The 2022 Backlog Awards, Pt. 2
I haven’t sat down and written a full game review in a long time, despite starting (and stopping) for games like Haven, Sable, Airborne, and even Marvel’s Spider-Man. All of these were influential games for me, but it’s been hard to devote as much time to blogging as I want. (I covered that in my look back at the year.)
Now that it’s time for the 2023 Backlog Awards, I wanted to give myself space to gush about what makes each of these games special. Which is only fair, right? I’m featuring my favorite games of the year, the sort of titles I’d recommend to you. That’s worth a little bit of extra time and effort.
Anyway, let’s get to it.
Author’s note: As I mentioned on Friday, I decided to split up my annual Backlog Awards post. In case you missed it, here are the games that came in at #6-#10.
Backlog Awards' Best of 2022 | #5
Even after 5 years, Life is Strange continues to amaze me. But while DONTNOD made a sequel, the developer moved on from the franchise, entrusting it to folks at Deck Nine. I never got around to playing Life is Strange 2, or the quasi prequel (from Deck Nine), or whatever the “Awesome Adventures of Captain Spirit” was. But when I saw Life is Strange: True Colors come to Game Pass, it was a no-brainer.
Life is Strange: True Colors recaptured a lot of what Kim and I loved about the original game. It doesn’t have the same level of detail, where every offhand comment or random object hints at a new mystery. (To be fair, one of my only complaints about Life is Strange is the number of things it leaves unresolved.) In fact, True Colors did its best to build a framework for a “new era” within the Life is Strange-verse.
True Colors introduced us to a new town (Haven Springs), a new hero (Alex Chen), and a new power: Alex is an empath with synesthesia. She feels other people’s emotions and sees them as colors. This adds a new layer to each relationship she makes as she settles into a new town, because her influence on the people around her can also affect her mood and outlook on the world.
The original game turned Arcadia Bay into a character, True Colors did the same for Haven Springs. Again, this small town in Colorado never has the same depth as Arcadia Bay, but the writing felt a lot sharper and more poignant than what I’d come to expect from the series. Alex’s story is deeply personal, and True Colors is her story — from the narrative to the old text messages you can read to how Alex interacts with environmental objects, each piece of the game tells us more about her. And as a result, I built a much deeper and more genuine relationship with Alex than I did with Max Caldwell.
I could go on about this game for a long time. And even after playing through it three times (once with Kim, once with her best friend, and once with my cousin) in the span of two months, I’d still be happy to jump in and restart the game tomorrow. The writing and characterization are honestly that good.
Backlog Awards' Best of 2022 | #4
Normally, True Colors would have ranked here. But Pentiment nailed my favorite parts of True Colors (the worldbuilding and sharp writing) as well as my favorite parts of Life is Strange 1 (the depth and sense of mystery).
I’ve had a few different people ask me about Pentiment, and I’m always hesitant to recommend it — not because I don’t love the game, but because it’s a wholly unique game. Taking place in the early 1500s at the start of the Protestant Reformation, the game is as much an exploration of medieval life as it is the impact and influence of the Catholic Church on the lives of everyday people.
Pentiment was developed by Obsidian Entertainment, who you might recognize as the developer behind Pillars of Eternity. In fact, Pentiment was the dream project of Josh Sawyer, the director and lead (and overall creative genius, really) behind the entire Pillars of Eternity universe. And as you might expect, Pentiment also leverages the RPG know-how of Obsidian. The writing is just as good as — if not better than — Pillars of Eternity, and the way you develop your character and how you interact with others can alter the game’s progression. (For example, my character studied medicine at university, and so has access to some things but not others.)
The gameplay is very much an adventure game like King’s Quest, where you walk around and find evidence or navigate dialogue to uncover clues. However, Pentiment is a murder mystery as much as a historical drama, and the narrative is as cleverly constructed as a show like Broadchurch. Every single person seems guilty, and there doesn’t seem to be any way to learn everything and make a “perfect” decision. The struggle to figure out whodunnit as time runs out is a clever game mechanic, and it puts even more emphasis on getting to know the people in Tassing village and Kiersau Abbey.
IGN gave Pentiment a 10 out of 10. And while I don’t normally put a lot of weight on review scores, IGN considers a 10 a masterpiece. Here’s the explanation of their scoring:
“Simply put: this is our highest recommendation. There’s no such thing as a truly perfect game, but those that earn a Masterpiece label from IGN come as close as we could reasonably hope for. These are classics in the making that we hope and expect will influence game design for years to come, as other developers learn from their shining examples.”
If my summary doesn’t highlight Pentiment as a unique and special achievement in gaming, then a 1,500-word review won’t either. (But seriously, it’s amazing and deserves a lot more recognition.)
Backlog Awards' Best of 2022 | #3
Given my love for the franchise and my anticipation for this game, it was hard to settle on a spot for Halo Infinite in this list. (I kept from including it on my 2021 Backlog Awards because I hadn’t technically finished the campaign yet.) Most of that comes down to the fact that any conversation about Halo Infinite is a tale of two games — I loved both, but I admit that the game has been…divisive.
If we were just talking about Halo Infinite's multiplayer, Halo Infinite would be a 10 out of 10. Honestly, it would probably be in my top two games of the past two years. After 175 hours, I feel confident in saying that this is the best the series has felt in at least 10 years, if not 15. The balance between weapons, grenades, vehicles, and equipment is perfect. And the list of multiplayer maps includes a few new favorites.
Personally, I didn't have issues with the battle pass progression or the lack of dedicated playlists, and a lot of that has been ironed out since launch. Still, the transition to a free-to-play model wasn't entirely smooth…but this is pretty damned close to a perfect Halo game, and it's the best competitive shooter I've played since the Halo LAN party days back in high school. That speaks volumes about the game.
While multiplayer is the star of Halo Infinite, that’s not to say it’s held back by the singleplayer campaign. In fact, I loved Halo Infinite’s story. 343 Industries pivoted from the catastrophe of Halo 5, recaptured the magic of Halo CE, and laid the groundwork for something new all at the same time.
I will admit that the shift to an open world concept definitely kept me from getting as invested as I would in a linear set of missions. Zeta Halo is awesome, but sometimes to the detriment of the game’s focus on a core narrative. Halo Infinite starts and finishes strong, however, and I’m excited for whatever’s next. It’s a fantastic game that overcame impossible fan expectations and enormous development issues, and I think it deserves more respect from the halo community than it’s gotten thus far.
Backlog Awards' Best of 2022 | Runner-up
I bought Stardew Valley as a Christmas gift for Kim back in 2017. She had enjoyed Animal Crossing when she was younger, and after getting her back into video games it seemed like an easy way to let her play something on her own. However, I never tried it because I didn’t have any interest in that sort of game.
During our pre-baby quarantine in 2021, I re-installed Stardew Valley on my computer in case Kim wanted to play it again. (I mean, she’d been spending dozens of hours in Animal Crossing: New Horizons and comparing things to Stardew. It was an easy assumption to make.) And, for absolutely no reason at all, I decided to start my own farm one day towards the end of 2021.
Stardew became an obsession. I dipped into Pelican Town almost every day for 3-4 months, even if it was only for a single “day” on the farm (about 20 minutes). Before long, I’d spent more time in the game than Kim had, and we were amazed to see the amount of significant updates and new content added since she played it. She started a second farm, and suddenly Stardew Valley was like The Sims 4 all over again — a watercooler game for us to talk about all the time or enjoy sitting side by side.
And, on another whim, I decided to take advantage of Stardew Valley in Game Pass and installed it on my Xbox. I’ve put another 80 hours into a completely new farm with this version, and I’m sure I’ll end up passing my own “record” for time played. It’s not quite as much my story as the first game, but the fact that I can play the game multiple ways with the same level of enjoyment says a lot about it.
When ConcernedApe set out to create a “what if” project, he did more than just modernize the DNA of the old Harvest Moon games he played as a kid. He created a true indie gem that continues to inspire and influence people. From the music to the visuals to the mechanics, I still can’t believe how a single guy with no experience crafted an absolute masterpiece…but it’s remarkable, and will end up being one of my favorite games of all time.
Backlog Awards' Best of 2022 | Winner
Night City is both a dream come true and hellscape all at once. In many ways, it's the perfect setting for an RPG. A sprawling playground, successfully offering the mirage of endless opportunity: Things to do, people to fight, and places to see. In some ways, it delivers on the promise of a “roleplaying game” in a way no other game I've played has managed. And that's a big deal. It’s magnificent in its design and density and bustle, capturing “big city vibes” while living up to its cyberpunk (and therefore dystopian) title.
And there’s the rub: Residents of Night City are quite literally a heartbeat away from death. The city showcases the absolute worst of what humanity can be. The depravity and hedonism regularly shocked me, and I took three different breaks to emotionally recover from a specific story arc. But that’s by design — those moments make Cyberpunk hard to love, and harder to recommend, but they will stick with me forever, rivaling other infamous scenes like the Noveria choice or "No Russian."
Cyberpunk 2077 is a game that strived to be everything, to be the perfect RPG for every RPG fan. And while it did a lot of everything right — and certainly built off CD Projekt Red’s blockbuster, The Witcher 3 — the game ultimately flew too close to the sun. The studio’s ambition ultimately weighed the game down, and I’m not sure we’ll ever get to see a project that delivered on everything Cyberpunk wanted to be.
But make no mistake about it: CD Projekt Red created a landmark experience that is (at least for now) unrivaled. Cyberpunk 2077 isn't a masterpiece, but it is a remarkable achievement and a game I would happily get lost in time and time again.
Author's note: I did not play Cyberpunk before the next-gen console update. This “1.5 patch” was almost like a second release, putting to rest the problems that had plagued the game at launch. I personally didn't experience any weird hiccups or technical issues, so I can't speak to that. But I also can't dismiss it, or the fact that it impacted public opinion for Cyberpunk 2077 and CD Projekt Red.
2022 in a nutshell
Well, this ended up being quite a hefty summary. And in reality, I probably could have just reviewed these games independently for the amount of effort (and the word count) I put into this. But hey, end-of-year award lists get more buzz than individual reviews — hopefully the 2022 Backlog Awards get at least a few more eyes on a couple truly incredible games.
What about you? Did you play any of these games? Have you even heard of any of them? Would any of my picks land on your own backlog for 2023? Let me know about any favorites you played this year.
And as always: Keep on gaming, even when life gets in the way.