TSA’s Top 100 of 2011 Recap: 10 – 6

Kris Lipscombe 30 Comments

We enter the top ten now, and we’re tantalisingly close to the end. There’s few surprises at this point, with most games that managed to get this high up the list being what you’d expect. However there’s one title today I’d forgotten had managed to climb to such heights, so it’s not just the usual suspects.

10 – LittleBigPlanet 2

Ah Sackboy, how can you not love the little fella? After the success of the original LittleBigPlanet (LBP) it was hardly shocking when Media Molecule confirmed that a follow up was coming, although they managed to regain the element of surprise with the sheer scope of the game’s creation tools. Everyone was pretty much in awe of what the original allowed but no-one could imagine just how far LBP2 would go. It’s not just building an inventive level for Sackboy to scamper through, Media Molecule have somehow allowed you the flexibility to build entirely new games if it takes your fancy. Want to build Space Invaders? Not a problem.

Of course, that’s all terribly impressive but just how did it do? We were very pleased with it, praising not just the expanded creation tools but the game’s beefed up storyline as well. This time around the single player actually makes a lot more sense, the use of a real story to chain together the levels adds a flow that was missing from the original. In fact we were so happy with the changes we gave the game a 9 in our review, something matched by Metacritic where it sits on a 92.

9 – Killzone 3

Whilst we’ve got four sequels today, Killzone 3 is the only one to have reached trilogy status so far. One of the behemoths of Sony’s line-up, Killzone 3 sees you back on Helghan just after the ending of 2009’s Killzone 2. Visari is dead but you’re still trapped on a very hostile world and the number of fellow ISA soldiers about to back you up has suddenly dropped after most evacuated the planet. Unfortunately you didn’t make it, and now you’re stuck. Even as someone with no history with the Killzone franchise that sounds tantalisingly good, and it’s not just the story that’s been ramped up. Whilst not a huge graphical improvement over Killzone 2, at least not to the same extent that Killzone 2 was over pretty much everything else, Guerilla have found the power to throw even more action onto the screen, something that can only be a good thing.

Of course it’s not all sunshine and lollipops, as we noted in our review the games difficulty may frustrate some and the story does lack a distinct ending, although that’s hardly unique to Killzone. That didn’t stop us from giving it a very worthy nine, a score it certainly deserves, particularly with the multiplayer. The community here at TSA absolutely loved Killzone 2 and Killzone 3 was no exception, with the game seeing the return of the much loved boot camps. Killzone 3 deserves all the praise it gets, now it’s just a case of seeing whether Killzone 4 appears. Personally I’d bet on it.

8 – Sorcery

Sorcery, Sorcery where art thou? Originally expected back in the spring, we started to get worried when it was missing from a list of Move titles that Sony put out back in November. Spring came and there was no word at all on Sorcery. It was looking like the game had been completely lost, particularly when it was noticeably missing from Sony’s E3 press conference. However, finally word came from Sony’s UK PR a the end of June that Sorcery was still coming. No word on when it would actually make its way out of development and onto shelves but at least we know that it’s not completely dead in the water.

For those of you who don’t remember Sorcery it was announced along with the first wave of Move titles back at E3 2010. We were blown away after only a few minutes of gameplay footage, the live demo Sony gave was just that good. Looking like what you wished every Harry Potter game would be, Sorcery puts you in the shoes of a young sorcerer’s apprentice who, in typical heroic fashion, has to save his homeland from the forces of evil. You use the Move to cast your spells, as well as selecting and combining spells to use against the various monsters you encounter. This game still has us on tenterhooks, and we’re praying it doesn’t stay stuck in development forever.

7 – Starhawk

Starhawk was a strange entry on our list, as it wasn’t even vaguely confirmed when we were writing the list. In fact it was barely a rumour at the time, with a mention made of it way back in 2009 being all we had to go on. However, that was still enough to excite us and get the game to number seven in our list. Fortunately the game has now been confirmed, so we don’t seem completely crazy. Yes, we had to wait till May to get that confirmation, but it’s definitely on its way. Next year. That’s right LightBox and Sony are going to keep us waiting until 2012 for the follow up to the much loved Warhawk.

However, what we do know about the game is certainly enough to wet our appetites. For a start this isn’t just Warhawk+, or even Warhawk with huge improvements. This is Warhawk with added RTS. As you kill off the Outcast (mutated humans who you’ll be fighting) they drop Rift energy. Collect this up and you can drop buildings or defences from orbit, using the Rift energy to power them. If that’s not enough then perhaps the promise of Mechs will peaks your interest. The Hawks (not Warhawks or even Starhawks) in Starhawk aren’t limited to aerial combat, they can transform into hulking robots as they hit the ground. Listening now? That’s what I thought. Next year suddenly seems a long way off.

6 – Portal 2

“It’s been a long time…” The words of GLaDOS from the first Portal 2 teaser and ones we can happily echo. It was just shy of three years since the release of the original Portal in the Orange Box, but the game is so frequently quoted that it almost felt like it had only been days. That’s not to say we weren’t keen to get our hands on it before the April release, we were eagerly waiting to get our hands on it as soon as possible. How could we not want more of GLaDOS being… well GLaDOS? And the addition of Stephen Merchant? That upped the excitement considerably.

We weren’t the only one keen for the release though, it seems Valve couldn’t wait for the game’s release either. Through the Potato Sack alternate reality game and the GLaDOS@Home website, where players were encouraged to sink time into games from the Potato Sack bundle, the game was released about ten hours early on Steam. Not a huge margin certainly but it did its job and built the hype for the game even more.

With expectations riding high it was fortunate then that Portal 2 didn’t disappoint. We were more than happy to give the game a nine in our review, something that was echoed in its Metacritic score. The game’s currently sitting on a very comfortable 95 across all platforms, and has had love piled on it from pretty much all quarters. Personally I adored it, with the new mechanics really fleshing out the game and the story always leaving you wondering where you’d be going next. Even the ending tied everything up nicely, although I certainly don’t want to spoil it for you. I think above any other game I’ve written about in these articles I urge you to go and sink some time in Portal 2. I don’t think you’ll regret it.

So there you have it. Just five left to go in the grand finale tomorrow. How will they fair? Well you’ll just have to wait and see.

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30 Comments

  1. Something something something something PORTAL 2.

    • Excellent, Best game Evah, Can’t wait, Ditto, Pile of overated bollocks with THE most annoying robot in the entire gaming universe.

      • Oh, it’s you.

      • Well done. Here are the test results: You are a horrible person.

      • I’m serious, that’s what it says: A horrible person.

    • We weren’t even testing for that. Don’t let that “horrible person” thing discourage you. It’s just a data point. If it makes you feel any better, science has now validated your birth mother’s decision to abandon you on a doorstep.

      • haha really love GLaDOS!!! the funniest computer ever!!! =D

      • B-but why? T_T *fires a portable toilet via portal at Gladcub* :p

  2. Out of this list I’ve only played Killzone3, which is an awesome game, albeit very, very, very short :P I’ve quite enjoyed these re-cap articles as I can’t remember what 100 games you picked back in late 2010 :D

  3. I really want Sorcery to release soon so I can use my Move for real. It would be cool if Portal 2 got a Move-patch, and the move sphere would change colour to match the Portalgun. Ahh…*daydreams*

    • That’s a clever idea n I think way back it was rumoured that there was move integration in portal 2 but it turned out to be just rumour. I too want Sorcery but I hope that with this wait it comes with plenty of content and more spells than the basic elements.

      • Yeah, there was rumoring, but unfortunately that’s all it was. It could have been the best move-game had it been true, and I belive the PC version supported some Razor-made move ripoff, so why not?

      • *Razer…

  4. Talking of Portal 2 – where is the DLC? I remember it being mentioned that it would be released in June/July, that has passed an no word on it. Makes me an unhappy Atlas =[ Hi five any P-body?

    • High five… “For that Bankzy108 is penalised 50 Science Collaboration Points”.

    • It’s coming out in September. Still free.

    • It’s Valve :/, they’re NEVER on time, as i’m sure i don’t need to point out. I haven’t even bothered to remember when it was meant to be, i just know it’s on it’s way and it will be good. Valve annoy me with their massively disorganised timeframes, but it always seems worth it.. :)

  5. Having recently completed Portal 2, it definitely is the best game I’ve played this year so far. Although I got a feeling I should have played the first Portal beforehand.

    • As you should with most sequels!

    • And it’s really cheap so there’s no reason not to play it even if you’ve finished the second.

    • They were giving it away free on Steam, don’t know if that’s still so, but I would recommend the Orange box. 5 amazing games. Cheap as chips. it’s only like £12 and massively worth it..

  6. Little Big Planet 2 has been awesome so far. Also enjoyed Killzone 3, but havnt played it for a while. yet to play Portal 2….

  7. I really hope Sorcery finds it’s way out of development, though for it to shy away from the limelight (to the point of disappearing into obscurity) when it was so eagerly anticipated by so many must mean it has some major flaws at the moment.

  8. i loved portal, rented it and i def want to buy it

  9. We are spoilt :-) ps3 is just dominating….

  10. I loved Portal 2 and LBP 2. Best games that I’ve played this year.!!

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