We the Nerdy’s Top Ten Games of 2015

2015 turned out to be an amazing year for games. Everything and anything a gamer could want was available to experience. From smaller gems like Ori and the Blind Forest to massive AAA games like The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, from “sure things” like Fallout 4 and Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain to surprise smash hits like Rocket League, and Until Dawn, the choice for Game of the Year has never been harder!

Making a top 10 list for a site is not an easy or quantifiable task. As most lists are based on subjective opinions, it’s difficult to say, unanimously, that one game is better than any other. Adding in the varying opinions of several people is even tougher. In light of this, we have come up with a fair way for our list to most accurately represent the favorite games of our Video Games staff.

We asked for every writer to provide a list of their ten favorite games of the year, in order. Each spot is worth a certain amount of points. Games that are listed as number one have a weight of double because they’re number one to that writer. This is in order to prevent a game that wasn’t played by a lot of people not being represented on our top ten when clearly someone whose opinion matters to us at We the Nerdy thinks it was the best game. This also prevents a game from getting the top spot on the overall top ten that, even though a majority liked the game, no one listed as their favorite game for the year. With that said, a game in a number one spot is worth twenty points, the number two spot is worth nine points and so on until the game in the tenth spot is worth one point. We then added up the points to come up with our top 10 list for 2015. The games below and the order were determined by the above formula. If you don’t see a game on the list that you feel should be, blame math.

Without any further ado, here are We the Nerdy’s Top Ten Games of 2015:

10. Until Dawn

“As a lifelong fan of horror, I have long been wanting a horror game that gets the tone and vibe of 80’s slasher films down. Enter Supermassive’s Until Dawn. While most people were surprised by how good the game is, I can safely say that I wasn’t in the slightest. By taking the branching adventure gameplay of David Cage’s games, adding and playing up to horror tropes with a really neat narrative twist, Until Dawn is a no-brainer that’s a blast to play and experience. It’s not a spoiler to say any character can die and your story will continue without them. In my first playthrough, all but one of the characters survived the night, and I had a lot of fun going back and making sure none of them did. I’m really looking forward to what Supermassive does next with the genre or IP.” – Sean Mesler

9. Rise of the Tomb Raider

“Very few games pull me in every direction the way Tomb Raider does. It’s not an open world, but each little world is filled with things for me to pick up so I can craft the next bow part or search for another gun piece. It’s a shame Rise of the Tomb Raider was buried between three of the biggest games this year. Because of the four, Rise of the Tomb Raider is definitely the best. From addictively crafting your weapons too stealthily taking out a camp full of guards, Rise does it all and it does it all well. The sequel improves upon its former by having a better villain(s), side quests, and graphics, though the fact that it falls back into the same story beats is disappointing. An ancient army protecting something from fanatics and Lara is caught in the middle. As the story begins to conclude, I even started to see similarities in level structure and boss battles. With that said, it’s certainly one of the best games this year without a question.” – Cody Rostron

8. Ori and the Blind Forest

“What an incredible game. Gorgeous, moving, exciting, vexing in its challenge, Ori and the Blind Forest is the very best game of its style that I have played in decades. It’s so smartly designed, so excellently paced, so expertly crafted….” – Sean Mesler

7. Rocket League

“The craziest thing is that Rocket League isn’t a simple game where you and your two teammates run around like grade school kids. Scoring goals and winning games requires a ton of strategy and constant communication between teammates, and I love that fact. This metagame makes Rocket League infinitely more playable.” – John Newby

6. Batman: Arkham Knight

“No game, in my opinion, had a better presentation this year than Arkham Knight. It’s shot like a movie. Each camera move has a purpose and reason for being where it is, and the cinematography builds tension and spectacle like few games do. The pinpoint gameplay that Rocksteady does so well shines in this gorgeous open world of Gotham City. With a fantastic voice cast like Mark Hamill, Kevin Conroy, John Noble, Tara Strong, and Johnathan Banks filling out this dark gothic interpretation of Gotham, it’s hard to imagine a more polished game.” – Cody Rostron

5. Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain

“Without question, Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain offers some of the most detailed and intricate gameplay of any game this year. You can truly approach your objectives however you choose, the tools at your disposable are myriad, and the options for experimentation make the central gameplay loop immensely satisfying.” – Eric Gerson

4. Fallout 4

“It doesn’t really make any sense. Fallout 4 doesn’t have the greatest visuals. Combat is better elsewhere. Inventory management is fine but not revolutionary. I’ve even been known to wish another developer created it. Yet, Bethesda Studios crafted one of the most playable and addictive games of the year.

Even after leveling up, the next level feels within reach. So you play “just one more quest” over and over to unlock that coveted perk you’ve had your eye one. Or you scrounge for enough loot to upgrade your weapons, armor, or settlement one piece at a time. And this loop perpetuates, untethered by time or personal responsibilities, because the upgrades never feel marginal. You’re always getting a nice boost and the momentum carries you into the next dozen hours of gameplay.” – Sean Capri

3. Dying Light

“On the surface, Dying Light shouldn’t be that great or in-depth of a game, but I found the first-person combat and parkour abilities extremely entertaining. Climbing abandoned buildings to find secret entrances made the exploring more nuanced, and it totally made killing enemies easier. Jumping up and kicking zombies to their doom was great, as was setting them on fire with flammable ninja stars. Seriously, that’s a pretty cool way to mess up some zombies…

…Dying Light has a great combination in the vertical world, fun combat, and genuinely likable characters. I don’t think I played a more entertaining game in 2015.” – John Newby

2. The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt

“”Geralt is a fantastic central character. Some RPG’s, especially older ones, make you play as a created character that happens to be a mute, but Geralt already has a history and a personality. There is no changing his race, hair color, and voice. He’s the same gruff guy with variations in every play through. And that kind of thing adds to the story. Characters have a set way to react to him or act around him. It gives everything a certain cohesive feeling that most games bounce around with clever writing, but all the clever writing is saved for the characters themselves. Triss, Yennefer, Ciri, Dandelion, Zoltan, and Sigismund are excellent and fully realized surrounding cast. Each of them with their history involving Geralt.” – Cody Rostron

1. Bloodborne

“From its complete commitment to its theme, and aesthetic, oozing in gothic horror, to its impeccable and massive world design, to its rich sound design, this game’s presentation is as close to perfect as I have experienced in my 35 plus years of gaming. But, what Bloodborne really did was make me into a better gamer. Not kidding. It made me faster, smarter, and rediscover things about myself that I had lost years ago. It made me truly appreciate challenge and the feeling of overcoming seemingly insurmountable odds that is so purely satisfying and gratifying, which is why I loved video games my whole life….

…Yes, I will say it; Bloodborne is the best game I have ever played. Good luck to all games in the future. You have quite the bar to get over.” – Sean Mesler

“This is back-to-basics gameplay combined with the year’s best art direction and sense of setting. Bloodborne isn’t a horror game, per se, but it’s effectively unsettling. You are dropped in to a world you don’t understand, populated by insatiably violent beasts and unsympathetic onlookers. With a giant, serrated chopping weapon in one hand and a stay-back gunpowder blaster in the other, Bloodbore gives you all that is needed for a gorey, visceral, sweaty-palmed experience.” – Sean Capri

So there they are; We The Nerdy’s Top Ten Games of 2015! Did your favorite make the list? What was your number one game of the year? Let us know in the comments below or on our Facebook page. Now, bring on 2016!