Top 50 Favorites: #22
Games I Like That Everybody Else Dislikes
Unfairly (but somewhat understandably) reviled, I get that everyone hated this because "oh no there isn't trash floating in the breeze" but it still looks fantastic these days even in its downgraded state - as someone from the Chicagoland area the fake Chicago in this remains not only a worthy reimagination but one of the finest, most living and breathing, fleshed-out open worlds I've ever played (everything to the random NPC encounters to the real sense of diversity in the different areas to the lovely fake Bean which I haven't stopped thinking about in the 2+ years since I played this just feels so crisp and lived-in). Elephant in the room - yes the story absolutely crashes and burns on or around the halfway point, and Aiden Pearce never emotes right when it feels like he's supposed to. But in terms of its gameplay the thing is a significant thirst-quencher, not sure what everyone expected but this is pretty much as-advertised for a 2014 tech-fetish GTA clone - sneaky hack combat is insanely fun but does get repetitive near the end like everything else here, I really like how vulnerable you are once your cover is blown from it. I even spent hours on the little phone games and street minigames, man - what a blast and half. Also helps that the soundtrack features some of the best songs ever recorded ("Private Eye" - Alkaline Trio, "Sparklers" - Gemini Club, "Day 'n' Nite" - Kid Cuidi) and a stellar collection of artists including Alice Cooper, Nas, Iggy Pop, 2 Chainz, Deadmau5, Wu-Tang Clan... come on man, it rules. It's got its warts (driving for instance feels unfinished) but sits incredibly well - an atmospheric force - something deep within it just demands interactivity for me. So, so incomparably better than its sequel, even if both games have a real "We live in a society" problem.
Games I Like That Everybody Else Dislikes
Unfairly (but somewhat understandably) reviled, I get that everyone hated this because "oh no there isn't trash floating in the breeze" but it still looks fantastic these days even in its downgraded state - as someone from the Chicagoland area the fake Chicago in this remains not only a worthy reimagination but one of the finest, most living and breathing, fleshed-out open worlds I've ever played (everything to the random NPC encounters to the real sense of diversity in the different areas to the lovely fake Bean which I haven't stopped thinking about in the 2+ years since I played this just feels so crisp and lived-in). Elephant in the room - yes the story absolutely crashes and burns on or around the halfway point, and Aiden Pearce never emotes right when it feels like he's supposed to. But in terms of its gameplay the thing is a significant thirst-quencher, not sure what everyone expected but this is pretty much as-advertised for a 2014 tech-fetish GTA clone - sneaky hack combat is insanely fun but does get repetitive near the end like everything else here, I really like how vulnerable you are once your cover is blown from it. I even spent hours on the little phone games and street minigames, man - what a blast and half. Also helps that the soundtrack features some of the best songs ever recorded ("Private Eye" - Alkaline Trio, "Sparklers" - Gemini Club, "Day 'n' Nite" - Kid Cuidi) and a stellar collection of artists including Alice Cooper, Nas, Iggy Pop, 2 Chainz, Deadmau5, Wu-Tang Clan... come on man, it rules. It's got its warts (driving for instance feels unfinished) but sits incredibly well - an atmospheric force - something deep within it just demands interactivity for me. So, so incomparably better than its sequel, even if both games have a real "We live in a society" problem.