Many have called 2021 a slow year for video games, and we certainly understand why. Game development is hard enough without having to deal with the challenges of working during the COVID-19 pandemic, systemic issues within the industry, hardware shortages, and a variety of other factors that have led to some of the delays and disappointments we’ve seen this year.Yet, at the end of this “slow” year, we were still left staring at a list of about 50 games that are more than worthy of being considered the very best of both 2021 and many other recent years.

In a strange way, that combination of certain major games getting delayed and others falling short helped reveal the depth of talent in the modern gaming industry. In a year where it felt like those annual franchise installments stole less of the spotlight, it’s easier than ever to appreciate the sheer number of incredible gaming experiences that were out there waiting to be discovered.

So while we wish there was time to tell you about every great game that came out this year that may just remind you why you fell in love with gaming in the first place, these were the best of the best.

          20. {Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart}

Naughty Dog’s revolutionary 2001 PS2 game Jak and Daxter: The Precursor Legacy was basically sold on the promise of “no load times.” Coming off of the nightmarish era of PS1 load times, the idea of being able to play a 3D platformer on a PlayStation console without having to stare at a slowly moving progress bar for minutes at a time felt magical. 

20 years later, Insomniac Games’ Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart rekindles that magic. By boldly testing the limits of the PS5’s advanced SSD, Insomniac delivers that kind of seamless gaming experience we dared to dream of so long ago as well as the kind of pure action platforming experience that has long helped the Ratchet and Clank franchise stand out from such incredible competition. 

It’s easy to get hung up on raw visuals when we talk about the power of next-gen consoles, but Rift Apart reminds us that next-gen gaming is really about removing the barriers that make it harder for creators to r MORETh Walking Dead Season 11 Episode 10 Review:New Haunts | Den of Geek

                     19. {Tales of Arise}

It’s sometimes tough to see the line between paying homage to your inspirations to the point where you (perhaps accidentally) recreate them and using those inspirations as the foundation for something new. Creators shouldn’t necessarily hesitate to offer something incredible just because it may seem familiar to some, but it’s hard to shake that feeling that you should constantly be pursuing something nobody has seen before.With Tales of Arise, director Hirokazu Kagawa and the Bandai Namco team deliver a JRPG that feels pleasantly familiar and boldly defiant. It both recognizes the brilliance of previous Tales games and acknowledges their flaws by incorporating bold new concepts (like a much more action-based combat system) that would perhaps be considered sacrilegious if they weren’t executed to perfection.

Tales of Arise manages to remind us why we love this franchise and this genre without ever taking that love for granted.