It 2015 already over? Here I am listing my favorite things of 2015. I didn't really get any new gadgets in 2015, and didn't discover much in terms of new music, so I'll leave those categories out. Here are the favorites I do have.
Best Tabletop Game: Warmachine
I won't spend a lot of time on this now, since I just wrote up a big article on this subject to which you can refer if you've got any interest. Suffice it to say that I joined my friends in playing a game that they've enjoyed for the last two years, and I'm now as into it as they are.
Best TV Show: Daredevil
I'd been hopeful that A.K.A. Jessica Jones would be at least as good as Daredevil. It was a good show, but Daredevil was still better. Other than those, I can't remember a lot of good television at all in 2015. Agents of SHIELD was decent, I'm still behind on The Walking Dead, and The Flash would have ended up on a top 5 list for sure.
Best Game: Middle Earth: Shadow of Mordor
I've been playing this game on and off for eight months or so, in the scant free time I've got for video games. Now, I'm nearly done. Probably 2 hours of gameplay left, but I won't finish in 2015. Still, it's a good game, similar in many ways to the Batman games. I wish I'd been able to play Pillars of Eternity or Fallout 4 this year, but I have neither the free time or disposable income for more games.
And to save me having to write an entire article on this subject, the games I played in 2015 are:
- Rogue Legacy (PC) - A great semi-casual game. You run through until your character dies, and then your next playthrough is taken to be that character's descendant. In that way, many generations of characters go through the castle and they all die. But you gain experience points and buy abilities, so successive generations are stronger. It's really a great game. I played through and defeated the first boss before realizing that I didn't want to invest more time.
- Sentinels of the Multiverse (iPad, PC) - I originally got the tablet version, but switched over to playing on the PC, and got the expansions there. I was so so very into the cardboard version of this game, how could I not? While my focus has now shifted away from SotM and towards Warmachine, I do still enjoy playing occasional SotM games on my PC. It's great, because they only take 15-20 minutes.
- Beyond: Two Souls (PS3) - Could have been a contender for my favorite game of 2015. Heavy Rain was a much better game overall, and Beyond: Two Souls didn't have the gameplay variety that Indigo Prophecy had, but I did really enjoy playing. I think I'll enjoy anything that Quantic Dream does. I'm just now realizing that this means I'll eventually have to get a PS4.
- Transistor (PC) - I really wanted Transistor to be as good as Bastion. The music was indeed as good, if not better. But the gameplay wasn't. I quit the game probably 30 minutes before the ending.
- Jazzpunk (PC) - A hilarious game with a bizarre humor that I appreciate. I got stuck on a buggy and badly-designed golf game.
- Monument Valley (Android) - Great puzzle-y phone game that I'd recommend to anyone. My daughter completed it before I did.
- 80 Days (Android) - I only had one playthrough, and I know the game deserves more. Great self-directed story game.
- Borderlands 2 - After a long break, I went back to this game and finished it to scratch my shooter itch.
- Shadow of Mordor (PC) - The winner this year.
- Minecraft (PC) - The game with no end. I'll probably never be done with it.
- Warmachine: Tactics (PC) - A bit buggy, and if they'd wanted to interest players more they'd have made the video game's rules match the tabletop game's rules better.
- Minecraft Story Mode (PC) - Maybe not as good as Telltale's The Walking Dead, but I can play it with my daughter.
- Galaxy Trucker (Android) - I'm a huge fan of the cardboard version. I haven't yet played through an entire game on my phone, but I'm looking forward to it.
Best Book: Words of Radiance
Brandon Sanderson's second book in this series was if anything better than the first. And here are all the books I read in 2015:
- The Way of Kings
- The Magician King
- Parasite
- Robot Uprisings
- Magician's Land
- Armada
- Words of Radiance
- Leviathan Wakes
Best Movie: Star Wars: The Force Awakens
I just saw it last night. I was so hesitant to get my hopes up after the prequels. But JJ Abrams pulled it off. The funny thing was, the morning before I saw it, I found myself hoping that the characters would experience mechanical difficulties with a ship similar to those Han had with the Millennium Falcon back in the originals. I got what I wanted as well as a number of other callbacks that were not at all overdone. I'm quite pleased.
Best New Purchase: 3 Kingswood
Of course the best purchase I made in 2015 was the biggest purchase I've made in my life. The house.