Counting down my favorite games of all time: #72: Split Fiction (PS5) So I played this with my bestie @JParker317 and you know...this game was really amazing. You play as 2 ladies who are writers that sign up for a simulation experiment. One of you are into Science Fiction while the other is into Fantasy and you go on an adventure where you travel through both genres, overcoming obstacles together and trying to stop bad peoples. This is one of the few games I can honestly say doesn't have any boring parts to it. Every part of the game feels different and if it wasn't for a story that doesn't connect with me personally on a high level (please know...it's still very well done), it would be up much higher on my list. If there is one "drawback" to this game, it's that it requires co-op to play. So you're going to need a friend. But if I'm being honest, I don't personally consider that a drawback as it was one of the things I personally loved about the game. Also, only one of you has to buy it! Check it out if you get a chance.

Counting down my favorite games of all time: #73: WWE Smackdown! Here Comes The Pain (PS2) While I do have one more wrestling game above this, this is the highest a Smackdown series game gets, and to be honest, it's for a couple reasons. First off, the roster was just insane for this year's game. This was still shortly after the Attitude Era was over but a lot of the Attitude Era wrestlers were still wrestling, but it was also after some great newer stars had started wrestling as well. The story mode was done really well as well, and it was just a lot of fun to play as this era of wrestlers.

Counting down my favorite games of all time: #74: Heavy Rain (PS4) One of the games I didn't get to play when it released because I didn't have a PS3, I fell in love with this game. You start off as Ethan and one of your kids go missing. And this begins a WILD ride of crazy things to happen, involving several characters as their stories interweave. Again, it's a story driven, QTE style game where decisions also matter, so I can't get too far into it without very heavy spoilers. But just know, it's crazy, and it's great.

Counting down my favorite games of all time: #75: Assassin's Creed Origins (PS4) This is the first RPG in the series, and at the time of it's release, it felt amazing. I know a lot of us fans were hoping it would be a one off since they were telling us the story of how the Assassin's Organization was starting, but sadly this became the framework of what the series would become. Yes, I will have Valhalla ahead of this game, which is going to seem wild to so many of you, but there is something about that game that just gripped me and I just cannot explain it. I will tell you, that objectively I do think this is a better game. But this list isn't an objective list. It's me ranking them based on how much I love the games listed. I...love...Bayek, and you aren't going to get too many protagonists that have as tragic story starting off as him, and that's what makes his story so great. And yes, if this makes it's way out of my circle, I know there are going to be people that have a list of people with more tragic stories, but I want you to know that I'm not saying there aren't any. There just aren't a lot. I think a part of why I like Valhalla more is it's setting. While I LOVE Egyptian culture...the world is mostly just sand and orange and it feels bland to me. It's a color palette I'm just not the biggest fan of. One of my complaints though, is this game started the inclusion of myths and gods into the story telling and I hate it on every level. I do love this game though, and that is why it is on my list.

Apparently wanting a version of GTA where you can become a cop and STOP crime is “crazy”.

Counting down my favorite games of all time: #76: inFAMOUS Second Son (PS4) I...still...haven't played any of the other inFAMOUS games but when this game came out, I had heard how good they were and decided to jump on this. And MAN did I have so much fun playing this game. This is about as close as you are ever going to get to being a Super Hero without playing as one from a comic book. You play as Delsin, who as you make your way through the game, gain access to several different powers that you are able to use to achieve your goals. The game is set in an open world, but compared to games by today's standards, it isn't near as big as many you play now. You also get the ability to be either good or bad in your choices, which was really cool to toy around with. If you have a chance, I would still highly advise giving this game a chance. It is a lot of fun.

Counting down my favorite games of all time: #77: Batman: Arkham Knight (PS4) This is my least favorite Arkham game, but I do still love it. It comes with some small issues that drive me nuts. The Batmobile missions are boring. There are WAY too many Riddler trophies and you need all of them to get the true ending. But my biggest issue, and something that I'm no longer mad about...but it definitely irked the shit out of me when it happened, was Rocksteady telling us that Jason Todd wasn't Red Hood in this game.....and then it being Jason Todd. (Spoiler if you have no clue about the character...but I also don't care as it's been known for a very...very long time) Above all though, the story is really well done and they do a good job of giving you some pretty decent jump scares while gliding through the city, which is always appreciated. I won't get too much into the overall story though. Play it if you haven't.

Counting down my favorite games of all time: #78: Assassin's Creed Shadows (PS5) This was a game that was an absolute blast to me, especially since I could tailor it to what I wanted out of an AC game. First and foremost, it brought us back to Assassin's vs. Templars which is where the series should ALWAYS be. I do love Valhalla....and I hate Odyssey...but this brought it back to what it should have been. I also was thrilled to be able to turn on instant assassinations, which should ALWAYS be a thing in Assassin's Creed. One of the things I fell in love with in the series, is trying to find a way to get to my target, take him out, and get out (if possible) without being seen. I have absolutely NOT been a fan of how the RPG series has taken that away. And I know, there are a lot of people that didn't Yasuke but most of the people that didn't is for a really stupid reason. I'm not going to use this post to go into details, I've talked about it to nauseum when the game came out. Now I say all that to say this...I have not played any of the DLC. I am actually to the point that I just hate DLC in games. When I'm finished with a game, I'm finished with it and almost never go back to it. Maybe if I find myself playing through the whole series again, I'll get to it again, but I just couldn't be asked as things stand. Anyways, I do quite enjoy this game, and I do wish more people had given it a chance, than did.

Counting down my favorite games of all time: #79: Dynasty Warriors Origins (PS5) This is one of those games I went into thinking it was just going to be a fun romp in the Dynasty Warriors Universe, and ended up loving quite a bit. I loved the open overworld that they set up to explore, and loved how they had the mission structure fit within all of this. Sometimes you would have a mission pop up that just allowed you to go in, complete something super quick, and then move on. This is great because most missions in DW history are 20 to 30 min a piece. The difference with this game, is it is focusing on the beginning of the story, and you play as Ziluan. As you play you make decisions that change the outcomes and direction that the story is headed. If you like the Dynasty Warriors formula, this is a must play as it feels far more different than any DW game that has come before it. Give this game some time if you can.

66th game beaten in 2026 Batman: The Enemy Within (PS4) This year has just been filled with Batman games, between the new Lego game that came out, a replay of the first Arkham game, and both TellTale games. And I have to say, I have very mixed feelings about this game. First and foremost, for everything this game does right with it's story telling, it gets something wrong. Watching the Joker become...the Joker in this universe was written really well and plays a lot on him and Batman being tied at the hip. However, Harley was written very...not Harley, and it bothers me. But again, on the flip side again, this has probably been the best on screen Bane I can think of in recent memory. The writing is all over the place. While the overall story is told well, there are small details that seemed to fall through the cracks with decision making. Just as an example, early in the game you get the choice to either pull information out of a guy in holding at the GCPD by making him think you're going to hurt him, or you can actually pummel him into it. I chose to keep the cameras on and do it as I feel Batman would actually do it. Amanda Waller of course wants you to get info by any means necessary, but Commissioner Gordon wouldn't approve of that method. So I never touch him. However, due to story reasons, I make him panic into believing I'm about to have the place blown up. Cool, except at the end of the chapter, I as Batman get blamed BY GORDON for being the reason a person is dead (avoiding spoilers), roughing up a suspect, and teaming up with Waller. And when you go to pick something you think sounds like a perfectly logical response, Gordon gets super annoying and starts acting like a child. And I HATED the end of the game. You have to make, what would be an impossible choice. And lastly, it really feels like EVERYONE KNOWS WHO BATMAN IS. And it's dumb. And I hate it. Another part of my problem, is I am a HUGE fan of QTEs in video games, but in this game, they slow down time so much, it feels like you have forever to hit the buttons you need to. Now...you CAN fail them...it's just really hard. And if you hit the wrong button first, it's fine, you can still hit the one you need to. Make it to where I can fail if I mess up. I'd have to practically go into a medical emergency mid game to actually miss a QTE. And the last negative I have, is since this came out before TellTale originally closed, you have no way to check your choices against other people's choices, and that bothers me. That should have been available to bring back online. That's half the fun of playing a TellTale game. The one thing I will give HUGE props for, is the voice acting. I feel Troy Baker is probably my second favorite Batman voice actor behind Kevin Conroy of course. This game IS good, but there is a LOT holding it back from being great. 6/10

Counting down my favorite games of all time: #80: Grand Theft Auto IV (Xbox 360) Going into this game, I was a huge fan of GTA3. Huge. played the absolute mess out of it. The put out Vice City, and I didn't play it because I didn't care to play a game set in Miami at the time. I liked Liberty City. Then they put out San Andreas and it made me mad pretty early in and I never finished it. GTA 4 was bringing me back. Back to my old GTA stomping grounds. Back...to Liberty City. This time as Niko Bellic. You are in pursuit of the American Dream, and you are also looking for someone who betrayed his unit while he was a soldier in Easter Europe. This game follows the typical mission structure that comes with a GTA game. You go to places marked on the map, have a convo with someone, go complete a mission. And the side missions are as perfect as you expect a side mission from Rockstar to be. Loved this game, and it's definitely not the last thing you see from GTA on this list, that's for sure.

Counting down my favorite games of all time: #81: WCW/nWo Revenge (N64) This was the game that sparked a true love for the formula that was AKI wrestling games. While World Tour was a great skeleton to start off, it wasn't until Revenge that I felt it was hard to NOT want to play these games. This is the game, that I started playing on Expert because I was good enough to still dominate the game at that level. The game where @JParker317 and I started tag teaming against friends and making them hate playing us. And one of the games that makes me mad when people hate how short matches can be in AEW Fight Forever because...both @JParker317 and I...starting with this game and for the rest of the AKI run...were able to win both singles and tag matches in less than a minute on Expert. One of the highlights of this game, was the scoring system at the end of a match. you would get scored on several things and the game would give you a total tally that my friends and I were ALWAYS trying to beat. It's actually one of the things that I wish would have carried on into further iterations of AKI games. You also had a pretty solid WCW roster to work with, as well as other promotions that were filled with wrestlers that were representatives of other people. The story mode was just a ladder of people to defeat per title, and then you'd face someone at the end and if it was your first playthrough, it ended with a champion you unlocked. The costume editor was ahead of it's time...although in comparison to most games create-a-wrestler...it would now be extremely outdated. I still love this game. I still think about how many times I've corkscrew pildrove people on the wood planks in the aisle of Bash at the Beach. Did it do extra damage? No. But did I pretend it did in my head? Absolutely. I love this damn game.