It kind of surprises me that the original Assassin's Creed is critiqued and rated so low on this site. In hindsight, the game surely doesn't have the level of polish that future games in the series would have. But still, for me, this game was absolutely breathtaking on release, and I could not believe the level of freedom that the game offered in terms of how you could acrobatically traverse the game world. While I'm certain that other games in the series have transcended the original, the first game is what laid down the framework, and it was absolutely satisfying to play.

I suppose I can understand how the game may seem mediocre to anyone who only experienced the game after having played other games in the series, or even other contemporary games in the 3rd person action genre. But having played this on release, it was really something special, and there wasn't anything else quite like it at the time, at least not that I had experienced. At the very least, I feel like it should be more appreciated for being the revolutionary game that it was, even if its style has been done to death at this stage.

Doom 2016 is everything that it needed to be. While I am ashamed to admit that I never played any Doom game prior to this one, I played enough of the original Wolfenstein, and Duke Nukem 3D to know how the original played. And with that being said, Doom 2016 enveloped everything that made 90s arcade-like shooters so fun, while adding in a contemporary coating that made it accessible to new and old audiences alike. It is pure adrenaline pumping action, start to finish, and nearly every facet of this game is overflowing with immense satisfaction. I look forward to diving into Doom Eternal and the recently announced Doom: The Dark Ages in the near future.