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5th Annual Ninfora Game of the Year Awards, 2021


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Welcome to the 5th annual Ninfora Game Awards, curated as always from my favorite games of the year!
 
2021 saw some big RPG releases (which is great news to me) but overall it ended up being a pretty strong year for the Switch no matter what genre you prefer, and far too often I found myself with more games to play than free time to actually play them. That's a problem I'll gladly accept though, so check out some of my favorites below and let me know what title was the highlight of 2021 for you!
 
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Best Classic RPG: Bravely Default II
Among all of the new-fangled approaches to RPG combat systems and level progression, there's something to be said for classic turn-based battles and character class structures. Bravely Default II feels a lot like its predecessors, but all of the BD games have been delightful RPG adventures and this latest entry in the franchise is another must-play for classic RPG fans.
 
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Best Psychedelic Game: Tetris Effect: Connected
Just in case anyone needed a new excuse to spend way too much time lining up blocks, Tetris Effect: Connected offers an impressive variety of game mode options all wrapped up in trippy visuals and audio that will make the hours melt away as you play. Plus, playing a co-op mode in Tetris turned into a pleasant surprise of frantic, friendly gameplay. Just those small additions are enough to perfectly spice up the familiar Tetris formula.
 
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Most Felonious Vegetable: Turnip Boy Commits Tax Evasion
An adorable little turnip shirking his civic duty is apparently a formula just silly enough to work, especially when it's combined with charming pixel art graphics and a lively little food-based world. More importantly, beneath that vegetable skin is a solid Zelda-style adventure game, one that is admittedly over far too quickly but will keep players hooked while it lasts. Turnip Boy Commits Tax Evasion may seem like a goofy meme game, and it still is in some ways, but it's also a fun little adventure worth exploring (just don't pick up any tax tips from this game).
 
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The "Biggest Bowser" Award: Super Mario 3D World + Bowser's Fury
First giant dynamaxed Pokémon and now this? Mario's most frequent antagonist is getting in on the super-sized monster action, and the result is a truly fearsome battle. The Bowser's Fury addition of Super Mario 3D World also adds a pretty fantastic little side adventure filled with tasks to complete, which is sure to satisfy fans of the Super Mario Odyssey formula and makes Mario's future in sandbox/open-world games look bright.
 
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Most Surreal Game: Genesis Noir
Genesis Noir is easily one of the most singularly stylish games to hit the Switch this year. A wholly original blend of mystery adventure, jazz, and cosmic philosophy, this is a truly unique and engrossing video game experience. Thankfully the early launch glitches have been mostly curtailed now, because this is a one-of-a-kind game that deserves a smooth playthrough.
 
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Best Artwork: Cris Tales
Sometimes it's fun to see a game's concept art and compare how much the artwork had to be translated from initial concept to actual in-game assets. With Cris Tales, it feels like they put that initial, super-detailed artwork directly into the game. Every character and background scene is absolutely gorgeous, and thanks to the game's time-travel mechanics you're also treated to multiple versions of everything. The result is stunning and creates a truly beautiful setting for a clever JRPG adventure.
 
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Best Link to the Past: The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword HD
In retrospect, it's fascinating to see how some elements of Breath of the Wild clearly grew out of Skyward Sword's design, neatly linking the familiar Zelda adventure formula with the open-world freedom of the most recent game. That's not to say Skyward Sword is just some sort of stopgap between classic and new Zelda games, though. Replaying it on the Switch is a great reminder of the game's inventive dungeons and satisfying motion control mechanics. Perhaps most importantly, the handful of quality of life improvements alleviate a lot of little annoyances and help make the game soar.
 
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Best Pikmin Game: The Wild at Heart
Yet again indie developers come through as we all patiently wait for Nintendo's many franchises to get sequels. But I don't want to reduce The Wild at Heart to some sort of Pikmin clone. This is also a real-time adventure/puzzle game with adorable little minions to control, but the charming art style and simple but engaging puzzles are what make it a fun, memorable journey.
 
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Best Life Lesson: Say No! More
Who says video games can't impart life lessons? Say No! More is an extremely silly game centered entirely around the idea of saying "no" to the ridiculous demands of coworkers. There's also an important message about self-care and standing up for yourself though, wrapped up in one of the strangest and yet most charming indie releases of the year.
 
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Most Surprising Sequel: NEO: The World Ends With You
There are actually plenty of contenders for this award this year, but an extremely stylish, niche action-JRPG custom-made for the DS is definitely not the franchise I expected to see revived on the Switch. Despite the change in hardware and combat system, NEO: The World Ends With You is a more than worthy sequel dripping with Shibuya style and boasting a new equally rewarding battle structure. In many ways NEO is made for fans of the original, but that shouldn't discourage new players from diving into the Reapers' Game.
 
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Most Random Game: Lost in Random
Card-based games can be a little dicey at times, but Lost in Random makes it work by neatly balancing the chance elements with several aspects that you do have control over. Ultimately though it isn't the combat system that makes Lost in Random so memorable. Even's journey through a quirky, dark fairytale world littered with humor and stunning visuals is something only developer Zoink could pull off so well, and I'd certainly love to play another round in this world.
 
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Best Rampage: Monster Hunter Rise
I haven't been playing Monster Hunter since the series began, but I've been playing long enough to be excited by how much the franchise has grown to capture worldwide attention. Part of that broader appeal is definitely down to how much the most recent games have eased up on the more tedious aspects of hunting, and even if I'm a little tempted to rant about how back in my day you'd have to find the monster on your own and memorize its habits, the easier elements have done wonders for making the hunt more streamlined without losing the thrill of battle. There's no better time to get into monster hunting than with Rise, and hopefully this still isn't the peak of the franchise.
 
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Best Soundtrack: Everhood
Everhood is a downright odd game, and even if I'm still not entirely sure what actually happened throughout the story there's no denying that the soundtrack is amazing. And that unusual storytelling is perhaps part of what makes the rhythm-based gameplay so engaging. You never really know what to expect in Everhood, but you can bet it'll have some great music backing it up.
 
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Best Retro Ninja Game: Cyber Shadow
Yes, that includes the requisite incredibly difficult final boss. Cyber Shadow is a stylish love letter to classic side-scrolling action games, but it's also smart enough to know when to play with new mechanics and spice things up for veteran players. The steady, satisfying progression from simple sword attacks to death defying dashes from one enemy to another makes Cyber Shadow a blast from start to finish (even if that final boss will take you so, so many tries to defeat).
 
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The "Punk's Not Dead" Award: No More Heroes III
Like any other entertainment industry, there's a trend toward producing "safe" content that is designed to appeal to as broad of an audience as possible to rake in the money. God bless Suda 51, then, for always sticking to his punk aesthetic, shaking up the video game world with every insane thought that seems to run through his head. No More Heroes III is by far the strangest of the NMH games (and that's saying something), so players are in for a wild, one-of-a-kind ride with this one.
 
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Best Comedy: Later Alligator
If you're looking for a game with alligator puns boy do I have good news for you. Later Alligator is a hilariously charming point-and-click adventure that seems to pack in as many jokes-per-minute as it possibly can. The best part though is that the humor all stands up well. Jokes in video games can oftentimes be pretty broad or bland but Later Alligator does a fantastic job of hitting the comedy mark, whether it's in dialogue, visual gags, or the never-ending supply of reptile puns.
 
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Best Photobomb: New Pokémon Snap
Of all the Pokémon spin-offs to come out over the years, the original Pokémon Snap certainly captured a lot of fans' attention. It's a wonderfully unique premise after all—instead of training and battling these pocket monsters, you get to just live in their world and make your favorite little buddies feel more real for a little while. New Pokémon Snap is just as delightful and relaxing, even when you do just barely miss your opportunity for the perfect shot and have to replay the whole level again.
 
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So often it's the little things that really make a game stand out, small moments that surprise and delight the player, and Disco Elysium is made up of about a million of those little moments. This game takes RPG branching dialogue to a whole new level and does it with smart, funny, and engaging writing that perfectly draws you into a richly detailed, slightly dreary world.
 
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Game of the Year: Metroid Dread
Can a game that has been teased for nearly two decades actually live up to years of expectations? Yes, apparently it can! Metroid Dread was a practically mythical piece of video game development history, but finally getting to play it in 2021 I can say it's just about everything a Metroid fan could expect or want from a new side-scrolling game. Both exploration and combat are smoothly balanced with Samus's sleek, fluid abilities that make just moving around the labyrinthine environments a real joy, while conquering the fiendishly difficult bosses stands as one of the most satisfying accomplishments of the year for Switch gamers. There's no shortage of Metroidvania games out there these days, but when the formula is executed as sharply as Metroid Dread, you have to give credit to the bounty hunter who defined an entire genre of gaming.
Edited by Eliwood8
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Most disappointing remake of 2021: 

 

Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl. Note that I didn't say BAD.

 

Most WTF Remaster of whatever of 2021: 

 

GTA Trilogy Remaster or whatever. The horror stories. 

 

Most Mario Party Party of 2021: 

 

Mario Party Superstars. Fun fun fun. 

 

Most THEY FINALLY LOCALIZED THEM GAMES/COLLECTION of 2021: 

 

The Great Ace Attorney Chronicles. SO GOOD. 

 

Most "This is not the 30th Sonic Celebration we were looking for, but I'll buy it anyways" Game of 2021: 

 

Sonic Colors Ultimate. I never played the original.

 

Most "GIMME THREE GAMES ABOUT HIGH SCHOOL MURDER AND THROW IN A WEIRD FAN-SERVICE SPIN-OFF" Game of 2021: 

 

Danganronpa Collection. I never thought this would happen the same year The Great Ace Attorney Chronicles existed.

 

Most "PLEASE GET THIS ABOMINATION OFF MY SWITCH ESHOP" Game of 2021:

 

Popeye The Sailor Man. Just. Just. Just Why.   

 

Most Horribly Disappointing Game of 2021: 

 

Balan Wonderland. If its ideals and gameplay weren't so cluttered, it'd actually be good. Here's to hoping they make a Yooka-Laylee-like comeback.  
 
Most Chaotic Game of 2021: 

 

Super Monkey Ball Banana Mania. Physics, man.

Edited by Link, the Hero of Dreams
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1 hour ago, Link, the Hero of Dreams said:

Most Horribly Disappointing Game of 2021: 

 

Balan Wonderland. If its ideals and gameplay weren't so cluttered, it'd actually be good. Here's to hoping they make a Yooka-Laylee-like comeback. 

I keep forgetting this game came out earlier this year. I thought it came out late 2020.

 

Was this game delayed to 2021 or early 2021 was always its release? Regardless, no matter how long that game was in the oven was not gonna make that game any better, well maybe the performance but actually gameplay no. That was always gonna be the game, sadly.

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Man, I've not done MUCH gaming this year....

 

Lets see,

 

SM3DW+BF

SSHD

SMBBM

TE

MD

Ep1PR

 

* Still haven't even opened my Metroid Dread because I have bene working on SS.

 

So, first off

 

SM3DW+BF

--Very good port and with the performance enhancements it runs a lot smoother.  I didn't unlock all the playable characters like last time but whatever.  The BF part though.... very cool spin on an add on/dlc/whatever you want to call it for that title--feels like Nintendo is going somewhere with this.

 

Episode 1 Pod Racer

--Played it very little in the N64 era but liked it enough to dl this update when it hit the eshop.  I liked it but I did find the menus confusing to work with as well as the upgrade system.

 

Super Monkey Ball Banana Mania

--Really do enjoy this version of the game but haven't played it in a while.  I think the physics did feel sort of off, but I am so used to the GC version that it's hard to adjust... and arguably the Wii versions were more responsive too.  I do need to get back into this game.

 

Tetris Effect

--Really cool reinvention of the Tetris game.  I really do like the music and the tile sets and boards.  What frustrates me at times with the game though is the random spikes and drops in difficulty at the bad times.... especially with the spikes in speed when you are in a bad spot and need to clean some stuff up.

 

Skyward Sword HD

--I did enjoy the cleanup of the game and the enhancements to the gameplay.  I haven't done as much motion play as I had wanted but I do like the game.  Now the only thing that annoys me is getting round Demise... 3 times!

 

So:

 

My best overall

 

1) SMW3DW+BF

hm SSHD

 

Puzzler:

1)SMBBM

hm TE

 

Racer

1) Ep1 PR

--SMBBM does have good racing moments but some of the physics kind of take that part out.

 

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  • Chrom featured this topic
On 1/4/2022 at 5:04 PM, Kezay said:

Reading through these there are a couple that I don't even recall hearing about much if at all (Genesis Noir) but otherwise a solid list that really highlights the variety of games we saw in 2021.

 

When you start digging into all the indie games released in a year there are definitely too many interesting titles to play in just one year. I always end December with a handful of games I wish I had time to try out and add to these lists, and then there are some games that I don't discover until years later!

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