well, its just one of the best video game moments ever. The song is quite amazing too.
I figure this song probably passed under the radar of most people since there is probably not a huge intersection between Jose Gonzalez fans and fans of games where you probably end up killing upwards of a thousand people.
Check this song out.
02 Far Away – Jose Gonzalez by theHoffice
Here’s a rough approximation of the scene:
