My games of 2021

I once again kept a running thread of video games I’ve beaten on Twitter this year, which was something I’d done in 2020 as well. Here’s the thread if you’re interested:

Anyway, last year I also did an end-of-year roundup & ranking with one-sentence reviews of each, so here you go. This is hopefully a handy resource for some about which games on your own personal backlog might be worth the effort and which ones you can continue to kick down the road.

The same rules as last year apply: only games I’ve completed were eligible for this list. I played plenty of other games, and many of them I have strong opinions on. But I wanted to be fair and only evaluate a game in its “complete” form (or at least as close to that as possible).

So that all said, here’s my 2021 list, from worst to best, with a sentence review on each!

Give it a miss

61. Super Contra (arcade) — It’s difficult and glitchy and not very noteworthy: for completionists and historical curiosity only.

60. Dragon Spirit — I kind of hate this PC Engine port for its extreme difficulty, but the soundtrack keeps it out of the bottom slot.

59. Contra (arcade) — Like its sequel, I find it barely tolerable, though at least it has some extra relevance historically.

58. Psychosis — This shooter is perfectly fine, but it doesn’t really excel at anything either.

57. Contra III: The Alien Wars — The first couple of levels are pretty good, but the difficulty spikes beyond any reasonable standard.

56. Castlevania: The Adventure — I have some nostalgia for it, but if you don’t, I’m not sure you’ll get much out of it.

55. Neutopia — A clear Zelda knock-off, it isn’t without merit, but the slightly less responsive controls and large quantities of wandering around lost are severe knocks against it.

54. Castlevania II: Belmont’s Revenge — It’s an improvement on its predecessor.

53. Operation C — It’s decent and also not exactly worth seeking out.

52. Lightening Force — Despite its impressive boss battles, the game suffers by comparison to Thunder Force III (this game is that game’s sequel) and is therefore skippable.

51. Doom II — The enjoyable pacing from the first game grinds to a halt here, making the whole experience quite a slog to get through.

Tepid thumbs up

50. Cho Aniki — Peel back the ridiculousness and you’re still left with a decent shooter.

49. Galaga ‘88 — I can acknowledge its historical importance while also not feeling like it’s for me.

48. Chip N Dale Rescue Rangers — It doesn’t hold up nearly as well as I’d hoped it would.

47. Kid Dracula — It has that classic Capcom feel to it (even though it’s a Konami title).

46. Super Mario Sunshine — I think folks should experience it to see how the series has evolved over time, but it suffers from a decided lack of fun.

45. Daimakaimura (Ghouls ‘n Ghosts) — I finally committed to beating one of these games (the Supergrafx port), and I think I can say it was worth the frustration (barely).

44. Streets of Rage — I adore the soundtrack and special attacks, but I must also admit this game has aged quite a bit.

43. Mega Man 11 — You could do a whole lot worse than this sequel that works very hard at trying to introduce freshness to the original concept.

42. Castlevania: Dracula X — As a throw-in on the Castlevania Advance Collection, it’s neat to be able to experience it.

41. Star Fox 2 — An incredibly short experience, Star Fox 2 nevertheless is still a fun time (just not for very long).

40. Super Contra — It’s quite good, but does it do enough new?

39. Castlevania: Harmony of Dissonance — Some of the powerups are cool, though ultimately it’s pretty middle-of-the-road Castlevania.

38. Neutopia II — It’s a marked improvement on the first game, featuring better upgrades and a less cryptic overall experience.

37. Contra: Hard Corps — The difficulty here is legendary, but you can spam that with save points, which opens up a diverse, interesting game.

36. Castlevania: Circle of the Moon — A pretty ugly game by modern standards, Circle of the Moon rises above its limitations with unique, challenging gameplay.

Endorsed without reservations

35. Comix Zone — It’s a fun beat ’em-up with a unique angle.

34. Double Dragon (NES) — There’s a depth and strategy to levelling up that keeps the game more relevant today.

33. Super Castlevania IV — I’m not going to pretend it’s a smarter game than some other entries in the series, but it was impactful and remains a showpiece game for the SNES.

32. Among Us — It’s an enjoyable party/family game that is very “Clue”-like.

31. Donkey Kong Country 3 — I’ve always been left wanting more from a game that is undeniably still a masterclass in level design.

30. Zombies Ate My Neighbors — It’s great for short bursts of play; don’t get overly caught up in beating it and you’ll save yourself some grief.

29. River City Ransom — It’s a really important game in regards to introducing RPG elements in a brawler, and it’s fun.

28. Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon — A direct homage to Castlevania III, this game introduces a cooler tagging element among its characters and bigger, wackier bosses.

27. Blaster Master — You’re going to need a guide and/or map to get through this sucker (and probably save points too), but it’s pretty fantastic if you can get past those challenges/missteps.

26. Goblin Sword — This distillation of platforming down to its most basic, enjoyable form (it’s all about those controls) is perfect for short intervals of gaming.

25. Gradius — The PC Engine port presents an undeniably good version of this classic shooter, which takes getting used to but ultimately soars.

24. Castlevania — The original that spawned a franchise of games, merchandise and even a TV show, it remains a quality experience worth seeking out.

23. Castlevania II: Simon’s Quest — I know it has its problems (which are well documented), but I really enjoy the pacing/ease of difficulty here once you know what you’re doing (which is the rub, but whatever).

22. Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night — Featuring many of the best attributes from its inspiration, Castlevania, it falls just short of the best games in the genre of Metroid-vanias.

21. Pac-Man 99 — This knockout game is quite good, and it feels like a genuine accomplishment when you finish first.

20. Castlevania: Bloodlines — If you can get on a roll without taking damage, it becomes super enjoyable (it’s like the Gradius of Castlevania games).

19. Castlevania III — I don’t find this as difficult as some, and I really enjoy the different characters, multitude of branching paths, and the absurdly good soundtrack.

As good as it gets

18. Super Mario 35 — I hate that I can no longer play this knockout classic (though bright side is its discontinuation forced me to play other stuff instead).

17. GoldenEye 007 — Yeah, it’s aged, but it’s still a ton of fun and an important game historically within the shooter genre.

16. Contra — I bought the Contra collection solely for this one game, and I have no regrets.

15. Shovel Knight — It’s the best kind of homage to 8-bit platforming, with creative story, level design, and play mechanics.

14. The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past — If it weren’t for one silly puzzle to solve late that blocks your progress entirely, I’d call this a perfect Zelda game.

13. Donkey Kong Country 2 — Platforming rarely exceeds this gem, which provides something approaching a zen-like response when it’s at its peak.

12. Double Dragon (Arcade) — I have a shameless appreciation for this classic, which despite its faults remains immensely influential within the industry.

11. DuckTales — Life is like a hurricane…

10. Sonic Mania — I’d compare it to “Avengers: End Game,” by which I mean you’ll likely come away satisfied with a goofy grin plastered to your face if you’ve experienced earlier entries in the series.

9. The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask — My personal enjoyment of this game might well have exceeded any other Zelda game I’ve ever played, but it’s way too cryptic a game to list any higher than this.

8. Streets of Rage 4 — A similar experience to Sonic Mania, this game exceeds that one by standing on its own two feet better sans nostalgia; it’s one of the best brawlers ever.

7. The Oregon Trail — This might be my unofficial cut-off for whether a game qualifies for being one of the greatest of all time: “Is it better than Oregon Trail?”

6. Katamari Damacy Reroll — With a wicked sense of humor and a tremendously inventive objective/play mechanic, Katamari Damacy is an absolute must-play for everyone.

5. Doom — A hugely influential title, Doom is old, but it’s still fun, darnit.

4. The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time — Everyone should play it; full stop.

3. Castlevania: Rondo of Blood — Castlevania doesn’t get any better than this, difficulty be damned.

2. Super Mario Bros. 2 — It’s so stupidly good, and it really shouldn’t be.

1. Air Zonk — I will preach from the mountaintops about this game until my dying day.

My Top Five Games I Beat for the First Time in 2021:

1. Katamari Damacy Reroll

2. Streets of Rage 4

3. The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask

4. Sonic Mania

5. Shovel Knight